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 Ian Yang
Advisor - China I Japan I South Korea
i.yang [at] dutchculture.nl

Mapping China: Literature - Translations Chinese and Dutch Literature

Mapping China: Literature - Translations Chinese and Dutch Literature

Translations from both sides

Foreign literature is often translated in China and has played a crucial role in shaping modern Chinese literature. Balzac and Sherlock Holmes already appeared in Chinese at the turn of the twentieth century, after which the Russian masters long held sway. Nowadays, the Chinese book trade follows international developments closely. Both the latest Nobel Prize winner and the most recent literary craze are launched in translation accompanied by an extensive media campaign. Several long-running journals are completely dedicated to translated literature.

This contrasts starkly with the amount of Chinese literature translated in the West. The best-known authors have appeared regularly in the major languages since the nineties, but are read less than the many non-literary autobiographical works on China's recent political history, which are often written directly in English. France boasts the largest and most varied range of Chinese literature, followed in only second place by the English-speaking countries.

In the Netherlands, translated Chinese literature was long concentrated in the hands of a few publishers, De Geus, Meulenhoff and Bert Bakker, but in recent times there has been much more interest across the breadth of the publishing world. While the publishing house Augustus is working on a series on the classical philosophy, Athenaeum is focusing on classical novels like Dream of the Red Chamber (De droom van de rode kamer), composed in the eighteenth century, while AtlasContact, Arbeiderspers, and others are exploring current developments. 

For fifteen years (1996-2009), the now defunct Dutch literary journal for Chinese literature in translation, Het trage vuur (Slow Fire), attempted to revitalize the rather limited offering in the Netherlands and Flanders. A variety of poetry, prose and background articles In the mean time, however, such Western publishing and media giants as Penguin and Bertelsmann, along with international agencies, have seriously entered the Chinese market by opening local branch offices there. The impact of this will certainly leave its mark over the coming years.

Dutch Literature in Chinese

The translation of Dutch literature into Chinese has only really taken off since the Dutch Foundation for Literature started promoting it in China around 2005. Before that time, only a few well-known novels had been translated, such as Multatuli’s Max Havelaar, Harry Mulisch’ De aanslag (The Assault) and Hersenschimmen (Out of Mind) by Bernlef, as well as an influential anthology of modern poetry of the Netherlands. Since then, roughly four hundred titles have seen Chinese publications.

As far as fiction is concerned, a variety of novels is now available in Chinese, including works by Couperus, Slauerhoff, W.F. Hermans, Cees Nooteboom, Margriet de Moor, Anna Enquist, Kader Adolah, Adriaan van Dis, A.F.Th. van der Heijden, Gerbrand Bakker, Herman Koch and others. Still, Dutch non-fiction is much more in demand. Well written works on subjects as history, art, philosophy, physics, biology and other sciences seem to fill the existing gap between academic studies and ‘popular science’ books on the Chinese market. Authors such as Geert Mak, Midas Dekkers, Douwe Draaisma, Tijs Goldschmidt, Jelle Reumer, Joop Goudsblom, Dick Swaab, Fik Meijer, Salomon Kroonenberg and Jos de Mul are quenching the thirst for knowledge of China’s emerging middle class.

Equally successful is China is Dutch children’s literature, which appears to be popular for its less educational and moralistic tone. Annie M.G. Schmidt’s Jip and Janneke was a case in point: according to a report in NRC Handelsblad, young Chinese readers found the two Dutch heroes ‘very naughty’. Especially Dutch illustrators seem to strike a chord with the Chinese audience; many contemporary artists, such as Sieb Posthuma, Annemarie van Haeringen, Hans & Monique Hagen, and Wouter van Reek, have seen their work published in China and some of them have had the occasion to read in front of school classes in China. Also, in 2011, the exhibition An elephant came by toured across China.

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Return to index page Mapping China: Literature