“We do not translate words, but interpret concepts,” says high level translator Zdravka Mihaylova. She is really good in both the Bulgarian and Greek languages and is one of the founders of the Aristotle intellectual circle. “Our goal is to transfer knowledge and messages, to connect people spiritually,” she says.

The Aristotle Society has been building up cultural exchange bridges between Bulgaria and Greece. One of those is the establishment of an honorary award for literature translators under the auspices of the Greek Embassy in Sofia. It is named after Bulgarian Georgi Kufov, the famous translator of Nikos Kazantzakis, who would often refer to “the common blood of the Balkan peoples”. Lecturer in New Greek Philosophy and Translation Theory with Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski Dragomira Valcheva has become the first person awarded with the Georgi Kufov Prize – for her recent translation of Kazantzakis’ Ascesis.

“The novels of Kazantzakis are full of translation issues,” she comments. “However, on one hand the Ascesis is a short piece of work and on the other, due to my ancient and Medieval Greek language expertise it didn’t cause too much trouble in terms of vocabulary. However, I saw the challenge in recreating the rhythm – this “rending outcry”, as Kazantzakis himself called it. It followed the rhythm of his heart and was a reflection of his thrills.”

The festive event was under the sign of the legendary author, as in 2017 the world marked his 60th death anniversary and it was proclaimed his year. The resemblance between writer Kazantzakis and his translator Kufov was impressive as they both recognized freedom and wild beauty as basic values. The two men hated corruption and believed that voyages were sources of interesting stories.

Press and Communication Counselor at Secretariat General of Information and Communication – Greece Mr. Nikolaos Vlahakis has hailed the Bulgarian-Greek community. Mr. Vlahakis has graduated Philosophy at Sofia University, he has worked with the Greek Embassy in Sofia and has contributed to the decoration of the Alma Alter University Theatre hall, where the award-giving ceremony took place. Mr. Vlahakis is also born on Crete and knows Kazantzakis’ translations in other languages. However, he appreciates the translations of Georgi Kufov in a particular manner, as the latter has managed to recreate the scent of the Crete land and the author’s specific language, thanks to his own Greek roots.

“The proximity of the Bulgarian and Greek languages is due to the similar way of thinking of the two nations,” Mr. Vlahakis commented. “Tonight we tried to send an all-human message via Kazantzakis’ works and more particularly via Christ Recrucified. The refugee issue is up-to-date again nowadays, determining Europe’s policies. Kazantzakis sees the refugee as “a sacred person”. Migrants need our help and we need to prove our empathy and solidarity in action.”

While staying on the Bulgarian–Greek cultural exchange wave, we must outline that the latest edition of the Bulgarian Literature Newspaper is devoted to Greek literature. Furthermore, tonight (December 18) the Melina Mercouri amphitheater in Thessaloniki will host the presentation of the collection of short stories Legends of Stara Planina by Bulgarian classic Yordan Yovkov translated in Greek.

English version: Zhivko Stanchev