Esther Tyldesley is an academic based in the School of Literature, Languages and Cultures at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, where she is a professor in Asian Studies. She has also translated Chinese literature, as well as language textbooks and translated academic articles for various journalists. In addition to this, she is also a member of the Society of Authors.

Biography

Academic career

Tyldesley undertook her BA at the Robinson College;

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, where she studied Chinese from 1990 to 1994. She went on to do an MA in applied translation studies at the

University of Leeds The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

from 2001 to 2003. She has been a teaching fellow in Chinese and English at the University of Edinburgh since 2004. She was previously a teaching assistant at

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is a red brick university and a mem ...

from 2002 to 2004. She also spent four years working for a rural teacher's college for voluntary overseas observers in

Guizhou Province ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = , image_map = Guizhou in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_alt = Map showing the location of Guizhou Province , map_caption = Map s ...

, China.

Translation career

Tyldesley specialises in Chinese-to-English translations, primarily in the literature field. Her notable translations include '' The Good Women of China''; which has since been translated into various languages and serialised as an audio drama for BBC Radio 4's ''

Woman's Hour ''Woman's Hour'' is a radio magazine programme broadcast in the United Kingdom on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2, and later BBC Radio 4. It has been on the air since 1946. History The first BBC programme for women was the programme cal ...

'', Yan Geling's ''Little Aunt Crane''; where her translation was praised for: "flowing naturally while remaining faithful to the original, allowing the flavour of Yan's language to shine through" - the novel was also awarded a grant by the Chinese Society of Authors, and Laing Hong's ''The Sacred Clan''; winner of the PEN Translates Award in December 2021. Her translation of Yan Lianke's "China's Caged Birds" in ''The Freedom Papers'' (Gutter Magazine 2018), was one of the books read on BBC Radio 4's "

Book of the Week ''Book of the Week'' is a long-running BBC Radio 4 series, first broadcast in 1998. It features daily readings from an abridged version of a selected book read over five or occasionally ten weekday episodes. Each episode is approximately 15 min ...

" programme. Other notable works include ''Sky Burial'' and ''Miss Chopsticks''. Tydesley has also translated language textbooks, academic articles for various journalists, and contributed to translations in the HarperCollins Pocket Chinese-English dictionary.

Personal life

Tyldesley lives in Edinburgh with her Chinese Husband.

List of published translations (Chinese to English)

Novels

* Xinran, ''The Good Women of China'' (2002) * Xinran, ''Sky Burial'' (2004) * Xinran, ''Miss Chopsticks'' (2007) * Xinran, ''China Witness'' (2008) * Yu Dan, ''Confucius from the Heart'' (2009) * Xinran, ''Buy Me the Sky'' (2015) * Yan Geling, ''Little Aunt Crane'' (2015) * Chen Danyan, ''The Day of Wandering Thoughts'' (2020)

Articles

* Yan Lianke, “China’s Caged Birds” in ''The Freedom Papers'' (Gutter Magazine 2018)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tyldesley, Esther Living people Alumni of the University of Leeds Academics of Newcastle University Year of birth missing (living people)