Translators from Icelandic
- Albanian
- Amharic
- Arabic
- Armenian
- Azerbaijani
- Belarusian
- Bulgarian
- Catalonian
- Chinese
- Croatian
- Czech
- Danish
- Dutch
- English
- Estonian
- Faroese
- Finnish
- French
- Galician
- Georgian
- German
- Greek
- Greenlandic
- Hebrew
- Hungarian
- Italian
- Japanese
- Korean
- Latvian
- Lithuanian
- Macedonian
- Norwegian
- Polish
- Portuguese
- Portuguese (Brazil)
- Romanian
- Russian
- Serbian
- Slovak
- Slovene
- Spanish
- Swedish
- Thai
- Turkish
- Ukrainian
Translators
Jean-Christophe Salaün
After having completed a B.A. in English studies in Caen, Normandy, Jean-Christophe Salaün moved to Iceland where he entered the program of Icelandic as a second language at the University of Iceland. He later joined the masters-level program in translation studies there and graduated in 2012. Having lived in Reykjavík for six years, he moved back to France and signed his first translation contract for the novel The Woman at 1000° by Hallgrímur Helgason, which earned him the Pierre-François Caillé Prize for Translation in 2014. He has since translated over fifteen books for a variety of publishing companies in France and other French-speaking countries. In addition to his translation works, Jean-Christophe Salaün has been participating in an online dictionary project lead by the University of Iceland, as well as teaching Icelandic and literature at the University of Caen in Normandy.
Selected Translations
-
Hallgrímur Helgason, La Femme à 1000° (ísl. Konan við 1000°), Presses de la Cité, 2013
- Auður Jónsdóttir, Tourner la page (ísl. Ósjálfrátt), Presses de la Cité, 2015
- Soffía Bjarnadóttir, J'ai toujours ton coeur avec moi (ísl. Segulskekkja), Zulma, 2016
- Lilja Sigurðardóttir, Piégée (ísl. Gildran), Métailié, 2017
- Dagur Hjartarson, La Dernière déclaration d'amour (ísl. Síðasta ástarjátningin), La Peuplade, 2019
Eric Boury
Eric Boury studied English and Scandinavian languages at the University of Caen, Normandy. He rapidly decided to specialize in the Icelandic language, culture and literature. He spent three years in Iceland, working on a farm, as a postman and in a hotel. Back to France, he became an English and French teacher in a vocational school for 22 years, but decided six years ago to resign from that position and devote himself entirely to translating Icelandic literature, an activity which he has now practiced for 18 years. Eric received The award Orðstír in 2017, an honorary award for translations of Icelandic literature to a foreign language.
Selected Translations
He has translated about 50 books from various Icelandic writers into French: Arnaldur Indriðason, Árni Þórarinsson, Kristín Ómarsdóttir, Hallgrímur Helgason, Jón Kalman Stefánsson, Steinunn Jóhannesdóttir, Sjón, Einar Már Guðmundsson, Stefán Máni, Guðmundur Andri Thorsson, Sigríður Hagalín Björnsdóttir, Eiríkur Örn Norðdahl, Guðbergur Bergsson & Jón Hallur Stefánsson.
See here for all translations.
Hadrien Chalard
After learning both Icelandic and Japanese at B.A. level at both Paris Sorbonne University and Háskóli Íslands, Hadrien Chalard graduated with a master's degree in Icelandic and Nordic studies at Paris Sorbonne University in 2020. He then moved to Iceland where he lived and worked for a year as an educational aid and French teacher before coming back to France to dedicate his time to the translation of Icelandic literature. Since 2022, he has been teaching Icelandic where he once learned it, at Sorbonne University. In 2023, he also started teaching Icelandic literature.
Selected Translations
- Fríða Ísberg, La Marque (Merking),
Robert Laffont, 2023 - Örvar Smárason, Le Masque de sommeil et autres Nouvelles (Svefngríman), Traverse(s), 2023
- Upcoming: Pedro Gunnlaugur Garcia, (Lungu), Métailié, 2024
Grégory Cattaneo
Grégory Cattaneo has completed a BA in History from the University of Orléans (2005), a MA in History from the University of Paris Sorbonne (2006), a MA in Medieval Icelandic Studies from the University of Iceland (2007) and a PhD in History from the same university (2022). He is currently writing a habilitation thesis on Medieval Iceland at the École Pratique des Hautes-Études in Paris. Living in Iceland since 2005, he has been working as an academic for about ten years before moving to the private industry while continuing his research on the history and philology of Medieval Scandinavia. Apart from writing academic books, peer-reviewed articles, and a novel, he has translated into French a variety of Icelandic publications, including medieval literature, contemporary history, folklore, and local histories.
Selected translations:
- Histoire des évêques d’Islande I-II, Présentation, traduction et notes par Grégory Cattaneo, Paris, Honoré Champion Éditeur (Traduction des Classiques du Moyen Âge), 2025-2026 [Vol I : Kristni saga, Hungrvaka, Jóns saga helga, Gísls þáttr Illugasonar, Sæmundar þáttr. Vol II : Þorláks sögr helga, Jarteinabækr Þorláks helga, Páls saga biskups, Ísleifs þáttr biskups.]
- Histoires régionales du nord de l’Islande, Présentation, traduction et notes par Grégory Cattaneo, Paris, Honoré Champion Éditeur (Traduction des Classiques du Moyen Âge), 2025 [Ljósvetninga saga ok þættir ; Reykdæla saga ok Víga-Skútu.]
- Les Lois de l’Islande ancienne ; Grágás / Anonyme, traduit du vieil islandais, introduit et annoté par Grégory Cattaneo, Paris, Librairie Droz (Hautes Études médiévales et modernes), 2024 [Grágás. Konungsbók ; Staðarhólsbók.]
- Le Dit d’Ofeig (Ófeig þáttr) : une saga miniature d’Islande », in: Histoire et Images médiévales, XLVI, 2012.
- Fascicule de l’Institut Árni Magnússon d’études islandaises : les manuscrits médiévaux (version française), Reykjavik, 2012.
Catherine Eyjólfsson
French-born Catherine Eyjólfsson studied English, German and Icelandic languages at Sorbonne University in Paris where she obtained the CAPES degree
of High-School Teacher of foreign languages. After several years of teaching in high-schools, and after having married an Icelander, she moved to Iceland with her family.
She has been teaching at the University of Iceland, but mostly at Hamrahlíð High School as a French teacher for nearly twenty years before taking part in the elaboration of the French-Icelandic dictionary, together with a team of seven colleagues.
Since 1990, she has devoted her time and energies to the translation into French of various Icelandic literary works which she highly appreciates and wishes to convey to her fellow French countrymen and readers.
Selected Translations
- Five novels by Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir, e.g. Rosa Candida, L'Embellie, l'Exception et Ör (Zulma - 2010, 2012, 2014, 2017)
- La Lettre à Helga (Zulma - 2013) & Du temps qu'il fait (Gaïa - 2020) by Bergsveinn Birgisson
- Les Anges de l'Univers by Einar Már Guðmundsson (Flammarion - 1998)
- L'Aile du cygne by Guðbergur Bergsson (Gallimard - 1991)
- Pendant qu'il te regarde tu es la Vierge Marie (Zulma - 2008), Le Créateur, (Autrement- 2014) & Album (Tusitala - 2015) by Guðrún Eva Mínervudóttir
- Les Excursions de l'Écureuil, Au Bord de la Sandá & La fenêtre au sud by Gyrðir Elíasson (La Peuplade 2018, 2019, 2020)
- Les Enfants de Dimmuvík by Jón Atli Jónasson (Noir sur Blanc - 2015)
- La Grande Pêche by Pétur Gunnarsson (Minjavernd - 2014)
- Le Cheval Soleil, 100 Portes battant aux 4 venst, Yo-yo & Maîtresses Femmes by Steinunn Sigurðardóttir (Héloïse d'Ormesson 2008, 2011, 2013 and 2017)
- Un Locataire by Svava Jakobsdóttir (Tusitala - 2013)
Translators
No articles found.