Archibald Colquhoun (1912–1964) was a leading translator of modern

Italian literature Italian literature is written in the Italian language, particularly within Italy. It may also refer to literature written by Italians or in other languages spoken in Italy, often languages that are closely related to modern Italian, including ...

into English. He studied at

Ampleforth College Ampleforth College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school in the English public school tradition located in the village of Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1802 as a boys' school, it is situated in the groun ...

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and the

Royal College of Art The Royal College of Art (RCA) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom, with campuses in South Kensington, Battersea and White City. It is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. It of ...

. Originally a painter, he worked as director of the

British Institute The British Institution (in full, the British Institution for Promoting the Fine Arts in the United Kingdom; founded 1805, disbanded 1867) was a private 19th-century society in London formed to exhibit the works of living and dead artists; it w ...

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

before the Second World War, and in

Seville Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsul ...

after the war. He worked in British intelligence during wartime. He later headed

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

' initiative to bring out Italian literary classics in translation. He scored his biggest success with Lampedusa's ''

The Leopard ''The Leopard'' ( it, Il Gattopardo ) is a novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa that chronicles the changes in Sicily, Sicilian life and society during the ''Risorgimento''. Published posthumously in 1958 by Feltrinelli (publisher), Feltrinell ...

'', a translation that is still in print. He was also one of the first translators to introduce

Italo Calvino Italo Calvino (, also , ;. RAI (circa 1970), retrieved 25 October 2012. 15 October 1923 – 19 September 1985) was an Italian writer and journalist. His best known works include the '' Our Ancestors'' trilogy (1952–1959), the ''Cosmicomi ...

to Anglophone readers. He was the first winner of the PEN Translation Prize, which he won for his translation of

Federico de Roberto Federico De Roberto (16 January 1861 – 26 July 1927) was an Italian writer, who became well known for his historical novel (1894), translated as ''The Viceroys''. Biography De Roberto was born in Naples and began his writing career as a jou ...

's ''

The Viceroys The Viceroys, also known as The Voiceroys, The Interns, The Inturns, The Brothers, and The Hot Tops, are a reggae vocal group who first recorded in 1967. After releasing several albums in the late 1970s and early 1980s, they split up in the mid ...

''. He also wrote a biography of

Alessandro Manzoni Alessandro Francesco Tommaso Antonio Manzoni (, , ; 7 March 1785 – 22 May 1873) was an Italian poet, novelist and philosopher. He is famous for the novel '' The Betrothed'' (orig. it, I promessi sposi) (1827), generally ranked among the maste ...

. According to Robin Healey's ''Twentieth-century Italian Literature in English Translation'', Colquhoun was one of the top 10 translators of Italian literature of the last 70 years, alongside

Patrick Creagh John Patrick Brasier-Creagh, best known as Patrick Creagh (23 October 1930 - 19 September 2012) was a British poet and translator.Angus Davidson Angus Gordon Davidson (born 2 October 1948) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. References 1948 births Living people People from Forfar Scottish footballers Association football midfielders Grims ...

Frances Frenaye Frances Frenaye (1908-1996) was an American translator of French and Italian literature.Eric Pace ''The New York Times'', April 15, 1998. She translated work by writers including Balzac, Carlo Levi, Ignazio Silone and Elie Wiesel. Works * Natali ...

Stuart Hood Stuart Clink Hood (17 December 1915 – 31 January 2011) was a Scottish novelist, translator and a former British television producer and Controller of BBC Television. Life Hood was born in Edzell, Angus, Scotland. His father was an infant ...

Eric Mosbacher Eric Mosbacher (22 December 1903 – 2 July 1998) was an English journalist and translator from Italian, French, German and Spanish. He translated work by Ignazio Silone and Sigmund Freud.'Eric Mosbacher', '' The Times'', 10 July 1998, p.25 Li ...

Isabel Quigly Isabel Madeleine Quigly FRSL (17 September 1926 – 14 September 2018) was a writer, translator and film critic. Biography She was born in Ontaneda, Spain, and educated at Godolphin School, Salisbury and Newnham College, Cambridge. In her ear ...

Raymond Rosenthal Raymond B. Rosenthal (December 19, 1914 – July 24, 1995) was an American translator of Italian literature into the English language. He has translated the works of Primo Levi, Pietro Aretino, Aldo Busi, Piero Sanavio, Gabriele D'Annunzio, Pie ...

Bernard Wall Bernard Patrick Wall (15 March 1894 – 18 June 1976) was an English prelate who served in the Roman Catholic Church as the Bishop of Brentwood from 1955 to 1969. Born in Tonbridge, Kent on 15 March 1894, he was ordained to the priesthood on ...

and

William Weaver William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conq ...

.Twentieth-century Italian Literature in English Translation, 1998
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Selected translations

- ''The Betrothed'' *

Donato Martucci Donato may refer to: People * Donato (surname) As a given name * Donato Bilancia (1951–2020), Italian serial killer * Donato Bramante (1444–1514), Italian architect * Donato da Cascia (fl. c. 1350 – 1370), Italian composer of trecent ...

- ''The Strange September of 1950'' *

- ''The Viceroys'' (PEN Translation Award 1963) *

Francesco Jovine Francesco Jovine (9 October 1902 in Guardialfiera – 30 April 1950 in Rome) was an Italian writer and journalist A journalist is an individual that collects/gathers information in form of text, audio, or pictures, processes them into a ...

- ''The Estate in Abruzzi'' *

Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, 11th Prince of Lampedusa, 12th Duke of Palma, GE (; 23 December 1896 – 23 July 1957) was an Italian writer and the last Prince of Lampedusa. He is most famous for his only novel, '' Il Gattopardo'' (first publishe ...

- ''The Leopard'' *

- ''Places of My Infancy'' *

- ''The Siren and Selected Writings'' *

- ''Two Stories and a Memory'' *

- ''The Path to the Spiders' Nests'' * Italo Calvino - ''Adam, One Afternoon and Other Stories'' * Italo Calvino - ''The Baron in the Trees'' * Italo Calvino - ''The Nonexistent Knight & The Cloven Viscount'' * Italo Calvino - ''Our Ancestors'' * Italo Calvino - ''The Watcher and Other Stories'' *

Italo Svevo Aron Hector Schmitz (19 December 186113 September 1928), better known by the pseudonym Italo Svevo (), was an Italian writer, businessman, novelist, playwright, and short story writer. A close friend of Irish novelist and poet James Joyce, Svevo ...

- ''A Life'' *

Leonardo Sciascia Leonardo Sciascia (; 8 January 1921 – 20 November 1989) was an Italian writer, novelist, essayist, playwright, and politician. Some of his works have been made into films, including ''Porte Aperte'' (1990; ''Open Doors''), ''Cadaveri Eccellenti ...

- ''The Day of the Owl'' (also as ''Mafia Vendetta'') *

Mario Rigoni Stern Mario Rigoni Stern (1 November 1921 – 16 June 2008) was an Italian author and World War II veteran.Mario Pomilio - ''The New Line'' *

Mario Soldati Mario Soldati (17 November 1906 – 19 June 1999) was an Italian writer and film director. In 1954 he won the Strega Prize for ''Lettere da Capri.'' He directed several works adapted from novels, and worked with leading Italian actresses, s ...

- ''The Capri Letters'' *

Mario Tobino Mario Tobino (16 January 1910, Viareggio, Province of Lucca, Tuscany – 11 December 1991, Agrigento) was an Italian poet, writer and psychiatrist. A prolific writer, he began as a poet but later wrote mostly novels. His works are characterize ...

- ''The Mad Women of Magliano'' * Renzo Rosso - ''The Bait and Other Stories'' * Teodoro Giuttari - ''White Nights in Gaol'' *

Ugo Pirro Ugo Pirro (April 20, 1920 – January 18, 2008) was an Italian screenwriter and novelist. Biography Born Ugo Mattone in Battipaglia, near Salerno, he debuted as screenwriter for director Carlo Lizzani ('' Achtung! Banditi!'', 1951, and '' Il ...

- ''The Camp-Followers'' * ''The Lost Legions: Three Italian War Novels''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Colquhoun, Archibald 1912 births 1964 deaths 20th-century British translators Italian–English translators