He won with a translation from English to Irish. The Irish prize goes to a student from Coláiste Chroí Mhuire for a second year in a row after Ms Maitilde Warsop who also studied there won it last year.
County Galway students scooped 6 out of the 7 'special commendation' awards for Ireland. They go to Ms Róise Ní Churraoin also from Coláiste Chroí Mhuire, to Ms Rebecca Breathnach, Ms Róisín Ní Lionaird, Ms Katie Ní Lochlainn and Mr. Seán Ó Laoghaire, all from Coláiste na Coiribe in Galway City. They all translated texts between Irish and English. Mr. Renato Brule from Coláiste Éinde, also in Galway City won his commendation with a translation from Spanish to English.
Ms Zuzanna Lacka from St. Flannan's College in Ennis, Co. Clare got a 'special commendation' for a translation from Polish to English.
58 students from 13 secondary schools took part in the Irish leg of the pan-European competition. The topic this year was ‘daring to make a difference’.
In Europe in total 3,056 enthusiastic participants put their language skills to the test, choosing to translate a text between any two of the EU’s 24 official languages. While English has a prominent role, of the 552 language combinations available, students from 701 schools used 155 combinations, including Romanian into Swedish and Czech into Danish.
The European Commission’s translators select the winners for each EU country.
The award ceremony will take place in Brussels, on 21 March 2024.
Commissioner for Budget and Administration Johannes Hahn applauded the students:
Congratulations to the winners of the EU’s 2023 Juvenes Translatores contest! And congratulations to all 3 056 young translators who participated – you are all winners! Today, gaining a better understanding of each other’s cultures and standpoints is more important than ever. With language skills, you learn to find meaning and help people bridge divides. Especially in view of the upcoming European elections, the EU wants to see young people have a strong voice and feel heard.
Background
Funded by the Erasmus+ programme, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Translation has organised the Juvenes Translatores contest every year since 2007, to promote translation and multilingualism. Over the years, the contest has been a life-changing experience for many of its entrants and winners. Some have decided to study translation at university, and some have joined the European Commission's translation department as a trainee or a full-time translator.
The goal of the Juvenes Translatores contest is to promote language learning in schools and give young people a taste of what it is like to be a translator. The competition is open to 17-year-old secondary school students and takes place at the same time in all selected schools across the EU.
Multilingualism, and therefore translation, has been an integral feature of the EU since the European Communities were first created. It was enshrined in the very first Regulation, adopted in 1958. Since then, the number of official EU languages has grown from 4 to 24, as more countries joined the EU.
More information:
Juvenes Translatores Instagram
Details
- Publication date
- 8 February 2024
- Author
- Representation in Ireland