German version of Blanár’s Teória vlastného mena (Theory of proper name)

The subject of the author’s analysis is the German version of Blanár’s monograph Teória vlastného mena (Theory of proper name), published under the same German title Theorie des Eigennamens by the renowned Georg Olms Verlag in 2001. Against the background of Vincent Blanár’s comprehensive scholarly profile, the author presents the overall characteristics of the German version of the work and pays special attention to the analysis of differences between the original and the translated form of the text. With these changes, Vincent Blanár purposefully adapted the translated text to the German reader.

Roots of friendship: Uzbek literature and literary criticism in German literature during 1960-1970 years

Formation and development of literary and cultural contacts, contributed to the domestic and international situation, growing interest in national literatures; acquaintance of the German reader with the life and work of outstanding Uzbek writers and poets, evidence of the sincere sympathy of German scientists, strengthening of international literary relations, assessment of international recognition; Khamza is a talented and multifaceted personality, a well-reasoned assessment of the creativity of Uzbek writers; oppression of the poorest strata of the population, literary theoretical work, fundamental work of German scientists; significant stage, unbiased presentation, horizons of coexistence and development of literatures in the world literary space.

Fern von Aleppo: Narrative Themenentfaltung im interkulturellen Kontext

In “Fern von Aleppo”, the Syrian author Faisal Hamdo, who left his home in 2014 and sought refuge in Germany, tells of his very personal integration experiences. The book represents a kind of intercultural communication. In his book, Faisal Hamdo, who sees himself as a “mediator between the worlds”, tries to give the German reader answers to many questions regarding Syrian culture. From a text linguistic point of view, this book identifies the narrative development that seems to be tailored to the intercultural context. Accordingly, the present article raises the following questions: Does the structure of classic narration differ from the structure of narration in an intercultural context? Which intercultural information units are presented in the text? How are they embedded in the narrative text? Which constituents of the narrative structure are suitable for realizing intercultural communication? Which communicative functions do the constituents of the narrative structure fulfill in an intercultural context? The contribution sets itself the goal of analyzing the narrative structure to investigate how intercultural communication comes about through narration, how the intercultural information units are integrated into the constituents of the classic narrative structure so that they fulfill their communicative function, and to developa suitable analysis model.

‘To imagine a language means to imagine a form of life?’

Despite several decades of linguistic research and activism, neutral/inclusive language use is far from the norm in English and German. In this article I explore whether the encounter with neutral terminology in June Arnold’s novel The Cook and the Carpenter can prompt readers to question dominant practices and consider alternatives. Based on narrative research, my premise is that fiction can create familiarity with new terms and thereby support linguistic change. I frame my investigation with Wittgenstein’s notion that ‘to imagine a language means to imagine a form of life’, and put it to the test with a discourse analysis of English and German reader responses. The results of my study show that Arnold’s novel stimulates fruitful debate of the issue of gender and language. Based on my findings, I propose the text’s integration into linguistics education in order to further promote neutral/inclusive language use.

UKRAINIAN EMIGRE TRANSLATORS’ ACTIVITY IN WEST GERMANY AFTER WORLD WAR II

The article provides an insight into the work of cultural activists in Germany in the post-war decades. It delineates the following groups of translators and popularizers of Ukrainian literature in West Germany: 1) German speakers: Halychyna descendant Hans Koch and Elisabeth Kottmeier, the wife of the Ukrainian poet Igor Kosteckyj; 2) the Ukrainian scholars who began their activity before the war: Dmytro (Dimitrij) Tschižeswskij, Iwan Mirtschuk; 3) representatives of the younger wave of emigration – Jurij Bojko-Blochyn, Olexa and Anna-Halja Horbatsch, Igor Kostetskyj, Mychahlo Orest, Jurij Kossatsch and others. The author reflects on the question whether or not the post-war Ukrainian emigration was integrated into a wider context of German culture. This is analyzed from the vantage point of the Western European reader’s/ literary critic’s readiness for the reception of Ukrainian literature. Among the first promoters of Ukrainian literature was the Artistic Ukrainian Movement (Munich), whose member of the board, Jurij Kossatsch, published the first review of the then contemporary Ukrainian literature in the German language “Ukrainische Literatur der Gegenwart” (1947). The author analyzes the first collection of translations of Ukrainian poetry “Gelb und Blau: Moderne ukrainische Dichtung in Auswahl” (“Yellow and Blue: Selected Contemporary Ukrainian Poetry”) compiled by Wolodimir Derzhawin, who condemned the persecution and extermination of poets in the USSR, criticized proletarian literature and the choice of authors. The preface by Derzhavin testified to the conviction of Ukrainian emigrants that free Ukrainian literature could flourish only in the exile. The work of the translators’ tandem of Igor Kosteckyj and Elisabeth Kottmeier is further described. The chronological and quantitative comparison of scholarly publications on Ukrainian literature in the then West Germany revealed that one of the major accomplishments of the Ukrainian diaspora was the transition from the complete lack to a gradual increase of interest in the aforementioned subject. The article emphasizes the significance of the translating activity of Anna-Halja Horbatsch aimed at introducing Ukrainian literature to the German Slavic Studies scholars along with ordinary readers. This was made possible when large collections of translations “Blauer November. Ukrainische Erzähler unseres Jahrhunderts” (Blue November: Ukrainian writers of this century) and “Ein Brunnen für Durstige “ (“The Well for the Thirsty”) were out, and in the 90’s – when the publishing house specializing in translations from Ukrainian literature was founded. The Soviets’ negative reaction to those and previous publications is perceived as a manifestation of the political engagement of socialist literary criticism. Conclusion: Anna-Halja Horbatsch’ contribution to the systematic acquaintance of the West German reader with modern Ukrainian literature is by far the most significant due to her numerous translations, scholarly articles, and critical reviews.

Stylistics and the cultural context in literary translation

Considering the example of the translation of Njegoš’s The Mountain Wreath into the German language, the paper analyses the translational solutions that are dictated by the principles of the subject. The translator Alois Schmaus chose to take this step in order to bring home to the modern reader a world which appears to be archaic. He made this decision for two reasons. First, the German reader is unfamiliar with the historical context that is the subject of this poem; secondly the rules of prosody in Serbian and German do not match. By choosing to carry over the Serbian epic decasyllable, Schmaus favours the Serbian poetic tradition. From the historical point of view German verse, constructed as an Alexandrine, is burdened with the context of courtly poetics. The hexameter, meanwhile, which was introduced into German literature by Klopstock and later popularised by Voss and Goethe, appears in the context of the rise of the bourgeoisie. Both verses require changes while being translated, which affect the poem’s characteristics. In order to maintain authenticity, Schmaus pleads for the “Serbian trochee”: iamb and dactyl, metrical feet that are closer to the German language, would have impeded the setting the diaeresis and affected the syntax. Because of this, Schmaus places a spondee at the end of every verse and sets the historical context in the tradition of martyrdom.

Zur Entwicklung und zum Gegenstandbereich der deutschen und der polnischen Phraseologie

The aim of the article, which is addressed to a German reader with phraseological interests, is the depiction of research development within phraseology and terminological agreements in the tradition of phraseology in Polish and German. In the centre of our interest remains the definition of the term phraseme, specification and description of the phraseme features in the context of the contemporary research and also attempts concerning phraseme classifications.

Remarks at the Opening of the Symposium Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the German Law Journal – In Praise of Transnationalism

My short intervention has two parts: First, I want to congratulate the team of the German Law Journal on ten years of successful work from the perspective of a German reader. Second, I want to praise the transnationalization of legal culture, the subject of this conference.