On International Translation Day, we look at how translations have enabled us to enjoy literature, films and songs across cultures.
Indigenous Ixil women following a 2013 trial of a Guatemalan general implicated in the killing of Ixil natives in the early 1980sImage: Saul Martinez/EPA/picture alliance/dpa
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One couldn't be far wrong to say that translation is as ubiquitous in our daily lives as, say, the zipper or mushrooms.
For without translation, someone somewhere in the world might otherwise be unable to do a COVID self-test, a newly signed footballer from Japan may not initially understand what his German coach wants of him or an original Greek recipe will remain, well, Greek to you.
From signage at airports to nifty apps, translation helps us to not only navigate our way in foreign places but enables us to communicate with colleagues in multicultural workplaces that are now more the norm than the exception.
Following the daily news, navigating diplomacy and politics or observing trials in international courts: Translation's significance in almost all aspects of life can't be underscored enough.
A selection of the world's most translated books
On International Translation Day, we look at some books and a document in various origin languages that have been widely translated, capturing minds worldwide.
Image: Pascal Deloche/Godong/picture alliance
Spreading the word
International Translation Day is set on the feast of St Jerome, known for translating most of the Greek New Testament into Latin, besides translating parts of the Hebrew gospel into Greek. Originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, the complete Bible has been translated into 724 languages, according to a 2022 count. At least one book of the Bible has been translated into 3,384 languages.
Image: Pascal Deloche/Godong/picture alliance
Spiritual guidance across ages
The Bhagavad Gita — Sanskrit for "Song of God" — is a 700-verse scripture that is part of the Indian epic, the Mahabharata. Composed as a dialog between Prince Arjuna and Krishna, an incarnation of the god Vishnu, this important text of Hinduism is generally dated to 2 B.C. It has reportedly been translated into more than 75 global languages, with more than 300 translations in English alone.
Image: Pascal Deloche/Godong/picture alliance
Ancient wisdom that still resonates
Translating roughly to "the way of integrity," the Tao Te Ching is a Chinese text dating from the 4th or 3rd century B.C. and is attributed to an obscure figure, Lao Tzu, or "The Old Master." Described by Penguin Random House as "the most translated book in the world after the Bible," its 81 verses steers readers toward the Tao, or the "Way": harmony with the life force of the universe.
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The first modern novel
"The Ingenious Nobleman Mister Quixote of La Mancha" — popularly known as "Don Quixote" — was first written in Spanish by Miguel de Cervantes. Published as two parts in 1605 and 1615, literary historians deem it one of the most important books of all time, and it is often cited as the first modern novel. Translated into 50 languages, it also inspired the English adjective "quixotic."
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Enduring fairy tales
Hans Christian Anderson's fairy tales have been translated into 128 languages. Written between 1835 and 1837, some of the Danish author's best known stories like "Thumbelina" (picture), "The Little Mermaid," "The Ugly Duckling" and "The Steadfast Tin Soldier" share the common theme of resilience in the face of adversity. A quality which remains relevant even in the 21st century.
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Translation into emoji
In 2015, artist, designer, author and "emoji translator," Joe Hale single-handedly worked 300 hours to convert English author Lewis Carroll's 27,500-word novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" into more than 26,000 emojis. It was part of the 150th anniversary celebrations of the book whose protagonist is known as Alis in Yiddish, Alisi in Tongan or Anya in Russian.
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Timeless life lessons
"The Little Prince" has been translated into 552 languages and dialects; and some of these languages now have several translated versions. Written originally in French, it is about a young prince who visits various planets, including Earth, and addresses themes of loneliness, friendship, love and loss. First published in 1943, it still commands a cult following today.
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Recognizing human rights
Though not a book, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, published in 1948, holds the Guinness World Record as the most translated document in history, existing in more than 500 languages and dialects from Abkhaz to Zulu. Its extensive translation underscores the universal commitment to human rights, ensuring that people worldwide know their basic human rights regardless of their language.
"The Alchemist" (Portuguese: "O Alquimista") is a novel by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho, which was first published in 1988. Originally written in Portuguese, it became a widely translated international bestseller. Coelho holds the Guinness record "for the most translated author for the same book." To date, "The Alchemist" has been translated into 80 languages including Hindi, Farsi and isiXhosa.
Image: J.l.Cerejido/EFE/EPA/picture-alliance/dpa
Most translated in African literature
Kenyan author Ngugi wa Thiong'o's "The Upright Revolution" (2019) is a short story on how and why humans began to walk upright. Originally written in Gikuyu, this short story merging myth and folklore with an acute insight into the human psyche and politics has been translated into 63 languages — 47 of them African — making it the most translated story in the history of African literature.
Image: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA/EPA/picture alliance
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The world would be 'duller, poorer' without translation
In 2017, the United Nations officially declared September 30 as International Translation Day. The date was chosen as it is also the feast day of St. Jerome, a Catholic priest who translated the Bible and is considered the patron saint of translators.
Hailing from north-eastern Italy, he spoke an Illyrian dialect but is best known for translating the Greek manuscripts of the Bible's New Testament into Latin and for translating parts of the Hebrew Gospel into Greek. Jerome had learned Latin in school and was fluent in Greek and Hebrew, which he picked up from his studies and travels. He died near Bethlehem on September 30, 420.
The Jamaican Bible Society released the first patois translation of the New Testament from the original Greek in 2012Image: David McFadden/AP Photo/picture alliance
More recently, in 2020, the European Commission (EC) launched the campaign "Discover Translation," encouraging people to consider translation work as a career option.
"Without translation, the world would be a duller, poorer and more unequal place, both economically and culturally, where only the 'happy few' with a knowledge of other languages would have access to goods, information and culture from other countries," the EC said.
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Neruda, Nintendo, Netflix
Translation has also enabled us to enjoy books, songs, films, TV series, or computer games in foreign languages — fostering cross-cultural awareness and knowledge in the process.
How else could we have enjoyed the poems of the Chilean Pablo Neruda, the fairy tales of the Danish Hans Christian Andersen or sought wisdom in holy books like the Bhagavad Gita or the Bible?
In terms of songs, the original German Christmas carol, "Stille Nacht" or "Silent Night" was declared Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 2011 and is reportedly the most translated carol to date.
Meanwhile, the Oscar-winning "Let It Go" from Disney's 2013 hit animated film "Frozen," has been recorded in 41 languages, including Flemish, Bahasa Malaysia and Vietnamese. Disney even put together a video showing this multilingual project that spliced together some international versions of the song being sung in French, German, Dutch and Mandarin among others.
In the gaming world, Japanese company Nintendo's "Mario" and "Donkey Kong" made global inroads via translation — although gaming fans have highlighted slip ups in text over the years.
Nintendo's 'Donkey Kong' is now an institution in the gaming worldImage: Nintendo/picture alliance/dpa
During the height of the COVID pandemic lockdown, people stuck at home turned to streaming services and gained access to new worlds through subtitled foreign language series and films from all over the world, from Iceland to India.
The South Korean series "Squid Game" soared to the #1 spot on Netflix's TV show charts in 22 countries upon its release on September 17, 2021. Having pulled in a staggering 1.65 billion hours of viewing in 28 days following its premiere, it remains the streaming giant's most viewed series, with the US produced English-language "Stranger Things" coming in second.
From phrasebooks to bots
Sometimes translations can also provide laughsImage: Matthias Graben/imageBROKER/picture alliance
The methods of translating have also evolved over time — from scholars in ancient times laboriously reproducing text from the original language to the target language to phrasebooks and audio cassettes and discs that we could speak along with, to computer technologies like DeepL and Google Translate that assist human translators today.
From literal translations, that are still often retained for historic, academic, scientific and religious materials, the art of translating has also evolved to now include interpretative and localized translations that adapt an original core message to the cultural context or realities of target audiences.
