International translators' conference in Reykjavík
Translators of Icelandic literature gather in Reykjavík and at Hali
Translators of Icelandic literature gather in Reykjavík and at Hali.
An international translators' conference will be held on 23-26 April in Reykjavík and at Hali in Suðursveit, southeast Iceland. Twenty-four translators of Icelandic literature will attend from abroad – from Germany, Spain, Poland, Denmark, England, France, the Netherlands, Russia, the Czech Republic, Norway and Sweden – while another nine translators resident in Iceland will also attend.
The conference will focus on Icelandic literature and the task and role of the translator, and showcase the Sagenhaftes Island/Fabulous Iceland project, a campaign of promotion and translation relating to Iceland's participation in the Frankfurt Book Fair in 2011 as Guest of Honour. Minister of Education and Culture Katrín Jakobsdóttir will open the conference on Friday 24 April at 10 am in the reception room of the National Museum of Iceland, and will formally launch the Fabulous Iceland website: www.sagenhaftes-island.is. Media representatives are welcome to attend the opening.
In conjunction with the conference, the Writers' Union hosts an event at Iðnó on the theme What's New in Icelandic Literature. Nine writers of the younger generation will present their work: Kristín Svava Tómasdóttir, Kári Páll Óskarsson, Emil Hjörvar Petersen, Arngrímur Vídalín, Sigurlín Bjarney Gísladóttir, Guðmundur Óskarsson, Bjarni Klemenz, Óttar Martin and Ófeigur Sigurðsson. Literary scholar Benedikt Hjartarson will talk about contemporary Icelandic writing, and Tómas R. Einarsson and his band will play. The programme starts at 21.00 on Thursday 23 April. All welcome. Admission free.
The conference is held by the Sagenhaftes Island/Fabulous Iceland project, the Icelandic Literature Fund and the Icelandic Publishers' Association, in collaboration with the Hornafjörður University Centre (University of Iceland), the Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Institute of Foreign Languages and the Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies.
The program can be found here
