Kalandraka and Isaac Xubin win the Etxepare-Laboral Kutxa Translation Award for the translation into Galician of Tempo de exilio, a collection of poems by J.Sarrionandia

Euskara. Kultura. Mundura.

2015-09-30

Today, on the International Translation Day, the Etxepare Basque Institute and Laboral Kutxa announced and gave, for the first time, the Etxepare-Laboral Kutxa Translation Award.

This prize was created to recognize the translation of literary works originally written and published in Basque language. In this first edition the winners are the Galician publisher Kalandraka and the translator Isaac Xubín, for the translation into Galician of  a collection of poems by Joseba Sarrionandia, under the title “Tempo de exilio”.


The jury chaired by Aizpea Goenaga, Director of the Etxepare Basque Institute, was also composed by Inaxio Garro, Head of  Basque Language of  Laboral-Kutxa, the Professor of the UPV-EHU and literary critic Mari Jose Olaziregi and Elizabete Manterola, Professor of the UPV-EHU and member of EIZIE. In her capacity as the Etxepare Director for the Promotion and Dissemination of the Basque language, Olaziregi recalled the objective of this prize: to encourage and promote the translation and publication of literature in Basque beyond our borders. She also noted that the award recognizes the translation of a literary work written in Basque and published in 2014, and that they have received fourteen works translated into Castilian, Galician, Japanese, Dutch, Slovenian, English, Catalan and Italian.


Just before announcing the name of the winners, Inaxio Garro expressed the reasons that led the jury to give this award: the quality of the text, the fact that it has been translated directly from the Basque, the experience of the translator, the fact that it is a poetry work and the praises of the expert who reviewed the translation. The jury also praised the collaborative work with Basque publishers, as well as the dissemination job of the book done in Galicia and its presence in the press. Another element appreciated by the jury was the delicate editing of the book and its bilingual character, which gives the Basque language a greater visibility.

 

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Today, on the International Translation Day, the Etxepare Basque Institute and Laboral Kutxa announced and gave, for the first time, the Etxepare-Laboral Kutxa Translation Award.

This prize was created to recognize the translation of literary works originally written and published in Basque language. In this first edition the winners are the Galician publisher Kalandraka and the translator Isaac Xubín, for the translation into Galician of  a collection of poems by Joseba Sarrionandia, under the title “Tempo de exilio”.


The jury chaired by Aizpea Goenaga, Director of the Etxepare Basque Institute, was also composed by Inaxio Garro, Head of  Basque Language of  Laboral-Kutxa, the Professor of the UPV-EHU and literary critic Mari Jose Olaziregi and Elizabete Manterola, Professor of the UPV-EHU and member of EIZIE. In her capacity as the Etxepare Director for the Promotion and Dissemination of the Basque language, Olaziregi recalled the objective of this prize: to encourage and promote the translation and publication of literature in Basque beyond our borders. She also noted that the award recognizes the translation of a literary work written in Basque and published in 2014, and that they have received fourteen works translated into Castilian, Galician, Japanese, Dutch, Slovenian, English, Catalan and Italian.


Just before announcing the name of the winners, Inaxio Garro expressed the reasons that led the jury to give this award: the quality of the text, the fact that it has been translated directly from the Basque, the experience of the translator, the fact that it is a poetry work and the praises of the expert who reviewed the translation. The jury also praised the collaborative work with Basque publishers, as well as the dissemination job of the book done in Galicia and its presence in the press. Another element appreciated by the jury was the delicate editing of the book and its bilingual character, which gives the Basque language a greater visibility.


The director of the Etxepare Institute, Aizpea Goenaga, presented the prize to the two directors of  Kalandraka, Manuela Rodríguez and Xosé Ballesteros. Rodríguez thanked the organizers for taking into consideration the Galician - "a language near extinction" - and expressed her gratitude to Isaac Xubín and to the Basque publisher Pamiela, for providing them with the opportunity to meet and enjoy the work by Sarrionandia. Xosé Ballesteros also stressed his years of collaboration with Pamiela, and noted that "Tempo de exilio" is a work dedicated to those "forced to be away",  all those who had to flee. He added that in his view the translation by Xubin has been "masterful".


After receiving his award from Iñaki Altuna, Regional Director of Laboral Kutxa, the translator Isaac Xubin  reminded many friends. First of all his brother César, for those times when they used to listen together to the songs by the band “Kortatu"; he also recalled his Basque language teachers, and among those mentioned were Itxaro, Ander and Mireia. And he also thanked especially the friends of  Kalandraka, who allowed him make a dream come true, as they gave him the opportunity to transform into "a Galician Joseba Sarrionandia”.


The event was closed with the reading of the text written for the occasion by Joseba Sarrionandia, in Basque and Galician. María Jesús Sarrionandia, sister of the author and Manuela Rodríguez read the texts, in which the writer showed against the myth of the Tower of Babel, against those who use it to punish, prohibit, or to despise other languages. "Luckily, we have different languages, all human, worthy and universal," he pointed out, to conclude by thanking "the translators and all those who recognize the other languages".

 

 

* Words by Joseba Sarrionandia


BABELGO MITOAREN KONTRA

                                                             

Egunon, hemen elkartu zaretenoi. Eskerrik asko Etxepare Institutuaren gomitari. Baimena ematen badidazue, hitz gutxi batzuk esan nahi nituzke itzultzaileen alde eta, batez ere, Babelgo mitoaren kontra.

Itzulpena, jakina denez, inposiblea da eta, aldi berean, beharrezkoa. Eta ezinezkoa posible egiten duen ofizio bat dago, itzultzailearena. Itzultzailearen zeregina magikoa da, jakina, hizkuntza desberdinak hitz egiten dituztenen arteko komunikazioa erraztea. Kultura unibertsalaren eragile magikoak dira.

Baina utzi egidazue gailegoz jarraitzen, Finisterre aldeko gonbidatuoi eskerronez…

Quería darlle as grazas aos máxicos aquí presentes, particularmente a Isaac Xubín, a Luís Rei e aos editores de Kalandraka. E quería protestar, ao mesmo tempo, contra o mito de Babel. Creo que debemos desacreditar o mito de Babel.

Aos que acreditan no mito da Torre de Babel e no castigo metafórico, e que renegan da diversidade cultural, e que empregan o mito de Babel como argumento de autoridade para impoñer o castigo, ou a prohibición, ou o simple descrédito aos outros, eu dígolles que non acredito no idioma universal. Non acredito no idioma universal, como non acredito na euxénese ou no pensamento único.

A idea de que a diversidade é confusión e conflito, foi utilizada ao servizo da política asimilacionista -ás veces sutil, e xeralmente brutal- que nos inflixiron durante séculos os nosos veciños imperialistas. Os nosos fracasados veciños imperialistas, pódese dicir; porque as nosas linguas están aínda vivas e máis ou menos saudables. Mais non suficientemente fracasados, paréceme, porque aínda insisten.

Aos que acreditan na idea do idioma universal dígolles, con Castelao, que “a variedade de idiomas, coa súa variedade de culturas, é o signo distintivo da nosa especie, o que nos fai superiores aos animais. Velaí vai a demostración: un can de Turquía ouvea igual que un can de Dinamarca; un cabalo das Pampas arxentinas rincha igual que un cabalo de Bretaña. E sabedes por que? Porque os pobres animais aínda están no idioma universal…”

Aínda seguen algúns pobres humanos, alleos ao humor de Castelao, coa súa pretensión de impoñer un único idioma; quizais o único que saben. Por sorte, temos diversos idiomas, todos eles humanos, dignos e universais.

A única lingua que merecería perder puntos no seu recoñecemento universal sería, na miña opinión, aquela na que se apouque e escamotee o carácter universal dos outros idiomas.          

Moitas grazas aos tradutores e a todos os que recoñecen as outras linguas.

Un abrazo.                                                                           

                                                            

Joseba Sarrionandia

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