Mapping the Circulation of a Less-Translated Literature: Georgian Books Abroad Since 1991

abstract:This article maps the circulation of Georgian books abroad, through translation, from 1991 to 2019 (since Georgia's independence from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics [USSR] to Georgian culture's internationalization after the guest-of-honorship at the 2018 Frankfurt Book Fair). The analysis demonstrates that interperipheral relations do not necessarily depend on mediation from the centers, as the world system of translations has tended to assume. Although the main locus of translation of Georgian books after 1991 was Western Europe, a "translation zone" distinct from the global centers of consecration situated in the Caucasus-Black Sea region has also emerged, while the shared history of twentieth-century socialism and its translational network may have left some traces in the post-Soviet space in terms of cultural transfers. Equally, the role of cultural mediators has proved crucial in the process of circulation. The article also argues for the use of alternative sources in order to analyze translation flows with the goal of adding nuance to the core-periphery model in light of the limitations of the Index Translationum.