As Xi Jinping’s maritime Silk Road initiative reaches its tentacles further West into Africa, it’s not just accumulating alarming rates of China-driven debt and sucking up the continent’s mineral exports. Publishers in the People’s Paradise are now showing modest interest in importing what the authorities label “cultural products.” In this case, contemporary African writing. According to … Continue reading African Writing in Chinese Translation: 2020 Round-up and a Peek at 2021
Chinese Academics Ask: 非洲文学离我们有多远？
In a recently published essay at The Paper (澎湃新闻) two Chinese academics — one studying in Germany and another in South Africa — ask how a Chinese should go about getting acquainted with contemporary African literature. One suggestion, in case you can’t read indigenous languages such as Swahili, Hausa, Amharic or Shona, or colonial languages such … Continue reading Chinese Academics Ask: 非洲文学离我们有多远？
“Multi-ethnic” Literature: Yilin’s 2020 Cache of Fiction by non-Han Writers
As your year-end holiday lockdown fast approaches, it’s worth noting a new series of books by non-Han writers launched this year by one of China’s best-known publishers, Yilin Press — lit., “translation forest” — that is normally associated with marketing popular foreign-language fiction in Mandarin for Chinese readers. The name of the series itself, Library … Continue reading “Multi-ethnic” Literature: Yilin’s 2020 Cache of Fiction by non-Han Writers
“Cockroach” – Documentary on Hong Kong protests
Writes Peter Bradshaw at The Guardian about Ai Weiwei’s latest documentary: Cockroach is about the passionate pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, which was triggered by the introduction of the Fugitive Offenders amendment bill by the pro-Chinese Hong Kong government in 2019, exposing protesters to extradition to the Chinese mainland and effectively destroying that minimum of 50 years’ judicial … Continue reading “Cockroach” – Documentary on Hong Kong protests
Guide to Related Links: Chi Zijian’s “Last Quarter of the Moon” (额尔古纳河右岸)
Chi Zijian's Last Quarter of the Moon 《额尔古纳河右岸》(迟子建著) A Multilingual List of Translations, Book Reviews, Academic Papers & Related Info 《额尔古纳河右岸》: Translations of the Novel Dutch (Het laatste kwartier van de maan); English (Last Quarter of the Moon); French (Le dernier quartier de lune); Italian (Ultimo quarto di Luna); Japanese (アルグン川の右岸) ; Korean (《어얼구나 강의 … Continue reading Guide to Related Links: Chi Zijian’s “Last Quarter of the Moon” (额尔古纳河右岸)
One of the People
遭遇深圳 By Bruce Humes “You’ll have to excuse us, Bruce. We’ve always looked after you as a guest,” said longtime friend Liu Jie, pausing delicately. “But yesterday we treated you like one of our own.” Indeed. My reception the previous night at the emergency room of this People’s Hospital in Shenzhen, just north of Hong … Continue reading One of the People
Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast: Q & A with Translator of “Last Quarter of the Moon”
Angus Stewart recently interviewed me about translating Chi Zijian's novel that chronicles the tragic twilight of the reindeer-herding, Tungusic-speaking Evenki of northeastern China. The tale has since been translated into several languages, including French, Japanese and Swedish. You can find the podcast here: Episode 42 of the Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast https://trchfic.podbean.com/e/ep-42-chi-zijian-and-last-quarter-of-the-moon-with-bruce-humes/ 如果你正在中国，这链接可能更合适: Episode 42 … Continue reading Translated Chinese Fiction Podcast: Q & A with Translator of “Last Quarter of the Moon”
Renverser ciel et terre, the French translation of Yang Jisheng’s 《天地翻覆：中国文化大革命史》
Renverser ciel et terre, the French translation of Yang Jisheng’s 《天地翻覆：中国文化大革命史》(杨继绳 著) has just been published. An excerpt from a French-language review of the translation: Yang Jisheng n’a pas pour objectif premier d’accuser ou de dénoncer : il cherche à comprendre en décortiquant les faits qu’il tient pour avérés sur la base de ses recherches et enquêtes ; … Continue reading Renverser ciel et terre, the French translation of Yang Jisheng’s 《天地翻覆：中国文化大革命史》
Three from China on “BBC 100 Women 2020”
They are Agnes Chow (周庭), Hong Kong democracy activist (soon to be jailed); Fang Fang (方方), author of the controversial Wuhan Diary (方方日记); and Uyghur writer Muyesser Abdul'ehed (مۇيەسسەر ئابدۇلئەھەد خەندان, pen name Hendan Hiyal), who penned Kheyr-khosh, quyash (خەير-خوش، قۇياش, Farewell to the Sun), the first novel to describe Uyghur internment camps.
丝绸之路语录：莫高窟以及中华民族的自由
“ 所以，莫高窟开窟和造像的历史，是一部贯通东西方文化的历史，也是一部佛教发展和传播的历史，更是一部中华民族谋求自由和强大的历史。敦煌在历史上有着战争的苦难背景，同时也有着宗教信仰的背景。越是在苦难的时候，越需要有信仰，也许这就是敦煌能够在苦难中孕育出如此灿烂文明的历史根源吧。” （摘自 《我心归处是敦煌》，樊锦诗口述，顾春芳 撰写）
非洲文学：中文译本 African Writing in Chinese Translation
African Writing in Chinese Translation 100 African Authors 238 Translated Works （包含大陆、港台等版本） (PRC, Hong Kong and Taiwan editions) This “mini” database is an ongoing project and is for reference only. To date, most of the original texts are in colonial languages such as English, French or Portuguese. Although some were originally penned in Arabic … Continue reading 非洲文学：中文译本 African Writing in Chinese Translation
