The research policy of the Department of Translation is based on the following axes: translation studies, translation practice, a linguistic and intercultural approach to translation, terminology, terminology management, intercultural mediation, automated language processing and computational linguistics. A further interest of the researchers in this Department is the monitoring of theoretical developments in the field of translation, as well as changes to translating practices, especially in the framework of the new models formulated by the relevant technologies. In the framework of its efforts to promote scientific research, consolidate translation science in our country and communicate with the international scientific community, the Department regularly organizes conferences, workshops, scientific meetings and seminars:
- 2002: International Congress “Translating in the 21st century: Trends and Prospects”, with approximately 100 scientists participating from Greece and abroad, and 450 delegates.
- 2006: 1st Meeting of Greek-speaking Translation Studies Scholars
- 2008: 2nd Meeting of Greek-speaking Translation Studies Scholars
- 2011: 3rd Meeting of Greek-speaking Translation Studies Scholars
- 2013: 4th Meeting of Greek-speaking Translation Studies Scholars
- Meeting on “The Greek language in Europe”, in collaboration with the Directorate- General for Translation of the European Commission and the European Information Centre Europe Direct of Central Macedonia (Thessaloniki, December 2011).
- Meeting on “The Translator’s Profession”, in collaboration with the Directorate- General for Translation of the European Commission, the University of Athens, the Ionian University, and the Panhellenic Association of Translators (PEM) (Athens, September 2012).
At the same time, the Department organizes seminars of an educational and informative character, regarding the latest developments in the field of translation technology (training on translation memories) and also involving presentations of the research progress of the doctoral students who are supervised by members of the Department. In order to improve the research activities of the Department, the Laboratory of Translation and Language Processing was established in 2004, which belongs to the Department, and is active in the scientific field of automated processing of natural languages and translation (see website).
The Department and the Laboratory participate in inter-departmental and inter-institutional collaborations with various research bodies (Computational Physics research group at AUTh, CHI –Chaos and Innovation Research Unit, IT Unit of AUTh, University of Cyprus, Institut Gaspard-Monge (IGM) at Paris-Est University, Centre du Traitement Automatique du Langage (CENTAL), Louvain-la-Neuve University, Laboratoire d’Informatique (LI) at Tours University, Centre for Greek Language etc.). Furthermore, the Department works closely with translation agencies and associations in Thessaloniki in order to study and upgrade the translation services provided, while also collaborating with Greek publishers in order to promote translations of the work of modern French authors; moreover, the Department works with the National Book Centre of Greece (ΕΚΕΒΙ), in order to promote modern Greek literature in the French-speaking market. Finally, the Department has been an active member of the group responsible for the creation and compilation of the Online Translation Studies Bibliography by J. Benjamins Publishing Company.
Members of the Department actively participate in Greek and international research projects and subprojects in the framework of the Action “Differentiated and Graded National Foreign Language Exams’ which is financed by the Operational Programme “Education and Lifelong Learning” (ΕSPΑ).
The Translation Department played a leading role, within the framework of the 3rd Meeting of Greek-speaking Translation Studies Scholars, in the establishment of the Hellenic Society of Translation Studies (ΕΕΜ). The Department undertook the translation and publication into Greek of the seven-volume book by J. Nehama, “Histoire des Israélites de Salonique” (“History of the Jews of Thessaloniki”, Thessaloniki: University Studio Press, 2000) and also supports the publication of the School’s journal Syntheses.
Please visit the personnel’s CVs for information on their research activities.
National Certificate of Language Proficiency (KPG): This is a programme run by the Ministry of Education and aiming at developing and implementing a national system of language proficiency certification, equivalent to the certification systems offered by foreign organisations in the Greek education market (2003-2013). The development of KPG was based on the «Common European Framework of Reference for Languages» created by the Council of Europe, and it is aimed at providing certification of different levels of «knowledge» of a foreign language, by examining a person’s degree of competence and ability to understand and produce written and oral text in that language. KPG exams test and assess the knowledge of mainly Greek users in 6 foreign languages (English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Turkish). For this reason, the social circumstances of language use are taken into account and communicative competences in the mediation from Greek to the foreign language are tested, as opposed to other assessment systems, where exams are designed in one language only, regardless of the users and the environment of language use.
Development of a website providing digital material to help national exams candidates prepare for the special subject of French Language in the context of “study4french», designed by the Schools of French Language and Literature of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (2012-2013). The website was assessed and awarded a prize within the framework of Action "Learning 2.0 plus" and received a special mention.
