Special Issue Call for Papers

Guest edited by Alexandra Assis Rosa (University of Lisbon and University of Lisbon Centre for English Studies), Hanna Pięta (University of Lisbon Centre for English Studies) and Rita Bueno Maia (Universidade Europeia de Lisboa and University of Lisbon Centre for English Studies)

This special issue offers a state-of-the-art overview of research on indirect translation, the most frequent expression used for this phenomenon typically defined as “translation based on a source (or sources) which is itself a translation into a language other than the language of the original, or the target language” (Kittel and Frank 1991, 3). Despite the widespread use of indirect translation in intercultural exchange, the position of research into this phenomenon within the framework of translation studies still appears to be marginal. The scant attention paid to indirect translation is visible, for instance, in the lack of consensus concerning the metalanguage, leading to the coexistence of (similar but not necessarily synonymous) terms such as “‘indirect”, “intermediate”, “mediated”, “mixed”, “pivot”, “relay(ed)”, and “second-hand” translation. Additionally, studies that focus on indirect translation tend to be very restrictive in defining this concept, deliberately or de facto excluding intralingual and intersemiotic translation. As a consequence, research that challenges the concept of indirect translation and argues for a more inclusive definition is next to impossible to find (but see, e.g., Gambier 1994). Furthermore, indirect translation tends to be approached as more a textual phenomenon than a cultural one. This has been usefully highlighted by Heilbron (1999, 436), who suggests that “even when the translations themselves are […] made directly from the original language, the decision to publish from a peripheral language still depends on the existence of their translation in a central language”. Finally, prior studies on indirect translation have focused mainly on interpreting (relay interpreting) and literary translation. However, indirect translation is a phenomenon verifiable in other areas such as scientific, technical and audiovisual translation, always involving the negotiation of a plurality of interventions, be they textual, paratextual or contextual.

We invite proposals for papers focusing especially on theoretical, methodological and terminological issues, but not excluding case studies on various text types and language pairs. Suggested topics include:

• Theoretical, methodological and terminological issues in researching indirect translation

• Indirectness in various translation types (adaptation; back-translation; interlingual, intralingual and intersemiotic translation; non-translation; pseudo-translation; retranslation; revision; self-translation) and different text types (interpreting; literary, technical, scientific and audiovisual translation)

• Indirectness and other concepts (censorship; hybridity; post-colonialism)

• The consecration of languages, cultures, genres, authors via indirect translation

• Revisiting concepts such as translation norms, policy, universals, and units through indirectness

• Mapping relevant criteria and variables for the study of indirect intercultural transfers and the role of the various agents, their choices and interventions

Articles will be 5000–8000 words in length, in English (including notes and references). Detailed style guidelines are available at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/authorSubmission?journalCode=rtrs20&page=instructions#.UtfPL3lfxfQ.

Abstracts of 400–500 words should be sent by email to the guest editors at [email protected], [email protected] and [email protected].

Schedule

January 5, 2015: deadline for submitting abstracts (400–500 words) to the guest editors

March 2, 2015: deadline for decisions on abstracts

January 4, 2016: submission of papers

September 1, 2016: submission of final versions of papers

May 2017: publication date