Working towards the prestige of the translator

The Bulgarian Translators Union (BTU) is a national non-profit professional organisation established in June 1974, to operate for public benefit. It is registered in the Central Registry of the Ministry of Justice of Bulgaria, to which it submits an annual report on its activities.

This translators association brings together professional translators working all types of translation, as well as theorists specialised in the subject. The organisation’s entire activity is determined by the interests and activities of the six sections that comprise it. The Translation Bureau. in particular, is committed to illustrate its members’ high qualification.

BTU is a member of the International Translators Federation (FIT) as well as of the European Council of Associations of Literary Translators (CEATL).

The six sections that compose the translation association are: Fiction, Humanities, Scientific and Technical Literature, Simultaneous and Consecutive Interpretation, Translation of Law Documents and Theory, History and Criticism of the Profession. All the above-mentioned sections are formed according to the respective type of translation.

Membership at his Bulgarian translators association is open to all translators and specialists in the field of translation which meet the organisation’s requirements to be part of the union. To apply for membership you must send a written application to the president of the section you wish to join. This document must be accompanied with a brief curriculum vitae and a list of translations and published works of the candidate. The section will then vote the acceptance or refusal of the proponent.

The association, based in Sofia, “is guided by the principles of democracy, public interest, creative freedom and the professional interest of translators, subject to professional ethics, mutual assistance and solidarity”. The Bulgarian Translators Union is committed to representing its members and defending their trade, copyright and creative rights before the government and municipal authorities, public and business organisations, other entities and individuals, both in Bulgaria and abroad. BTU wishes to works towards raising the prestige of the translator.

The Bulgarian translation association stringently affirms its independence from political parties and organisations. BTU wants to develop and validate a set of spiritual values which will enrich the national culture with “the most significant achievements of world civilisation”. It wishes to serve as an ambassador for Bulgarian culture. On the other hand, the organisation wants to promote the exchange of experience with foreign cultures, as well as dialogue in science and technology, social structure, health, education, communications and other issues, according to the needs of the country.

In addition to the afore-mentioned purposes, BTU has the mission of increasing the quality of translation and raising the prestige of the Bulgarian translator at home and abroad, protecting and improving the professional, creative and social status of all professionals, improving the legal regulation and protection of the translation profession. It is important to create a social atmosphere of rigour and respect for translation and the people who make a living out of it.

A concern of this translators association is to attract young interpreters to the exercise of the profession, but also to raise the qualifications of those who are already working in the field, yet lack experience. In order to do so, BTU organises conferences, symposia, debates and courses related with the profession.

BTU wants to maintain contacts and develop collaborations with other cultural organisations and cultural institutions in Bulgaria, but also to create links and maintain them with similar organisations, in order to ensure collaboration and professional protection.

The Bulgarian union represents, protects and supports its members and they voluntarily undertake to be loyal to the Union and to support its activities. Members of BTU “must work for the prestige of the profession”.

BTU publishes a magazine called Panorama, established in 1980 as the association’s official journal. It is published six times a year, containing analysis of foreign literature, but also opinion articles on translation issues. It tries to broadcast the philosophical heritage and the new philosophical ideas, paying special attention to specific assessment of artistic interpretations on problems associated with history, theory and criticism of translation.

Keep in mind that Bulgarian, an Indo-European language, a member of the Southern branch of the Slavic language family, is the official language of Bulgaria, a country with around 8 million inhabitants. It is estimated that there are approximately 9 million speakers of Bulgarian in the world.

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