Colonial Translation Practices in the Periphery of New Spain between Evangelisation and Local Indigenous Jurisdiction in Spanish and Zapotec Language (16^th and 17^th Centuries)

The objective of this project, which is located at the University of Mainz, is to analyse the entangled and complementary translation practices and strategies that developed within the fields of evangelisation and jurisdiction and between the Spanish and the Zapotec language in a peripheral region of New Spain. The analysis aims at detailed descriptions of the translation strategies and their linguistic consequences in the area of missionary linguistics. Furthermore, innovations, idiosyncrasy and hybrid phenomena in the area of notarial translation realised by the indigenous people will be highlighted. In a further step, both, results from analysis of missionary translation and those from notarial translation, will be put in relation in order to find out the ways in which missionary translation influenced notarial translation and language. Results will be expected in terms of semantic change, colonial juridical terminology and texts, syncretic translation cultures. Beyond these findings, political and social consequences of colonial translation for the indigenous languages will be of interest.

The project is being pursued by Prof Dr Martina Schrader-Kniffki as project director and the two research assistants Yannic Klamp and Malte Kneifel.

Publications (project-related):

• Prof Dr Martina Schrader-Kniffki
• Yannic Klamp
• Malte Kneifel