International Translation Day: A Celebration of the Gatekeepers of Civilizations and Histories

BY Raviduni Perera

I would like to ask from the reader to take a bit of your time as you read to think of all the times that you have read a story originally written in a language that you are not well-versed in. Think about the times when you have enjoyed a movie or a television series with the help of subtitles, about the times that you listened to a catchy song sung in a foreign tongue and checked what the lyrics mean immediately after, or to think whether you have ever gotten out of an untoward situation, where you were linguistically challenged, because you happened remember that you have Google Translation on your phone. All these are instances where translation helped you in a personal scope, in the microcosm of your own world; and each time, translation may have helped you to make yours a little bigger than before. Now, if we are to consider the whole wide world where translation is present at a grander scale, its importance is equally impressive.

Why Care About Translation?

Prominent 20th century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein has written, 

“The limits of my language mean the limits of my world.” 

This quote is a powerful statement about the reach that language gives to one. But, we can never study as many languages as is needed to expand our world as much as we would like to. Imagine the consequences of this truth in the interconnected world that we live in, where every passing instance is changed from what it was before due to the many decisions made by millions of people from countless corners of the world, who speak and understand numerous different languages. Pieces of art and literature are produced by people of diverse origins, within which one can discover their history, culture and thoughts. Putting those works from one language to another, opens a window for their lives to be seen by the outside world and to empathize. Trade and commerce, diplomatic and legal proceedings, ideas and innovations, and new knowledge of many fields of study are required to be shared with all parts of the world. In the process of making information accessible to interested groups, translation plays a role of  paramount importance in many sectors such as media, corporate, education, judiciary, foreign service among others. Principally, translation serves as a tool that forge connections and deepen understanding.

Translation from its Earliest Past in Brief

The verb ‘translate’, is derived from the Latin word ‘translatio’, which means ‘to fetch or carry across’. The act of translation dates back to the times of the  Mesopotamian civilization, circa 2100 BCE, when the early Sumerian poems about Gilgamesh, the king of the Mesopotamian city-state Uruk, were translated as the “Epic of Gilgamesh” in Akkadian, the dominant language in Mesopotamia at the time. The first known legal translation was in 1271 BCE with the Egyptian-Hittite Peace Treaty. In the 3^rd century, the Greek translation of the Old Testament from Hebrew, known as the Septuagint, was followed by the many renditions of religious texts in both Western and Eastern worlds in different languages. Throughout the centuries that followed, which saw the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation and the invention of the printing press among the most consequential of events, to the present, translation and interpretation expanded to literature, ranging from works of poetry to technical subjects like nautical sciences, to performing arts, trade, diplomacy and many other professions.

In the post Second World War period, a key highlight is the international aspect that pervaded the world economy and politics, particularly since the birth of  United Nations and Bretton Woods institutions, which were consortiums of world nations. In this multilinguistic atmosphere, where the lingua franca is the English language, the need of translation was more keenly felt than ever to understand the various historical and cultural narratives as well as the political and economic motives behind decisions that were to affect the peoples of the world. According to the American writer Rita Mae Brown, “language is the roadmap of a culture,” and for the purpose of elucidating roadmaps of diverse cultures gathered together for the purpose of deciding the course of the world, translation is imperative. 

A Dedicated Institution: International Federation of Translators

Such being the case, in the year 1953, International Federation of Translators(FIT) was created in Paris under the auspices of UNESCO, in which the founding members were from six countries: Denmark, Federal Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Norway and Turkey, representing their national associations of translators and interpreters. The federation has initiated a quarterly journal dedicated to information and research on translation named BABEL, has held world congresses, international round tables and forums to discuss rights, obligations, training, and qualification of translators and interpreters, and also has established prizes in order to give recognition to the important work done in the field. Since its inception, the FIT has celebrated the International Translation Day on 30 September every year and in 1991, FIT started an official campaign advocating for the global recognition of this day as a one dedicated for language professionals.

Language Professionals at  the United Nations 

Even to this day, the United Nations remains one of the organizations in the world that employ most language professionals fostering multicultural dialogue and understanding. With six official  languages being in use namely: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish, translations range from statements from Member States to expert reports, while some core documents are translated even to German. The issues that are in question can be about human rights, peace, security, development or related to any topic in the United Nations agenda, and the language professionals make it possible for the documents to be offered simultaneously in all the official languages. As such, the language professionals carrying out translation help in preserving unity within diversity, cultural heritage, sharing knowledge, raising awareness and ensuring cooperation. 

In such international contexts, the role of human translators and interpreters still remains relevant since only these professionals are competent in being able to pick up the linguistic nuances in political contexts and sensitive cultural phrasing which machines struggle with. Also professionals engaging in translation and interpretation assures the accuracy, reliability and confidentiality required for international law and politics. Thus, as a tribute to the invaluable services rendered by the language professionals, i.e., translators, interpreters and terminologists, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 71/288 on the role of professional translation in connecting nations and fostering peace, understanding and development on 24 May 2017, declaring 30 September as International Translation Day.

What is so special about 30 September?

The significance of 30 September is that on this day falls the feast of St. Jerome, the patron saint of translators. Saint Jerome (347 AD – 30 September 419/420 AD) was a biblical scholar and a monastic leader, who is best known for his translation of most of the Bible into Latin language, which is known as the Vulgate and is used by the Roman Catholic Church as the standard Latin Bible. While he was serving as the secretary of Pope Damascus I, he was commissioned to produce a complete Latin version of the Bible. After revising the Latin translation of the Gospels, Jerome translated the entire Old Testament into Latin from the original Hebrew texts.

Celebrating ITD 2026 

Every year, the International Federation of Translators(FIT) announces a theme for the International Translation Day celebrations alongside a poster, which bears a symbolic importance related to the chosen theme. The themes chosen throughout the years reflect the federation’s occupation with the necessity to preserve the art and the profession of translation with its human dimension and the recognition of the job of translators as bridges that connect diverse human experiences, a preservative of human heritage which makes indigenous, marginalised languages and those threatened by extinction live more, and act as gatekeepers of truth in times where misinformation, misinterpretation and misrepresentation of speech is rampant . The theme for the ITD 2026 is “Linguistic Diversity and Language Rights” with “the power of being understood” as the subtitle. This year’s theme focuses on sustaining linguistic plurality in the world and stresses on the fact that doing so is not necessitated by the diversity factor alone, but also by the very reason that language rights are fundamental human rights; that is to say that every person has a right to access information, justice, education in a language one understands and also to engage in the cultural sphere of one’s language. So, the chosen theme intends to reinforce the equality of languages, assured on paper through declarations, to which translators, interpreters and terminologists, working in many contexts, bring the pivotal operational element .

It is a well-deserved celebration, of course. To put it succinctly, the existence of translation drives away the certain isolation of a people and the animosity that can result from them being misunderstood; it makes equality a more concrete truth in both the aspects that one can be understood as well as educated. Ignorance is replaced by enlightenment,  incomprehensible remonstrations are replaced by productive dialogue, and exclusion is replaced by inclusion, all due to the toils of language professionals. If not for translation, we would be “living in provinces bordering on silence” like the influential literary critic George Steiner once said, living as individuals instead of a blend of cultures in a vividly illuminated world.