Bloom: Elise Haja
Literary translator and doctoral student, Elise Haja lives her dream of digital nomad at translation company Untranslate. As a globetrotter, she travels the world to become, in her own words, 'an even better person and a better translator'.
Digital Nomad
Elise likes to work in an authentic and immersive way. With a rich cultural background and a multilingual upbringing, a passion for words and literature germinated in her youth. She literally put her money where her mouth is when she found the way to pursue her biggest dream: travelling and working with passion. Her life is almost a literary work in itself, she is still young, but she has already seen, experienced and written a lot. The translation traveller in Elise took her to Paris, London and Turin, among other places.
Just as Hieronymus once explained his method of translation in a letter to Pammachius in 395 AD, with the idea of translation as 'a thought for a thought', we ourselves exchanged detailed thoughts with Elise about her dream job. We would like to know how she ended up in the tech world and how it helps her realise her dream.
I can easily travel around, translate and work on my doctoral thesis at the same time. All I need is a computer and a good internet connection.
Elise, you studied languages, got a master's degree in literary translation and are now doing a PhD at ULB. How did you end up in the tech world?
'I've been involved with tech all my life, always showed a strong interest and was also good at it.' Which turned out to be super handy in making her 'digital nomad dream' come true. Thanks to technology, she can travel and work. In travelling, she can stay in a country for quite a while, so that she can do authentic work from a completely linguistic and cultural point of view. I can easily travel around, translate and work on my doctoral thesis at the same time. All I need is a computer and a good internet connection. For both my translations and research, I also need CAT (Computer Assisted Translation) tools. During my studies, we were introduced to translation technology, but there are many other useful tools which are used by translators worldwide. They are indispensable to ensure the quality of our translations. Using technology, we can do much more than detect spelling and typing errors or inconsistencies in the translations.
Doctor Zhivago and technology
Elise's passion for language is like the unique prose of Pasternak's 700-page long novel, Doctor Zhivago. In no fewer than five languages - Dutch, English, Italian, French and Russian - she works acrobatically on her corpus research and comparative study of literary translations of the voluminous work. She also devotes her days to fascinating translation work for Untranslate. CAT tools are a necessity for my research; often I have to process a lot of information, compare a lot, such as characteristic pieces from the novel. That would be impossible without technology.
For my research, CAT tools are indispensable, often I have to process a lot of information, compare a lot, for example characteristic pieces from the novel. That would be impossible without technology.
So the translation profession cannot do without translation technology? People generally have a stereotypical image of the translator.
'There used to be different quality requirements, that's different now. Tech is, as I said, indispensable in detecting inconsistencies and saves a lot of time and work. Technology ensures consistent quality, which would be immediately noticeable to customers if it could not be assured.'
You can realise your digital nomad dream and work remotely thanks to the technology industry. Do you think Untranslate is more open to it than other translation agencies because it is a tech company?
Yes, I am convinced of that. For me personally, it was just what I was looking for, a job that is my passion. That is, to be able to work from anywhere and continue to travel. Moreover, I have a nice team with whom I can work together perfectly from a distance. I find all that at Untranslate. As a translator you have to be able to keep moving. The more you see of the world and the people, the better you become as a translator. The idea of travelling and working is relatively recent and therefore not yet established. When I tell people I'm going to Spain for a month to discover the history of the country, they ask me if I shouldn't work. I tell them that one does not exclude the other. I work during the day and at night I go for a walk in the city.
Actually, you work almost 24 hours a day. Your work is clearly your passion?
Yes (laughs). Someone once said: if you find a good job, you don't have to work for the rest of your life. For me it doesn't feel like work, I find it so enjoyable.
Born translator
Where did you get the translation bug from?
From a very young age, I had a deep fascination with words and reading, with literature as my greatest passion. It was therefore a good idea for my parents to send me to a Dutch-speaking school, while we spoke French at home. I think that made learning languages easier. In short: I love words, I love languages and I love people'. Hence, the idea of studying languages came naturally. Elise's biggest dream is to become a writer and, in her opinion, translating is also a bit of writing, which gives her wind in her sails. As an Erasmus student, this wind once took her to Moscow. She described it as an 'epiphany', a revelation that convinced her that from now on she would be exploring the world through work. Words and a hunger for culture are her fixed luggage items.
Returning to your fascination with words and reading, experiencing history and stories, can you put that into words?
Well, I think they are wonderful tools to explain emotions, which is why writing or reading, including poetry or music, is the perfect medium to share your emotions with the world. In that verbalisation, finding just the right word to express what you feel is very important and extremely fascinating. The reason for that choice is what intrigues me.
With this fascination, are you following in the footsteps of your ancestors? Is that in your DNA?
Yes, my father is Moroccan, there is a whole story behind that, the Arabic language and the whole story of Spain. He also speaks four languages. My mum is French, but she also has German and Italian roots. As you can see, it's quite a mix. My father came to Belgium from Morocco at the age of eleven with his parents and I was born here but have three nationalities.'
Diversity is very important for the company you work for, do you have any anecdotes or experiences about pigeonholing or other things you want to say?
At work, you mean? I've never noticed that because the people in my team are open-minded and open. In life, unfortunately, everyone will encounter racism, homophobia or some other form of discrimination. They are often people who never get to know other cultures. Travelling is the only way to open your mind. Too bad for the people in question that they don't do that. They should make travelling compulsory.
What do you consider to be your greatest success?
My job, which is fascinating, varied and enriching, and moreover takes me everywhere. I can't repeat it enough, it makes me a better translator and a better researcher. As a PhD student, you have to keep asking questions and discovering new things, and travelling makes that possible. The idea of a digital nomad has grown in recent years.
Undervaluation
What are your biggest challenges?
Our work, and I think that of all translators, is often underestimated: translation is a science and it takes a lot of practice to become good at it. Speaking two languages is not enough to be good at translation. We often suffer the consequences of this misrecognition.
Sometimes people say that translating is easy, but after five years of thorough study, that's not what you want to hear. Translating involves a whole process and a precise methodology.
What do you mean by consequences? Are translators underpaid or undervalued?
Both, translation work takes a lot of energy and we don't get enough credit for our work. We often remain anonymous, nobody mentions us. Sometimes the comment is made that translating is easy, but after a thorough five-year study, that is not what you want to hear. Translating involves a whole process and a precise methodology. It is generally known that it is better to leave the translation work to a professional translator, but often no budget is made available for this.
Work and doctorate
Is finishing your doctoral thesis also a challenge? It is about the novel Doctor Zhivago, what is your research theme?
It is certainly a challenge to combine a full-time job with a doctorate. I try to find a balance. I am lucky that I enjoy doing it, so it doesn't feel like work. As for my doctoral thesis, it is a comparative study of translations. The remarkable thing is that translations first appeared in the 1950s before the novel was published in Russia. There were political reasons behind this. Only the French translation has not been renewed and it is not of high quality, as it probably had to be done very quickly. It is my job to find out exactly what happened to the French version.'
Do you feel called to make a new French translation? Is that a dream?
Making a new translation could be Elise's dream. The novel holds almost no secrets for her. Yes, I am also studying the musicality of the language and know all its subtleties. I am certainly qualified to launch myself in it.
Is there a person you would like to meet and why?
The answer is surprisingly simple and at the same time very beautiful: 'I am very much looking forward to meeting the next person. It doesn't necessarily have to be an overachiever. Everyone has something fascinating to tell and everyone has their own story. You don't have to be world-famous to inspire. Everyone's story can inspire and often in ways I don't expect. Every time it is a surprise, I don't know who it will be and what I will learn. Recently I met a professional singer with an incredibly fascinating and inspiring story. That is what makes me a better translator.
