This article looks for suggestions for a cross-cultural approach to analyze the cultural politics of adoption. First it deals with the changing aspects of Korean families since industrialization started in the 1960s, because particular cultural elements of Korean families seem to have an crucial effect on adoption. To understand another aspect of the cultural politics of adoption, this article looks into the political economy of international adoption, especially focusing on the U.S.A international or transnational adoption turns out to be a critical terrain in which child welfare and the human rights of children are closely intertwined with in the political economy of the world system. The cultural identity of Korean adopted children seems to be a vital problem which needs to be understood in terms of globalization and transnationalism accompanied by the deterritorialization of Korean culture. In conclusion, this article argues that Korean adopted children overseas should be considered as a part of Korean culture and society, which also becomes an appropriate subject of Korean studies.