Manhwa

Characteristics

The author or artist of a manhwa is called a manhwaga (). They take on the task of creating a comic that fits a certain format. Manhwa is read in the same direction as English books, horizontally and from left to right, because Korean is normally written and read horizontally. It can also be written and read vertically from right to left, top to bottom. Webtoons tend to be structured differently in the way they are meant for scrolling where manga is meant to be looked at page by page. Manhwa, unlike their manga counterpart, is often in color when posted on the internet, but in black & white when in a printed format.

Manhwa art differs from manga and manhua as well with its distinct features. The bodies of characters are often realistically proportioned, while the faces remain unrealistic. Manhwas also often have very detailed clothing on their characters as well as intricate backgrounds. Webtoons use vertical scrolling to their advantage to demonstrate movement or the passage of time. Manhwa webtoons are also recognized for having simplified dialogue compared to print.

Etymology and history

Linguistically, manhwa, manga (漫画) and manhua (漫画) all mean 'comics' in Korean, Japanese and Chinese respectively. Manga comes from the Japanese word 漫画, (katakana: マンガ; hiragana: まんが) which is composed of two kanji 漫 (man) meaning 'whimsical or impromptu' and 画 (ga) meaning 'pictures'. The same term is the root of the Korean word for comics, 'manhwa', and the Chinese word 'manhua'. The Korean manhwa, the Japanese manga and the Chinese phrase manhua are cognates () and their histories and influences intertwine with each other.

Originally the term manhua in Chinese vocabulary was an 18th-century term used in Chinese literati painting. The term manga (漫画) was used in Japan to mean "comics" in the late 19th century, when it became popular. Since then, manhua (漫画) and manhwa () have also come to mean 'comics' in Chinese and Korean respectively.

Although in a traditional sense, the terms manga/manhua/manhwa had a similar meaning of comical drawing broadly, in English the terms manhwa and manhua generally designate the manga-inspired comic strips. Manhwaga were not culturally isolated, and the influx of manga into the Korean comics market had a strong effect on the art and content of many artists' manhwa.

Political cartoon slowly reemerged following the establishment of the Republic of Korea (commonly known as South Korea) in 1948. Popular artist Kim Yong-hwan started Korea's first comic magazine, Manhwa Haengjin, in 1948, but it was quickly shut down because the authorities disapproved of the cover.

During the Korean war, Manhwa was used with the aim of boosting the morale of the public, however there was also doctrine and propaganda on some manhwa leaflets and books, for example was "Hong Gil Dong". The popularity of comics rose during the 1950s and 1960s, creating diversity of styles and subject matter which led to the construction of new genres such as sunjeong (or soonjung), stories containing romance that are aimed at young women. Also around this time another more humorous genre, myeongnyang or happy comics had become popular in order to counteract gritty ones. Manhwabang (lit. comics room), comics cafés and stores that allowed readers to pay a set rate to sit and read comics were also introduced to the public, creating a positive atmosphere around the comics. In response to the increasing publication of comics, as well as social and political changes within South Korea, the government began to enforce censorship laws and, by the mid-1960s, created a comics distribution monopoly that further censored manhwa. Then the changing courses of manhwa history occurred during times of Manhwa Revolution when the authorities formed many commissions many times who oversees manhwa publications as well as community movements in order to suppress manhwa fanaticism among childrens and in order to address parents' concerns. Around this time was when Manhwa had come up in North Korea as well.

Webtoons

Then in the early 2000s, the majority of Manhwa was transferred to online sources due to economic collapse that South Korea had experienced at the end of the millennium. The online publication of Manhwa significantly increased its popularity outside Korea. This led to the South Korean search portal to launch LINE Webtoon, a platform for distributing online Manhwa.

The term "Webtoon" () is a portmanteau of the Korean words 웹 meaning web and 카툰 meaning cartoon. The term was first coined on 8 August 2000, by Chollian, one of South Korea's oldest and now discontinued internet service engines. Webtoons are the digital form of manhwa that first came into popularity in the early 2000s due to their free access and availability on the internet. It was also beneficial to creators because it helped them get around strict South Korean censorship laws. Webtoons encourage amateur writers to publish their own stories for others to read. Since their creation, webtoons have gained popularity around the globe and have even been adopted outside of Korea as another form of comic publication. This is credited to their unique format and pay model.

In 2014 WEBTOON's global website and mobile app were launched, revolutionizing the comic world's way of reading for entertainment. Also, around this time JunKoo Kim, the person that started LINE Webtoon, had reported that Webtoon was used in 60 countries, had 55 million monthly users, and 100 billion annual views.

{{lang|ko-Latn|Manhwa}} outside of Korea

Manhwa has reached all over the world now. With websites such as Toptoon, a webtoon company from Korea that also has a global service in DayComcis (former ToptoonPlus), people are able to access a wide variety of comics from their phones. There are also places like WEBTOON that not only allow people to read original comics, but make them as well, opening up this aspect of Korean culture for everyone to take part in.

But despite that, the relative obscurity of Korean culture in the Western world has caused the word manhwa to remain somewhat unknown in the English-speaking countries. English translations of manhwa have achieved success by targeting the manga and anime community, to the extent that manhwa were marketed as manga by the American publisher Tokyopop.

United States

Sanho Kim was the first manhwa artist working in the States. During the 1960s and 1970s, he worked for publishers Charlton Comics, Warren Publishing, Iron Horse Publishing, Skywald Publications, DC Comics, and Marvel Comics.

According to journalist Paul Gravett, in 1987 Eastern Comics published the first original manhwas in the United States.

Due to the explosion of manga's popularity in the Americas, many of the licensed titles acquired for the American market seek to emulate the popular elements of other successful series. Recently, long-running webtoons serialized via Internet portal sites (e.g. by Daum Media), like Lezhin Comics and personal homepages have become both the creative and popular destination among the younger generation in Korea. With manga proving to be both popular and commercially successful in Europe and the United States, a number of publishers imported and translated manhwa titles in the hope of reaching the same audience. The readability and left-to-right orientation of manhwa contributed to its growing popularity, as did the realism of the characters and the combination of Eastern and Western styles and mythologies.

Media franchise

Animations based on Korean comics are still relatively rare (though there were several major hits in the late 1980s and early 90s with titles such as Dooly the Little Dinosaur and Fly! Superboard). However, live-action drama series and movie adaptations of manhwa have occurred more frequently in recent years. Full House in 2004 and Goong ("Palace" or "Princess Hours") in 2006 are prominent examples. Below is a list of manhwa titles adapted into television series, web series, films, etc. Not to be confused to another adapted works of adapted from Webtoons.

Korean {{lang|ko-Latn|manhwa}} publishers

Note: select publishers only

• Daewon C.I.
• Haksan Culture Company
• Seoul Cultural Publishers
• Shinwon Agency Corporation

North American {{lang|ko-Latn|manhwa}} imprints

• ADV Manga
• Dark Horse Manhwa
• DramaQueen
• DrMaster Publications
• Manta
• Media Blasters
• Netcomics
• NBM ComicsLit
• Seven Seas Entertainment
• SuperAni
• UDON's Korean Manhwa
• Yen Press's IZE PRESS

Citations

General and cited sources

• Cain, Geoffrey. "Will the Internet Kill the Manhwa Star?" The Far Eastern Economic Review, 6 November 2009
• , Jade Magazine.com, Sep. 2004
• , Jade Magazine.com, Sep. 2004
• "Sang-Sun Park, Les Bijoux Comic Artist", Sequential Tart.com, Aug. 2004
• Manhwa site for "Siya Ben"
• Manhwa site for "Demon Diary" ()
• , Anime Tourist.com, 16 June 2004
• Our Toys, Our Selves: Robot Taekwon V and South Korean Identity
• Nettruyen

References

1. "Mangaka".
2. (24 October 2020). "Riding the Wave: The Steady Rise of Korean Manhwa".
3. (24 July 2020). "The Differences Between Manga, Manhwa and Manhua, Explained".
4. "Differences between manga, manhua, and manhwa".
5. {{Harvnb. Rousmaniere. 2001. Thompson. 2007. Prohl. Nelson. 2012. Fukushima. 2013
6. "Shiji no yukikai(Japanese National Diet Library)".
7. {{Harvnb. Webb. 2006,{{Harvnb. Thompson. 2007. Onoda. 2009. Petersen. 2011
8. {{Harvnb. Thompson. 2007. Onoda. 2009. Prohl. Nelson. 2012. Fukushima. 2013
9. {{harvnb. Petersen. 2011.{{page needed. (January 2023)
10. Sugiyama, Rika. Comic Artists—Asia: Manga, Manhwa, Manhua. New York: Harper, 2004. Introduces the work of comics artists in Japan, Korea, and Hong Kong through artist profiles and interviews that provide insight into their processes.
11. "South Korea - History".
12. Russell, Mark James. (20 October 2012). "Pop Goes Korea: Behind the Revolution in Movies, Music, and Internet Culture". Stone Bridge Press.
13. Matt, VanVolkenburg. (7 May 2019). "Saving Children from 'Unhealthy' Comics in the 1960's and 1970's".
14. Qui, Shelley. "Manhwa".
15. Yadao, Jason S.. (1 October 2009). "The Rough Guide to Manga". Penguin.
16. (7 March 2014). "The Korean Popular Culture Reader". Duke University Press.
17. (16 November 2016). "대한뉴스 제 866호-불량만화를 추방하자". KTV.
18. (22 May 2020). "What are webtoons?".
19. Acuna, Kirsten. "Millions in Korea are obsessed with these revolutionary comics — now they're going global".
20. (24 October 2020). "Riding the Wave: The Steady Rise of Korean Manhwa".
21. (27 March 2005). "Webtoon, Why So Popular?".
22. (13 August 2021). "Toptoon Global to being services for English-speaking countries in full swing as the members surpass 200,000 in number". [[PR Newswire]].
23. "Publishers want you to know: Manhwa is not manga". CNN.
24. [http://lambiek.net/artists/k/kim_san-ho.htm Kim entry], Lambiek's Comiclopedia. Accessed 9 June 2011.
25. [[Paul Gravett]]. [http://www.paulgravett.com/articles/article/make_mine_manhwa Make Mine Manhwa!: Exporting Korean Comics]
26. Arnold, Andrew D.. (25 January 2006). "Life and Literature Without Robots".
27. "Daum 웹툰".
28. (14 November 2014). link. [[No Cut News]]
29. (7 November 2007). link. [[The Dong-A Ilbo]]
30. (26 April 2022). link. [[Naver Blog]]
31. Choi, Tae-hwan. (15 August 2012). "Korea and Japan". [[The Korea Times]].
32. (2 August 2005). link. [[Star News (South Korea). Star News]]
33. link. [[Cine21]]. (14 March 2000)
34. Chung, Suzy. (11 January 2012). "V-I-C-T-O-R-Y! Korean sports movies". The Korea Blog.
35. (19 November 2005). link. [[MyDaily]]
36. (2 May 1990). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
37. (14 September 1999). "SBS 새 만화「둘리의 배낭여행」". [[Yonhap News Agency]].
38. (14 September 1999). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
39. (14 September 1999). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
40. (28 March 2007). link. [[OhmyNews]]
41. link. [[Cine21]]
42. link. Sports Dong-a. (7 September 2022)
43. link. Ha Ji-won. (May 15, 2023). Newsen
44. (30 June 1998). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
45. (29 April 1995). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
46. (25 July 1995). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
47. (29 September 2005). link. [[The Hankyoreh]]
48. (6 May 1998). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
49. (12 September 1998). link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]
50. (11 June 1999). "KBS, 멜러성 미 TV 미니시리즈 방송". [[Yonhap News Agency]].
51. (18 May 2021). "［INTERVIEW］Comic artist Won Soo-yeon talks about reprint of 'Full House' manhwa". [[The Korea Times]].
52. Doyle, Jonathan. (2005). "Phantom Master: Dark Hero From Ruined Empire". Fantasia Fest Official Website.
53. (10 March 2004). link. Digital Times
54. (27 January 2006). link. [[MyDaily]]
55. Han, Sang-hee. (8 July 2008). "Movie-Based Dramas to Fill TV Screens". [[The Korea Times]].
56. (16 November 2006). link. [[MyDaily]]
57. (12 February 2008). link. [[MyDaily]]
58. (1 December 2014). link. [[Star News (South Korea). Star News]]
59. Lee, Won-jin. (19 December 2007). "Myth man sketches his own destiny". [[Korea JoongAng Daily]].
60. Kwon Mee-yoo. (8 January 2008). "Dramas Feature Professionals, Comics". [[The Korea Times]].
61. Lee, Hyo-won. (28 January 2010). "''Kimchi War'' Is Ripe with Drama". [[The Korea Times]].
62. Kwon, Mee-yoo. (10 February 2008). "Dramas Adapt New Way of Production". [[The Korea Times]].
63. (17 February 2012). "Corrosion: Cold Winter Waiting Available for Digital Download - Dread Central".
64. Lee, Eun-sun. (14 June 2013). "Two Big Things Are Coming: The Dream Film of Korea - ''Mr. Go''". Korean Film Council.
65. Yang, Haley. (26 May 2021). "Ong Seong-wu to star in Kakao TV's 'How About a Cup of Coffee?'". [[The JoongAng Ilbo]].
66. link. [[Yonhap News Agency]]. (11 May 2023)
67. (22 May 2023). "Kakao Entertainment brings timeless 1980s romance paperback comic, ACACIA, to life as a vibrant color webtoon".