“Con Rit” or “Jūras Pūķa Sala” is written by the Finnish writer, journalist and environmental activist, Risto Isomäki. It was released in Latvian language last summer and the translation work was done by our talented colleague Emilija Petraskevica.
Emilija has been interested in language and literature since childhood. As a true bookworm she spent her spare time reading books after books. Having an inspiring teacher and a supportive family made her confident that she could become a professional translator. The choice to choose Finnish was a natural one as she had been to an Estonian school for six years, and the Estonian and Finnish languages are closely related.
Emilija has completed Finno-Ugric studies at the University of Latvia and has also studied in Finland at a summer school and through the Erasmus exchange program. “The time in Finland was especially important to me, as you learn much more living in the country of interest than just through learning glossary and grammar. To get the feeling of a language through practical experience and through studying the culture first-hand is invaluable as a good translator” says Emilija. She started translating some years ago and has had several translation projects in addition to this novel. Emilija has also been working on children’s books from the Sika-series by Julia Vuori. At the moment she is studying to get a Master’s degree in Baltic languages.
“As I was able to work on an hourly basis during this project and got a three-month leave during the last phase of the translation I was able to finish this project while still working in Zalaris. I am very thankful to Zalaris for supporting me and helping me with more flexible working hours. My colleagues has been exclusively supportive and helped me believe in myself during rougher times of the project. I am truly happy that I was able to have this experience while working at Zalaris”, says Emilija.
It’s important to Zalaris to help our colleagues develop and grow also within their hobbies and personal interests. We are very proud of Emilija, and wish her many exciting translation projects in the future.