Animal Farm has been translated into Shona – why a group of Zimbabwean writers undertook the task

• In Zimbabwe, the revolution was against colonialism and its practices of extraction and exploitation.
• The lead characters in Animal Farm have the propensity for evil and the greed for power found in despots throughout history, including former Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe.
• And visual artist Admire Kamudzengerere founded Animal Farm Artist Residency in Chitungwiza as a space for creative experimentation.
• It’s within this context that a group of Zimbabwean writers, led by novelist and lawyer Petina Gappah and poet Tinashe Muchuri, have translated Animal Farm into Shona, the country’s most widely spoken language.

The translation project

• Gappah kickstarted the translation project in a private post on Facebook in 2015:
  A group of friends and I thought it would be fun to bring the novel to new readers in all the languages spoken in Zimbabwe.
• This is important to us because Zimbabwe has been isolated so much in recent years, and translation is one way to bring other cultures and peoples closer to your own.
• This is important to us because Zimbabwe has been isolated so much in recent years, and translation is one way to bring other cultures and peoples closer to your own.

Chimurenga Chemhuka

• Though Chimurenga Chemhuka is mainly in standard Shona, its characters speak a medley of different Shona dialects – such as chiKaranga, chiZezuru, chiManyika – plus a smattering of contemporary slang.
• The title, Chimurenga Chemhuka, is poignant and a direct reference to Zimbabwe’s liberation war.
• Chemhuka (animal) Chimurenga (revolution) is not a literal translation of Animal Farm, but here the writers take liberties to connect the book to the country’s larger struggles for independence, commonly known as Chimurenga.

Why this matters

• It’s done by an eclectic group of writers who are passionate about language and literature.
• They use Orwell’s book and its satiric commentary as a way to creatively express themselves collectively.
• If this was a choir, the choristers Gappah and Muchuri do a good job of leading a harmonious ensemble.