Metaglossia: The Translation World

Yi Junqing, 54 ans, avait le rang de vice-ministre et dirigeait le Bureau central de compilation et de traduction (编译局, Biānyì jú), un organisme chargé de centraliser les traductions et les recherches de la pensée marxiste.

Discussion among translators, entitled: le monde de la traduction en Chine effleuré par un scandale !!. Forum name: French

Miguel Sáenz, recién elegido miembro de la RAE, habla del pasado y el futuro de una labor no siempre reconocida...

Dr. Elena Lozinsky relates her experiences publishing her doctoral dissertation and Russian translations of Marcel Proust’s In Remembrance of Things Past.

“It’s a miracle, but I found my publisher in a wonderful place—it’s Honoré Champion publishing house in Paris that has a specialized series “Recherches Proustiennes”, remarked Dr. Elena Lozinsky upon being asked how she came to have her doctoral dissertation published. After she defended it, many of those on the panel suggested that she seek out a publishing company to print her work. There was one catch, though: because her dissertation was written and defended in French, the publisher had to be French as well.

Lozinsky took an interesting approach to writing her thesis. The stimulus actually came from her love for Marcel Proust’s seven-part novel, In Remembrance of Things Past, known also by the title In Search of Lost Time. Lozinsky, who is from Russia, studied Proust’s works for a long time, in particular the translations from the original French text into Russian. In comparing the 1989 French re-release of the text with its second Russian edition from 1960, she discovered that there were several discrepancies in translation that greatly affected the reader’s ability to understand the work as a whole. Thus, Lozinsky took it upon herself to begin translating the novel into Russian for a third time.

They live and translate among us. We pity them, we ridicule them, we fear them. But have you ever considered that you yourself may be one of them, that you too may be slowly becoming a zombie trans...

Los traductores Miguel Sáenz, Premio Nacional de Traducción, y Antonio Pau Pedrón, Premio de Ensayo y Humanidades Ortega y Gasset, han sido presentados como candidatos para el sillón "b" de la Real Academia Española, vacante tras el fallecimiento de Eliseo Álvarez-Arenas en septiembre de 2011.
La candidatura de Miguel Sáenz, que ha traducido al castellano a algunos de los más importantes autores en lengua alemana, como Günter Grass, Peter Handke o Thomas Bernhard, ha sido avalada por los académicos Luis Goytisolo, Pedro Álvarez de Miranda y Margarita Salas.
Luis María Anson, Antonio Fernández Alba y Salvador Gutiérrez respaldan a su vez la candidatura de Pau Pedrón, traductor de Rilke, Hölderlin y Novalis y autor de una amplia obra ensayística.
El plazo de presentación de candidaturas termina hoy, a las doce de la noche, pero no es probable que en mitad del puente de la festividad de los Santos los académicos propongan alguna otra más.
La proclamación de las candidaturas tendrá lugar el próximo 8 de noviembre, en Cádiz, en un pleno que la Real Academia Española celebrará en esta ciudad con motivo del bicentenario de la Constitución. El 15 de noviembre se procederá al elogio de los candidatos y una semana más tarde tendrán lugar las votaciones.
Nacido en Larache, Marruecos, en 1932, Sáenz cursó estudios de derecho y filología germánica en la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, fue traductor de las Naciones Unidas en sus sedes de Nueva York y Viena y enseñó teoría de la traducción en el Instituto Universitario de Lenguas Modernas y Traductores de Madrid.
Su actividad como traductor literario comenzó en 1976 con "La Carta breve para un largo adiós", de Peter Handke. Posteriormente tradujo la casi totalidad de la obra de Thomas Bernhard y el teatro íntegro de Bertolt Brecht, así como a otros autores de lengua alemana o inglesa, como Goethe, Franz Kafka, Alfred Döblin, Henry Roth, Christa Wolf, Joseph Roth, Salman Rushdie, W. G. Sebald, Michael Ende o Joseph Conrad.
Gran conocedor de la obra de Günter Grass, Miguel Sáenz obtuvo el premio de traducción Aristeion por la versión española de "Es cuento largo", del escritor alemán.
También ha ganado el premio nacional español de traducción "Fray Luis de León" por su versión de "El Rodaballo", de Grass; el Premio Nacional al conjunto de la obra de un traductor; la Medalla Goethe, la Orden del Mérito de la República Federal de Alemania y el Premio Nacional de Traducción de Austria.
Sáenz fue, además, teniente auditor jurídico del Cuerpo Jurídico del Ejército del Aire y llegó a ser general auditor del Cuerpo Jurídico de la Defensa.
Antonio Pau, el otro candidato al sillón "b" de la Real Academia Española, nació en Torrijos (Toledo), en 1953. Es notario, registrador de la propiedad y abogado del estado.

Long-time followers of this blog know that its normal course is occasionally diverted to make space for an anniversary. This time it'is being done to commemorate the birthday of a thoroughly Professional Expert Translator. Furthermore he was a pioneer teacher of translation. His name was Rifaa’a Raafi’ al-Tahtawi (here Tahtawi for short), and he was born on October 15, 1801, in the prosperous town of Tahta (hence his surname), on the Nile about 500 km south of Cairo (see the Bahig Edwards entry in References).

In the 19th century a radical intellectual Arab Awakening (al-nahda) took place with lasting effect in Egypt and the Lebanon. (For a classic history of the movement, see the Antonius book in References.) Tahtawi was one of the leading figures of its Egyptian branch.
”Tahtawi was among the first Egyptian scholars to write about Western cultures in an attempt to bring about a reconciliation and an understanding between Islamic and Christian civilizations... It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the contribution made by Tahtawi to Egyptian society in the century, and the impact he had on the further development of the modern nation. He symbolized the best of the syncretism between East and West, tradition and modernity.”
His life was so full and active that it’s impossible to do him justice in a blog post. There are short, perceptive biographies of him here and here. I’ll have to make do with just one of his activities as translator and educator, namely his school of translators.

Tahtawi was a technical and legal translator, not a literary one. (He did translate Fénelon's Télémaque, but that was for its political allusions.) Indeed he was arguably the most influential Arabic technical translator and translator trainer since Hunayn Ibn Ishaq in the 9th century. One of his most important translations, for instance, was of the French Code Civil (Cairo, 1866). His school of translators, the madrasat al-alsun (School of Languages), was intended to train translators of this kind.

He set it up in 1833-34, not long after his return to Cairo from five years of study in Paris. It was one of the first schools of translators on modern lines anywhere, a century before such schools began to spread in Europe and other parts of the world. (There are now hundreds of them.) Where did he get the idea? How did he get the support?

Frank Moore Cross, Biblical Scholar, Dies at 91
By WILLIAM YARDLEY
Published: October 19, 2012
Frank Moore Cross, an influential Harvard biblical scholar who specialized in the ancient cultures and languages that helped shape the Hebrew Bible and who played a central role in interpreting the Dead Sea Scrolls, died on Tuesday in Rochester. He was 91.

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The Leon Levy Expedition to Ashkelon
Frank Moore Cross on an expedition to Ashkelon, Israel.

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The cause was complications of pneumonia, family members said.

“When you walked into his classes, you felt you were on the frontier of knowledge in the field,” said Peter Machinist, who studied under Dr. Cross as an undergraduate at Harvard and now holds the endowed professorship there that Dr. Cross had held until his retirement in 1992. “Whatever happened in the field would come to him first, before it got published, because people wanted to know what he thought.”

Dr. Cross grew up in Birmingham, Ala., the son of a Protestant minister. After earning a divinity degree, he went to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and became one of the most prominent students of William F. Albright, whose work is part of the foundation of biblical archaeological studies.

The field was shaken in 1947 after a Bedouin goatherd stumbled across ancient scrolls in a cave west of the Dead Sea. More scrolls were eventually found in other caves near the site of an ancient settlement called Qumran, and many people believed that they would reveal new insights into the Bible.

Lin Wen-yueh, a prominent Japanese-Chinese translator from Taiwan, is coming to Guangzhou on Oct 21 to share her experiences in translating The Tale of Genji, a world-renowned Japanese classical literature.

Written by a noblewoman named Murasaki Shikibu in the early years of the 11th century, the tale concentrates on the romantic life of Genji, a prince, and describes the customs of the aristocratic society of the time. Most of the female characters in the tale have a tragic ending after struggling for love and life in the palace. As a female, Lin successfully makes the tale more tear-jerking with her delicate writing style.

3 pm-5 pm, Oct 21. Fangsuo Commune, TaiKoo Hui Shopping Mall, 383 Tianhe Lu, Tianhe district, Guangzhou. 020-3868-2327.

SALT LAKE CITY — It took Omar Canals, Héctor Grillone and others about seven grueling months of intense reading, examining, inspecting, editing and reviewing to produce a polished Spanish translation of the 608-page biography of LDS Church President Thomas S. Monson.

When it was finished, Canals rejoiced.

“I was reunited with my family again,” he said with a wide smile.

Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Canals has worked in the translation department for the LDS Church as a conference interpreter for more than 20 years. During that time, he has translated a vast amount of material for the church and interpreted for several church leaders, beginning with Elder LeGrand Richards of the Quorum of the Twelve in the October 1972 general conference.

“He was in his late 80s, he took off, rarely paused for a breath and most of the time he quoted Isaiah. If he was in the middle of a sentence and the light went off, he would end and sit down. Interpreting for him was an unbelievable experience,” Canals said. “Over the years, I have interpreted for six prophets, including presidents Harold B. Lee, Spencer W. Kimball, Ezra Taft Benson, Howard W. Hunter, Gordon B. Hinckley and many times for Thomas S. Monson, as well as most of the other senior brethren.”

From 2000 to 2003, Canals and his wife, Beatriz, presided over the Colombia Bogota North Mission. Before his mission, he translated President Hunter’s biography and several other books written by general authorities over the years.

The Spanish version of President Monson’s biography, titled “Al Rescate” (Deseret Book, $22.99), does not yet have a release date, but is forthcoming.

The original English version, “To the Rescue,” by Heidi S. Swinton, was released in 2010. The book chronicles the life of a man who has spent more than six decades serving others. Its pages are filled with stories from his childhood to his ministry as president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Canals was grateful to be part of such a worthwhile project.

Cécile VIGNAU
Pour la neuvième année consécutive, l’association Eizie propose un atelier de traduction du basque vers d’autres langues. Au cœur de l’atelier cette année, l’ouvrage d’Eider Rodriguez, Katu jendea (2010). Trois jours durant, à Pau, et jusqu’à demain, l’écrivaine et ses cinq traducteurs réfléchissent aux problématiques de la retranscription fiable et fidèle de l’œuvre. Le tout mené en partenariat avec le master traduction de l’université de Pau.
La réflexion est menée autour de trois modes de traduction : directe, indirecte et en collaboration. Et pour illustrer le débat, les cinq traducteurs travaillent à ces trois modalités : André Gabatsou se fonde sur la version en castillan, traduite du basque par l’auteure elle-même. Henrike Olosalo et Peter Smaardijk partent directement du basque vers le néerlandais dans un travail en binôme. Joana Pochelu et Gabriele Schwab traduisent du basque, respectivement vers le français et l’allemand.
Processus de traduction
Le séminaire est l’occasion de revenir sur les hésitations, les choix faits, les différentes interprétations, d’échanger sur les problématiques de l’exercice délicat et minutieux du processus de traduction. La confrontation des différents traducteurs permet d’évoquer les particularités des langues et des cultures avec lesquelles ils travaillent, les traductions des formes propres à chaque culture. Pour ce faire, la présence d’Eider Rodriguez apporte des précisions au texte, l’écrivaine gipuzkoar ayant elle-même traduit son récit Katu jendea vers le castillan.
Eizie
A l’initiative de ces journées, Eizie (Euskal Itzultzaile, Zuzentzaile eta Interpreteen Elkartea / Association de traducteurs, correcteurs et interprètes en langue basque), une association qui voit le jour en 1987, fruit d’un noyau de professionnels basques de la traduction, conscients de l’importance de structurer un secteur professionnel en net progrès. Ils œuvrent depuis à la traduction littéraire du basque vers d’autres langues, une manière de faire connaître la production – du moins un échantillon – au-delà du Pays Basque. Pour la première fois et grâce à un accord entre Eizie et le gouvernement de Gasteiz, les ateliers de traduction se déroulent à Pau. Une initiative louable au vu de la présence d’un master traduction au sein de la faculté.
Une lecture multilingue autour de Katu jendea et accompagné d’une interprétation musicale est prévue au château de Pau demain à 15 heures.

AFFLIGEANTE EST LA RÉALITÉ D’UNE VIE SANS TOI, PÉNIBLE, DOULOUREUSE PAR TON ABSENCE D’ÉTERNITÉ, CELLE-CI PARAÎTRAIT ÉTRANGE, INSENSÉE, ABSURDE SANS LA RAHMA CÉLESTE QUI EST EN NOUS ET DONT LES LUEURS LUMINEUSES ÉCLAIRENT NOTRE EXISTENCE DANS LA DÉCHIRANTE PEINE DE T’ÉVOQUER AU PASSÉ.

Tu n’es plus de ce monde, certes, depuis ce fatidique dimanche 29 septembre 2002, où la volonté du Tout-Puissant s’est accomplie pour te rappeler à Lui à l’aube de ta prometteuse jeunesse. Une empreinte indélébile, marquante dans ce que fut hélas ta trop courte vie, nous rappelle perpétuellement tes qualités humaines, tes valeurs de sociabilité, de sensibilité et ton amour pour l’Autre et tu ne cessais à ce propos de dire, je te cite : «Tout est éphémère ici bas pour que le genre humain puisse dans l’affection tout partager avec ses semblables.» Par vocation d’affinités intellectuelles, avec la langue allemande, tu as brillamment soutenu un mémoire de licence en traduction-interprétariat centré sur le droit civil allemand, thème ardu pour un non-initié, car relevant d’un champ d’application législatif et de terminologie juridique propre à ce pays. Ceci, faut-il tristement le rappeler, dans des conditions horribles des lendemains du lâche assassinat de ton frère cadet, ton complice que tu aimais tant et à la mémoire duquel tu as dédié l’œuvre universitaire. Une victime de la sinistre tragédie nationale, inexorablement fauchée de la vie un sombre samedi 13 mai 1995 dans l’innocence de ses 21 printemps pendant la semaine de mansuétude de l’Aïd El-Adha. Tu as connu toutes les rédactions : La Nouvelle République, El Watan, Liberté, La Tribune qui étaient pour toi autant de refuges de résistance pour contribuer sereinement à conjurer la fatalité des moments difficiles, dans un élan de solidarité et de fraternité avec tes confrères devenus de fidèles amis, consternés par ta brutale disparition. Que d’articles, d’entretiens, d’interviews, d’éditoriaux, de réflexions immortalisent ta motivation «innée» d’être au service d’une opinion qui constituait ton référent privilégié d’écoute pour la tenir objectivement informée selon l’éthique de la profession à laquelle tu étais rigoureusement attaché. Il nous revient dans un éclat de souvenirs certains de tes billets révélateurs de ton érudition d’interculturalité parus dans tes titres d’une symbolique d’un savoir rayonnant, parmi lesquels : • Allemagne : la traduction au service de l’interculturalité. • Littérature : la lecture comme seuil de la critique • Gunter Grass : une empreinte sur la littérature allemande. Tu étais ainsi féru de littérature écrite et orale dans l’étendue de toute sa profonde expressivité d’âme algérienne, à l’image de ta réflexion sur quelques titres : Dib, Yacine et les autres Mouloud Mammeri, un militant de l’amazighité et de l’algérianité dans l’universalité. Le théâtre algérien était aussi ta passion pour lui avoir consacré plusieurs textes dont le plus éloquent «L’art de la scène pour dire la vie» republié à titre d’hommage posthume par La Nouvelle République le 2 octobre 2002. Sans oublier le pathétique billet de l’annonce de la mort d’un des pionniers de la scène théâtrale algérienne, le grand Ali Abdoun, intitulé dans l’affection «Ammi Ali n’est plus». Avec ta vaste culture universaliste, tu célébrais à ta manière, dans l’évasion d’un moment d’inspiration, l’art du royaume de la poésie par des déclamations inoubliables, parfois en langue allemande et souvent avec les sublimes envolées de Ben Sahla, B’na Messaieb et de Si Mohand Ou M’hand.Repose cher et inoubliable fils prodige dans la rahma et la quiétude d’être à jamais dans la pensée pérenne de tous ceux qui t’ont connu et aimé pour ta bonté, ta rectitude et ton humilité.

Associate Translator, The Hague
Closing Date: Saturday, 03 November 2012

International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
Churchillplein 1
The Hague, The Netherlands
Tel: +31 (0)70 512 5285
Fax: +31 (0)70 512 8668

Job Title
ASSOCIATE TRANSLATOR, P2
Department/ Office
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
Duty Station
THE HAGUE
Posting Period
4 October 2012-3 November 2012
Job Opening number
12-LAN-ICTY-25333-R-THE HAGUE (R)
United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity
Organizational Setting and Reporting
This position is located in the Outreach Unit, Communications Section, Registry.
Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the Head of Unit, the incumbent of the post:
Translates, subject to revision, a variety of texts from English into BCS and BCS into English, respecting deadlines and using appropriate terminology.
Must aim at a high standard of accuracy, consistency and faithfulness to the spirit, style and nuances of the original; observe the established terminology and usage, adapting the language and style to take into account the different communication channels in use: web, print and audio-visual products.
Produces translations whose level of revision required should be minimal.
Uses all sources of reference, information and consultation relevant to the text at hand and carries out any research required.
Maintains a certain speed and volume of output, due account being taken of the difficulty of the text and the specified deadlines.
Checks the accuracy of the online versions of the translated texts.
Identifies new terminology material and submits it for the consideration of revisers.
Supports the work of the Communication Section overall, and in particular of the Web Unit on content-related issues, provides help in researching materials and information and assisting with potential backlog issues.
Reviews existing material, proposes and implements improvements not limited to translation.
Contributes to the design and implementation of projects and activities of the Outreach section aimed at the audiences in the region of the former Yugoslavia;
Performs other ad hoc tasks within the Communications Section when required.
Competencies
Professionalism - Good writing skills; high standards of accuracy, consistency and faithfulness to the spirit, style and nuances of the original text; good grasp of the subject matter; ability to use all sources of reference, consultation and information relevant to the text at hand; ability to maintain an adequate speed and volume of output, taking into account the difficulty of the text and the specified deadline. Must have the ability to work quickly and accurately under pressure. Some degree of specialization in subjects with which the Tribunal deals, i.e. legal. Familiarity with terminology databases and knowledge of relevant computer software including word-processing programmes. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations.

4 a.m., rubs her eyes, grabs her car keys and drives to the American Red Cross in Monroe.

There, she’ll join caseworkers, then head to apartments in Monroe where an electrical fire has forced dozens of individuals from their homes.

Savannah, an 18-year-old senior at Monroe High, serves as a translator for the American Red Cross Disaster Action Team in Union County. She is on call one week each month, from 5 p.m. to 5 a.m., and travels with caseworkers to disaster sites to help victims who speak Spanish but not English.

It’s her job to assess each situation with firefighters or police, then speak with victims. She helps families fill out emergency assistance forms – multiple pages she translates word for word, which can take up to an hour to finish.

Calls of distress often come in before the sun rises, Savannah said, so she resorts to using faint car lights to help victims fill out paperwork. Once the paperwork is complete, she plays with any children at the scene, giving parents a moment to talk among themselves.

“The great thing is, the Red Cross helps you no matter who you are,” Savannah said. “With kids, I don’t really talk about what’s going on. It’s about taking their minds off of what their parents are going through.”

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/10/08/3585739/senior-serves-as-translator.html#storylink=cpy

UN translators in New York raise funds for Syrian refugees
News Stories, 20 September 2012

© UNHCR

Members of the UN Arabic Translation Service who helped raise funds for Syrian refugees pose for a photograph with UNHCR staff in New York.

Alarmed by the growing humanitarian crisis in the Middle East, Arabic translators at the United Nations headquarters in New York have raised $12,700 (£7,845) for UNHCR's emergency operation for tens of thousands of displaced Syrians.

"This is a real achievement. This significant contribution will make a difference in the lives of numerous Syrian refugees who are in dire need of protection and assistance," said Udo Janz, director of UNHCR's liaison office in New York.

The situation in Syria is a major global concern of the UN Secretariat in New York, where documents and reports are prepared daily on the humanitarian and political crisis in the Middle East country. These keep the translators very busy as well as focused and informed on the subject.

Staff from the UN's Arabic Translation Service were so moved by what they were reading and hearing that they decided to do something to help. In only three days, they managed to collect well over £7,500. They recently handed over a cheque to Janz at UNHCR's liaison office.

"We had been thinking about doing something for quite a time," said one translator, Nahla Baydoun, who has worked in New York for four years but originates from the Lebanon. "After the first colleagues began to put money together, others quickly followed with significant contributions. It was an informal process and we were very positively surprised by the impact of our initiative."

Translators with the Arabic Translation Service raise US$12,700 for UNHCR's emergency operations for displaced Syrians.

NEW YORK, United States, September 19 (UNHCR) – Alarmed by the growing humanitarian crisis in the Middle East, Arabic translators at the United Nations headquarters in New York have raised US$12,700 for UNHCR's emergency operation for tens of thousands of displaced Syrians.

"This is a real achievement. This significant contribution will make a difference in the lives of numerous Syrian refugees who are in dire need of protection and assistance," said Udo Janz, director of UNHCR's liaison office in New York.

The situation in Syria is a major global concern of the UN Secretariat in New York, where documents and reports are prepared daily on the humanitarian and political crisis in the Middle East country. These keep the translators very busy as well as focused and informed on the subject.

Staff from the UN's Arabic Translation Service were so moved by what they were reading and hearing that they decided to do something to help. In only three days, they managed to collect US$12,700. They recently handed over a cheque to Janz at UNHCR's liaison office.

"We had been thinking about doing something for quite a time," said one translator, Nahla Baydoun, who has worked in New York for four years but originates from the Lebanon. "After the first colleagues began to put money together, others quickly followed with significant contributions. It was an informal process and we were very positively surprised by the impact of our initiative."

Translator of ‘Talcott Parsons and Sociology’ said: “It is true that each society has its own problems, but science is a universal matter and basically any theory that is confined in a temporal or spatial situation, is not sicence at all.

Renowned Chinese translator Zheng Yonghui died Sunday morning, September 9, of illness.

Zheng was born in Haiphong, Vietnam in 1918, but his hometown was Zhongshan, South China's Guangdong Province.

He graduated from the Law School of Shanghai Aurora University at the age of 24. He then worked as an assistant professor at his alma mater.

Zheng later taught French at the Institute of International Relations in Beijing. His teaching career ended when he was in his 80s, after seeing off his last postgraduate student.

Zheng was respected as a professor and also for his remarkable achievements in literary translations, especially of French works.

Publishing his first translation in 1933, Zheng Yonghui worked on many of the world's most famous masterpieces. His signature translation include Nana by Zolaesque, Quatre-Vingt-Treize by Hugo, and Salammbo by Flaubert.

Joanna Trzeciak is the recipient of the 2012 Found in Translation Award for her rendering of a collection of poems by celebrated poet Tadeusz Różewicz.

The prize, which will be officially presented on 26 October, is Poland's most prestigious award for translators of Polish literature.
Trzeciak's almost 400-page volume, Sobbing Superpower, gives a broad cross-section of Różewicz’s writing, starting with his debut collection Anxiety dating from 1947.
The critic Edward Hirsch wrote in the preface that “Joanna Trzeciak's new translation displays Różewicz''s supernatural simplicity, his stark diction and sudden turns.”
At 91, Różewicz endures as the most prominent among Poland’s living poets.
Joanna Trzeciak is currently associate professor of Russian and Translation Studies at Kent State University in Ohio.
Her translations of Polish works include Miracle Fair: Selected Poems of Wisława Szymborska, which like Sobbing Superpower, was published by W.W. Norton.
The Found in Translation Award was established several years ago by the Polish cultural institutes in London and New York, the Kraków-based Polish Book Institute and W.A.B. Publishers of Warsaw.
Its past recipients include Bill Johnston for Różewicz’s New Poems, Danuta Borchardt for Pornography by Witold Gombrowicz, Antonia Lloyd-Jones for Paweł Huelle’s The Last Supper and Clare Cavanagh and Stanisław Barańczak for Wislawa Szymborska’s Here. (mk/nh)

With a few exceptions, Finnish fiction retains a far lower international standing than that of its Nordic neighbours.

This year’s state translation prize has been awarded to Czech translator Vladimir Piskor. He has translated nearly 30 Finnish literary works into the Czech language.

These include books by major contemporary authors such as Kari Hotakainen, Leena Krohn, Rosa Liksom and Juha Seppälä.

Piskor says he particularly admires the writing styles of Kari Hotakainen and Kristina Carlson, especially last year’s novel Mister Darwin’s Garden.

At the moment, Piskor is busy at work with recent books by Hotakainen and Leena Lander. He has already won a prize from the Czech Translators’ Society for a translation of Finnish author Asko Sahlberg’s novel Feather.

The Ministry of Education and Culture grants the award of 15,000 euros annually to a foreign translator who has helped to spread awareness of Finnish literature abroad. With a few exceptions such as Sofi Oksanen,

Translating Ricardo Reis....

In an article in this week's New Statesman, the translator Ollie Brock likens translation to the feat of “cooking the same meal twice with different ingredients”. This is especially true in poetry, where the nuances of language matter all the more – idiosyncratic turns of phrase, witty wordplay and rhyme are so easily lost in translation. In this sense, it is less about cooking the same meal than about reproducing the exact same flavours; in poetry, unlike prose, form often precedes content. And even with poets who are notable for their clarity of thought and expression – as is the case with Ricardo Reis, in my opinion the most intellectualised and philosophy-driven of Fernando Pessoa’s heteronyms – it is easy to end up with a lesser, synthesised version of the original, that by virtue of having been translated almost word-for-word (without being literal), conveys meaning but not feeling.

I didn't study languages seriously, so my knowledge of translation techniques, such as it is, is entirely intuitive. So, to use the “hortatory subjunctive” held dear by Reis (a verb form that sounds rather clunky in English but has the unintended, and arguably enriching, side-effect of highlighting Reis’s belief in a fate-imposed imperative), let this article stand as a first-hand account of the difficulties of translation for a bilingual amateur.

Firstly, although I am familiar with Reis (his no frills approach to writing and general angst made him a high school literature class favourite), I took to rereading as much of his work as possible in order to internalise his main themes. This proved helpful in the second stage, in which I sought to translate what (I thought) he was trying to say, whilst remaining faithful to word choice and sentence structure. One of the most difficult aspects of translating Reis’s poetry was sifting through the shades of polysemy - so getting to know him, as it were, definitely helped. Lastly, I reread the translations and changed certain words or sentences that sounded less than poetic. This involved a heated internal debate as to whether Reis’s trademark usage of hyperbatons was worth preserving; while they work well in romantic languages, they often obscure meaning in English. Furthermore, pronouns are often implied in Portuguese, while in English, less so – adding pronouns, in my opinion, rendered his verse less elegant, yet it was entirely necessary to preserve meaning. This last point epitomises the struggle between aesthetics and meaning that makes translators’ lives that much more difficult. Consequently, I found that toying with punctuation – sprinkling dashes here and there (I have a bit of a penchant for them, if you’ve noticed) – was a good way to clarify my interpretation of what he was conveying, without necessarily changing words.

Ms. Maria Nobrega

My first university degree was in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages), later on I obtained a Translator´s degree and an M.A. in Linguistics (Ohio University, through a Fulbright scholarship). I worked as a university lecturer in Argentina for several years, and in 1986 I joined the Spanish Translation Service at UN Headquarters in New York. I have been a staff member of the Organization for a good part of my adult life, and I would do it all over again. Most of my career has taken place at Headquarters, but I also enjoyed working at other duty stations: Nairobi (in 1994 and 1998) and Geneva, where I was Chief of the Spanish Section between 2003 and 2005. At present I am the Chief of the Spanish Service, and it is very rewarding that my career at the UN will have its culmination where it started, all those years ago.

Why work for the United Nations?

I first learned about the United Nations when I was in high school and my Contemporary History teacher entrusted me with preparing an “exhibition” about the Organization and its work.
I was attracted to the idea of working "for a better world", although at the time I did not know exactly how I would do it. Later on, as I discovered a vocation for translation (and the necessary skills) and found out that there were translation services at the UN, I decided that was what I wanted to do, and
I have been fortunate enough to do it.

Preparing for the United Nations Language Competitive Examination

I did not receive any special training for passing the UN examination, but my background in translation studies and, I suppose, my excellent knowledge of English and French, as well as good writing skills in my own mother tongue, Spanish, helped me pass the competitive examination.

Challenges and rewards of the job

The texts we are called to translate at the UN are as varied as the issues the Organization deals with, and this is both an advantage and a challenge. It is an advantage, or a positive aspect, because there is interest in variety, and surely there will always be some documents that will appeal to our personal preferences and thus be more interesting to translate. For me, those are the reports or resolutions, etc, that refer to important events in the international arena, the issues that make the headlines in the media and are reflected in our documents. It is a challenge, because different types of documents require different approaches, and this entails that the translator must be versatile and capable of adapting to the particular demands of a given text. One document will be highly technical in nature, and accurate terminology is of the utmost importance in this case. Another one will deal with a "politically charged" issue, and the nuances of expression of the original must be respected and reflected in the translation. Other challenges are the need to work under pressure and meet very strict deadlines, while keeping in mind the quality and integrity of our translations. But then, I have always liked challenges, so for me this is a positive trait of my job, rather than the opposite.

Recommendations to potential candidates for the United Nations Competitive Examination for Translators

(openPR) - Muenster, Germany. In January 2010, after the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti, freelance translators from Germany and other countries founded the translator aid project Übersetzer-Hilfsprojekt (ÜHIPRO). Since then, the project has been supporting recognised relief organisations and volunteer initiatives, providing development and disaster aid. Each member pays one euro from each finished translation into a fund and then a collective donation is made by ÜHIPRO to selected organisations. Today, the ÜHIPRO project can also rely on the help of non-translators and enterprises willing to support their good cause.

Our latest collective donation in July 2012 went to the town of Ostfildern, which among other causes, provides support for the rebuilding of a primary school destroyed during the earthquake in the Italian town of Mirandola.

Last year ÜHIPRO also made contributions to several relief organisations such as the German section of Doctors without Borders (aid to refugees in Libya), the German aid organisation “A Heart for Children” (famine in East Africa), Malteser Germany and Sr. Caelina’s children’s home in Ichinoseki (Japan) and Somaly Mam (fighting sexual slavery in Cambodia), to name but a few.

Whether you are a translator or not – if you want to receive up-to-date information, send us an email. Everyone can also support ÜHIPRO by choosing our members for their translation jobs.

Véronique Litet est traductrice depuis huit ans. Elle n'a pas connu l'époque des longues séances en bibliothèque pour consulter les dictionnaires et lexiques hyper-spécialisés, ni le texte rédigé à la main. Pendant ses études, elle utilisait déjà les outils informatiques professionnels. Nous l'avons rencontrée pour qu'elle nous explique la fonction de ces outils et, plus globalement, pour en savoir un peu plus sur l'art de la traduction à l'époque des TIC.

Véronique, tu es traductrice free lance. Comment as-tu commencé dans le métier ?

Après mon bac, j'ai fait une maîtrise de Langues Etrangères Appliquées (LEA) spécialisée affaires et commerce. J'ai effectué mon année de maîtrise (la quatrième année, avant le passage au système LMD) en Italie, dans une école spécialisée en traduction et interprétation. C'est à ce moment que j'ai décidé de m'orienter dans le domaine de la traduction.

J’ai obtenu un DESS (aujourd’hui Master 2) de traduction spécialisée Ensuite, j'ai travaillé comme traductrice pendant trois ans en Angleterre, puis pendant quatre ans en Espagne. Je suis rentrée en France voici quelques mois.

Quelles langues traduis-tu ?

Je traduis l'anglais, l'espagnol et l'italien vers le français. Un traducteur travaille de préférence vers sa langue maternelle, même si certains font des traductions dans les deux sens. Mais on est plus à l'aise vers sa langue maternelle, car on en maîtrise les aspects culturels, historiques, etc. La traduction, ce n'est pas que de la compétence linguistique. Il faut avoir une solide culture générale.