THE INFLUENCE OF TRANSLATORS ON SCIENTIFIC PROGRESS DOWN THE

AGES

This essay analyses the influence that translators have had on scientific progress
down the ages, and the resulting need for scientific translation. The said analysis will
be based on numerous examples that have arisen in class, as well as in the reading
materials that have been used during the learning process prior to translation. This
essay will be structured as follows: firstly, a brief introduction to the subject
summarizing the role of translators in the dissemination and creation of scientific
knowledge from a variety of perspectives (as conveyor, disseminator, teacher, or
author, etc.); secondly, a detailed analysis of the influence that they have had in each
one of the said areas, and lastly, a conclusion with my personal opinion on the need
for these professionals in all areas of scientific life.

For centuries, translators have played an essential role in the inter-linguistic

transmission of scientific and technical knowledge because they have acted as a
bridge between languages and cultures, making scientific advances and discoveries
available to all. But their importance is not just down to their role as a bridge, they
have also served as clear active agents in processes of social communication,
occupying different positions and professions. This diversification of the translation
profession makes them direct protagonists of scientific advances, thereby giving
them crucial importance in all areas of society.

Together with the technologies that have accompanied them, they have played the
role of intervening in the scientific process as disseminators, compilers, teachers,
and even authors. They have not been limited to carrying out translations as a strict
linguistic process from one language to another, but rather they have been a catalyst
by stimulating interest and scientific reflection, providing explanations of what they
were translating and allowing one culture to appropriate and internalize the
knowledge of another, almost as if it was their own, and then continue to develop it,
as we shall see in various historical examples which shall be set forth below.

Sometimes, translators would search for documents such as manuscripts to

translate, and they would take care of the whole process. On other occasions, they
worked at the service of important people such as caliphs, priests, or even kings. In
this regard, translation has been regarded as a dynamic activity because the
profession of translator has not always existed as such, and furthermore, the texts
on which the translation was based were not always original.

As I have said, historically translators have been the main agents for the
dissemination of scientific knowledge, but the development that started to make this
dissemination possible was nothing to do with them. This development was the
transformation of the spoken word into the written word, i.e. the invention of the first
forms of written language towards the end of the fourth century B.C.. Previously, it
had not been possible to convey knowledge as we do now because the spoken word
is irreversible and ephemeral, and as such communication was radically different
from what we know now. The vitality of the technological transformation of the word
is that it has allowed the development of new forms of autonomous discourse,
uncontaminated by others, without which it would have been impossible to build up
the rational and analytical knowledge of which science is composed.
Although, as I have said, the invention of writing is something quite unrelated to the
translation profession, it is what has allowed them to convey and develop the new
knowledge that has been contributed to what we now know as science. As such,
they have been and remain to this day participants in what is known as the
technological transformation of the word, affecting milestones as significant as the
invention of the printing press or the development of information and communication
technologies.

As a result of this progress, it became much easier to convey knowledge. And there
are various examples of this in Manual de traduccin cientfico-tcnica, which has
been used in this subject. Firstly, in the Mesopotamian civilization (over 8,000 years
ago), there were already professions associated with science, and which therefore
had knowledge with a certain degree of specialization. This was where the first forms
of writing were invented, and where the first examples of what we now know as
commercial and demographic expansion arose, giving rise to the conquests which
were of vital importance for the transmission and expansion of knowledge. And it is
in this civilization that we find the first examples of texts in different languages such
as Sumerian and Eblaite, as well as various dictionaries. The Egyptians, Persians,
and Phoenicians are also important in this development because they progressed
from script engraved on clay tablets to writing on papyrus and parchment.
Furthermore, in the case of the Phoenicians, they first developed alphabetical script,
which later became the basis of a multitude of languages. These civilizations also
gave rise to great seafarers who connected different territories, and thus also their
languages and cultures, so that translators already had an important role in those
times.

Later, we find the Greek civilization, which was the cradle of science with great
authors such as Galen and Aristotle, who in addition to adding knowledge to the
emerging sciences, wrote down the oral wisdom of their culture. This era was crucial
for the development of science thanks to the creation of schools with teachers such
as Socrates or Plato, which began the dissemination of the message of science and
made knowledge accessible, given that at that time it was only available to a
minority. It was also when the first libraries were created. In summary, Greek science
is highly significant in the history of scientific and technical translation because it
became the source of the majority of the texts that would later go on to be translated,
studied, commented on, and expanded. With the decline of Greek culture came the
rise of Rome, and a curious situation also arose: at this time translations were not
made and a bilingual tradition arose in which Greek was considered to be the
language of science and Latin the language of communication. Much later, it would
be Latin that would become the lingua franca of science.

The contribution made by the Arabic world to science in the Middle Ages is also well
known, thanks to conquest and the great Arabic empires that existed in those times.
Through translation schools such as the one in Toledo, the knowledge and
discoveries of the Arabs were translated into Latin (which language was widely
known thanks to the Roman Empire and the Christian religion), and Latin became
the most important language in this respect. This era was characterized by its major
translation output because there was a large amount of Arabic and Greek
production.
But it was not until the invention of the printing press in the fifteenth century that
science went through unprecedented expansion because the classical texts were re-
translated, which gave rise to new discoveries based on them. This resulted in the
appearance of the first scientific societies, and above all, the role of translators as
compilers, authors, and disseminators, because they did not restrict themselves to
translating, but rather also compiled glossaries and anthologies of texts, as well as
adding their own knowledge in the form of new works. This accumulation of
documents would go on to produce large numbers of inventions in the era known as
the Industrial Revolution, to which translators also made great contributions, as we
have seen. As from this time, translators began to adopt their current position as
disseminators when they translated documents into various languages so as to
expand them to a continental level. Thus they are the protagonists of the
development of new technologies in many languages, creating what are now known
as neologisms, and expanding new forms of knowledge and expression into different
cultures.

This advance reached a climax with the development of information and

communication technologies, i.e. in the twentieth century and onwards into the
twenty-first century, because new communication needs have been created and
access to information is easier through inventions such as the internet. Here
translators become very important because English takes over as the international
language of scientific communication, which has led to exponential growth in the
demand for translation in this field. Given the growth in the need for these
professionals, who are trained in translation, translators become specialists.

To conclude, in view of what has been set forth above, I consider that translators
have been the missing piece in the puzzle that is science, because their
achievement has been for knowledge to spread across the world, and through this it
has developed in tandem with science. Thanks to the profession of translator, first as
specialists in a specific scientific area, and then as specialists in language itself,
scientific knowledge has become accessible to any kind of culture or society.
Furthermore, the support offered by new forms of communication and for the
creation of information make the translators task all the more important, which is
why demand is so high. Previously we have seen the role they have played in
various civilizations throughout history, and currently, with English as the language of
science, and despite the development of software programs that could replace them,
translators continue to be an important part of the dissemination and creation of new
scientific and technical knowledge. Looking to the future, and with the major
advances we are experiencing every day in scientific and technical progress, we can
say that the translation profession will continue to influence this development in
many aspects, especially in the dissemination of information.