{"id":8067,"date":"2023-11-17T12:49:52","date_gmt":"2023-11-17T17:49:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/?p=8067"},"modified":"2025-02-15T17:35:45","modified_gmt":"2025-02-15T22:35:45","slug":"kawa-nemir-translator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/kawa-nemir-translator\/","title":{"rendered":"Kawa Nemir, translator"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Kawa Nemir, Translator and Poet<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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Kawa Nemir<\/strong> (b. 1974) is best known as a translator of English-language works into Kurmanci. His translations include Ulysses<\/em> by James Joyce and Hamlet<\/em> by William Shakespeare. He is also a poet and short story writer, as well as an editor and publisher.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u00a0<\/p>

Kawa Nemir was born in 1974 in the eastern province of I\u011fd\u0131r into an upper-class family. When he was a child, his family moved to Istanbul, where his primary education continued. But in school he faced denial of their Kurdish identity: “With<\/a> the beginning of school,” he later told an interviewer, “. . . they were telling us, ‘You are Kurds, but you are beasts.’ . . . \u00a0And also, ‘You are not a nation. You are not human. You don’t have any language. You don’t have any literature.\u2019”<\/p>

He attended the universities of Hacettepe and Istanbul, where he studied English language and literature as well as ancient Greek. But in 2002, Istanbul University expelled him because of his activities involving Kurdish language and literature. At a time when many of his friends were \u201cgoing to the mountains,\u201d he chose<\/a> not to join the PKK but instead to become a writer and resolved that his fight would be to keep Kurmanci alive.<\/p>

Starting in 1997, Nemir was editor-in-chief of Jiyana Rew\u015fen<\/em>, a prominent cultural and literary magazine in Kurmanci. Under his leadership, the magazine published on monthly basis until 2003, for a total of 52 issues. He also published three issues of the magazine Rew\u015fen-Name<\/em>. Both magazines were supported by the Mesopotamia Culture Center and represented the views of Generation 90 or Generation Rew\u015fen, to which many influential young poets and writers adhered.\u00a0<\/p>

\u00a0Jiyana Rew\u015fen and Rew\u015fen-Name also published books, including these:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Gilgam\u00ea\u015f \u00fb \u00c7end Mythos\u00ean Din<\/em> (Gilgamesh and Some Other Myths), mythology. Jiyana Rew\u015fen Editions, 2000.<\/p>

Mirin Niqut\u00ee Dil\u00ea Firokevanek\u00ee \u00cerland\u00ee<\/em> (An Irish Airman Foresees His Death), poetry by William Butler Yeats. S\u00ee Editions, 2002.<\/p>

Selpakfiro\u015f<\/em> (The Paper Handkerchief Seller), poetry by Kawa Nemir. Rew\u015fen-Name Editions, 2003.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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In 2003, Nemir founded the publishing house Bajar (Town), which aimed to publish Kurmanci translations of world literature, like these:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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P\u00ea\u015fengno! Lo P\u00ea\u015fengno!<\/em> (Pioneers! O Pioneers!), poetry by Walt Whitman. Bajar Editions, 2004.<\/p>

Welat\u00ea Bej\u00ee \u00fb Deh Koroy\u00ean \u2018The Rock\u2019\u00ea<\/em> (The Waste Land and 10 Choruses from \u2018The Rock\u2019), poetry by T. S. Eliot. Bajar Editions, 2004.<\/p>

Ji \u00c7\u00een \u00fb Ma\u00e7\u00een\u00ea + Hem\u00fb Berhem\u00ean Helbest\u00ee y\u00ean T. E. Hulme<\/em> (From China + The Complete Poetical Works of T. E. Hulme), poetry by Ezra Pound and T. E. Hulme. Bajar Editions, 2005.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\"KawaBut Bajar soon closed for financial reasons.<\/p>

In 2004, Nemir moved to Diyarbak\u0131r and tried again: here he founded L\u00ees Editions, which would publish Kurmanci translations of international classics. This house would enjoy great success, publishing translations of works by William Shakespeare, Franz Kafka, Selma Lagerl\u00f6f, Emily Dickinson, William Faulkner, Gabriel Garc\u00eda M\u00e1rquez, Ya\u015far Kemal, Leyl\u00e2 Erbil, Orhan Pamuk, and Murathan Mungan. Kawa Nemir translated many of them, including these:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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P\u00fb\u015fpera G\u00ealazan<\/em> (June of Cherries), poetry by Mehmet \u00c7etin (translated with Lal Lale\u015f). L\u00ees Editions, 2008.<\/p>

The Complete Sonnets of William Shakespeare \/ Hem\u00fb Soney\u00ean William Shakespeare<\/em>, English-Kurdish, poetry. L\u00ees Editions, 2010.<\/p>

Diyarbak\u0131r Is Waving Its Hands<\/em>, a city almanac by \u015eeyhmus Diken. translated from Turkish into English and Kurdish; published as a trilingual edition. L\u00ees Editions & Sur Municipality of Diyarbak\u0131r Editions, 2011.<\/p>

Taxa Filla<\/em> (In Our Hometown), a short story by M\u0131g\u0131rdi\u00e7 Margosyan. L\u00ees Editions & Sur Municipality of Diyarbak\u0131r Editions, 2011.<\/p>

Beth-Nahrin, <\/em>by Na\u00fbm Fa\u00eeq, a collection of essays by Naoum Faek, an Assyrian-Syrian intellectual and writer, translated from Assyrian into Kurdish and Turkish; published as a trilingual edition. L\u00ees Editions & Sur Municipality of Diyarbakir Editions, 2011.<\/p>

Ev nameya min e ji C\u00eehan\u00ea re<\/em> (This Is My Letter to the World), poetry by Emily Dickinson. L\u00ees Editions, 2011.<\/p>

Hamlet,<\/em> a play by William Shakespeare. L\u00ees Editions, 2013.<\/p>

Xewna \u015eeveke Hav\u00een\u00ea<\/em> (A Midsummer Night\u2019s Dream), a play by William Shakespeare. L\u00ees Editions, 2013.<\/p>

Piling<\/em> (The Tyger), poetry by William Blake. L\u00ees Editions, 2013.<\/p>

Siwar\u00ean Re\u015f Ji Pi\u015fta Behran Hatin<\/em> (Black Riders Came From the Sea), poetry by Stephen Crane. L\u00ees Editions, 2014<\/p>

Bartleby\u00ea Niv\u00eesevan<\/em> (Bartleby, the Scrivener), a novella by Herman Melville. L\u00ees Editions, 2014.<\/p>

Stran\u00ean Ev\u00een\u00ee<\/em> (Love Songs), poetry by Sara Teasdale. L\u00ees Editions, 2015.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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In 2010 Nemir received the Feq\u00ee Husey\u00een Sagni\u00e7 award by the Kurdish Institute of Istanbul.<\/p>

In 2012 Nemir\u2019s translation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet<\/em><\/a> was produced at the RAST Theater of Amsterdam. It was the first Kurdish adaption of Hamlet<\/em> and was also staged by the\u00a0 City Theater of Diyarbakir in 2012 and 2013. The troupe toured in Kurdistan, Turkey, and Europe, performing the play more than 120 times.<\/p>

\"KawaNemir continued to participate in the Kurdish theater scene. Becoming a playwright, he wrote a theatrical adaptation of the 17th-century Kurdish classic Mem \u00fb Z\u00een<\/a>,<\/em> by Ehmed\u00ea Xhan\u00ee. His adaptation was performed by the City Theater of Diyarbak\u0131r in 2014. “We<\/a> have waited so long for such a theater in our own language,” one audience member said. “It’s an historical and beautiful moment for us. We can now see and hear our literature, which has been denied for so long.”<\/p>

Meanwhile L\u00ees Editions continued to publish Nemir\u2019s original writing such as:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\u00c7avd\u00eariy\u00ean Barbarek\u00ee<\/em> (Observations of a Barbarian), short stories by Kawa Nemir. L\u00ees Editions, 2011.<\/p>

B\u00ee\u015fenga De\u015fta D\u00fbr<\/em> (The Drooping Willow of a Distant Prairie), poetry by Kawa Nemir. L\u00ees Editions, 2006.<\/p>

Salname<\/em> (The Yearbook), poetry by Kawa Nemir. L\u00ees Editions, 2009.<\/p>

B\u00eadeng\u00ee \u00fb Ti\u015ft\u00ean Din<\/em> (Silence and Other Things), poetry by Kawa Nemir. L\u00ees Editions, 2012.<\/p>

Kevir\u00ean Bendewar\u00eey\u00ea<\/em> (The Stones of Biding), poetry by Kawa Nemir. L\u00ees Editions, 2015.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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It was a heady time for Kurmanci literature and publishing. Along with Avesta, which mostly published original Kurmanci books, and Aram, which concentrated on works by Kurdish political prisoners and PKK fighters, L\u00ees helped make the Kurmanci book market thrive, not only in the southeast but in Turkey\u2019s west as well.\u00a0<\/p>

Other houses published Nemir\u2019s translations as well:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Erd\u00ean Bihu\u015ft\u00ea y\u00ean Winda<\/em> (The Lost Lands of Paradise), a novel by Yavuz Ekinci, translated from Turkish. Do\u011fan Kitap Editions, 2013.<\/p>

Tramwaya Viyan\u00ea<\/em> (A Streetcar Named Desire), a play by Tennessee Williams. City Theatre of Diyarbak\u0131r Editions, 2013.<\/p>

\u015e\u00eawey\u00ean D\u00eetin\u00ea<\/em> (The Ways of Seeing), art criticism by John Berger. Cinema Academy of the Middle East Editions, 2015.<\/p>

\u00a0<\/em>Pen Li Seyrangeh\u00ea<\/em> (Pen in the Park), a children\u2019s book by Ra\u015fel Meseri. Habitus Kitap Editions, 2015.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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In late 2015, Kurdish publishing came to a halt<\/a>, as the Turkish army attacked several cities in the southeast, killing civilians and committing atrocities. The war continued until the spring of 2016. Turkish armed forces destroyed most of the Sur neighborhood of Diyarbakir, the city\u2019s historical heart. Then after the failed coup attempt of July 2016, anyone suspected of having ties to the plotters or to the PKK was arrested or lost their job. Simply possessing Kurdish books at home could endanger a person\u2019s freedom.\u00a0<\/p>

L\u00ees Editions was not raided, nor its inventory confiscated, but still Nemir looked online for safety. In 2016 he helped found Kurd\u00eeLit<\/a>, a website that aims to catalog and digitally archive basic information about Kurdish literature and publishing, especially about writers, translators, publishers, and literary periodicals. By making this basic information accessible in three languages, it would improve the visibility of contemporary literature in the Kurmanj\u00ee and Kurmanjk\u00ee to the international literary arena. Kurd\u00eeLit was founded as a collaboration among Diyarbak\u0131r Arts Center, L\u00ees Editions, and Literature Across Frontiers.<\/p>

Then in October 2017, the arrest of Turkish businessman, social activist, and philanthropist Osman Kavala was arrested. Kavala had been key to the funding provided by European NGOs for publishing and translation projects; his arrest brought them to an end.<\/p>

Nemir moved to Mardin<\/a> to try to continue his projects, but he could not find work. When police raided the apartment above his, he realized he had to leave his homeland: \u201cI do not want<\/a> to end up in jail. Nobody wants that, but I cannot do my work in prison. Like I said, I am disciplined. I have to work. I have to contribute.\u201d Leaving his personal library behind, he traveled to Istanbul, where the Dutch consulate gave him a tourist visa.<\/p>

The Dutch Foundation for Literature in cooperation with Anne Frank Foundation offered him refuge, and starting in June 2018 he resided in the Amsterdam Vluchtstad apartment in Anne Frank’s former home.<\/p>

Living in Amsterdam, he continued to initiate projects. He and some Kurdish friends started a new foundation, named after the 17th-century Kurdish poet Ehmed\u00ea Xani. He translated Giacomo Puccini’s opera Tosca<\/em> in to Kurmanci, which was staged in the fall of 2019 at the Amsterdam City Theater.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Kawa Nemir has translated into Kurmanci the works of many British, American, Irish, Canadian, and Turkish poets, novelists, storytellers, and dramatists, including more than 7,000 English-language poems. He has also translated many Greek and Roman literary classics . As of 2018 he had translated over 100 books, of which 28 were published, among them several works of Shakespeare.<\/p>

He has said that he translates, at least in part, for the benefit of\u00a0 Kurdish writers: \u201cI give<\/a> writers words. By translating, I expand the Kurdish syntax. Many structures and words I use are put to paper in Kurdish for the first time. This is important in preserving the language. Of course, we need proper education in Kurdish in schools in Turkey, but we cannot wait for that. I have a responsibility. . . . Joyce and Shakespeare are not easy to translate but I do it also because I want to use the full potential of my mother tongue.\u2019\u201d<\/p>

Continuing his prolific career translation, Nemir has recently completed the translation of Ulysses<\/em> by James Joyce into Kurdish.<\/p>

A film about his work was released in 2023. Titled Translating Ulysses,<\/em> it was written and directed by Aylin Kuryel and Firat Y\u00fccel. Watch the trailer<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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Sources:<\/em><\/strong><\/p>

Murat Bayram, “Kawa Nemir: Theatrical Adaptation of Tosca Opera to be Staged in Kurdish,” Bianet<\/a>, July 10, 2019.<\/p>

Frederike Geerdink , \u201cKurdish Translator Kawa Nemir Vows to Keep Kurdish Publishing Going from Amsterdam,\u201d AhvalNews.com<\/a>, July 6, 2018,<\/p>

Dorian Jones, “Kurdish Poet Battles to Defend Language, Culture,” VOA<\/a>, January 30, 2015,<\/p>

Pieter Verstraete, “‘Acting’ under Turkey\u2019s State of Emergency,” University of Groningen<\/a><\/p>

For further reading:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>

Kaya Gen\u00e7, “The Kurdish Ulysses: Kawa Nemir\u2019s Translation Is an Archive of the Language, Which Has Been Suppressed by Turkey\u2019s Nationalist Politics,” Dial<\/a>, November 28, 2023.<\/span><\/p>

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Kawa Nemir, Translator and Poet Kawa Nemir (b. 1974) is best known as a translator of English-language works into Kurmanci. His translations include Ulysses by James Joyce and Hamlet by William Shakespeare. He is also a poet and short story writer, as well as an editor and publisher. \u00a0 Kawa Nemir was born in 1974 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8093,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[92,62],"tags":[172],"class_list":["post-8067","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-language","category-literature","tag-kawa-nemir"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8067","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8067"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11533,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8067\/revisions\/11533"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nykcc.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}