The Idea
The idea of starting Geoliteka project to promote Georgian literature was born in 2008 while working on the English edition of the the book "Ali and Nino - Literary Robbery!" (2009) that was a follow-up of its Georgian version "Grigol Robakidze... Kurban Said - Literary Robbery!" (2005). The book is a literary criticism written by researcher and professor of Georgian language and literature - Tamar Injia, who discovered that Kurban Said’s Ali and Nino: A Love Story is extensively plagiarized from, and owes much of its existence to Grigol Robakidze’s The Snake’s Skin.
The work of Professor Injia attracted attention of international literary circles, scholars and researchers. However, regardless of the great interest, the English speaking readers could not learn more about The Snake's Skin or other works of Grigol Robakidze, as the author has only been published in Georgian and German languages. After conducting some research on the translated works of Georgian authors, we have discovered that Grigol Robakidze is not the only prominent Georgian author whose works are not available in English language.
In April 1894, the famous English scholar and translator of Georgian literature Marjory Wardrop wrote: “A volume of sermons by Bishop Gabriel of Kutaïs was published by the Rev. S. C. Malan in 1867, but, with this single exception, I do not know of any other work in the Iberian tongue which has been offered to English readers. The state of comparative neglect into which Oriental studies in general have fallen of late among us, the rulers of the East, accounts, to some extent, for this fact; it is to be hoped that an improvement in this respect may soon be apparent”. Unfortunately, hopes of Marjory Wardrop did not come true. In August, 2008 in the article "James Hopkin takes a journey through Georgia's literary heritage" written for The Times, the English writer and author of Georgian trilogy A Peacock in Sulphur, The Wurst Express from Kakheti, and The Soul is Missing Fairy-tales! James Hopkin asks: "The first thing to ask: why has so little Georgian literature been translated into English?" Indeed, why?
The work of Professor Injia attracted attention of international literary circles, scholars and researchers. However, regardless of the great interest, the English speaking readers could not learn more about The Snake's Skin or other works of Grigol Robakidze, as the author has only been published in Georgian and German languages. After conducting some research on the translated works of Georgian authors, we have discovered that Grigol Robakidze is not the only prominent Georgian author whose works are not available in English language.
In April 1894, the famous English scholar and translator of Georgian literature Marjory Wardrop wrote: “A volume of sermons by Bishop Gabriel of Kutaïs was published by the Rev. S. C. Malan in 1867, but, with this single exception, I do not know of any other work in the Iberian tongue which has been offered to English readers. The state of comparative neglect into which Oriental studies in general have fallen of late among us, the rulers of the East, accounts, to some extent, for this fact; it is to be hoped that an improvement in this respect may soon be apparent”. Unfortunately, hopes of Marjory Wardrop did not come true. In August, 2008 in the article "James Hopkin takes a journey through Georgia's literary heritage" written for The Times, the English writer and author of Georgian trilogy A Peacock in Sulphur, The Wurst Express from Kakheti, and The Soul is Missing Fairy-tales! James Hopkin asks: "The first thing to ask: why has so little Georgian literature been translated into English?" Indeed, why?