Trouble in the translation trail - The New Indian Express - Translation

Express News Service

CHENNAI:  In my native place, when people go to Varanasi, they take a tumbler of water from the Tungabhadra and pour it in the Ganga, and bring back a tumbler to pour in the former…Translation is like that. English is the River Nile and so, what I can do is take some water from it and give back in my own language,” shared Vasudhendra, author and publisher, Chanda Pustaka. He was one of the four panellists from the South Indian publishing industry in the recently conducted talk ‘Translation and the Politics of Languages in India’. The talk discussed the challenges of translators in India as explored by ‘India Literature and Publishing Sector Study’, commissioned by British Council and conducted by The Art X Company.

While Vasudhendra’s analogy poetically describes the art of translation in its simplest form, the reality of the same is far more complex. As the study finds, lack of international awareness of what the Indian literary market offers and the inability of Indian publishers to access these spaces and opportunities for international translation are two primary challenges the industry faces, revealed moderator Neeta Gupta, publishing director, Tethys Books. 

Fighting for awareness
Vasudhendra finds that the recognition of books like Tomb of Sand by Geetanjali Shree — the first Hindi language book to have been shortlisted for the International Booker Prize — may be the push needed to popularise local languages. But Kannada translation to English seems to prove still difficult despite the success of books like Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbhag. “My observation is that English translations often happen in states where people have strong connections to the UK or the US, or where there is a sizable Christian population. Unfortunately, Karnataka has an insignificant population of the same,” he explained.   

Gita Ramaswamy of Hyderabad Book Trust worries that the Telugu market is shrinking; people can understand and speak the language, but not read it. She elaborated, “Once a script dies, I don’t know how long the language remains. I often see that English language publishers get a lot of help in terms of grants, subsidies, travel etc, whereas unless you are well-connected here, you don’t get any such offers. If we want to keep languages alive, we need  (national and international) institutions that support ventures in local languages, especially those which deal with authors and translations from the marginalised sections.” Historian and translator J Devika added that a troubling trend of not giving due credit to translators on covers has been on the rise. 

A change in the tides
Despite finding a thriving market, Devika notices that the same in Malayalam translation has also brought certain limitations. She noted a shift in the demand towards young and articulate authors and a heavy preference towards realism. This, coupled with a shift in literary style is cause for concern, it would seem. “In literature, right now it is about rediscovering local idioms, dialects and I find it alarming that all this is being rendered into flat, standardised English. These local idioms are included in the text as a political act.

So the question is whether you can carry the politics of what is happening in Kerala into English,” she added. Politics does not only find a roadblock in literature, but also in non-fiction. Tamil Nadu-based publishing professional Kannan Sundaram found that while, over the years, a few Tamil (Indian languages in general) novels have found an international audience there is still an uphill battle for non-fiction works. 

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Reading a New Translation of Rumi - Hyperallergic - Translation

'Translation is itself a kind of writing' - Deccan Herald - Translation

Bengaluru-based Srinath Perur is the acclaimed translator of Ghachar Ghochar, a Kannada novel by renowned writer Vivek Shanbhag. The book won the 2020 Sahitya Akademi award for English translation. He is also the translator of Girish Karnad’s memoirs, ‘This Life at Play’ published last year. As a travel and science writer who writes for various publications, Perur’s own work, If It’s Monday It Must Be Madurai, is a delightful travelogue about 10 conducted tours in India and abroad. DHoS spoke with him about the joys and perils of the difficult task of translation. Excerpts from an interview

A national award for your debut translation. What does it mean to you?

I was generally looking for a closer engagement with Kannada, and when Vivek Shanbhag, who had read some of my writing, asked if I wanted to try and translate Ghachar Ghochar into English, I thought I’d give it a shot. I was somewhat bemused by the award because Ghachar Ghochar came out in 2015, but it’s always nice when one’s work is appreciated. Since you need a good book to have a good translation, it’s also an acknowledgement of the Kannada original. And since good books emerge from literary cultures, it’s a useful reminder of the riches that exist in our languages.

What was the experience of translating Ghachar Ghochar and what were the challenges? 

It was good fun. I wanted to produce an English text that was enjoyable to read, and Vivek was happy to give me the space to try and do that. My main challenge was finding a voice that would carry the book. I translated the first few pages repeatedly until I thought I had such a voice. After that, it was a smooth enough process.

You are also a writer. Is there a difference between the work of writing and translation?

Translation is itself a kind of writing. A lot of the craft and sensibility needed to write fiction applies to translating fiction too. In some ways, the simultaneous presence of two languages makes the mechanics of writing harder and it becomes easy to produce sentences that are warped by some sort of force field from the original. It takes effort, at least for me, to produce a translation that reads naturally, and I often struggle with this. But then, you (mostly) don’t have to make stuff up while translating, so it’s usually a more tractable activity.

Why hasn’t Kannada gained as much prominence as some Indian languages in translation circuits?

Translations into Indian languages other than English and between them have been happening for a long time and it’s a complex landscape that I can’t claim to understand well. Speaking of translations into English in India, maybe what gets published has to some extent been determined by where the people in publishing come from. And understandably so — how do you know what translations to commission without some sense of a book’s place in its culture? I think many things are changing now. People are buying more translations, authors are keen to have their books translated, new translators are emerging, and publishers are looking more widely. I think we’ll have a more even representation of Indian languages soon.

Is there any work in Kannada that you would like to see translated or like to translate?

I’ve recently been thinking of two of Poornachandra Tejaswi’s novels, Carvalho and Chidambara Rahasya. Written in the 1980s, they’ve been hugely popular in Kannada and seem particularly powerful now with the climate crisis properly upon us. Both novels have the natural world — beautiful, mysterious, deeply interconnected — as their backdrop as well as a kind of protagonist. People try to control this natural world but their attempts are short-sighted and blundering with occasionally tragic consequences. For all that, these are fast-paced and funny books. At least one of them has been translated into English, though it doesn’t seem to be easily available. I’d love to see them both read more widely. 

Some say translations can never be faithful to the original. Certain dialects and idioms cannot be translated into English. Comment?

Even the original text is not faithful to the original text. As in, something can always be read in multiple ways. A translator’s way is just one of them. There’s no escaping the fact that a translation is the product of both the author’s and the translator’s sensibilities.

One of my favourite translators is Anthea Bell, who (along with Derek Hockridge) translated the Asterix comics from French to English. She had to deal with puns and cultural references that would make no sense in English, so she made up different ones that fit the panels. In many cases, her solutions to the problem of untranslatability produced something richer than the original. It’s never as simple as ‘lost in translation’. The target language has its own possibilities too.

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Modern Languages Alumna Morgan Giles Gives Presentation on Literary Translation & Language Learning - WKU News - Translation

On Monday, April 4, WKU Modern Languages Alumna Morgan Giles came to Western Kentucky University to speak current Modern Languages Hilltoppers about translation and second language learning. In her talk, she explained that translation is truly an art: rather than a word-for-word translation, it is truly a form of expressing the authors’ ideas. Also, conveying the right meaning is an important part of translation. Moreover, she explained that translation requires constant revision; it is a long process in which the translator continues to perfect the work. The discussion was designed to guide students as they consider what a future career in translation may look like.

Giles, a native of Richmond, KY, graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana in 2009 with a B.A. in Japanese Language and Culture and linguistics. However, she has had a long connection with WKU, attending the Verbally and Mathematically Precocious Youth (VAMPY) program from 2001 to 2004 which she remembers as “a vital and encouraging atmosphere.” Later, she did research concerning contemporary Japanese literature, sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of Education at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. Giles currently lives in London, England, and works as a translator of contemporary literature. Most recently, she won the National Book Award for Translated Literature based on her translation of the novel Ueno Station.

During Giles’ presentation, she also commented on the process of second language learning. She explained that language learning is not a short-term goal, but rather a lifelong commitment. It is something that must be practiced regularly, and learners should be resilient when facing difficulties in their learning. Language learning is a long-term process that ends in a reward, including a career. For more information about WKU’s course offerings in Japanese, placement, department exams, scholarships, and study abroad opportunities, contact Professor Paul Collins (paul.collins@wku.edu).

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How AI and ML makes language translation more efficient for non-English speakers - VentureBeat - Translation

Gardner announces new translation software for public meetings - Yahoo News - Translation

Apr. 8—Those who require translation to follow along with videos of Frederick County government meetings will now be able to do so with a new, more reliable software, County Executive Jan Gardner, D, announced Thursday.

The county's 38,000 residents who speak a language other than English can watch county government meetings with real-time closed captions in one of more than 100 languages, according to the county executive's office.

"We are stronger when everyone has a voice in how our county operates," Gardner said in a press release.

Those interested can use captions for any meeting the county streams through its online engagement hub, PublicInput.com/FrederickCoMd. Viewers can select their preferred language by clicking the "Translate" button that will be near the top of the web page, and then captions will be turned on.

The "Translate" button can also be used for viewers to type a comment or question in their preferred language, and county staff will be able to translate the comments into English.

"This issue has been a concern of many people living in my district and I am thrilled that the county has finally found a reliable software program to be able to provide these services," Council President M.C. Keegan-Ayer, D, said in an email.

Federal Funds

Gardner announced Thursday that funds from the county's $50 million federal American Rescue Plan allocation will pay for programs run by the Frederick Arts Council and I Believe in Me, a local nonprofit that serves at-risk youth.

The Frederick Arts Council will receive a total of $500,000 for four projects, which include distributing grants to as many as 200 member artists; commissioning artists to create 15 mural projects in underserved areas lacking public art and training young artists; creating seven art displays to draw tourists to local businesses; and expanding programming at Sky Stage to generate more than 200 new gigs for artists, according to the county executive's office.

I Believe in Me will receive $60,000 for a new 15-passenger van to transport youth to programming and events, and $20,000 to purchase books, games, shelves and furniture for an activity center the organization is creating.

"Public art increases tourism and drives economic growth in our main streets and across Frederick County, and I Believe in Me is creating generational change by lifting up our youth," Gardner said in a release.

Gardner also announced the launch of a pilot program to allow homeowners who are 65 and older or disabled to designate a third party to receive copies of their real estate tax bills.

The third party, such as a family member or trusted adult, will not be responsible for paying the taxes or for delinquencies, but they will help to ensure the property owner is aware of outstanding bills and pays them on time, according to the county executive's office.

Designees do not have to pay to sign up for the Third-Party Notification Program. They do not have to live in Frederick County either, and they can receive copies of tax bills or delinquency notices via mail or email.

Seniors can apply for the Third-Party Notification Program by visiting FrederickCountyMD.gov/Treasury, or by calling the Frederick County Treasury Department at 301-600-1111 to request an application, according to the county executive's office. Completed applications can be mailed or emailed.

Follow Jack Hogan on Twitter:

@jckhogan

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Read the English Translation of Lyrics to Rammstein's 'Zick Zack' - Loudwire - Translation

Rammstein's new album, Zeit, will be released in late April and the industrial icons recently dropped "Zick Zack," the second single from the successor to 2019's untitled record. As is typical, the lyrics to this latest track are sung in German and, below, you will find the English translation.

In early March, Rammstein revealed the Zeit album cover and set April 29 as the official release date while also offering up the title track as an advance preview of the new LP. The album's track listing, however, was not among the divulged details and, instead, the band sent fans on a worldwide geocaching-like scavenger hunt to uncover the names of each of the 11 new songs.

While the lyrics to "Zeit" held some pretty deep, thought-provoking significance (read more about the song's meaning here), "Zick Zack" is quite the opposite — another example of Rammstein's more slapstick side with a crass overview of cosmetic surgery. We'll cut right to the chase — there's a lyrics about removing belly fat so "now the penis sees the sun again."

You can read the entire English translation to "Zick Zack" below.

Rammstein, "Zick Zack" Lyrics (via LyricsTranslate)

Nicer, bigger, harder
Tighter, smoother, stronger

Your breasts are too small
Two pounds of silicone are fine
Cut sacks from the eyes
Mill the nose, suck fat off

We quickly delete two ribs
And insert a tube into your lips
In the cheeks, in the forehead
Botox just into your brain

Zigzag, zigzag, cut it off
Zigzag, zigzag, short and sweet

All sagging above the chin
Can be pulled in the neck
Implants in the face
And we lift your buttocks

Knife, swab, general anesthesia
Seven kilos of riding pants and
Belly fat in the bio bin
Now the penis sees the sun again

Zigzag, zigzag, cut it off
Tick tack, tick tack, you will be old
Your time is running out slowly

Who wants to be beautiful, must suffer
Cut it off, cut it out, cut ut away
Needle, thread, scissors, light
It can't go without pain

Tighten the cheeks, carve the cheekbones
Splash the waste into lips
Wrinkles rustle on the scalpel
Foreskin gone, very relevant

Isn't the woman in the man happy?
Anyway, everything is gone

Zigzag, zigzag, cut it off
Tick tack, tick tack, you will be old
Your time is running out slowly

Who wants to be beautiful, must suffer
Vanity is never modest
Needle, thread, scissors, light
It can't go without pain

Nicer, bigger, harder
Tighter, smoother, stronger

15 Rock Songs That Are Actually Really Creepy

A rock song that's unambiguously creepy can certainly be unsettling. But what about the kind of tune that sneaks up on you with its creepiness? It might have a sunny melody or what seems like a simple lovelorn lyric. Yet, beneath the surface, something more deceivingly dastardly lurks. Here are just a few examples of rock songs that are actually really creepy.

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