Bridges of Babel: the role of translation in the building of civilization

From 16 to 18 March 2023, the 6th International Festival of Arabic Language and Culture took place at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore under the theme Bridges of Babel: The Role of Translation in the Building of Civilization.

The Festival brought together scholars, writers, poets, translators and publishers from across the Arab world and Italy to explore the role of translation as a tool for cultural exchange, knowledge and the development of civilisations.

The programme opened with institutional greetings and a keynote lecture by Professor Stefano Arduini, who reflected on translation as a form of dialogue between different languages, cultures and systems of thought. Rather than simply transferring words from one language to another, translation was presented as a creative process capable of generating new ideas, reshaping identities and fostering a deeper understanding of the other.

The academic conference, held over two days, explored a wide range of topics, including the translation of specialised languages, poetry, novels and classical heritage, as well as the relationship between translation and publishing and its possible future developments.

The academic programme was complemented by a rich series of cultural events, including an evening of poetry and music with Francesca Corrao and Nouri al-Jarrah, a performance by ArabCor of Università Cattolica conducted by Hani Gergi, the Agorà of Arabic Books in collaboration with Almutawassit and an exhibition by Syrian-Palestinian artist Khaled al-Nasiry.

The Festival concluded with a screening of Shadi Abdel Salam’s 1969 film The Mummy, bringing together the different dimensions of the event - academic, literary and artistic - around a shared reflection on translation as a bridge between cultures.