Translators' space
Languages of origin
The information on the following pages represents the first attempt in Catalonia to highlight the work of literary translators. For each translator there is a profile of the person and a complete list of all their translations, as well as extracts from some of these works. In time, we hope that this space will become a useful and reliable directory of translators working from and into Catalan.
No culture would question the importance of the promotion of its literary works beyond its borders, for they are clearly among the foremost ambassadors of that culture. Nor does anyone doubt the importance of the reverse route. Translations of universal literature represent a valuable contribution to the culture and language of a country.
Nevertheless, translators often have the feeling that the work they do is considered one more step in the publication of a book. They feel anonymous, because nobody knows them or recognises them, even though it is they who put their names to the translation. But in spite of the pressures of the market, which refuses to acknowledge the importance of their task, most literary translators have left a visible and lasting imprint on the literary landscape of Catalonia.
No book can cross frontiers without the patient dedication and understanding of a translator. Furthermore, translators are not simply responsible for faithfully transposing the contents from one language to another, but very often they act as true intermediaries. They have selected the most representative works, found the right channels for bringing them to the public, and have been lucid commentators on unknown cultures. We wish here to record their efforts.
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Marjan Strojan
Translation in its most basic form is a transfer (in a language) of one’s meaning into another language, retaining that same meaning in the new language. On another level it is (also) a transposition of the form and shape of the original into the forms of speech of the target language.Teresa Salema Cadete
By formulating a “betrayal” accusation, we should ask ourselves by the same token from which standpoint we are talking or writing. In the century of contingency, some essentialist claims could be implicit in such a kind of label applied to someone or something.Montserrat Bacardí
More than a few readers will, undoubtedly, wonder why translation from Spanish into Catalan should be necessary, since all Catalans understand both languages. On the other hand however, translation from Catalan into Spanish would seem logical, since the average Segoviano or Malagueño is not in a position to be able to read Camí de sirga, for instance. In contrast, Catalans are able to decipher the most abstruse subtleties of any text written in Spanish - the original or source language is completely accessible and intelligible to us. Therefore, the essential primary reason for translation - intelligibility - would not appear to be a motivating factor in translations from Spanish to Catalan.Lobsang Chokta Trotsik
Tibetan is a unique and rich language which has its own long historical background. It is completely different from Chinese language and other languages. According to researchers, it is the mother tongue of 14 million people, mostly from the Himalayan regions, including Tibetans.Ide Tsutomu
In 1991, when we saw the first browser called Mosaic in PC, we were shocked by the easiness of the handling of the files in the network. Those years the e-mail started to replace many phone calls.But it was just the beginning.Émile Martel
Let me first thank the organizers of this meeting for their welcome. The name of this City is closely linked to Linguistic rights, the Catalan PEN centre is closely linked to great PEN causes. We, in Quebec PEN, and all Quebec writers, in fact, feel a particular proximity to Catalunha as both our peoples have been living and writing in a minority language surrounded by a large culture.Sameer Rawal
Indian literature is as diverse as India is and has been. The geographical zone comprising today's India is home to around 400 languages and almost 1000 dialects; so one can easily imagine the variety and multiplicity of Indian literature.Adre Marshall
As a representative of South African PEN at this conference in Girona, I wish first of all to pay tribute to Anthony Fleischer, president of SA PEN for many years, who died recently.