At the suggestion of our translator Alireza Akbari, we organized a Persian poetry night at the beginning of the new year in the beautiful Hedayat bookshop in Berlin-Charlottenburg. Founded by Iranian writer Abbas Maroufi and now run by his daughter, it is a place where Persian books meet Charlottenburg café charm and multicultural cultural evenings.
We were particularly pleased that the renowned poet and translator Ali Abdollahi opened the evening with a speech on the importance of poetry and its translation. He emphasized the particular challenges of poetic translation, as "poetry in general is constantly dependent on the history of language and memory and at the same time interwoven with the poet's childhood and personal history." He also spoke about the importance of poetry for intercultural dialogue: "Translation is the oldest medium for the transfer of cultures, and since poetry in any language represents the culmination of culture and the essence of the achievements of that language and culture, the translation of poetry is one of the best ways for cultural dialogue between different languages and civilizations. Due to the conciseness and brevity of poetry, its translation, publication and reading is less time-consuming and thus conveys a significant part of the respective culture more efficiently."
He also recited some of his own poems. Afterwards, our poets Tayebah Joya, Razia Karimi and Ali Tajik read their texts, Theresa Rüger read the translations. Levke Nissen and Alireza Akbari hosted the bilingual evening together.
Image: © Levke Nissen
