NEWS & EVENTS

Romani Language and Translation

A three-day event was held from October 14 to 16, 2021 that focused discussion on Romani language and culture through the perspective of translation.

Two day online event that focused on ethics and translation (written) and interpreting (oral) in the Romani context.

June 20 - July 1, 2023

Academic and professional lecturers

Dr. Philippe Caignon; Dr. Renée Desjardins; Ugo Ellefsen; Dr. Debbie Folaron; Dr. Ian Hancock; Gilda Horvath; Dr. Laurence Jay-Rayon Ibrahim Aibo; Dr. Rita Kothari; Dr. Hristo Kyuchukov; Dr. Barbara Lorenzkowski; Carmen Ruschiensky; Lela Savić; Dr. Hedina Sijerčić; Dr. Sherry Simon; Dr. Şebnem Susam-Saraeva; Gyula Vámosi

This interdisciplinary, credit-bearing summer institute, which combines Romani and translation expertise, will provide students with opportunities to learn about various approaches that can be applied to the practice and research of translation in a Romani context.

General objectives:

1. to discuss the specificities of minority translation in general, and Romani translation in particular, with on-site scholars and practitioners;
2. to explore strategies useful for the practice of translation in the Romani context and for the development of bilingual and plurilingual abilities into translation skills;
3. to share insights, experiences, and expertise on diverse translation practices;
4. to encourage avenues of research in the area of Romani translation;
5. to offer students opportunities for translation practice, self-reflection on translation procedures, and discussions with experienced translators and researchers;
6. to create an environment of positive exchange that can inspire the creation of networks and partnerships for future projects and initiatives in the domain of Romani translation.

The summer institute sessions are organized into modules. Attendees are expected to actively participate in the module sessions and activities. They are encouraged to meet with local faculty members, students, and practitioners working in Canada’s official languages (English, French) and other immigrant and Indigenous languages. Qualified undergraduate and graduate students, translators, teachers, writers, and others wishing to explore the professional and academic areas of Romani translation are encouraged to apply.

Planned course modules and activities include:

• Romani language & linguistics for translators and interpreters (Hancock; Kyuchukov)

• Translation as a tool for teaching the Romani language (Sijerčić)

• Conducting & transcribing oral history and other interviews with translation and interpreting (Lorenzkowski)

• Translation technology as a tool for teaching language and translation (Ellefsen; Folaron, with Romani leads Kyuchukov; Sijerčić)

• Minority language-culture in translation (Kothari)

• Romani language-culture in translation (Sijerčić)

• Translating poems and short stories practicum (Kothari; Sijerčić)

• Romani translation practicum (Kyuchukov; Sijerčić)

• Translation, migration, and memory (Simon)

• Professional interpreter practices and certification (Jay-Rayon)

• Romani interpeting (Vámosi)

• Professional translator practices, certification, translation studies concepts (Folaron; Ruschiensky)

• Professional terminology methods for translation purposes and certification (Caignon)

• Audiovisual translation and subtitling: concept and practice (Ellefsen, with Romani lead Vámosi)

• News media translation (Desjardins, with Romani lead Horvath)

• Music and multimodal translation (Susam-Saraeva, with Romani leads Kyuchukov, Vámosi)

• Food translation (Desjardins, with Romani leads Kyuchukov, Sijerčić, Vámosi)

• Translator self-reflexivity and ethics (Folaron; Sijerčić)
  

4TH SPACE activities:

• Open discussion on Romani language and translation (Hancock; Kyuchukov, Sijerčić, Vámosi)
• Open public discussion: Roma perspectives on films and documentaries about Roma (Hancock; Kyuchukov; Sijerčić; Vámosi)
• Open discussion on Roma cultures (Sijerčić)
• Roundtable public discussion on Romani translator “best practices” (Hancock; Kyuchukov; Sijerčić; Vámosi)
• Public roundtable discussion with Roma journalists on reporting and translating news and social media in Romani context (Savić; Horvath, with Ɖurić, Tanić)
• Public program: Romani translation readings, and attribution of “Ronald Lee Translator Award”
  

Activities include:

• Guided assistance for selecting excerpts of poetry, tales, or short stories to translate for the public program at the end of the summer institute
• Practical training in best practices for conducting and transcribing oral interviews (Centre for Oral History and Digital Storytelling)
• Hands-on training for translating, subtitling, and captioning of audio-visual content
• Participation in public Romani translation reading event
  Dinner and Montreal Roma evening events

The Romani-Translation Summer Institute is the third in a series of program events planned for the Jean Monnet Chair. It follows Workshop 1 (2021) and Workshop 2 (2022). Mode of delivery is on-site. Final program details will be posted in due course.

For more information about the ROMTRA program events, please contact ROMTRA@concordia.ca.