By Honorary Reporter Alexandra Polcovnicu from Romania
Photos = Alexandra Polcovnicu

An event to mark the launch of the Romanian-language edition of Nobel laureate Han Kang's novel "We Do Not Part" was held on Oct. 29 at a Humanitas Bookstore branch in Bucharest. 

The translation was done by Diana Yuksel, chair of the Korean language and literature program at the University of Bucharest, Attending the event were Korean Ambassador to Romania Rim Kap-soo; Romanian cultural journalist Marius Constantinescu; and Diana Peca, coordinator of the Korean Center at the Romanian-American University.

Ambassador Rim Kap-soo (second from left) and Diana Yuksel (center) attend an event for the launch of the Romanian-language edition of Han Kang's novel "We Do Not Part."

Ambassador Rim in his opening speech emphasized the significance of Han's work and praised Yuksel's efforts to bring Korean literature to Romanian readers. He also mentioned 2025 being the 20th anniversary of the Korean program at the university. 

Yuksel, who has translated other works of Korean literature into Romanian, described the linguistic and emotional challenges of expressing Han's work into Romanian. She described the dialect on Jeju Island as one of the hardest aspects of the process.

Constantinescu offered a poetic interpretation of "We Do Not Part," calling it "a winter of the soul and history." He said the book evoked coldness and fragility, with snow as a symbol of transformation and melancholy, "a metaphor for a grave."

 
Peca discussed the novel's delicate yet intense nature and its deep historical roots in the events of 1948–49 in Jeju. 

The event concluded with a Korean calligraphy session that allowed attendees to write their names or words inspired by the novel in Hangeul (Korean alphabet) with brushes and ink. The serving of traditional Korean tea and sweets also added to the atmosphere.

An interactive session for Korean calligraphy features brushes and ink.

This event reminded me of my Korean studies at Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca, when I discovered how literature can transcend borders and connect people. I felt pride in seeing a growing audience of Romanians reading, discussing and understanding Korean literature.

I received a signed copy of the Romanian-language edition of "We Do Not Part." 

At the end of the evening, many guests left the bookstore with Romanian-language copies of Han's books like "We Do Not Part," "The Vegetarian," "Human Acts" and "The White Book" signed by Yuksel. 

msjeon22@korea.kr

*This article was written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.