Searching, loaning and coining: translators of Karelian as language revitalizers and creators of vocabulary

This paper looks at translating into Karelian, a severely endangered Finnic language, from the viewpoint of vocabulary as an aspect of language revitalization. The topic is studied through a thematic analysis of translation commentaries and checklists written by student translators of Karelian, and the paper emphasizes the translators’ ideals and perspectives of their roles as translators and revitalizers of Karelian. This is achieved by combining the translators’ reports with prior studies on translating into Karelian and other endangered languages. Concretely, this paper investigates how and when translators report coining neologisms and the challenges they have faced. Moreover, language ideals on what kinds of translated Karelian and neologisms are considered beneficial are briefly examined. The analysis shows that (student) translators of Karelian form a heterogenous group that, in addition to loan words and calques, utilize imaginative translation strategies, such as reminiscing. Translation and language revitalization overlap in their work, and many translators are aware of their responsibilities as language revitalizers.