TO TRANSLATE OR NOT TO TRANSLATE ...

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock these past few weeks, you might have heard the splash a Filipino publishing house made when the media finally heard about one of its latest products, the Filipino translation of Stephenie Meyers’ Twilight.  I actually talked about this in one of my earlier blogs (http://thefilipinareader.blogspot.com/2012/07/twilight-filipinotagalog-version.html).

The newly-controversial Filipino publishing house, Precious Pages Corporation, has been in the business for many years now.  I’m pretty sure you’ve seen the company’s books at least once.  The books are these thin, pocketbook romances with the lovebirds logo on the cover.  They’re so popular that I even know of one woman who buys a bunch of these books and rents them out to the women in her neighborhood using the friendly sari-sari store as her “outlet”.  And if you’ve ever found yourself watching ABS-CBN just before the news, you might have come across Precious Hearts Romances, which is essentially a Precious Pages bestseller in telenovela form.

Well, Precious Pages Corporation has decided to tap into a new readers’ market by introducing translated versions of commercial bestsellers, such as Twilight.  Based on interviews with its founder, Segundo Matias, Jr., the company’s intention in having translated books such as these in the market is so Filipino readers will have a chance to enjoy reading global bestsellers in their native tongue.

The reaction to this untested, bold move has been mixed, so far.  There are those who oppose having such books in the market and say there’s no need for these since Filipinos understand English, anyway.  On the other hand, there are those who appreciate the introduction of translated products because it allows Filipino readers access to more reading material in their native language.  Then, there are those who quickly judge the move as baduy and jologs.

Ashamed as I am to admit it, I am a Filipina and yet I haven’t really read many books in Filipino.  It’s not that I think that Filipino books are less inferior or baduy.  It’s just that I have yet to come across a Filipino book I can fall in love with.  I read classics like Florante At Laura and parts of Ibong Mandaragit in high school … honestly, I don’t remember anything about these books.  I know there are literary classics in Filipino out there, like Dekada ’70 … but I’m still quite intimidated by the prospect of reading such a book. 

This is just my opinion, but I don’t think it’s a bad idea to have translations of bestsellers in the market.  At the very least, it will reach the Filipino readers who are more comfortable in Filipino than English.  It will encourage Filipino readers to read in their native language, and hopefully, it will also encourage Filipinos to get back into reading.  Of course, it would be much better if publishers such as Precious Pages Corporation would also consider producing more books (not just romances) in Filipino, or consider translating books by Filipino authors into English for the foreign market.  What could be better than having a global literary sensation who’s Pinoy or Pinay?

But for now, I’m going to read more books in Filipino. 

If there’s one thing that reading a Filipino translation like Twilight has made me realize, it’s that I need to read more books in Filipino, whether they’re translations of global bestsellers, or books (I don’t care whether they’re written in English or Filipino) that have been written by Filipinos.  Start with the less intimidating ones, like romances or translations of bestsellers, and move on to the heavier stuff.  Given the times I grew up in, I must admit that I’m more used to writing and thinking in English.  Yet, as foreign as my exposure has been, my Pinoy roots are still there.  Hidden, silent and dormant, perhaps, but still there, and still Pinoy na Pinoy.  When I first read the Filipino translation of Twilight, I found myself appreciating the story more, even though I’m more used to reading English books.  To use a popular term, iba ang kurot sa puso kapag Pinoy.  Why, just listen to an OPM song, or listen to a Bible passage in Filipino.  There’s magic in the Filipino word that only the Pinoy or Pinay heart knows.

Your title What do you think of books that are translated into Filipino?

Fantastic! I can't wait to read them! Who needs translations? I already know how to read, write and speak in English. Why can't we translate our Filipino books into English instead? It's a great idea, but don't just translate the commercial ones.