Example: Missionaries as translators

Those who travel across geographical borders, whether for commercial, cultural or religious purposes, either make use of translators and interpreters or take on those roles themselves, thus stretching the boundaries of our understanding of the figure of the professional translator and interpreter.

Through a study of 19th Century French Christian missionary François Coillard, Dr Esther Liu describes how, in the context of a Christian mission, both missionaries and members of the community act as linguistic and cultural mediators creating new forms of identity and belonging.