Dutch Literature enters Turkey
Several weeks ago Henk Pröpper and Maarten Valken visited Istanbul, where a workshop was held for translators from Dutch into Turkish. During their trip they also spoke to the major Turkish publishers (most of them based in Istanbul). It became clear during their discussions that the Turkish publishing world is extremely interested in foreign literature, and Dutch is definitely included. Compared to most other countries, Turkey publishes a large number of translations, around 35% of all titles on offer, mostly from English and German.
The NLPVF will focus strongly on this market over the next few years, particularly since interest in European literature – as opposed to American – is on the increase.
Although average print runs are not large (around 2000), Turkish publishers are very active and they take an optimistic view of the future. Alongside big companies like Yapi Kredi, Alfa-Everest, Ayrinti, Iletesim and smaller houses such as Agora, Kabalci, Kitap and Is Bankasi, new companies like Alef and PMP have recently arrived on the scene.
The beginning of 2007 saw the publication of a Turkish edition of De stille kracht (The Hidden Force) by Louis Couperus. Increasing interest in Dutch literature will bear further fruit later this year, with the publication of titles including Douwe Draaisma’s Metaforenmachine (Metaphors of Memory), Jelto Drenth’s De oorsprong van de wereld (The Origin of the World) and Annejet van der Zijl’s Sonny Boy. A Turkish edition of Draaisma’s Waarom het leven sneller gaat als je ouder wordt (Why Life Speeds Up with Age) is in preparation, as are Gladiatoren (Gladiators) by Fik Meijer, whose Keizers sterven niet in bed (Emperors Don’t Die in Bed) appeared last year, In Europa (In Europe) by Geert Mak, and Gevaarlijk leven (Dangerous Life), a biography of Joris Ivens by Hans Schoots. 2007 will also see the publication of novels by Arnon Grunberg and Henk van Woerden (Ultramarine).
The workshop was a great success. New names will no doubt soon be added to the list of Dutch-Turkish translators, so that nothing remains to obstruct the translation of Dutch literature into Turkish.
Equally, Dutch interest in Turkish literature is growing. Atlas, Athenaeum Polak & Van Gennep, De Arbeiderspers and De Geus all publish Turkish authors. An anthology of Turkish stories (from the past century and a half) recently published by Atlas demonstrates that Orhan Pamuk is but one of many great authors Turkish literature has to offer.
by Maarten Valken
Published: January 26, 2007 features | fiction | non-fiction