XXIV SYMPOSIUM ON TRANSLATION AND INTERPRETING STUDIES
KäTu 2027: Translators and Interpreters on Fire
University of Turku, 16th–17th April, 2027
KäTu 2027 SYMPOSIUM THEME
The theme of the 2027 KäTu symposium is Translators and Interpreters on Fire.
The theme of Translators and Interpreters on Fire calls for the examination of translation and interpreting from the perspectives of passion, change and rebirth. Many things burn brightly: translators’ and interpreters’ professional zeal, the crucible of the technological revolution, and the white light of destruction and recreation. As the 200th anniversary of the Great Fire of Turku arrives, we are reminded that while fire destroys, it can also cleanse.
Contributors may approach the theme from various perspectives:
- Translators’ and interpreters’ motivation, identity and professional agency: from where does the field get its strength?
- Resilience: the field’s changing competences and new paradigms
- Burn-out, workload and well-being in the work of translators and interpreters
- The affects of translation and interpreting
- The flames of desire in translation: romance, intimate moments and sexuality, and translation of popular fiction
- Technological change and its consequences: Artificial Intelligence, machine translation and the professionals of the future
- The field ablaze: crises and translation in exceptional circumstances
- What have the fires of history destroyed and what have they spared? Translation and interpreting in a time of change, disappearing knowledge and valuable heritage
In keeping with established KäTu symposium tradition, we also invite papers on other issues related to translation and interpreting, their research and pedagogy.
In 2027 we also celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Mikael online journal. More details will be provided on this topic in the Second Circular.
THE PURPOSE OF THE KäTu SYMPOSIA
The annual KäTu symposia offer researchers, teachers and practitioners of translation and interpreting a forum in which they may discuss the wide-ranging phenomena of the field, their ongoing research projects, and the state and development of Translation Studies in general. Doctoral students in particular are offered the opportunity to present their work at the KäTu symposia and receive valuable feedback from experts in the field.
For over twenty years, the KäTu symposia have brought together translators and interpreters of spoken and signed languages, as well as translation and interpreting researchers, teachers, students, and those otherwise interested in the field and its research. Each symposium is a collaborative undertaking: Each year, one of the Finnish universities which offers translation and interpreting studies hosts the KäTu symposium together with the Teachers’ and Researchers’ Section of the Finnish Association of Translators and Interpreters (SKTL).
PLENARY SESSIONS, PRESENTATIONS, WORKSHOPS AND POSTERS
The 2027 plenary presentations will be delivered by Hannu Salmi (professor of Cultural History, University of Turku) and Haidee Kotze (professor of Translation Studies, Utrecht University). In addition to the plenary lectures, the programme will consist of presentations in parallel sessions (20 minutes + 5 minutes for discussion), workshops and poster presentations. The workshops will be approximately two hours in length, which allows group discussion of a specified topic on the basis of a brief introduction or investigation by the group of a particular problem-based topic. There will be a separate session for poster presentations, and an award will be presented for the best poster.
Please submit your workshop proposals at the latest on Thursday the 3rd of December, 2026.
Proposals for session presentations and posters are due at the latest on Thursday, the 14th of January, 2027.
Proposals may be a maximum of 2 500 characters in length, including spaces (but excluding references). Proposals are to be submitted as an attachment in rtf, doc or docx format to the address katu2027@utu.fi. Proposals should be named according to the following format: poster_last name_first name; abstract_last name_first name and workshop_last name_first name. Proposals should be written according to the template found here. You must specify in the subject line of your e-mail message, as well as in your proposal, whether you are proposing a workshop, a session presentation or a poster.
Further details concerning workshops will be provided in the second circular; notification of presentation proposal acceptance will come no later than Thursday the 4th of February, 2027. Please click here for more information concerning evaluation criteria and the abstract evaluation process.
TRAINING EVENT FOR PhD STUDENTS
In the afternoon of Thursday the 15th of April, a training event connected to the symposium will be organised that is aimed primarily at doctoral students, though also open to others. This year, the training event will be built around the needs of doctoral students, so we encourage suggestions and recommendations for themes to be addressed – please send such ideas on the 3rd of December 2026 at the latest to the address katu2027@utu.fi. Further information on this event will be provided in the second circular.
SYMPOSIUM LANGUAGES
The primary working languages for the symposium and its sessions are Finnish, Swedish, and English. Please contact the symposium organisers if you would like to present in a language other than these or for information regarding the feasibility of interpreting services.
TIEDON HELMI (PEARL OF WISDOM) AWARD
For the 12th time, in conjunction with the KäTu symposium the Teachers’ and Researchers’ Section of the Finnish Association of Translators and Interpreters (SKTL) will present the Tiedon helmi (Pearl of Wisdom) award. Guidelines for nominations will be provided in the second circular. The nomination deadline is the 14th of February, 2027 at the latest.
SYMPOSIUM PUBLICATION
Articles for peer review and discussion articles based on KäTu symposium presentations, posters or workshops (primary languages Finnish, Swedish or English) may be submitted to Mikael 21:1, which will be published in the spring of 2028. The manuscript deadline is Tuesday the 31st of August, 2027. Exceptions to the deadline will be made only for the most compelling of reasons. Contributor guidelines and previous publications are available on the Mikael website: https://journal.fi/mikael.
INFORMATION AND CONTACT DETAILS
Circulars pertaining to the KäTu 2027 Symposium will be published on the symposium website katu-symposiumi.com. The second circular, containing information on registration, fees, accommodation and related practical matters will be published in December 2026. For all correspondence concerning the symposium, please use the symposium email address: katu2027@utu.fi.
ORGANISING COMMITTEE
University of Turku
Turo Rautaoja, Chair
Leena Salmi, Chair
Laura Ivaska
Wilhelmiina Laakso
Hanne Martikainen
Anna Merikallio
Anna Missilä
Damon Tringham
The Finnish Association of Translators and Interpreters (SKTL)
Teachers’ and Researchers’ Section
Kristiina Taivalkoski-Shilov, University of Turku (Section Chair)
Juha Eskelinen, University of Helsinki (Section Vice-Chair)
Turo Rautaoja, University of Turku
Annukka Saarenmaa, Diaconia University of Applied Sciences (from the 1st of January, 2027)
Lena Segler, Diaconia University of Applied Sciences (until the 31st of December, 2026)
Niina Syrjänen, University of Eastern Finland
Satu Valkiainen, Tampere University (Section Secretary)
WELCOME TO TURKU!
