Reading a very interesting blog post by Maureen Freely, translator of the Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk, who talks about the political and economic repercussions of her work. (And reveals that astonishingly, UK university research departments still don't seem to have solved the problem of how to acknowledge translation among other scholarly work. Sigh.)
On a more festive note, in the same blog post, Harvill Secker, one of the UK's most assiduous and best-respected translation publishers, is holding a book draw to celebrate its 100th birthday this year. HS is giving away a library of 50 books to a lucky reader. To enter the prize draw, 'email your favourite piece of translated writing – fiction or non‑fiction – to review at observer.co.uk by Wednesday 1 December, putting "translation" in the subject field'.
Sunday, 28 November 2010
Saturday, 20 November 2010
PhD fellowships: Text and Event in Early Modern Europe
Readers considering PhD study in translation may be interested in these Erasmus Mundus Fellowships for PhD projects in early modern studies.
TEEME - Text and Event in Early Modern Europe - is an international doctoral programme in early modern studies funded by the European Union. It is structured around a unique collaboration between university-based researchers in the Humanities and the cultural and creative sector in four EU countries:
* The University of Kent [(United Kingdom) Coordinating institution
* Freie Universität Berlin (Germany)
* Universidade do Porto (Portugal)
* Univerzita Karlova v Praze (Czech Republic)
Through this central focus on the interface between past and present, the programme will both promote greater historical awareness of shared European origins, foster exchange among diverse European and non-European cultures, and offer a unique learning experience to both EU and international students. It will help control negative developments, such as violent nationalism or the radical distrust of foreign cultures, religions and peoples, that often emerge during economic crises and are exacerbated by the lack of nuanced historical understanding. At the same time the programme will enrich and improve current perceptions of European identities and their role in history, as well as engender the transformation of national cultural institutions through the input of knowledge and expertise from different cultures.
For the first edition of the programme, to be launched in September 2011, nine generously funded Fellowships are being offered for both EU and non-EU students. The deadline for applications is 16th January 2011. Further details about the programme and the Fellowships are available on the TEEME website: http://www.teemeurope.eu/index.html
TEEME - Text and Event in Early Modern Europe - is an international doctoral programme in early modern studies funded by the European Union. It is structured around a unique collaboration between university-based researchers in the Humanities and the cultural and creative sector in four EU countries:
* The University of Kent [(United Kingdom) Coordinating institution
* Freie Universität Berlin (Germany)
* Universidade do Porto (Portugal)
* Univerzita Karlova v Praze (Czech Republic)
The need to make the past inform the present in new and substantially different ways is painfully evident in everyday public discourse. For instance, present debates about the ‘clash of cultures’ and the tensions between the local and the global dangerously ignore the experience of our early modern forbears who first ventured out beyond Europe to encounter other cultures, peoples, and religions. Close historical attention reveals that these early encounter stories cannot easily be reduced, as they often are in public perception, to any facile and clear-cut binaries such as the opposition between ‘colonizer’ and ‘colonized’, between Christians and ‘heathens’ (often actually Muslims, Hindus or Jews), or between mobile Europeans and static indigenous people. Instead, such historical encounters were frequently moments of exchange, interaction, and even mutual respect, in which both sides learned and benefited from each other. TEEME’s ambition is to rectify such historical distortions.
Through this central focus on the interface between past and present, the programme will both promote greater historical awareness of shared European origins, foster exchange among diverse European and non-European cultures, and offer a unique learning experience to both EU and international students. It will help control negative developments, such as violent nationalism or the radical distrust of foreign cultures, religions and peoples, that often emerge during economic crises and are exacerbated by the lack of nuanced historical understanding. At the same time the programme will enrich and improve current perceptions of European identities and their role in history, as well as engender the transformation of national cultural institutions through the input of knowledge and expertise from different cultures.
For the first edition of the programme, to be launched in September 2011, nine generously funded Fellowships are being offered for both EU and non-EU students. The deadline for applications is 16th January 2011. Further details about the programme and the Fellowships are available on the TEEME website: http://www.teemeurope.eu/index.html
CETRA translation research summer school
For anyone interested in doctoral research training in Translation Studies:
CETRA 2011
Twenty-third Research Summer School
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium
22 August - 2 September 2011
CETRA Chair Professor:
Christina Schaeffner
Aston University
In 1989 José Lambert created a special research program in Translation Studies at the University of Leuven in order to promote research training in the study of translational phenomena and to stimulate high-level research into the cultural functions of translation. Since then, this unique program has attracted talented PhD students and young scholars who spend two weeks of research under the supervision of a team of prominent scholars, and under the supervision of the Chair Professor, an annually appointed expert in the field of Translation Studies. From 1989 on, the program has hosted participants from Austria to Australia, from Brazil to Burundi, and from China to the Czech Republic.
The list of CETRA professors may serve as an illustration of the program’s openness to the different currents in the international world of Translation Studies: Gideon Toury (Tel Aviv, 1989), Hans Vermeer (Heidelberg, 1990), Susan Bassnett (Warwick, 1991), Albrecht Neubert (Leipzig, 1992), Daniel Gile (Paris, 1993), Mary Snell-Hornby (Vienna, 1994), †André Lefevere (Austin, 1995), Anthony Pym (Tarragona, 1996), Yves Gambier (Turku, 1997), Lawrence Venuti (Philadelphia, 1998), Andrew Chesterman (Helsinki, 1999), Christiane Nord (Magdeburg, 2000), Mona Baker (Manchester, 2001), Maria Tymoczko (Amherst, Massachusetts, 2002), Ian Mason (Edinburgh, 2003), Michael Cronin (Dublin, 2004), †Daniel Simeoni (Toronto, 2005), Harish Trivedi (Delhi, 2006), Miriam Shlesinger (Tel Aviv, 2007), Kirsten Malmkjaer (London, 2008), Martha Cheung (Hong Kong, 2009), Sherry Simon (Montreal, 2010).
Basic activities and components of the Summer Session:
- Public Lectures by the CETRA Professor on key topics. A preliminary reading list will be furnished and all topics are to be further developed in discussions.
- Theoretical-methodological seminars given by the CETRA staff. Basic reading materials will be made available in advance.
- Tutorials: individual discussions of participants’ research with the CETRA Professor and the CETRA staff.
- Students’ papers: presentation of participants’ individual research projects followed by open discussion.
- Publication: each participant is invited to submit an article based on the presentation, to be refereed and published on the CETRA website.
For further information:
- please contact Reine Meylaerts: reine.meylaerts at arts.kuleuven.be
- please see our website: http://www.kuleuven.be/cetra/index/
- Application procedure: http://www.kuleuven.be/cetra/Summer_School/applicationprocedure.html
Sibley Translation Prize (JP-EN)
Readers translating out of Japanese may be interested in the new Sibley Translation Prize. I was particularly interested to see that this includes the translation of literary scholarship as well as literary texts (see a previous post on translating research):
To honor their late colleague William F. Sibley, The Department of East Asian Languages & Civilizations and the Committee on Japanese Studies of the Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Chicago have established the William F. Sibley Memorial Translation Prize in Japanese Literature and Literary Studies. The competition will be held annually and judged by members of the Committee on Japanese Studies.
In keeping with William Sibley’s lifelong devotion to translation and to the place of literature in the classroom, up to three awards of $2500 each will be given for the translation from Japanese into English of a work of fiction, poetry, or drama (including screenplays), or scholarship in literary studies, broadly understood. To encourage classroom use and comparative research, winning entries will be published on the Center for East Asian Studies website (http://ceas.uchicago.edu).
Submissions should be on the scale of short story rather than novel, on the one hand, but a body of poetry rather than single poems, on the other. Essays, reportage, and criticism are all genres for consideration. Retranslations of works previously translated, especially of premodern literature, may also be submitted. Translations of manga and anime will not be accepted, but scholarly essays about these genres will be considered. Translations of subtitles, no; scenarios, yes. Co-translations are acceptable.
The deadline for the first competition is December 1, 2010. For more information see the CEAS website.
To honor their late colleague William F. Sibley, The Department of East Asian Languages & Civilizations and the Committee on Japanese Studies of the Center for East Asian Studies at the University of Chicago have established the William F. Sibley Memorial Translation Prize in Japanese Literature and Literary Studies. The competition will be held annually and judged by members of the Committee on Japanese Studies.
In keeping with William Sibley’s lifelong devotion to translation and to the place of literature in the classroom, up to three awards of $2500 each will be given for the translation from Japanese into English of a work of fiction, poetry, or drama (including screenplays), or scholarship in literary studies, broadly understood. To encourage classroom use and comparative research, winning entries will be published on the Center for East Asian Studies website (http://ceas.uchicago.edu).
Submissions should be on the scale of short story rather than novel, on the one hand, but a body of poetry rather than single poems, on the other. Essays, reportage, and criticism are all genres for consideration. Retranslations of works previously translated, especially of premodern literature, may also be submitted. Translations of manga and anime will not be accepted, but scholarly essays about these genres will be considered. Translations of subtitles, no; scenarios, yes. Co-translations are acceptable.
The deadline for the first competition is December 1, 2010. For more information see the CEAS website.
Napoli 2010, 22-29 November: Translating (in) Europe
Readers near Naples might be interested in the festival "Translating (in) Europe", a week of talks, seminars and events covering many aspects of translation. According to the press release:
It will take place in Naples from the 22nd to the 29th November 2010. The Translation Festival is the last event of the E.S.T. Biennale ("Europe as a Space of Translation", http://www.estranslation.net), a project promoted by the European Union and led by Università degli Studi di Napoli "L'Orientale", Université Paris VIII and Universität Wien. You can download the programme of the Festival by clicking on this link:
http://www.lerotte.net/download/article/articolo-180.pdf. The english version of the programme is available at:
http://www.estranslation.net/en/index.php?id_section=264.
It will take place in Naples from the 22nd to the 29th November 2010. The Translation Festival is the last event of the E.S.T. Biennale ("Europe as a Space of Translation", http://www.estranslation.net), a project promoted by the European Union and led by Università degli Studi di Napoli "L'Orientale", Université Paris VIII and Universität Wien. You can download the programme of the Festival by clicking on this link:
http://www.lerotte.net/download/article/articolo-180.pdf. The english version of the programme is available at:
http://www.estranslation.net/en/index.php?id_section=264.
Friday, 19 November 2010
volunteer translation: Global Voices
Further to a conversation about volunteer translation today, some readers might be interested in the Global Voices project, which aims to open up the blogosphere across languages. Project Lingua 'amplifies Global Voices stories in languages other than English with the help of volunteer translators. It opens the line of communication with non-English speaking bloggers and readers of Global Voices by translating content into other languages.'
Further information available at http://globalvoicesonline.org/lingua.
A few more hints and tips here (worth sifting through the spam in the comments too).
The image is borrowed from http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2010-08/21/content_11183781.htm with appreciation.
Thursday, 18 November 2010
online public service interpreting course
Some of our readers may be interested in this online interpreting course:
UMass Medical Interpreting Online
Spring semester 2011, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Spring semester 2011, University of Massachusetts Amherst
This message is to announce that registration has opened for Medical Interpreting Online (CompLit 552). Please be advised that the first 28 students to register will be admitted. The class is invariably full, so those registering early improve their chances of being admitted. Class begins on Jan 19, 2011. The class is all online all the time, so you may do the work anytime from anywhere as long as you have a computer and can connect to the Internet.
The class is multilingual, with most of the major languages included. Students passing the course will receive a certificate in Medical Interpreting issued by the Translation Center and are eligible for either 3 hours of academic credit. The course serves as one of the trainings recognized by national certification organizations such as IMIA in the process of becoming certified. The class is open to interpreters, translators, bilingual health care providers, nurses, doctors, emergency room personnel, intake coordinators, community educators, counselors, therapists, social workers, community support services personnel, and anyone interested in improving the quality of bi-lingual health care.
The cost for the course $417 per credit plus a $45 registration fee, or a total of $1296. To register call Continuing Education at (413) 545-3653 or register online at http://www.umass.edu/contined/. The course is listed under Comparative Literature. For more information, please see our website at http://www.umasstranslation.com/academics/interpreting-certificates/#medical.
The last day to register is Jan 30, to drop is Jan. 31, to withdraw is 2/1. Please feel free to contact Edwin Gentzler at gentzler at complit.umass.edu if you have any questions.
Nida School of Translation Studies, Italy, May 2011
The Nida School of Translation Studies
Misano Adriatico (Rimini), Italy
May 16-28, 2011
Call for Participants
The Nida Institute announces the 2011 Nida School of Translation Studies that will meet May 16-28, 2011 in Misano Adriatico (Rimini), Italy. Two distinguished scholars, Martha Cheung (Hong Kong Baptist University) and Vicente Rafael (University of Washington, Seattle) serve as Nida Professors this year and will develop this year's theme, "Translation and Ideology" in three lectures each.
Deepening and broadening the School's work is a diverse and eminent set of visiting faculty and staff lecturers: Stefano Arduini (Urbino, School co-director), Annalisa Baicchi (Pavia), Roy Ciampa (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary), Edwin Gentzler (UMass-Amherst), Valerie Henitiuk (East Anglia), James Maxey (Nida Institute), John Milton (San Paolo), Siri Nergaard (Bologna), Christiane Nord (Magdeburg), Phil Noss (Nida Institute), Martha Pulido (Medellín), Doug Robinson (Lingnam), Christo van der Merwe (Stellenbosch), Babli Moitra Saraf (Delhi), Paul Soukup S.J., (Santa Clara) Phil Towner (Nida Institute, School co-director) and Lourens de Vries (Amsterdam).
Successful applicants will have an earned Ph.D. (or, a nearly completed one), a strong record of research, and professional experience in translating or interpreting. The deadline for applications is March 1, 2011.
For information on how to apply for admission and a limited number of small bursaries, go to http://www.nidainstitute.org/TheNidaSchool/NidaSchool2011/.
Misano Adriatico (Rimini), Italy
May 16-28, 2011
Call for Participants
The Nida Institute announces the 2011 Nida School of Translation Studies that will meet May 16-28, 2011 in Misano Adriatico (Rimini), Italy. Two distinguished scholars, Martha Cheung (Hong Kong Baptist University) and Vicente Rafael (University of Washington, Seattle) serve as Nida Professors this year and will develop this year's theme, "Translation and Ideology" in three lectures each.
Deepening and broadening the School's work is a diverse and eminent set of visiting faculty and staff lecturers: Stefano Arduini (Urbino, School co-director), Annalisa Baicchi (Pavia), Roy Ciampa (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary), Edwin Gentzler (UMass-Amherst), Valerie Henitiuk (East Anglia), James Maxey (Nida Institute), John Milton (San Paolo), Siri Nergaard (Bologna), Christiane Nord (Magdeburg), Phil Noss (Nida Institute), Martha Pulido (Medellín), Doug Robinson (Lingnam), Christo van der Merwe (Stellenbosch), Babli Moitra Saraf (Delhi), Paul Soukup S.J., (Santa Clara) Phil Towner (Nida Institute, School co-director) and Lourens de Vries (Amsterdam).
Successful applicants will have an earned Ph.D. (or, a nearly completed one), a strong record of research, and professional experience in translating or interpreting. The deadline for applications is March 1, 2011.
For information on how to apply for admission and a limited number of small bursaries, go to http://www.nidainstitute.org/TheNidaSchool/NidaSchool2011/.
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
in-house translation posts
In-house translation jobs advertised here and here.
On working as an in-house translator see this post on the Prospects website.
The company EV translations seems to be advertising in-house posts, freelance posts and internships for French, English and German native speakers at their offices in Germany, Nottingham and Atlanta.
post-doctoral fellowships in Berlin, deadline 10 January 2011
Some of our readers may be interested in these interdisciplinary opportunities for post-doctoral research, also open to TS researchers:
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
10 POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS FOR ACADEMIC YEAR 2011/12
(Location Berlin / Deadline: 10 January 2011)
The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences, the Fritz Thyssen Foundation and the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin invite scholars to apply for ten post-doctoral fellowships for the research program
EUROPE IN THE MIDDLE EAST - THE MIDDLE EAST IN EUROPE
This research program seeks to rethink key concepts and premises that link and divide Europe and the Middle East. The project draws on the international expertise of scholars in and outside of Germany and is embedded in university and extra-university research institutions in Berlin. 'Europe in the Middle East - The Middle East in Europe' supports historical-critical philology, rigorous engagement with the literatures of the Middle East and their histories, the social history of cities and the study of Middle Eastern political and philosophical thought (Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and secular) as central fields of research not only for area or cultural studies, but also for European intellectual history and other academic disciplines. For more information on the program please visit http://www.eume-berlin.de.
The program explores modernity as a historical space and conceptual frame. The program puts forward three programmatic ideas:
1) supporting research that demonstrates the rich and complex historical legacies and entanglements between Europe and the Middle East;
2) reexamining genealogical notions of mythical 'beginnings', 'origins', and 'purity' in relation to culture and society; and
3) rethinking key concepts of a shared modernity in light of contemporary cultural, social, and political entanglements that supersede identity discourses as well as national, cultural or regional canons and epistemologies that were established in the nineteenth century.
The program 'Europe in the Middle East - The Middle East in Europe' supports and builds upon the following interconnected research fields:
CITIES COMPARED: CHANGING MODES OF URBAN LIFE IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN AND ADJACENT REGIONS'
This research group is directed by Ulrike Freitag and Nora Lafi, both of the Zentrum Moderner Orient, Berlin. It contributes to the debate on plurality, citizenship and civil society from the historical experience of conviviality and socio-cultural, and religious differences in the cities around the Mediterranean;
ISLAMIC DISCOURSE CONTESTED: MIDDLE EASTERN AND EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVES This research group is directed by Gudrun Kraemer, Institute for Islamic Studies, Freie Universitaet Berlin. It analyzes modern Middle Eastern thought and discourses in the framework of theories of multiple or reflexive modernities;
PERSPECTIVES ON THE QUR'AN: NEGOTIATING DIFFERENT VIEWS OF A SHARED HISTORY This research group is directed by Angelika Neuwirth, Seminar for Arabic Studies, Freie Universitaet Berlin, and Stefan Wild, Universitaet Bonn. It situates the foundational text of Islam within the religious and literary landscape of late antiquity, early Islamic History and Arabic philology, and combines a historicization of its genesis with an analysis of its hermeneutics, its reception and perception in Europe and the Middle East;
TRAVELLING TRADITIONS: COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVES ON NEAR EASTERN LITERATURES This research group is directed by Friederike Pannewick, Centrum fuer Nah- und Mitteloststudien, Philipps-Universitaet Marburg, and Samah Selim, Rutgers University. It reassesses literary entanglements and processes of canonization between Europe and the Middle East.
TRADITION AND THE CRITIQUE OF MODERNITY: SECULARISM, FUNDAMENTALISM AND RELIGION FROM MIDDLE EASTERN PERSPECTIVES
This is a special forum, directed by Amnon Raz-Krakotzkin, Ben Gurion University, that attempts to rethink
key concepts of modernity like secularity, tradition, or religion in the context of the experiences, interpretations, and critiques of Jews, Arabs, and Muslims in the Middle East and in Europe.
PREREQUISITES AND APPLICATION PROCEDURE
The fellowships are intended above all for scholars of art history, history, literature, philology, political philosophy, political science, religion and sociology who want to carry out their research projects in connection with the Berlin program. Fellows gain the opportunity to pursue research projects of their choice within the framework of one of the above-mentioned research fields and in relation to the program 'Europe in the Middle East - the Middle East in Europe'. In Berlin, they will be integrated into a university or non-university research institute. The working language of the research program is English. Fellows will receive a monthly stipend of 2.250. A copy of the call for applications can be found at http://www.wiko-eume.de/en/fellows/call-for-applications-201112.html.
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS
10 POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS FOR ACADEMIC YEAR 2011/12
(Location Berlin / Deadline: 10 January 2011)
The Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences, the Fritz Thyssen Foundation and the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin invite scholars to apply for ten post-doctoral fellowships for the research program
EUROPE IN THE MIDDLE EAST - THE MIDDLE EAST IN EUROPE
This research program seeks to rethink key concepts and premises that link and divide Europe and the Middle East. The project draws on the international expertise of scholars in and outside of Germany and is embedded in university and extra-university research institutions in Berlin. 'Europe in the Middle East - The Middle East in Europe' supports historical-critical philology, rigorous engagement with the literatures of the Middle East and their histories, the social history of cities and the study of Middle Eastern political and philosophical thought (Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and secular) as central fields of research not only for area or cultural studies, but also for European intellectual history and other academic disciplines. For more information on the program please visit http://www.eume-berlin.de.
The program explores modernity as a historical space and conceptual frame. The program puts forward three programmatic ideas:
1) supporting research that demonstrates the rich and complex historical legacies and entanglements between Europe and the Middle East;
2) reexamining genealogical notions of mythical 'beginnings', 'origins', and 'purity' in relation to culture and society; and
3) rethinking key concepts of a shared modernity in light of contemporary cultural, social, and political entanglements that supersede identity discourses as well as national, cultural or regional canons and epistemologies that were established in the nineteenth century.
The program 'Europe in the Middle East - The Middle East in Europe' supports and builds upon the following interconnected research fields:
CITIES COMPARED: CHANGING MODES OF URBAN LIFE IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN AND ADJACENT REGIONS'
This research group is directed by Ulrike Freitag and Nora Lafi, both of the Zentrum Moderner Orient, Berlin. It contributes to the debate on plurality, citizenship and civil society from the historical experience of conviviality and socio-cultural, and religious differences in the cities around the Mediterranean;
ISLAMIC DISCOURSE CONTESTED: MIDDLE EASTERN AND EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVES This research group is directed by Gudrun Kraemer, Institute for Islamic Studies, Freie Universitaet Berlin. It analyzes modern Middle Eastern thought and discourses in the framework of theories of multiple or reflexive modernities;
PERSPECTIVES ON THE QUR'AN: NEGOTIATING DIFFERENT VIEWS OF A SHARED HISTORY This research group is directed by Angelika Neuwirth, Seminar for Arabic Studies, Freie Universitaet Berlin, and Stefan Wild, Universitaet Bonn. It situates the foundational text of Islam within the religious and literary landscape of late antiquity, early Islamic History and Arabic philology, and combines a historicization of its genesis with an analysis of its hermeneutics, its reception and perception in Europe and the Middle East;
TRAVELLING TRADITIONS: COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVES ON NEAR EASTERN LITERATURES This research group is directed by Friederike Pannewick, Centrum fuer Nah- und Mitteloststudien, Philipps-Universitaet Marburg, and Samah Selim, Rutgers University. It reassesses literary entanglements and processes of canonization between Europe and the Middle East.
TRADITION AND THE CRITIQUE OF MODERNITY: SECULARISM, FUNDAMENTALISM AND RELIGION FROM MIDDLE EASTERN PERSPECTIVES
This is a special forum, directed by Amnon Raz-Krakotzkin, Ben Gurion University, that attempts to rethink
key concepts of modernity like secularity, tradition, or religion in the context of the experiences, interpretations, and critiques of Jews, Arabs, and Muslims in the Middle East and in Europe.
PREREQUISITES AND APPLICATION PROCEDURE
The fellowships are intended above all for scholars of art history, history, literature, philology, political philosophy, political science, religion and sociology who want to carry out their research projects in connection with the Berlin program. Fellows gain the opportunity to pursue research projects of their choice within the framework of one of the above-mentioned research fields and in relation to the program 'Europe in the Middle East - the Middle East in Europe'. In Berlin, they will be integrated into a university or non-university research institute. The working language of the research program is English. Fellows will receive a monthly stipend of 2.250. A copy of the call for applications can be found at http://www.wiko-eume.de/en/fellows/call-for-applications-201112.html.
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Practical hints and tips for translators
Behold, some accumulated links to hints and tips from the translation profession which may be of interest to readers.
On responding to enquiries from potential clients, see here. Here's a post on what rates to charge with some good advice; it focuses on Japanese to English translation but advice is valid for other language pairs too. There is a simple, free translation price calculator gizmo for download here. You might also be interested in this very good blog post on translation rates. Corinne McKay's blog generally has useful thoughts on the translation industry (see also her post on how to be a better proofreader and her freelance best practices checklist). More hints and tips on marketing, quoting and other matters at the NakedTranslations blog here.
There's a lot of information out there to help translators who are starting out (too much, in fact); you can get a start from the careers in translation tag on this blog which lists job and placement opportunities as well as advice on good practice and links to practical hints and tips available on the web.
For anyone wondering whether they are too young or too old to make it as a translator, have a look at this. Judy and Dagmar Jenner at TranslationTimes have a nice post with advice for people wondering whether the translation profession is right for them.
job links
Those of you looking for in-house translation jobs may find the sites http://www.languagebusiness.co.uk/translation.asp, http://www.indeed.co.uk/ and http://www.translationstafffinder.com/ of interest.
Freelancers, in-house staff and/or interns wanted by the German translation company Intraduct.
Translating and the Computer 32 conference, November 2010
Thanks to Stephen C. for suggesting this conference which may interest readers in the London area:
TRANSLATING AND THE COMPUTER 32 Conference
18-19 November 2010, De Vere West One (Oxford Circus) London
This will be the thirty-second conference in the series and is supported by BCS NLTSG, EAMT, ITI and TILP. The Aslib event draws together a diverse group of delegates, who will gain new insights and brainstorm ideas on the use of information technology for translation.
The keynote speakers this year are Olivier Pasteur, WTO, (Day One) and Phil Verghis, The Verghis Group (Day Two).
Day One Keynote:
Challenges at World Trade Organization: Evaluation and implementation of a Statistical Machine Translation System, Olivier Pasteur, World Trade Organization, Switzerland
Mr Pasteur will address the ongoing challenges of integrating statistical machine translation into the translation workflow of an organization such as his, in which significant requirements for technical correctness must be balanced against those for political sensitivity, while fending with such matters as talented but yet not computer-oriented professional translators, budget constraints and complex workflows, tight deadlines, high quality requirements as well as those dealing with translators' reluctance to accept the fundamental changes in their work that the integration of machine translation entails.
Day Two Keynote:
Implications of Culture on Support (and Translation), Phil Verghis, Verghis Group
You have your hands full as you bid for work across the world. Ever wonder what your customers are going through as they try to add globalization, virtual teams, multi-cultural relationships to the work they are already chartered to do? The good news is that once you understand the pressures support is under, and have a framework to better understand the differences between cultures, you can begin looking at your service from a people, process and technology perspective. You might be able to make modifications that aren't particularly expensive or difficult to implement and yet add better margins. This presentation will draw on research by cultural experts and cultural anthropologists to help you differentiate between a 'rules based' culture and a 'relationship based' culture, and the profound implications for people, process, technology and communication across languages in a service environment.
Full details, including the latest programme, registration fees and how to exhibit, can be found at: http://www.aslib.com or contact Nicole Adamides at: conferences at aslib.com
TRANSLATING AND THE COMPUTER 32 Conference
18-19 November 2010, De Vere West One (Oxford Circus) London
This will be the thirty-second conference in the series and is supported by BCS NLTSG, EAMT, ITI and TILP. The Aslib event draws together a diverse group of delegates, who will gain new insights and brainstorm ideas on the use of information technology for translation.
The keynote speakers this year are Olivier Pasteur, WTO, (Day One) and Phil Verghis, The Verghis Group (Day Two).
Day One Keynote:
Challenges at World Trade Organization: Evaluation and implementation of a Statistical Machine Translation System, Olivier Pasteur, World Trade Organization, Switzerland
Mr Pasteur will address the ongoing challenges of integrating statistical machine translation into the translation workflow of an organization such as his, in which significant requirements for technical correctness must be balanced against those for political sensitivity, while fending with such matters as talented but yet not computer-oriented professional translators, budget constraints and complex workflows, tight deadlines, high quality requirements as well as those dealing with translators' reluctance to accept the fundamental changes in their work that the integration of machine translation entails.
Day Two Keynote:
Implications of Culture on Support (and Translation), Phil Verghis, Verghis Group
You have your hands full as you bid for work across the world. Ever wonder what your customers are going through as they try to add globalization, virtual teams, multi-cultural relationships to the work they are already chartered to do? The good news is that once you understand the pressures support is under, and have a framework to better understand the differences between cultures, you can begin looking at your service from a people, process and technology perspective. You might be able to make modifications that aren't particularly expensive or difficult to implement and yet add better margins. This presentation will draw on research by cultural experts and cultural anthropologists to help you differentiate between a 'rules based' culture and a 'relationship based' culture, and the profound implications for people, process, technology and communication across languages in a service environment.
Full details, including the latest programme, registration fees and how to exhibit, can be found at: http://www.aslib.com or contact Nicole Adamides at: conferences at aslib.com
Thursday, 11 November 2010
Webinar on financial translation
For those of you who missed Javier Gil's seminar on financial translation at Portsmouth last spring, he's doing two webinars on the same topic over the next few weeks for ECPDwebinars.
Javier Gil, former head of the Spanish Translation Services at KPMG Spain for around 5 years, now works as a self-employed translator with a number of international private companies and organisations. He has recently been selected as an External Translator for the European Central Bank and also has experience delivering workshops and seminars at universities in various countries.
Part 1 (11:30 - November 18th, 2010)
Cost: £15
Cost: £15
For further information and to register, CLICK HERE
Part 2 (11:30 - November 25th, 2010)
Cost: £15
For further information and to register, CLICK HERE
You can see a short interview with Javier on the occasion of his visit to Portsmouth here.
Literary translation events in London this winter
The British Centre for Literary Translation announces two forthcoming events on literary translation this winter in London:
Sebald Lecture and Presentation of the 2010 Translation Prizes
Speaker: Ali Smith
7pm, Monday 31 January 2011Kings Place, London
Tickets now on sale
The Sebald Lecture celebrates the best in contemporary translation, with readings and presentation of the annual Translation Prizes (administered by the Society of Authors). Prizes presented by Sir Peter Stothard, Editor of the Times Literary Supplement.
Translating Celan
23 November 2010
Goethe-Institut, LondonPaul Celan, Europe's most compelling post-war poet, was a German-speaking, East European Jew. His writing exposes and illuminates the effects that Nazi destructiveness left on language. On the 90th anniversary of Paul Celan’s birth, translators and Celan experts discuss and debate his life, his poetry and approaches to translating his work. Speakers include Jean Boase-Beier, Ian Fairley, Charlotte Ryland and Wieland Hoban.
This event is organised by the Goethe-Institut and supported by BCLT.
For more information click here.
Translated! An interactive festival of literary translation, Melbourne
Readers in Oz might be interested in TRANSLATED!: An Interactive Festival of Literary Translation
Monash University, School of Language, Cultures & Linguistics
February 7–12, 2011, The Wheeler Centre, Melbourne, Australia
The Interactive Festival of Literary Translation is aimed at early- to mid-career translators and will involve a week-long residential program of hands-on translation practice, as well as a number of public events such as talks and panel discussions addressing various aspects of the theory, practice and business of literary translation.
Hands-on practice will be offered in the form of daily language-specific workshops led by an expert translator and the author of the text to be translated. Each workshop group will comprise 10–15 participants and will be led by an expert translator with the involvement of the author of the text to be translated. The participants will be organised into three groups:
* French–English (mono-directional) with translator Jean Anderson and author Moetai Brotherson
* Spanish–English (mono-directional) with translator Peter Bush and author Jorge Carrion
* German–English AND English–German (bi-directional) with translator & author Heike Brand and author Elizabeth Honey
Translated! will provide a stimulating opportunity for translators and writers to work together and learn from one another as well as from literary professionals, creating a practical and coherent mechanism for improving the quantity, quality and dissemination of literature in translation published in Australia.
For more information visit: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/translation-interpreting/translated.php
Monash University, School of Language, Cultures & Linguistics
February 7–12, 2011, The Wheeler Centre, Melbourne, Australia
The Interactive Festival of Literary Translation is aimed at early- to mid-career translators and will involve a week-long residential program of hands-on translation practice, as well as a number of public events such as talks and panel discussions addressing various aspects of the theory, practice and business of literary translation.
Hands-on practice will be offered in the form of daily language-specific workshops led by an expert translator and the author of the text to be translated. Each workshop group will comprise 10–15 participants and will be led by an expert translator with the involvement of the author of the text to be translated. The participants will be organised into three groups:
* French–English (mono-directional) with translator Jean Anderson and author Moetai Brotherson
* Spanish–English (mono-directional) with translator Peter Bush and author Jorge Carrion
* German–English AND English–German (bi-directional) with translator & author Heike Brand and author Elizabeth Honey
Translated! will provide a stimulating opportunity for translators and writers to work together and learn from one another as well as from literary professionals, creating a practical and coherent mechanism for improving the quantity, quality and dissemination of literature in translation published in Australia.
For more information visit: http://www.arts.monash.edu.au/translation-interpreting/translated.php
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
Translation lecture, London, 8 December
Selling the Book by its Cover: bindings and translated crime fiction
Carol O'Sullivan
Wednesday 8 December, 6.30 pm, City University, London
For readers of this blog in London, I will be giving a lecture at City University on the presentation of crime fiction in translation on 8 December. There has been a surge of interest in translated crime fiction with the recent worldwide success of authors such as Henning Mankell and Stieg Larsson. This follows on from the successes of earlier novelists including Umberto Eco and Peter Høeg.
This lecture considers the translation of contemporary crime fiction into English from the perspective of what Keith Harvey has called the 'binding', or the cover images and text which frame the book for readers.
Bindings address themselves to a particular audience, and also guide readers' expectations and interpretations of a book's content. The lecture will consider some key elements of bindings in the selling of crime fiction, including issues of national stereotyping, branding and paratextual norms.
Carol O'Sullivan
Wednesday 8 December, 6.30 pm, City University, London
This lecture considers the translation of contemporary crime fiction into English from the perspective of what Keith Harvey has called the 'binding', or the cover images and text which frame the book for readers.
Bindings address themselves to a particular audience, and also guide readers' expectations and interpretations of a book's content. The lecture will consider some key elements of bindings in the selling of crime fiction, including issues of national stereotyping, branding and paratextual norms.
Monday, 8 November 2010
Scholarly translation and the enhancement of the humanities
Having recently been involved in the editing of a trilingual collection of essays on translation, I have been thinking about translation and its role in the internationalisation of disciplines. Researchers don't generally have budgets for translation, so if you don't speak a particular language, and a monograph or article has been written on that language in one of your research specialisms, then tough luck. This is a problem that was recently flagged up by the British Academy, which is, understandably, concerned that UK research will become insular as generations of researchers with limited foreign language skills set the agenda for what research should be doing. According to the British Academy's Language Matters position paper, another likely outcome is that international research will be carried out by researchers from elsewhere, who can offer the language skills UK graduates are short of. This affects the employability and competitiveness of UK researchers.
Let's hope that more can be done to enhance the language skills of British researchers in all disciplines. Meanwhile, since researchers can't speak all languages, translation also has a role to play. Abstracts in lingua francas like English and French, already standard in many journals, help to indicate whether an article might be worth translating. Machine translation is unlikely to produce usable results, but the possibility of running an electronic copy of a publication through machine translation software to discover whether it is worth finding funding to get it translated, or worth commissioning a translation of it for a journal, is attractive.
I was interested to come across several different approaches to this problem recently. The Handbook of Translation Studies published by John Benjamins invites translations of its content, which should be submitted to the editors. Translations in Arabic, Chinese, French, Japanese, German, Portuguese, and Spanish of English language originals already uploaded online can be submitted for consideration and, upon acceptance, may be added to the online edition.
The Translation Committee of the SCMS (Society for Cinema and Media Studies) instituted a Translation Gallery of film and media publications which SCMS members would like to see translated (the page seems to have disappeared in the recent revamp of the SCMS site but I'll post it if and when it reappears).
The OAH (Organisation of American Historians) funds the David Thelen Award each year for articles published in the field in a language other than English. The prize-winning article is then translated and published in The Journal of American History. This seems a really good initiative, and one that could usefully be taken up by other scholarly associations as well. (It's just a pity that the published translation seem to be have been translated by magic - no translators are named, and no reference seems to be made in the journal to the translated status of the articles).
The European Society for Translation Studies (EST) has recently been discussing a grant initiative to promote translation within TS, and we'd be interested to hear comments on this too.
Let's hope that more can be done to enhance the language skills of British researchers in all disciplines. Meanwhile, since researchers can't speak all languages, translation also has a role to play. Abstracts in lingua francas like English and French, already standard in many journals, help to indicate whether an article might be worth translating. Machine translation is unlikely to produce usable results, but the possibility of running an electronic copy of a publication through machine translation software to discover whether it is worth finding funding to get it translated, or worth commissioning a translation of it for a journal, is attractive.
I was interested to come across several different approaches to this problem recently. The Handbook of Translation Studies published by John Benjamins invites translations of its content, which should be submitted to the editors. Translations in Arabic, Chinese, French, Japanese, German, Portuguese, and Spanish of English language originals already uploaded online can be submitted for consideration and, upon acceptance, may be added to the online edition.
The Translation Committee of the SCMS (Society for Cinema and Media Studies) instituted a Translation Gallery of film and media publications which SCMS members would like to see translated (the page seems to have disappeared in the recent revamp of the SCMS site but I'll post it if and when it reappears).
The OAH (Organisation of American Historians) funds the David Thelen Award each year for articles published in the field in a language other than English. The prize-winning article is then translated and published in The Journal of American History. This seems a really good initiative, and one that could usefully be taken up by other scholarly associations as well. (It's just a pity that the published translation seem to be have been translated by magic - no translators are named, and no reference seems to be made in the journal to the translated status of the articles).
The European Society for Translation Studies (EST) has recently been discussing a grant initiative to promote translation within TS, and we'd be interested to hear comments on this too.
Sunday, 7 November 2010
translation seminars and workshops round the UK and the web
A big hello to old and new friends met at the translation conference yesterday - it was lovely to see you all there. For those of you in the UK who couldn't make the conference, a quick reminder that there's a really good choice of translation seminars to attend round the country this autumn. Seminar series that might interest you are running at Manchester, Roehampton and Imperial.
Those of you who can't make any of these might like to look up Anthony Pym's series of filmed lectures and interviews with prominent researchers in Translation Studies.
Resources and events with a more practical/professional emphasis include the recently updated 'talking with the translators' videos on the Translation at Portsmouth site, the ECPDwebinars launched by the Chartered Institute of Linguists, or the forthcoming 'Style Matters' workshop, led by Ros Schwartz and Chris Durban, in Cardiff on 21 November, organised by the Association of Welsh Translators and Interpreters.
Those of you who can't make any of these might like to look up Anthony Pym's series of filmed lectures and interviews with prominent researchers in Translation Studies.
Resources and events with a more practical/professional emphasis include the recently updated 'talking with the translators' videos on the Translation at Portsmouth site, the ECPDwebinars launched by the Chartered Institute of Linguists, or the forthcoming 'Style Matters' workshop, led by Ros Schwartz and Chris Durban, in Cardiff on 21 November, organised by the Association of Welsh Translators and Interpreters.
Banff international literary translation residencies 2011
Literary translators out there may be interested in the 2011 Banff international literary translation residencies.
The Banff International Literary Translation Centre is open to literary translators from Canada, Mexico, and the United States translating from any language, and to international translators working on literature from the Americas. The annual BILTC residency program has places for 15 translators. Since the inaugural program in 2003, the program has hosted translators from 26 countries, translating work involving 36 languages.
Applicants must have published at least one book-length literary translation (or equivalent) and participants are selected on the basis of material submitted to the Advisory Council. Eligible projects include translations of works of fiction, literary essays and biography, poetry, oral tradition, children’s literature, and drama.
Priority is given to projects that have signed publishing contracts. Financial aid is available to cover costs.
The deadline for applications is 15 February 2011.
The Banff International Literary Translation Centre is open to literary translators from Canada, Mexico, and the United States translating from any language, and to international translators working on literature from the Americas. The annual BILTC residency program has places for 15 translators. Since the inaugural program in 2003, the program has hosted translators from 26 countries, translating work involving 36 languages.
Applicants must have published at least one book-length literary translation (or equivalent) and participants are selected on the basis of material submitted to the Advisory Council. Eligible projects include translations of works of fiction, literary essays and biography, poetry, oral tradition, children’s literature, and drama.
Priority is given to projects that have signed publishing contracts. Financial aid is available to cover costs.
The deadline for applications is 15 February 2011.
My favourite free thing on the web
I wanted to share my current favourite link. For anyone who spends a lot of time online, allow me to recommend Readability. In the words of its makers, it's 'a simple tool that makes reading on the Web more enjoyable by removing the clutter around what you're reading'. It's free, it's easy to install and it makes a ginormous difference if you have to read long stretches of text on screen.
Monday, 1 November 2010
John Dryden Translation Competition 2011 (closing date 14 February)
Entries are invited for the 2011 John Dryden Translation Competition, a long-running literary translation prize jointly sponsored by the British Comparative Literature Association and the British Centre for Literary Translation.
Entries must be translations of (extracts from) literary works of any period and from any language into English. There are cash prizes and winning entries will be published. The existence of copyright in any work places no restriction on its translation but only, in some cases, on publication of a translation. Translations of work previously translated are acceptable.
Entries must be the original work of the translator and must be unpublished. Entries may be the collective work of any number of translators.
There are no limitations on entrants with respect to age, nationality, place of residence, or professional status. Submissions and judging are strictly anonymous.
The closing date for receipt of entries (which must be by post) is 14 February 2011.
Further details can be found on the website. Good luck to any readers of this blog who decide to enter!
Entries must be translations of (extracts from) literary works of any period and from any language into English. There are cash prizes and winning entries will be published. The existence of copyright in any work places no restriction on its translation but only, in some cases, on publication of a translation. Translations of work previously translated are acceptable.
Entries must be the original work of the translator and must be unpublished. Entries may be the collective work of any number of translators.
There are no limitations on entrants with respect to age, nationality, place of residence, or professional status. Submissions and judging are strictly anonymous.
The closing date for receipt of entries (which must be by post) is 14 February 2011.
Further details can be found on the website. Good luck to any readers of this blog who decide to enter!
last chance to register for Portsmouth Translation Conference
Dear all,
Just a quick reminder to anyone who was thinking of coming to this year's conference that it's on Saturday, and late registration is possible but please do so asap. All details on the conference website. Reviews of previous conferences by Blogging Translator, Doc Byrne and Sarah Dillon may be of interest. I'm really looking forward to seeing folks there!
Just a quick reminder to anyone who was thinking of coming to this year's conference that it's on Saturday, and late registration is possible but please do so asap. All details on the conference website. Reviews of previous conferences by Blogging Translator, Doc Byrne and Sarah Dillon may be of interest. I'm really looking forward to seeing folks there!
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