The Linguist

In my late teens I became fascinated with the history of the Balkans. It was the time of the Balkans war and the break-up of Yugoslavia, and to understand the complexities of the conflicts, knowledge of the history was imperative. For my birthday, I asked for Misha Glenny's book The Balkans – a request I felt was decidedly scholarly at the time. Engrossed by the same history and politics, Glenny himself had taken a different approach, determining it necessary to study the languages of the area and speak to its peoples directly. In so doing, he provided the rest of us with a shortcut to understanding – later covering multifarious subjects such as the Brazilian drugs trade (Nemesis) and cyber crime (DarkMarket). It was an honour to speak to him about the ways languages have shaped his life for our centre spread (p.18). Also in this issue, esteemed linguist Kọ́ lá Túbọ̀ sún explores his role as translator-turned- lexicographer while rendering Emily Grosholz's poetry in his first language, Yorùbá. Looking at the thorny challenges that arose, he makes the case for increasing literary translations into Yorùbá, arguing that a lack of translation can stifle the development of a language (p.10). Seeking to address the imbalance between dominant and marginalised languages in another way, Norway's Language Act comes under the spotlight on page 7. One of two new pieces of language legislation in the country, it gives equal status to local languages such as Sámi and Norwegian Sign Language. Meanwhile, the Interpreting Act (p.8), which relates to public sector work, could point the way forward for other countries. Miranda Moore 4 The Linguist Vol/61 No/1 2022 thelinguist.uberflip.com NEWS & EDITORIAL CHAIR OF COUNCIL'S NOTES Across the globe, we look back on 2021 as the second consecutive year that was overshadowed by the pandemic. Increasingly sophisticated machine translation technology, low pay in various sectors, the plight of Afghan interpreters, as well as the decline of language learning, with some language departments having to close down, were just some of the themes which the language profession was dealing with. The dawn of a new year brings with it new energy and a refreshed sense of purpose. CIOL remains committed to ensuring our industry is resilient and, where possible, turning threat into opportunity. Over the past 12 months we have delivered a major programme of internal transformation, sowing the seeds for strengthening the outlook for future generations of linguists. Early feedback gives us reason to feel positive. Chartered Linguist accreditation will shortly surpass the symbolic benchmark of 1,000. Our qualified membership of Fellows, Members and Associates remains steady despite the volatile environment, and growing demand for our Ofqual-regulated qualifications online has enabled us to help build the pipeline of language professionals. Driving our strategic vision is a collective effort, and the proverbial 'many hands make light work' certainly rings true in our governance. Ahead of new members being appointed to CIOL Council at the March 2022 AGM, three of our outgoing Council members deserve a special commendation: Dan Howard OBE FCIL, Sue Leschen FCIL CL and Romana Sustar MCIL CL. Dan and Sue have held office since 2016, and have both been instrumental as part of a Council 'task and finish' group, overseeing transformation and shaping key financial and strategic decisions. Romana has used her incredible energy and widespread industry connections to relaunch the German Language Society. When stepping down from Council after her three-year term she underlined the importance of sharing these opportunities to get involved with our governance, telling us "other colleagues also deserve a chance" (to find out how see page 31). Thank you to Sue, Dan and Romana for their decisive contributions, both inside and outside of Council. We look forward to their ongoing contributions in the future. At the same time, thank you also to the staff team under John Worne's leadership, CIOL members and all our volunteers for sharing their skills and expertise, ensuring we shape the profession together and continue to make CIOL a community to be proud of. Judith Gabler EDITOR'S LETTER Share your views: linguist.editor@ciol.org.uk Chartered Linguist accreditation will shortly surpass the symbolic benchmark of 1,000

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