Reiko Sakai 1974

Tamotsu Koizumi’s choice to translate the Kalevala word by word using modern Japanese language has increased the knowledge of the Kalevala in Japan. The same thing has happened with the work of Reiko Sakai, who has studied Finnish folktales. He wrote the book Karewaratarina in 1974. The book was based on the work Kalevalan tarinat (“The tales of the Kalevala” for young people, 1966) by Martti Haavio.

Reiko Sakai’s translation was true to the original text and in it the poems in the Kalevala blend in with the modern spoken language. Sakai also added to his book a hypothetical map of the Kalevala including comments, “in order to prevent the reader from getting lost in the unknown Kalevala”. P is assumed to be the place of Pohjola, K1 and K2 are assumed to be places in the Kalevala.

Offering additional explanations in the form of a map contributes to the understanding of the works. This is usually done, in particular, when a text that is intended for adults are adapted for younger readers. The same phenomenon can be seen in translated books, because the original work has been written for a special reason for a recipient in a specific culture and in specific surroundings. The translator has to explain the meanings of the work of art to the reader in the receiving country, which is part of a different culture.

The Japanese welcomed Sakai’s solution in a positive manner and the book was described as “a friendly introduction to the Kalevala”. It has to be pointed out that the review also mentioned the “funny” and “humoristic” plot of the Kalevala: the pragmatic side of the preface, which was to convey information, was successfully translated by Sakai. A proof of this is also that Sakai was awarded with the 11th Japanese prize for translations in 1974, the same year as the Japanese translation of Kalevalan tarinat was published.

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Hiroko Suenobu ja Jun Igarashi: “Kalevala japaniksi” – Kalevala maailmalla. Helsinki: SKS. 2012.