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Paper short abstract

This study aims to present and analyse the epic works translated from Japanese into Hungarian between 1945 and 1990 from the prespective of translation studies. Focus will be placed on the translators and the translation strategies used in this period of time.

Paper long abstract

This study aims to present and analyse the epic works translated from Japanese into Hungarian between 1945 and 1990 from the prespective of translation studies.

Initially, works were translated from Russian, German, English and French. However, as Japanese language teaching spread, translations from Japanese began to appear, particularly from the late 1960s onwards.

During the period under review, more than 40 novels, short story collections and a folk tale anthology were published, alongside more than 50 of individual short story translations were published in various journals. Translated authors included major 20th century Japanese literary figures such as Kōbō Abe, Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, the Nobel laureates Yasunari Kawabata and Kenzaburō Ōe, Ōgai Mori, and Jun’ichirō Tanizaki. Additionally, the first Japanese novel, Shikibu Murasaki's The Tale of Genji and The Pillow Book by Shōnagon Sei were also translated in this period.

The study is twofold: 1) it examines which authors were translated during this period, how the works were selected, who the translators were, what intermediate languages the translations were made from, and what common features characterize the translations published in this era. 2) through a short parallel corpus compiled of source and target language texts, we highlight specific translation norms and strategies, with particular emphasis on realia, forms of address, transcription, and possible omissions or mistranslations.

Keywords: translation studies, prose translation, translation strategies

References:

Judit Vihar (2009): A japán irodalom megjelenése Magyarországon 1989-ig The Reception of Japanese Literature in Hungary until 1989). In.: (Farkas Ildikó, Szerdahelyi István, Umemura Yuko, Wintermantel Péter szerk.) Tanulmányok a magyar-japán kapcsolatok történetéből. Budapest: Eötvös Kiadó, 383-404.

Sato Noriko (2001): A japán kultúra fogadtatása Magyarországon. (Reception of Japanese Culture in Hungary). In: Tudományos Évkönyv 2001. Budapesti Gazdasági Főiskola, 308-316.

György Radó (2001): Hungarian Tradition. In: Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies. Mona B. (ed.). London ad NY: Routledge. 448-456.

István Bart and Sándor Rákos ed. (1981): A műfordítás ma (Literary Translation Today). Budapest: Gondolat Kiadó.

Lóránt Tarnóczi (1966): Fordítókalauz. A szakirodalmi fordítás elmélete és gyakorlata. (The Translator's Handbook: Theory and Practice of Special Literature). Budapest: Közgazdasági és Jogi Kiadó.