A Saudi initiative has translated ancient Arabic poems into Italian, making them accessible to a wider audience in an effort to showcase Arab literary heritage and culture on a global scale.
The translated book of odes presents the first complete Italian edition of these poems.
Supported by the “Tarjim” initiative by the Saudi Authority for Literature, Publishing, and Translation, this move highlights the Kingdom’s vibrant cultural scene since the launch of the National Culture Strategy in 2021.
The latest cultural report from Saudi Arabia’s Culture Ministry highlighted the success of the Tarjim initiative. This initiative aims to boost Saudi publishing and translation efforts.
In 2022, it translated 524 works into 12 languages, with English leading at 75.37%, followed by French at 10.26%.
The initiative translated 341 books from 26 publishers across 20 subjects, with male translators making up about 72% of the translations. The remaining 28% was done by female translators.
Novels ranked third in translated works at around 15%, after educational children’s books and philosophy.
In 2023, the initiative saw even more success, translating over a thousand editions between Arabic and other languages, involving about 22 global languages and engaging over 500 international translators.
