Communication en langues étrangères avec les visiteurs d’un lieu de mémoire : un sujet périphérique des études de traduction

Résumé

After some general remarks on a contemporary basic map of Translation Studies, we present the results of a research on a peripherical topic in the field Interpretation Studies: interpreting in a museum setting. The museum concerned is the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, a former nazi concentration and extermination camp situated in Poland, a World Heritage Site, and a symbol of the Holocaust. The research is based on surveys conducted in 2017 and 2018 by Marta Paleczna among the camp’s visitors, guides, and interpreters. We discuss the interpreters’ main problems, which include translating camprelated and other specific terms, collaboration with a guide, the increasing number of visitors and time constraint, and their solutions, which include compressing the explanations given by a guide during the visit, taking over the role of a guide by the interpreter, and lengthening the explanation time by taking advantage of the trip to the museum and back.