By Erin L. Cox, Publisher | @erinlcox
Over the last decade, the translation market has changed rapidly. Publishers are turning to technology to produce translations more quickly with AI, readers who discover a book on TikTok don’t want to wait for the translation of books into their native language and are preferring to read the book in English, and there is a growing awareness of international writers in other markets through new awards, funding programs, and guest of honor opportunities at international book fairs.To provide a better picture of how these changes are impacting the European translation market, earlier this month ThinkPub published their report Books in Translation: Trends and Transformations in the European Publishing Market by Miha Kovač, Rüdiger Wischenbart, Yana Genova, and Anja Kamenarič.
The 140-page report analyzes data from countries throughout Europe in 10 different languages, highlighting how technology, translation funding, industry support, geopolitical challenges, economic pressures, reader interests, and even social media have impacted the market for books in translation.
While the translation market has changed, technology has impacted the larger industry as well, so the report also puts into context the publication and purchasing of translations in a larger look at the European market.
The report identifies several major trends shaping European translation markets:
- In markets where there are less than 10 million speakers of a language, books in translation are a large part of the industry (20-40% of books published annually). In larger markets, the native language dominates more heavily.
- Books from English-language markets account for 50-70% of the books being translated in most European countries with there being only a small number of translations between European countries and languages. One notable exception is with manga, which is growing exponentially.
- Economic pressure due to declining unit sales and rising production and translation costs are narrowing the financial margins for publishers, making publishing translations more difficult.
- Countries with long-standing traditions of cultural exchange tend to show greater linguistic diversity, while weaker institutional environments often lead to stronger dependence on commercially dominant source languages.
- The role of the translator has also changed going from simply translating the book to operating as scouts, promoters, and cultural liaisons, particularly in small markets.
- Public support programs including translation grants, publisher subsidies, and international cooperation programs play a significant role in translation publishing.
The report dives deeply into a few key areas, specifically the use of AI in publishing both audio and text translations, which they illustrate in a case study in the report noting that “the results were surprisingly good.”
In publishing this report, ThinkPub signals the importance of publishing books in translation as “investments in cultural infrastructure,” highlighting that publishing books in translation goes beyond a market activity and should be thought of as a public good. At a time when people and countries are being polarized and divided, connecting readers across borders is crucial.
ThinkPub is an initiative by 12 consortium partners to build a digital library of learning materials to facilitate professional innovation training in the European book business. Click here for a free download of the full report.