조선왕조실록 국역본에 나타난 文字의 번역 문제

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate some aspects of munja(文字) manifested in the Korean translation of the Chosun Dynasty Annals. In order to do so, we first selected examples containing munja(文字) from the original Chinese text of the Annals, and then we checked whether it was correctly translated into Korean according to the context, by comparing the original with the Korean translation. The result is that,though munja(文字) is translated in various terms, including letter, writing, text, book,and knowledge, more than 70 percent of the examples are shown to take literal translation of munja. In case of translating the Korean classics written in Chinese into Korean, the original Chinese words can be either translated into modern Korean sounds for the words or replaced into different Chinese words that carry the same meaning of the orignal or paraphrased into idioms. However, in case of modern Korean expressions, such as munja, where the same words are used, worries about literal or liberal translation would be less involved. This is probably the reason why over 70% of the munja(文字)examples are done in literal translation. However, just because a word appears in an old document in the same form and pronunciation does not mean that it carries the same meaning. By the same token, in translating munja from the original Chosun Dynasty Annals into modern Korean, we must take the specific context into account. Issues pertinent to translating the Chosun Dynasty Annals into modern Korean, one of which is our case of munja, should be continuously addressed. Provided that the Korean translation of the original Annals would be revised according to the context and, as a consequence, enhance the reader's understanding of the precious cultural legacy, it will well fit into other undertakings of the Annals being currently carried out,including English translation and modernization of it.