Discussion with the Anasoft Litera Laureate at the Department of Translation Studies
On 12 November 2025, the Department of Translation Studies hosted an inspiring discussion with Slovak-Finnish author Alexandra Salmela, moderated by Associate Professors Perez and Zahorák. Alexandra Salmela is an accomplished translator and writer of literature for both children and adults. She originally studied Theatre Dramaturgy at the Academy of Performing Arts in Bratislava, but later found her way to Finnish Philology and Literature at the Charles University in Prague. As she has lived in Finland for almost 20 years, it is no surprise that she also writes books in Finnish. This year, her book 56, či? (unofficial translation: 56, or?) earned her the prestigious Anasoft Litera award.
During the discussion, Alexandra Salmela spoke to students about her journey towards languages and the study of Finnish, revealing various specifics and surprises that the Finnish language and culture entail. The main topic of the event, however, was her book 56, či?, which she originally wrote in Finnish. Thanks to the discussion, students learned about the process of writing a book, as well as the challenges involved in self-translation. Questions and reactions from the audience confirmed that the discussion was highly engaging and valuable from both translation-studies and literary-studies perspectives.
We would like to thank the organizers of the discussion Assoc. Prof. Perez, Assoc. Prof. Zahorák, Mgr. Sadloňová, Mgr. Juhásová, Mgr. Čuláková and Mgr. Jurigová.
The discussion was co-organised by the organisation Aspekt.
Text: Mgr. Kristína Sadloňová – Department of Translation Studies, Faculty of Arts, CPU in Nitra
Photo: Archive of the Department of Translation Studies (KTR)
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