Francesca Gaiba
The Origins of Simultaneous Interpretation: The Nuremberg Trial
University of Toronto Press. 1998
ISBN: 0776604570 Paperback
Order your copy here:
fetchbook.co.uk (for UK and Canada)
Or, if you cannot locate a copy, email Francesca Gaiba at gaiba@uic.edu.
From the author:
This is a book about
the use of conference interpreting at the Main Nuremberg Trial (1945-46).
It is hard to believe that despite the thousands of books written about
the Nuremberg Trial, no scholar was ever interested in describing how
the Trial could possibly be carried out in four different languages (French,
Russian, German and English). This book describes that and more. It provides
a historical context, describing the history of conference (simultaneous)
interpreting before, during, and after the Trial. It is also full of interesting
details about the Trial: the use of IBM equipment, the reaction of Goering
to the translation, the episode known as "translation mistake"...
I have loved researching for this book, and those of you who share a passion
for archival historical research will love reading it. I was able to find
and interview more than a dozen still living interpreters of the Main
Nuremberg Trial, and their inside stories are fascinating. I also conducted
research at the National Archives in College Park, Maryland, where the
official photographs of the Nuremberg Trial are held. Hands covered with
white cotton gloves, I flipped through pictures of history until I found
the very interpreters that I had researched about for more than a year.
I have selected the best pictures, which you can now find in my book.
This book makes a fascinating reading for both people interested in the
history of the Nuremberg Trial, and those interested in the history of
translation and interpretation. It is written in a clear, non-technical
language, and is a fascinating reading for anyone. It is rich in surprises.
Recently, a Canadian reader told me that he looked at the cover of my
book in amazement: the interpreter in the cover picture was his grandfather!
Enjoy the reading, Francesca Gaiba.
Reviews:
By Jesús Baigorri-Jalón, in META (click here)
By Holly Mikkelson, in PROTEUS (click here)
By Ruth Morris in the AIIC Newsletter (click here)
By Gabrielle Mack in Terminologie et Traduction (click here)
By Christiane J. Driesen in Interpreting (click here)