SINGAPORE - American translator Daisy Rockwell, the joint winner of the 2022 International Booker Prize, will headline the Singapore Translation Symposium on Saturday.

She gained global attention earlier this year when Tomb Of Sand, her English translation of Geetanjali Shree’s Hindi novel Ret Samadhi, became the first novel in any Indian language to bag the prestigious award.

At the symposium, Rockwell will speak with author-translator Jeremy Tiang about the changes translators can expect in the industry. Their session, Moving Forward With Literary Translation, will be moderated by academic Nazry Bahrawi.

Tiang, a judge for the 2022 International Booker Prize, has translated about 25 books from Chinese to English, including novels by Singapore’s Yeng Pway Ngon and Chinese author Yan Geling and film star Jackie Chan’s 2015 autobiography. Tiang won the Singapore Literature Prize in 2018 for his debut novel State Of Emergency.

The annual Singapore Translation Symposium is organised by the Singapore Book Council. This year’s event also delves into topics such as translating for the stage and the role of AI (artificial intelligence) in translation.

Another former International Booker Prize judge is the Nigerian lawyer and novelist Elnathan John, who will be part of a session titled Judging Translated Literary Works.

Also in the line-up this year are Dhaka-based literary editor Khademul Islam, Singapore arts practitioner Zelda Tatiana Ng and dancer Meenakshy Bhaskar, the artistic director of Bhaskar’s Arts Academy.

Three of the symposium’s four sessions will happen virtually and be live-streamed on the Singapore Book Council’s Facebook Page. The Arts House will also screen these virtual discussions, and play host to one in-person event.

Singapore Translation Symposium

Where: Singapore Book Council’s Facebook page (str.sg/wKEF); The Arts House, Play Den, 1 Old Parliament Lane
MRT: City Hall
When: Saturday, 9am to 6pm
Admission: Free
Info: str.sg/wKEy