New Insights in the History of Interpreting

Who mediated intercultural exchanges in 9th-century East Asia or in early voyages to the Americas? Did the Soviets or the Americans invent simultaneous interpreting equipment? How did the US government train its first Chinese interpreters? Why is it that Taiwanese interpreters were executed for Japanese war crimes? Bringing together papers from an international symposium held at Rikkyo University in 2014 along with two select pieces, this volume pursues such questions in an eclectic exploration of the practice of interpreting, the recruitment of interpreters, and the challenges interpreters have faced in diplomacy, colonization, religion, war, and occupation. It also introduces innovative use of photography, artifacts, personal journals, and fiction as tools for the historical study of interpreters and interpreting. Targeted at practitioners, scholars, and students of interpreting, translation, and history, the new insights presented in the ten original articles aim to spark discussion and research on the vital roles interpreters have played in intercultural communication through history.
As of February 2018, this e-book is freely available, thanks to the support of libraries working with Knowledge Unlatched.

Dörte Andres, University of Mainz at Germersheim, in Interpreting 19:2 (2017):
In my view, the editors’ hope that the book will lead to subsequent conferences and publications as well as to a heightening of international dialogue on the topics at hand is justified. The greatest strength of this volume is that it will provide everyone who is interested in historical research on translating and interpreting with a wealth of invaluable new information on topics that have so far been relatively little studied. Readers will also acquire insight into various methodological procedures, and find a range of stimulating ideas for further research in this domain.