Search

The territory encompassed by the Republic of Peru has been multilingual and multi-ethnic, therefore the work of translation and interpretation implies an encounter project among different cultures. This article highlights such linguistic plurality and its events throughout history. Tawantinsuyu encouraged the coexistence of languages and multilingualism, something that surprised the Spanish conquerors who needed to have interpreters on hand. Later, during the Conquest, the evangelizing work played a key role in the castilianization and the consequent production of bilingual texts, despite the deep interpreting difficulties that created new versions of Andean languages. With the Spanish Crown settled in these territories, the dissemination of Latin among the intellectuals and the castilianization among the population was encouraged. Many intellectuals became translators of literary texts. Although there were limits to cultural exchange with European countries other than Spain due to the censorship imposed, some creoles were able to travel to those countries and spread what they had learned upon their return. They translated texts from French and Portuguese. During the Republic, European humanists and scientists turned their interest to South America, many of them traveled to Peru and had an influence on the translations of the time in which dictionaries, literary magazines, among other texts, were issued. Although the work of the translator was hidden behind pseudonyms, it is known that many of these authors were writers, poets, or journalists. In the 21st century, great anthologies on foreign authors in Peru and a study in volumes on the history of translation (Silva Santiesteban 2007) were published, also the translation of Asian and Eastern European languages begins to develop to a greater extent. A special section has been written to describe the legislation that regulates the use of languages in Peru. Quechua acquired the status of an official language as late as 1975, and its dissemination and teaching continue to be set aside. Even so, bilingual books were published. There is a similar problem for the Amazonian languages whose dissemination has been mediated by private entities and has not been seen as a comprehensive cultural policy. However, the Ministry of Culture has created a Registry of Interpreters of Indigenous Languages, still with little participation. The teaching, research, and institutionalization of translation and interpretation began with the opening of Departments of Translation, the subsequent creation of the Association of Peruvian Translators, and the publication of specialized magazines and texts for professionals.

Los patrones estilísticos del arte textil de cada grupo étnico andino expresan información específica. Estos patrones pueden estar presentes en la elaboración del khipu, que es un textil. El khipu formaría parte de la familia textil de un grupo humano dado. La configuración estilística del khipu podría considerarse como señal identitaria de un grupo social dado, mi propuesta para el presente trabajo. La asociación de cada khipu arqueológico a un grupo étnico específico y, a su interior, a un nivel de administración indígena, es plausible. Textile art style patterns belonging to a unique ethnic group express specific information. They may be present in khipu configuration, since it is also a textile. Khipu would thus belong to the textile objects family of a given human group. Specific style khipu configuration could be considered an identity sign of a given ethnic group, which I propose in this article. The association of each archaeological khipu to a specific ethnic group and, within it, to a level of indigenous administration, is plausible.

Over the last 30 years there has been a substantial increase in the study of the history of translation. Both well-known and lesser-known specialists in translation studies have worked tirelessly to give the history of translation its rightful place. Clearly, progress has been made, and the history of translation has become a viable independent research area. This book aims at claiming such autonomy for the field with a renewed vigour. It seeks to explore issues related to methodology as well as a variety of discourses on history with a view to laying the groundwork for new avenues, new models, new methods. It aspires to challenge existing theoretical and ideological frameworks. It looks toward the future of history. It is an attempt to address shortcomings that have prevented translation history from reaching its full disciplinary potential. From microhistory, archaeology, periodization, to issues of subjectivity and postmodernism, methodological lacunae are being filled. Contributors to this volume go far beyond the text to uncover the role translation has played in many different times and settings such as Europe, Africa, Latin America, the Middle-east and Asia from the 6th century to the 20th. These contributions, which deal variously with the discourses on methodology and history, recast the discipline of translation history in a new light and pave the way to the future of research and teaching in the field.