This thesis examines the translation of cultural elements from Norwegian to Italian. The analysis is made on the basis of theories of translation studies and focuses on the realia found in the contemporary Norwegian novel Svøm med dem som drukner, written by Lars Mytting and published by Gyldendal in 2014. The initial hypothesis of the work was that in the Italian translation the geographical-cultural aspects would be dominant and the plot and psychological aspects subdominant; that is, a hierarchy of dominants opposite of that of the original in Norwegian. The thesis presents the results of analytical parallel reading of the original Svøm med dem som drukner and the Italian version Sedici Alberi from 2017, translated by Alessandro Storti. During the parallel reading words and phrases specific to the Norwegian language culture (realia) were collected and grouped according to the type of realia (geographical, ethnographical or political/social as suggested by Osimo) and the translation strategy used (transcribing, creation of a new word or calque, using a different related word from the source language etc. as suggested by Osimo). While some of the strategies lead to bringing the translation close to the original (adequacy), others make the word or phrase, to a varying extent, consistent with the target culture (acceptability). The results obtained confirm the original hypothesis that Sedici Alberi would be an “adequate” translation. Further work in this area could focus on the analysis of style and language in the same translation, to see whether also these aspects conform with the translation being “adequate”.

In this thesis the translation of cultural elements from Italian to Swedish is examined. The study is based on the analysis of the realia found in the Italian novel Le otto montagne, which was written by Paolo Cognetti and published in 2016 by Einaudi. The analysis is based on theories of translation studies. The thesis presents the results of analytical parallel reading of the original Le otto montagne and the Swedish version De åtta bergen, which was translated by Malin Emitslöf and published by Contempo förlag in 2018. The original hypothesis was that the strategies chosen by the translator would show tendencies to aim for an adequate translation of the culture specific elements and the names. During the parallel reading phrases and words specific to the Italian language culture (realia) were collected. The elements of realia which were found were first grouped according to type of realia. The next step was to determine which method had been used by the translator, to render the specific element of realia into Swedish. The results obtained do not fully verify the original hypothesis, that the strategies chosen by the translator would in general show tendencies to aim for an adequate translation of the culture specific elements. However, when the culture specific element in question was connected to specific domains or subjects, this tendency to aim for an adequate translation was more distinct. These subjects were for instance traditional life in the mountains, alpinism etc, i.e. subjects with a strong connection to the mountains. As a complement to the results of the parallel reading, Malin Emitslöf, the translator, was asked to answer a number of questions regarding the translation, her background, etc. Her very helpful and comprehensive answers can be found in the appendix of this thesis. The answers to the questions in the interview suggest that the translator did not choose strategies or model readers consiously, but rather made the various choices during the translation process based on intuitive experience from previous work with translation, extensive exposure to the two language-cultures, the gut feeling, and a good instinct for language. Further work in this area could focus on the comparison of the translation of the elements of realia in the book (i.e. Le otto montagne) into different languages, for instance Swedish and Spanish. Another suggestion would be to compare the methods and experiences of two different translators, Malin Emitslöf e Aija Cirulis, by doing interviews with them both. They both have experience from translating a novel written by Paolo Cognetti, into Swedish. La Cirulis recently translated the book “Senza mai arrivare in cima” by Cognetti, into Swedish. (Contempo 2020). It would be interesting to make a comparison between their experiences, their methods and their strategies.

This thesis examines the translation of culture-specific phenomena in children’s literature with a theoretical framework based on “translation studies”. In the translation of children’s literature, translators generally choose translations that brings the content closer to the target culture, creating an “acceptable” translation. At the same time, these choices distance the translation from the culture of the original text. The opposite, translations which remain faithful to the original, are called “adequate” with the terminology of translation studies.This thesis presents the result of the parallel reading of the original Madicken på Junibacken, a children’s book written by famous Swedish author Astrid Lindgren, and the Italian version, Martina di Poggio di Giugno, translated by Fiorella Onesti and Isabella Fanti (Salani, Gl’Istrici, 2003). During the reading of the two books, the phenomena specific to the Swedish language culture (realia, in translation studies’ terminology) were collected, listed, grouped according to type of realia (names of persons and places, food, idiomatic expressions, songs and games) and the translation strategy used. The grouping according to translation strategy took as its starting point the ten strategies described by Osimo (2008). The analysis confirmed the initial hypothesis that Martina di Poggio di Giugno would be, like many other translations of children’s books, an “acceptable” translation. A complimentary analysis of corresponding realia in two other translations of Astrid Lindgren books, the Italian versions of Pippi Longstocking and Bill Bergson, Master Detective, showed that one realia can be translated in different ways, leading to different results. The translations in the second phase of the analysis were deemed as slightly less “acceptable” and therefore closer to equivalence with the original texts.