The Matanzas National Literary Translation Awards: Juan Luis Hernández Milián and Laura Ruiz Montes.

As the 16th International Symposium on Literary Translation is being held in the nation’s capital, it is important to note that Matanzas is honored to have two UNEAC National Awards in that category: writers Juan Luis Hernandez Milian and Laura Ruiz Montes.

Under the axiom that the translator is a privileged writer who has the opportunity to rewrite masterpieces in another language, both Yumurian creators have played a vast work in bringing revealing texts to the Cuban reader.

Unforgettable poet and translator, Juan Luis Hernández Milián, who passed away on November 21st, 2021, has a vast lyrical work, especially in the Spanish versions of the great Russian poets Alexandr Pushkin, Sergei Esenin, Boris Pasternak, Anna Akhmatova and Vladimir Visotsky, among other bards of the Slavic language.

He was awarded the José Rodríguez Feo National Prize on two occasions: in 1996 and 2006. His phrase about the role of this profession has become famous when he said: «Translation builds a bridge between our silences».

As for Laura Ruiz, poet and editor, she stands out for her translations from French and the French-speaking Caribbean universe. She published in 2012 the book of essays A la entrada y a la salida, in Ediciones Matanzas and won the José Rodríguez Feo Translation Award for her Spanish version of the novel El exilio según Julia (L’exil selon Julia), by Guadeloupean Giséle Pineau.

In 2022 she won the Critics’ Prize for the booklet Grifas (Afrocaribeñas al habla), a compilation published by Casa de las Américas, which includes several translations by specialists in the English, French and Spanish languages of twelve women writers from this Latin American region.

The 16th International Symposium on Literary Translation is sponsored by UNEAC and has the support of the Cuban Association of Translators and Interpreters, as well as the José Martí and Arte y Literatura publishing houses.

The program includes debates on artificial intelligence, sign language, interculturality and copyright. In addition, there will be discussions on errors in the translation of works, the specificity of children’s literature, as well as trends in the world publishing market.

Written by María Elena Bayón Mayor.