Refereed journal article or data article (A1)
In Search of an Ordinary Translator: Translator Histories, Working Practices and Translator-Publisher Relations in the Light of Archival Documents
List of Authors: Paloposki Outi
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Publication year: 2017
Journal: Translator: Studies in Intercultural Communication
Volume number: 23
Issue number: 1
Start page: 31
End page: 48
Number of pages: 18
ISSN: 1355-6509
eISSN: 1757-0409
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13556509.2016.1243997
Translators often do much more than translate: they propose books, discuss strategies, compare editions and make suggestions on titles, typography and illustrations. While these processes of negotiation and management of the translation task are invisible to the public, there may still be traces left of them hidden away in archives. Historical sources such as letters and contracts throw light on the working practices of translators and on publisher–translator interaction. This article presents results from a study on two different archives in Finland: an individual translator’s collection of documents and a publishing house archive, with materials from the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. The study also sheds light on the publishing scene in Finland and on differences between publishers concerning their negotiations with translators.