The Azerbaijan Translation Centre under the Cabinet of Ministers (AzTC) on Thursday received a visit from H.E. Ms Marta Galindo, the Colombian Chargé d’Affaires to the Republic of Azerbaijan, for a roundtable discussion on the anthology 'In the Beginning There Was the Sea' (10 Columbian poems) in Azerbaijani due to be presented to the public, and other issues, with its Director Afag Masud.

After welcoming the guest, Ms Masud pointed to a strong interest in Latin American literature, including the Columbian one, among Azerbaijani readers. “Works by Gabriel Garcia Márquez have proven popular in Azerbaijan.”

She further underlined the artistic treasures of the poems included in the anthology.

In turn, the Colombian diplomat hailed the fact that Márquez’s novel The Autumn of the Patriarch, had been translated and published by the Translation Centre back in the 1990s, adding that “all Spanish speaking countries should get to know Azerbaijani literature better.”

As part of the continuation of the project, the sides also discussed the issue of translating and publishing Azerbaijani poetry into Spanish in a book format in Columbia.

In the first stage, the poems will undergo literal translations, with further fiction translations to be done by Spanish speaking poets. At the same time, works by both Azerbaijani and Columbian novelists will be affected by a joint project.  

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