By Ravi Kumar

Every year on 30 September, translators and language professionals around the world mark International Translation Day. In this Modlingua Live video, Ravi Kumar explains why the day matters, who St Jerome was and how the day is celebrated, including in Delhi and in Hanoi, Vietnam. On YouTube the video carries a different title, "The FASTEST Way to Master FOREIGN LANGUAGES with #modlingua Live"; the content is about International Translation Day.

Why 30 September?

The date is the feast day of St Jerome, who died on 30 September 420. According to the video, he was born in the Roman Empire in 347 and was both a saint and a scholar. Sources differ on his birth year, so treat that date as approximate. He is remembered for translating the Bible into Latin directly from Hebrew, a task that the video says took more than twenty years, from 382 to 405. He also kept writing commentaries and remained an active scholar.

How the day became international

The video explains that the International Federation of Translators, founded in 1953, began promoting 30 September as International Translation Day. The date gained support among translation associations and translators over the years. In 2017 the United Nations General Assembly decided to declare 30 September International Translation Day. The UN News report describes the day as a tribute to the language professionals who help people and nations understand one another.

How people celebrate

Celebrations take different forms. Some groups hold scholarly discussions, some talk about translation processes and some focus on Bible translation. The speaker describes two examples from Asia:

• Delhi. At the Modlingua office, the Indian Translators Association marked the day with colleagues, friends and scholars, who discussed translation over a cup of tea.
• Hanoi, Vietnam. The head of a translation agency has organised an international conference on 30 September for several years, drawing participants from across Asia. The speaker says the founding president of the Asian Association of the translation industry represented the association there and invited translators across the region to work together.

The video ends with a lighter segment of music and dance from the event.

Why it matters for translators

The day is a chance to recognise a profession that often works out of sight. It is also a good moment to meet other language professionals, share what you have learned and think about how translators can support each other.

Related reading

For a Modlingua article on working with others in translation, read Collaboration and Translation.