The Conference is held under the title ‘Children’s Literature: Language and Culture’

The Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre (ALC), part of the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi), is organising the ninth Abu Dhabi Translation Conference, as part of its participation in the  Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2023.

Held in Bologna, Italy, from 6 to 9 March 2023, the fair is one of the most prominent international publishing industry platforms focusing on children’s books, and this year, it is celebrating 69 since its establishment.

The ninth Abu Dhabi Translation Conference will be held under the title ‘Children’s Literature: Language and Culture’ on 8 March at the Overture Hall at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2023. It is set to explore the various challenges faced when translating children’s books, as well as solutions to address them, bringing together translators, authors, publishers, and institutions specialising in producing and translating children’s books.

His Excellency Dr Ali bin Tamim, Chairman of the ALC, said: “Translation has been one of the most powerful means of cultural communication throughout the ages, allowing cultures to influence one another. By organising the Abu Dhabi International Translation Conference at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, we establish lines of cultural communication to experts in writing and translating children’s books around the world, and facilitate the exchange of experiences about the best methods to communicate cultures to children through translation. This is also an ideal opportunity to highlight our efforts at the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre to promote the children’s book industry, enable translation to and from Arabic, and advance the presence of the Arabic language in local, regional, and international forums.”

The Abu Dhabi Translation Conference explores a range of topics, such as, ‘Who is responsible for promoting the translation of children’s books and what are the motivating factors in that regard?’, and ‘What have we lost in the field of translation? The subtle difference between translation, rewriting, and literary adaptation’. The Conference also discusses the challenges that women face in the translation sector and highlights ‘Arabic children’s books that are traveling the world’.

The Bologna Children’s Book Fair is one of the most prominent book fairs in the world, specialising in the children’s books publishing industry, and welcoming more than 1,400 exhibitors and visitors from 70 countries. This year, it offers visitors a busy agenda of initiatives and prizes for exhibitions.

The fair is the world’s premier copyright exchange platform for publishers that also covers current multimedia and licensing for children’s stories, illustrations, animation, and related fields, in addition to hosting a series of meetings focusing on the publishing and translation sectors.

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