Чингіз Айтматов і не тільки: киргизька література в українських окремих виданнях

Abstract

The article contains the characteristics of publications that present works from Kyrgyz literature translated into Ukrainian (there are 45 of them, which is a relatively large number compared to translations from literatures of the former Soviet Union republics and Turkic nations), as well as Ukrainian literary studies on the work of the Kyrgyz and the work on Ukrainian-Kyrgyz literary relationships. The paper also discusses the reasons for which these Kyrgyz writers were the topic of the concern, the most outstanding translators, translation problems, types of publications, etc., as well as the prospects and necessity of further translation activities or the development of Ukrainian-Kyrgyz relationships. Particular attention was paid to the works of Genghis Aitmatov – one of the most famous and popular non-Ukrainian writers in Ukraine in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s (about fifteen of the writer’s books were published in Ukrainian). It should also be pointed out that no new work of the Kyrgyz writers has been published in Ukraine after 1990. Moreover, the writer is completely unknown for young Ukrainian readers. A large number of various anthologies of Kyrgyz literature in translations into Ukrainian is worth paying attention. One significant characteristics of translations from the Kyrgyz literature was that the Ukrainian SSR had professional translators, who knew the Kyrgyz language very well. It is worth mentioning Petro Hordyichuk (who translated prose) and Boryslav Stepaniuk (he worked primarily with poetry). Stepaniuk developed an anthology titled Strings of Komuz (2003).