Georgian poems get English makeover

Poets and translators from Georgia and the United Kingdom (UK) are gathering in Tbilisi for an intensive week of literary translation where a selection of local literature will be translated into English.

A collection of Georgian poems will be translated into English for the first time for a forthcoming collection in the New Voices from Europe and Beyond series – as part of the Literature Across Frontiers (LAF) project.

The new series will introduce the work of six poets who originate from a region or country where English was not the native language. The work will be published by Arc publications and each edition will be dual-language – with poems published in their original language and in English.

Pieces included in the program were often from languages that had little or no poetry translated into English to date, stated LAF. Recent anthologies in the series focused on Finnish, Armenian and Catalan poetry.

Five poets from Georgia attending the workshop were Rati Amaglobeli, Shota Iatashvili, Gaga Nakhutsvrishvili, Lela Samniashvili and Maya Sarishvili. Work by the late poet and musician Irakli Charkviani will also be translated.

Looking ahead a group of poets and translators from the UK will work together with the poets to produce new original translations.

The workshop was organised by LAF and the National Book Centre at the Ministry of Culture in Georgia. It is held in co-operation with Arc Publications and is supported by Arts Council England, Wales Arts International, the British Council and the Ministry of Culture.