A Language for Israel: The Role of Translation in Building the Resources of Hebrew

Judith Weisz Woodsworth

Contemporary Review of the Middle East, 2019, vol. 6, issue 3-4, 224-237

Abstract: Abstract Contrary to common misperceptions, translation is not merely a subsidiary or secondary art but is a critical, productive, and generative process. At key moments in history, translation has helped to strengthen languages, build national literatures, and construct national identities. The case of Hebrew provides a unique example of an ancient sacred language that has evolved into a modern and functional one, now the primary official language of Israel. This article provides an overview of translational activity in Israel, with a focus on the profound impact that translation has had on the development of the Hebrew language. Translations of foreign literature served to nourish an emerging Hebrew literature, diversify its repertoire, and build the resources of the language itself. Translation was even viewed as an integral part of nation building, as illustrated by the vision and personal involvement of Israel’s first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, which culminated in a program of translating world masterpieces to create an “Intellectual State†in addition to the new political one.

Keywords: Hebrew language and literature; translation; translators (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2347798919872576 (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:crmide:v:6:y:2019:i:3-4:p:224-237

DOI: 10.1177/2347798919872576

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Contemporary Review of the Middle East
Bibliographic data for series maintained by SAGE Publications ().