A groundbreaking scholarly account of translation as a form of resistance in Ukrainian and Czech history, from imperial oppression to Soviet censorship and beyond.

In cultures and communities under pressure, whether from a powerful neighbor or a hegemonic ideology, translation becomes a political act. Shaped by the constraints of the moment, both translations and their paratexts are subject to forces that compromise quality or restrict freedom of expression, even as translators seek to bring home the quality and expressive freedom of their originals. In Translation as Resistance, the role translation has played and continues to play in reframing language and power in Czech and Ukrainian cultures is presented and interrogated by Czech and Ukrainian translators.

A critical reassessment of the origins and development of translation studies. 

This volume challenges the established historical narratives of “translation studies” by showcasing some of the rich traditions of debate, research, and theory that unfolded around the world in the centuries before the supposed beginnings of the discipline. Bringing together essays from leaders in the field of translation history, Translation Studies before ‘Translation Studies’ decenters the modern-day discipline by giving access to overlooked theoretical reflections, most of them translated into English for the first time, from languages such as Latin, Sanskrit, Chinese, Arabic, Swahili, Ukrainian, French, and Brazilian Portuguese.