Exil:Trans - Life and work of translators in exile

Budin, Gerhard (coordinator) (VIE) & Bäcker, Iris (GER) & Brandtner Joana (VIE) & Dueck, Evelyn (LAU) & Kelletat, Andreas F. (GER) & Kremmel, Stefanie (VIE) & Lušicky, Vesna (VIE) & Richter, Julia (VIE) & Rozmyslowicz, Tomasz (VIE/GER) & Schippel, Larisa (VIE) & Spitzl, Karlheinz (VIE) & Tashinskiy, Aleksey (GER) & Weber-Henking, Irene (LAU) & Wloka, Bartholomäus (VIE) University of Vienna, Centre for Translation Studies (Coordinating unit) Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz Germersheim, Department of Intercultural German Studies University of Lausanne, Centre for Literary Translation Into the light Translations, when published, exist as real or virtual objects. They can be bought, borrowed, read, exploited for further study, shelved or stored. As quotations or paraphrased sections, they may circulate through various discursive fields and thus shape our social life. This is also true for translations in exile in the context of Nazi tyranny. Their creators, however, the translators in exile, have, so far, remained anonymous in public and academic discourse: their names, biographies, work, the scope of agency, networks, translational strategies remain in the dark. The ExilTrans project has been designed to take these translators out of the discursive shadows. The prism of exile Exile means both, loss and rescue. Research into exile is usually associated with scarce and scattered data. For many, escaping into exile not only meant losing their individual centre of life but often also lead at least for a certain time to existential margins. ExilTrans will explore what room for manoeuvre and action the translators in exile were able to open up and shape within the new translatorial setting(s) they worked in (or had even just established) and what roles they played and developed (e.g., linguistic field, publishers in exile, contra-Fascist commitment). Our work will be methodologically based on the approach of histoire croisée with a focus on biographies and networks. Reflections: here and now In recent years, exile has become a reality for ever more people in the world, and even those who live in peace can feel its ubiquity. Translators usually play an important part in establishing, shaping, maintaining or even destroying translocal relations. The translators in exile of our project contributed to sharing cultural and scientific texts, news, hopes and expectations during Nazi rule. At the same time, their work also meant an act of breaking political restrictions. It is thus of importance to gain a solid understanding (and improve discursive visibility) of their conditions of work and life, their settings of interaction and publication. Embedded in a digital-humanities framework, we shall open an e-window for the public to follow the ongoing work of ExilTrans.

Exil:Trans Life and Work of Translators in Exile The project Exil:Trans (2019 -2022) researched the lives and translational activities of translators who were forced into exile by National Socialism. The aim was to document translators biographically, to record their translations bibliographically, to close research gaps in exile research and to gain theoretical insights into translational events. The project identified over 300 translators and their works. By examining different geographical regions and genres, individual translators and translation spaces could be researched in detail. The project was able to describe different categories of translation in exile, mainly related to translational motifs. Exil:Trans d eveloped new methods for compiling translator biographies and translation bibliographies, including the development of digital tools for data presentation and analysis. The resulting databases and tools are open access to all researchers and archived for longevity in the system of the Vienna University Library. The project had a positive impact on the careers of the researchers involved, increased their visibility and facilitated interdisciplinary exchange. The research team, consisting of experienced professors, postdocs and PhD students, gained knowledge, perspectives and practical skills in data management and project management. The project results were disseminated via open access databases, scientific conferences and publications. Collaboration with the Digital Library and Bibliography of Translation Literature (DLBT) and the Germersheimer Übersetzerlexikon (UELex.de) extended the reach of the project data. Exil:Trans made significant contributions to translation historiography, source criticism and the understanding of translators in exile. It challenged existing theoretical notions and uncovered hidden forms of collaborative translation, the polyfunctionality of translation and gender-related differences. The project also showed the importance of further research in the post-exile period to reveal the subsequent impact of exile on translational action, translators` post -exile experiences and the effects of the political turn after the end of Nazism. In summary, the Exile:Trans project has deepened our understanding of the lives and work of translators in exile during National Socialism. It has brought new insights, theoretical considerations and methodological advances in the fields of translation studies and exile research. The project`s findings, methods and databases will continue to contribute to research and interdisciplinary dialogue in the future.