Review by Rebecca M. Alvin
Translation of books and texts from around the world into English, as well as from English to other languages has been an incredibly important aspect of dissemination of literary, scientific, political, and historical ideas for centuries, but the act of translation itself is a topic less often discussed, often seemingly an invisible, background endeavor. In his new book, From Language to Language: The Hospitality of Translation, philosopher Souleymane Bachir Diagne digs deeper into the process of translation to give us a multifaceted perspective on the relationship between translation and colonialism, first of all, but also what happens after decolonization. He extends his discussion beyond just linguistic translation to include objects, such as artistic works taken from countries of the Global South for museums in Europe and the United States. What happens when cultures lose these important elements of their history, but also what happens when they are repatriated to their original nations after decades of being housed in European museums, for example. There is again a need for translation back to the original culture, which has moved on and evolved since the object was originally removed. In this sense, both literature and artifacts are migrants that become a part of their new geographic location’s culture as well as maintaining their own heritage, belonging to neither world.
Diagne, who up until very recently was a professor of philosophy and French as well as director of the Institute of African Studies at Columbia University, has written several books about philosophy, especially focusing on Islamic and African philosophy. This short book, at just 100 pages, can go deep into academic territory, but is surprisingly accessible to those with only a cursory interest in philosophy and linguistics. Written by Diagne in French originally, it is itself a translation (by Dylan Temel), and therefore acts as evidence of its own subject.
His approach is a humanist one that both recognizes the challenges of historically eurocentric views in his field and sees how translation can be a tool of greater humanist evolution. In his introduction he writes: “Two main theses underly the arguments presented in [this book]. The first is that all human languages are of equal value. The second is that nothing manifests this equivalence better than translation. And I could add a conclusion drawn from these theses, which is ultimately the message of this book: that translation is a humanism.”
From Language to Language is a fascinating overview of Diagne’s philosophy of translation and a great instigator for further thought on this subject.
From Language to Language: The Hospitality of Translation by Souleymane Bachir Diagne (2025, Other Press) is available online or you can order it from your local bookseller.
