gothic 2 gold edition insert ch translation

The 'School of Toledo' stands for a peak period of translation in Spain and for cultural and scientific interaction in the 12th and 13th centuries in Europe. Through the constant exchange of ideas and experiences these translators were able to create a treasure trove of knowledge which was to enrich Western culture across language barriers. 9 In the 13th century, translations were then made from Arabic into the Spanish vernacular. In the 12th century, these texts were themselves translated into Latin by scholars in the Spanish city of Toledo, the main focus being on the philosophical and scientific achievements of the Greek and Arab world, especially in the fields of medicine, mathematics, astronomy and astrology. 8 Here scholars worked in teams to translate scientific works from ancient Greek into Arabica. 7 In later centuries, an attitude such as this, especially in the field of Bible translation, was to prove disastrous for many a translator in Europe.ĭuring the 9th and 10th centuries a constellation of a completely different kind emerged in Baghdad in the form of a translation chamber under the direction of the Christian physician and scholar Hunayn ibn Ishaq (809–873), known in the West as Johannitius. 57) to the Roman senator Pammachius, he freely admitted his strategy of expressing not one word by means of another, but translating sense for sense ('non verbum de verbo sed sensum exprimere de sensu'), with the exception however of the Holy Scriptures, where 'even the word order is a mystery'. This approach emerges especially clearly in the work of Eusebius Sophronicus Hieronymus (345–420), the patron saint of translators and the author of the Vulgate. It was he who formulated one of the earliest maxims of translation theory: In his discussion of translation De optimo genere oratorum, he ranks translating according to sense higher than a word-for-word rendering ('Non ut interpres (…) sed ut orator' 6), unleashing a discussion that was to dominate translation theory for nearly two thousand years. Some of the translators were themselves poets, such as Horace (65–8 BC) and Virgil (70–19 BC), or other outstanding personalities, in particular Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 BC). 5 In the Roman Empire, translation began to flourish. 8th century BC), thus giving the Romans access to the treasures of Greek literature. 285–204 BC) made a Latin version of the Odyssey of Homer (ca. 4 An early pioneer achievement of translation in Europe can be found in Classical Antiquity, when a former Greek slave called Livius Andronicus (ca. Translation is one of the oldest activities of humankind, going back to the invention of writing systems and hence written communication across language barriers. Prologue: Classical Antiquity and the 'School of Toledo' This article will present an overview of the main trends in translation between 14, concentrating on the peak periods and highlights along with the outstanding personalities who have created them, from the viewpoint of today's 'interdiscipline' of Translation Studies, 3 particularly in relation to the history of Europe and its cultural and intellectual development. 2 The history of translation cannot be represented as a chronological report, as a stable continuum, nor can it be recorded as a mere inventory of texts, but can only be seen from the perspective of the times and the individual text concerned. The work of the translator is dependent on power structures dominant at the time, on frequently unpredictable economic and cultural developments, and even the changing concept of translation itself 1 which determines the relationship between source and target text as regards both form and content. While translation permeates every historical epoch and countless aspects of human activity, the translator's task and its significance vary with the many different language communities across the world and the diverse political constellations arising during the course of history. IntroductionĪny attempt to write an adequate history of translation, even one limited to Europe within a restricted period of time, would be a utopian undertaking. See also the articles 'L’essor de la traduction au XVIIIe siècle' and 'Translating: the art of interpreting ancient texts' in the EHNE.

Gothic 2 gold edition insert ch translation