Miren Ibarluzea Santisteban
This paper reviews the evolving representations of translation through a perusal of eleven historiographies of Basque literature: we examine the translation figures in them and we analyze how each author has treated translation. In order to classify the discourses of the historiographers, our journey takes us through the monographs devoted to Basque literary history by Orixe (1927), Mitxelena (1960), Villasante (1961), Sarasola (1971), Mujika (1979), Juaristi (1987), Orpustan (1996), Urkizu (2000), López Gaseni (2002), Aldekoa (2004), and Olaziregi (2012). We also consider the position and function of translation in the construction of Basque literature. We reveal discourses on translated Basque literature in order to expose paths to the history of translation; indeed, the present research shows what kind of impact the field of translation can have on the space it shares with the neighbouring field of literature. We make a particular effort to answer the following question: what function does translation fulfil in the historiographical structure of Basque literature?