Qatar University’s (QU) Culture & Arts Chapter, which is part of the QU Alumni Association, organize a cultural webinar on ‘The role of translation in culture.’ The webinar was presented by Dr. Ahmad Haji Safar, Assistant Professor of Linguistics and Arabic Language, College of Arts and Sciences. The webinar focused on a number of aspects, such as the act of translating and its effects in creating awareness, culture and thought. It also covered topics such as translation as an individual act or a collective act, planning in translation, as well as translation policy and communities and the effects that translation has on the culture. The aim of the webinar is to highlight the role translation plays and its influence in thought and culture.
Amna Abdulkarim, Vice President of the Culture & Arts Chapter, QU Alumni Association commented on the webinar saying, “Translation is considered rewriting the text once again; writing which not only conveys the message but the spirit and the meaning that the writer intended to convey. Those who are interested in languages understand the joy of comparing between original and translated texts. Therefore in the translation field it is not enough for a translator to translate the words, but his culture and knowledge in different fields, such as literature, science, law etc. are essential elements in the process.”
Dr. Ahmad Haji Safar stressed the power and importance of translation saying, “Every production of thought, literature, religion, philosophy or science is not static and inactive, on the contrary, through every translated text, there are actors at play, with specific mechanisms, that play a role in the cultural composition for future nations.”