Message from the Director

Welcome to the Research Centre for Translation (RCT) and to our new website.

From a modest beginning in 1971, RCT has come a long way in promoting the translation of Chinese literature and translation studies. Thanks to my predecessors and colleagues at the Centre, and more importantly, the support and assistance from translators, scholars and friends all over the world, we have made remarkable achievements over the years. Our flagship journal, Renditions, is now one of the most important journals of the English translation of Chinese literature. Since 1997, the Stephen C. Soong Translation Studies Memorial Award has given recognition to the outstanding works of many talented academics in Chinese Translation Studies. In the last few years, we have significantly increased our activities in Translation Studies. We have organized a total of four Young Researchers' Conferences in the past seven years. Last year, we held the first Summer School on Chinese Translation History for graduate students in Guangzhou in collaboration with the Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. RCT has also sucessfully hosted the prestigious Fourth Asian Translation Traditions Conference at CUHK in December 2010. It was an exciting and fruitful event, with over 60 distinguished scholars from different parts of the world attending and delivering their papers.

We are much honoured that Professor Ted Huters has joined us as Chief Editor of Renditions. An expert in modern Chinese literature and culture, Professor Huters has been Professor at the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures, UCLA, since 1994. His knowledge and leadership will be invaluable in bringing Renditions to a new stage of development.

In terms of publication, the Centre has several new projects in the pipeline, in addition to releasing new titles in the Renditions Paperbacks and Rendition Books series. The inaugural issue of Studies in Translation History (Fanyishi yanjiu), edited by the RCT and published by Fudan University Press, will be launched soon. This will be the first journal in Chinese to focus on the study of translation history. We are also planning two new book series on Translation Studies, one in English and one in Chinese, in collaboration with reputable international university presses. As the world moves towards electronic publishing, we are exploring the possibility of making Renditions available in an electronic format. More details on these projects will be announced in due course.

I believe in attracting and nurturing the best research talents from around the world and in welcoming them to our community. In 2009, RCT began to appoint Honorary Research Fellows and Honorary Research Associates. We currently have eight outstanding researchers from mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore, Canada, the US and the UK. They will be funded to conduct research programmes and to organize conferences/workshops on translation studies. We are also looking into the possibility of setting up visiting fellowships to invite distinguished and budding scholars to RCT to conduct research and to give public lectures and seminars.