Harry Potter in translation

This page is part of the Harry Potter in translation series. Some information originally from this page is temporarily being stored here. The Harry Potter books are a series of fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling chronicling the adventures of a young wizard who was orphaned as a baby and raised among non-magical people.

The Harry Potter books have become some of the most beloved -- and criticised -- works of children's literature the world has known, with readers of all ages, and Rowling has catapulted from poverty to worldwide fame and staggering wealth (recent estimates value her fortune, earned from the novels and films, at approximately US$1 billion). In America alone there are over 80 million Harry Potter books in print, and worldwide sales are estimated at over 300 million copies.

List of translations by language

The Harry Potter books have been translated into approximately 62 languages and are sold in over 200 countries. The original, UK, versions of the book were published by Bloomsbury.

Official translations have been done in the following languages (languages are listed twice if more than one translation was prepared, once if the difference is merely a difference of country and distributor):

Afrikaans, South Africa: Human & Rousseau (pty) Ltd., translated by Janie Oosthuysen
Albanian, Albania: Publishing House Dituria, translated by Amik Kasoruho
Arabic, Egypt: Nahdet Misr
Basque, Spain: Ediciones Salamandra / Elkarlanean, translated by Iñaki Mendiguren (I-IV)
Bengali, Bangladesh: Ankur Prakashani
Bulgarian, Bulgaria: Egmont Bulgaria, translated by Mariana Melnishka (I-IV), Emiliya L. Maslarova (V-VI)
Catalan, Spain: Editorial Empúries, translated by Laura Escorihuela (I-IV), Marc Alcega (IV), Xavier Pàmies (V-VI)
Chinese, People's Republic of China (Simplified Characters): People's Literature Publishing House, translated by Su Nong (I) (苏农), Ma Aixin (II, IV, V) (马爱新), Zheng Xumi (III) (郑须弥), Ma Ainong (V) (马爱农), and Cai Wen (V) (蔡文)
Chinese, Taiwan (Traditional Chinese Characters): Crown Publishing Company Ltd, translated by Peng Chien-Wen (彭倩文; Peng Qianwen)
Croatian, Croatia: Algoritam, translated by Zlatko Crnković (I-III), Dubravka Petrović (IV-VI)
Czech, Czech Republic: Albatros, translated by Vladimír Medek (I, II, IV), Pavel Medek (III, V, VI)
Danish, Denmark: Gyldendal, translated by Hanna Lützen (I-VI)
Dutch, Netherlands: Standaard /Uitgeverij De Harmonie (I-V), translated by Wiebe Buddingh'
English: Australia, Allen & Unwin Pty Ltd (Distributor); Canada, Bloomsbury/Raincoast; South Africa, Jonathan Ball Publishers (Distributors); USA: Scholastic
Estonian, Estonia: Varrak Publishers, translated by Krista Kaer, Kaisa Kaer
Faroese, Faroe Islands: Bokadeild Foroya Laerarafelags, translated by Gunnar Hoydal (I-III), Malan Háberg (IV)
Finnish, Finland: Tammi, translated by Jaana Kapari (I-VI)
French, France, Canada, Belgium, and others: Gallimard Jeunesse translated by [http://www.lemonde.fr/web/article/0,1-0@2-3246,36-695928@51-663034,0.html Jean-François Ménard (I-VI)
Galician (Galego), Spain: Ediciones Salamandra, translated by Marilar Aleixandre
Georgian, Georgia: Bakur Sulakauri Publishing, translated by Manana Antadze (I), Davit Gabunia (II, III) and Ketevan Kanchashvili (IV, VI forthcoming)
German, Germany: Carlsen Verlag, translated by Klaus Fritz (I-VI)
Low German, Germany: Verlag Michael Jung, translated by Hartmut Cyriacks, Peter Nissen et al
Greek (modern), Greece: Psicholgios Publications, translated by Máia Roútsou (book I); Kaíti Oikonómou (book II-V)
Greek (ancient): Bloomsbury, translated by Andrew Wilson, NPR interview
Greenlandic, Greenland: Atuakkiorfik Greenland Publishers, translated by Stephen Hammeken
Gujarati, India: Manjul Publishing House Pvt. Ltd., translated by Jagruti Trivedi and Harish Nayak
Hebrew, Israel: Books in the Attic Ltd. / Miskal, translated by Gili Bar-Hillel (I-VI)
Hindi, India: Manjul Publishing House Pvt. Ltd., translated by Sudhir Dixit (I-III)
Hungarian, Hungary: Animus Publishing, translated by Tóth Tamás Boldizsár (I-VI)
Icelandic, Iceland: Bjartur, translated by Helga Haraldsdóttir (I-V) and Jón Hallur Stefánsson (V)
Indonesian, Indonesia: Penerbit PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama, translated by Listiana Srisanti (I-V)
Irish: Bloomsbury, translated by Máire Nic Mhaoláin, released October 4, 2004
Italian, Italy: Adriano Salani Editore, translated by Marina Astrologo (I-II), Beatrice Masini (III-V) and illustrated by Serena Riglietti
Japanese, Japan: Say-zan-sha Publications Ltd., translated by Yuko Matsuoka
Khmer, Cambodia: University of Cambodia Press, translated by Un Tim ^*
Korean, Korea: Moonhak Soochup Publishing Co., translated by Kim Hye-won (I-IV), Inja Choe (V)
Latin: Bloomsbury, translated by Peter Needham
Latvian, Latvia: Jumava, translated by Ingus Josts (I-VI), Ieva Kolmane (IV-VI), Sabīne Ozola (V), Māra Poļakova (V)
Lithuanian, Lithuania: Alma Littera Company Limited, translated by Zita Marienė (I-VI)
Macedonian, Republic of Macedonia: Publishing House Kultura
Marathi, India: Manjul Publishing House Pvt. Ltd., translated by Shukla Vikas
Malay, Malaysia: Pelangi Books
Malayalam, India: Manjul Publishing House Pvt. Ltd., translated by Dr. Radhika C. Nair
Norwegian, Norway: N.W. Damm & Son A.S., translated by Torstein Bugge Høverstad (I-VI)
Persian, Iran: Vidaa Slamiyeh ^*/Ghazal, translated by Saeed Kebriyaee (I), Nahid (I-V)
Polish, Poland: Media Rodzina of Poznań, translated by Andrzej Polkowski (I-VI)
Portuguese, Portugal: Editorial Presença, translated by Isabel Fraga (I), Isabel Nunes and Manuela Madureira
Portuguese, Brazil: Editora Rocco Ltda. Editora Rocco Ltda., translated by Lia Wyler
Romanian, Romania: Egmont Romania, translated by Ioana Iepureanu
Russian, Russia: Rosman Publishing, translated by Igor W. Oranskij (I), Marina D. Litvinova (II-V), Vladimir Babkov (V), Viktor Golyshev (V), Leonid Motylev (V), Sergei Iljin (VI), Maya Lahuti (VI)
Scots Gaelic, Bloomsbury, scheduled for December, 20061
Serbian, Serbia: Alfa – Narodna Knjiga, translated by Vesna Stamenkovic Roganovic & Draško Roganović (I, III-V); Ana Vukomanovic (II)
Sinhala, Sri Lanka; unauthorised translations^*;
Slovak, Slovakia: IKAR, translated by Jana Petrikovičová (books 1,2) Oľga Kralovičová (books 3,4)
Slovene, Slovenia: EPTA, translated by Jakob J. Kenda (I-V) and Branko Gradišnik (VI)
Spanish (Castilian), Spain and Latin America: Emece Editores / Salamandra: translated by Alicia Dellepiane Rawson (I), Adolpho Muñoz Garcia (II-IV), Nieves Martín Azofra (II-IV), Gemma Rovira Ortega (V-VI)
Swedish, Sweden: Tiden Young Books / Raben & Sjögren, translated by Lena Fries-Gedin (I-VI)
Tamil, India and Sri Lanka; rumored unauthorised translation
Thai, Thailand: Nanmee Books, translated by Sumalee Bumrungsuk (I-II, V), Waleephon (III), Ngarmphan Wetchacheewa (IV)
Turkish, Turkey: Yapi Kredi Kultur Sanat Yayincilik, translated by Mustafa Bayindir, Ülkü Tamer (I), Sevin Okyay (II-V) and Kutlukhan Kutlu (IV, V)
Ukrainian, Ukraine: A-BA-BA-HA-LA-MA-HA, translated by Victor Morozov (I - V), and Sofiia Andrukhovich (IV)
Urdu, Pakistan: Oxford University Press, translated by Darakhshanda Asghar Khokhar (I-III)
Valencian, Spain: Editorial Empuries
Vietnamese, Vietnam: Trẻ Publishing House, translated by Lý Lan
Welsh (UK), translated by Emily Huws

Zulu; though some sources refer to translations "from Arabic to Zulu", the books in fact have never officially been translated into Zulu.

Some translations, such the Latin and Ancient Greek ones, were done as academic exercises, but also to stimulate interest in the languages and to give students new texts to read. The Ancient Greek version, according to the translator, is the longest text translated into the language in over 1500 years, and took one year to complete. Note that in some countries, such as Spain and India, the book has been translated into several local languages (see section on publishers); sometimes the book has been translated into two different dialects of the same language in two different countries (for example, Brazil and Portugal).

Issues in translation

Translation is never easy or precise; it is often called an art, perhaps rightfully so, as it requires a high degree of artistry as well as technical skill. Successful translations rely on thorough understanding of both the source language and the target language, as well as the culture(s) of speakers of both languages. Successful translations are both true to the original text (not changing, adding or subtracting any part of the meaning) and authentic in the target language, that is, appearing or "feeling" to a native speaker of the target language to have originally been written in that language.

Word-for-word translations are rarely successful, not only because the nuances of the writing (the atmosphere, wordplay, language, etc) would be lost, but because cultural differences would be ignored.

The Harry Potter series presents some special challenges to translators:

Culture

The cultural environment of the book is decidedly English. The stories follow a familiar theme in English children's books, that of adventures at boarding school, and many of the cultural nuances will be unfamiliar to readers in translation. Such things require careful and creative translating.

Language

The language of the books, reflected, for example, in Hagrid's manner of speaking, reveals much about the various characters. Various expressions and forms of speech are regional. Scholastic executives chose to issue the first book with some adaptations to American-English, a practice which is quite common with books that "cross the pond" in either direction, but in the case of Harry Potter, was met with a certain amount of reader outrage.

Invented words

This includes such things as spells and incantations and magical words. Many of Rowling's spells, for example, are drawn from or inspired by Latin, and have a certain resonance with English speakers. Priori incantatem, for example (a spell which causes the last spells performed by a wand to be reproduced in reverse order), would be familiar to many English-speaking readers as the words prior ("previous") and incant ("recite, utter"). Some translators have created new words themselves, others have resorted to transliteration.

Names of people, places and things

Names such as Knockturn Alley and the Pensieve are extremely difficult to translate. The Pensieve, for example, is a magical bowl into which memories and thoughts can be placed and examined at leisure. This name is a pun on two words: pensive, meaning "musingly or dreamily thoughtful", and sieve, a type of bowl with perforations through which fine particles of a substance (such as flour) may be passed to separate them from coarser ones. The name Knockturn Alley, an unsavoury section of Diagon Alley where London's magic market is located, suggests something beaten up or twisted, and is also semi-homophonous with "nocturnally", suggesting darkness and, by extension, evil. Translators must use creativity and sensitivity in rendering such names, and some are more successful than others.

The anagram of Tom Riddle's name that appears in the second book similarly does not make the transition easily into other languages. Translators can sometimes fudge the names in the book in order to make this work; for instance, Riddle's middle name of Marvolo was changed to "Vandrolo" in the Hebrew edition in order that the letters necessary for the translated anagram be present. Care must be taken to remember these changes later on in the series, however, so as not to forget this change was made when translating later books.

Pirate translations

Soon after the success of the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (released in the US as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone), the books began to be translated into other languages. In fact, Harry Potter has become so popular that even "pirate translations" (illegal, unofficial translations released ahead of the official translation) have been created.

One notable example occurred in Venezuela in 2003, when an illegal translation of the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, appeared soon after the release of the original (English) version and five months before the scheduled release of the Spanish version. The pirate translation was apparently so bad that the translator added messages, including "Here comes something that I'm unable to translate, sorry," and "I'm sorry, I didn't understand what that meant" in some sections. Two people were arrested in connection with the pirated version.

Another notable example was the internet community formed to translate the Harry Potter books into German more rapidly ^*. After being prevented by the German publisher from openly releasing their translations, they converted in to a community site which (1) translates the books for the enjoyment of their own members (thus avoiding copyright issues, apparently), (2) translates fan fiction, (3) discusses discrepancies in the official translations, and (4) creates their own lexicon.

Pirate translations can often be produced much faster than official translations, for several reasons:

the translation can be produced as a collaborative process, with several people working in parallel on different sections of the book, thus shortening the translation time
less time is spent on editing and proofreading
Pirate translations are often published online, eliminating the time spent on printing and distributing official hard copies.

This makes it very tempting to engage in a pirate translation, rather than wait several months for an official translation to be issued. However, for the very same reasons stated above, pirate translations are usually inferior to the official translations.

The agents representing J. K. Rowling have stated in the past, that they cannot and do not intend to prevent individuals from translating Rowling's books for their own personal enjoyment. Translation can be a fun, educational and challenging pastime. However, if anyone should attempt to publish an unauthorised translation in any form, making it accessible to the general public whether for financial gain or not, they are committing a rights violation and litigation will follow.

New York Times: "Harry Potter and the Internet Pirates"

Fake translations

Whereas "pirate translations" are unauthorised translations of true Harry Potter books, "fake translations" are published pastiches or fanfics which a foreign publisher has tried to pass off as the translation of a book by Rowling. There have been several such books, the most famous of which is probably Harry Potter and Leopard-Walk-Up-to-Dragon which was written and published in China in 2002, prior to the release of the fifth book in the series, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.

Additional "fake" Harry Potter books written in Chinese include:

Harry Potter and the Porcelain Doll (哈利・波特与瓷娃娃 or Hālì Bōtè yǔ Cíwáwa)
Harry Potter and the Golden Turtle
Harry Potter and the Crystal Vase

And in Bengali:

Harry Potter Kolkataye (Harry Potter in Calcutta), by Uttam Ghosh

External links

tradukoj de Harry Potter