Paper short abstract:

This paper addresses language as a translation, aiming to develop a relational approach to the question of language and focusing on meaning and value creation processes on the basis of selected stories from Bergama/Pergamon (UNESCO world heritage site in Turkey).

Paper long abstract:

English as a lingua franca is a double bind. The use of English to facilitate communication among anthropologists situated in different contexts and using different first languages creates a condition of possibility to learn from each other across/beyond local borders. As anthropologists continue giving consent to the use of English as a communicative medium (as I do here), this medium appears as the only option, rendering alternative pathways invisible, therefore, reproducing its constituted hegemony. Obviously, the question of language addressing hegemonic constitutions and systematic exclusions includes more than a discussion about language as a medium and/or an advocacy for multilingualism. It opens a space to deeply think about why and how it matters to draw attention to the question of language. Multiple answers can emerge in accordance with the way we approach language, e.g., as a culture, ontology, and so on. In this paper, I address language as a translation, aiming to develop a relational approach to the question of language and focusing on meaning and value creation processes. On the basis of selected stories weaved in, around, and through Bergama/Pergamon (UNESCO world heritage site in Izmir, Turkey), I contemplate on multilayered translations with an attention to the concreteness of local places and the deterritorialization/reterritorialization of culture. Such a contemplation is a thought experiment not necessarily aiming to solve the paradox of English as a lingua franca but explores the possibility of different languages to reframe the problem space, and render alternative pathways visible to address it.