Creativity and Multimodality in Translated Children's Books in Romania and Moldova since the 1990s
Financed by Romanian National Authority for Scientific Research and Innovation, CNCS – UEFISCDI
Multimodal Creativity in Translated Children’s Books
International Conference
Organised by „Ştefan cel Mare” University of Suceava, Romania,
in partnership with „Alecu Russo” University of Bălţi, Republic of Moldova
Research Project: Creativity and Multimodality in Translated Children’s Books in Romania and Moldova since the 1990s, PN-IV-PCB-RO-MD-2024-0497
In the multimodal world of children’s books, images have never been mere decoration; nor has translation ever been just about language.
Multimodality in illustrated books, picturebooks, graphic novels, or digital editions are commonly described in terms of either “meaning multiplication” (Bateman, 2014) or “resemiotization” (Mahasneh & Abdelal, 2022). As noted by Riitta Oittinen (2000), the synergy of text and image in children’s books is essential in highlighting the particular aspects that need to be conveyed to children. It is all the more interesting as the relationship between text and illustration in children’s books is not always symmetrical (with the text and illustrations offering the same information) (see Nikolajeva and Scott, 2006); it may also be complementary (with text and image filling each other’s gaps), enhancing (with either the text, or illustrations, offering more information), counterpointing (text and image contradicting each other to various extents), or sylleptic (text and image putting forward two separate narratives).
On the other hand, if translation in general can be considered a creative activity (see Kussmaul, in Hewson, 2016), then children’s books, with their peculiar openness towards adaptation, make up a corpus which lends itself more easily to (trans)creative rather than normative solutions, for texts as well as for illustrations.
Researchers interested in the ‘polyphonic’ bond between the verbal and the visual in translated children’s books are therefore kindly invited to communicate on topics including (but not limited to) the following:
Bibliography
- BATEMAN, John A. (2014): Text and Image. A Critical Introduction to the Verbal/Visual Divide. London & New York: Routledge.
- BORODO, Michał; DIAZ-CINTAS, Jorge (2025): The Routledge Handbooks of Translation and Young Audiences. Oxford: Routledge.
- GRAUR, Evelina-Mezalina; MOROŞAN, Nicoleta-Loredana (eds.) (2022): Communication multimodale et discours argumentatif/Multimodal Communication and Argumentative Discourse (Anadiss 33(I)). Suceava: „Ştefan cel Mare” University Press.
- HĂISAN, Daniela; BALAŢCHI, Raluca-Nicoleta (eds.) (2023): Iconotexte et traduction (Atelier de Traduction 39-40). Suceava: „Ştefan cel Mare” University Press.
- HEWSON, Lance (2016): “Creativity in Translator Training: Between the Possible, the Improbable and the (Apparently) Impossible,” in Linguaculture, vol. 7, no. 2, Dec. 2016, pp. 9-25, doi:10.1515/lincu-2016-0010.
- KALEZIĆ-RADONJIĆ, Svetlana (ed.) (2025): Folia Linguistica et Litteraria: Journal of Language and Literary Studies no. 52 (Special issue on Magic of Sound: Children’s Literature and Music), Univerzitet Crne Gore.
- KESSLER, Matt (2022): “Multimodality,” in ELT Journal, Volume 76, Issue 4, October 2022, pp. 551–554, https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccac028.
- MAHASNEH, Anjad A.; ABDELAL, Rahaf (2022): “Resemiotization of Illustrations in Children’s Picture Books Between English and Arabic,” in Sage Open, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/21582440221093364 (accessed August 2023).
- MARTINEZ MATEO, Roberto (2015): “Contrastive Multimodal Analysis of Two Spanish Translations of a Picture Book,” in Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences no. 212, pp. 230-236.
- NIKOLAJEVA, Maria; SCOTT, Carole (2006): How Picturebooks Work. New York & Oxon: Routledge.
- OITTINEN, Riitta (2000): Translating for Children. New York: Routledge.
- REGATTIN, Fabio (2023): “Traducteurs de livres illustrés : investigateurs sémiotiques ou trompeurs sémiotiques ?,” in Atelier de Traduction no. 39-40, pp. 15-28.
- VAN COILLIE, Jan; MCMARTIN, Jack (2020): Children’s Literature in Translation: Texts and Contexts. Leuven: Leuven University Press.
- XU, Derong; JIANG, Jianli (2014): “On the Framework of Translation Criticism of Children’s Literature,” in Foreign Languages Research, 2, pp. 66-71.
Revisitations of Children’s Classics
Translation, Adaptation, Illustration, and Cultural Memory (e.g., tercentenary of Gulliver’s Travels, bicentenary of Little Muck, centenary of Winnie-the-Pooh)
Text-Image Orchestration
Text-Image Orchestration in Translated Works for Children and Young Adults
From Iconotextuality to Interculturality
Pictorial Representations of Emotions (e.g. joy, sadness, fear, anger) or of One and the Same Character across Various Target Cultures
Peritextual and Epitextual Visibility
Children’s Literature Authors / Translators / Illustrators Highlighted Inside and Outside the Book
Visual Learning and Foreign Language Teaching
The Educational Impact of Translated / Illustrated Children’s Books
Keynote Speakers
Organising Committee
- Daniela HĂISAN
- Raluca-Nicoleta BALAŢCHI
- Daniela-Maria MARŢOLE
- Anton ZAZULEAC
- Anjela COŞCIUG
- Ecaterina FOGHEL
- Daniela PREAŞCĂ
- Tatiana BOGDANICI
Scientific Committee
Submission Guidelines
The proposal should contain:
- Author’s / authors’ name and affiliation
- Title of the presentation
- A 300-word abstract and 5 keywords (in the language of the presentation)
Please submit your proposal to:
creatmodconference@gmail.com
Languages: English and French (studies may focus on any pair of languages)
Publication: Conference Proceedings will be considered for publication in a BDI-indexed journal and/or an edited volume issued by an academic press.
Participation and publication are free of charge.
Dr. Daniela HĂISAN
Associate Professor of Linguistics and Translation at the Faculty of Letters and Sciences of Communication („Ştefan cel Mare” University of Suceava, Romania). Board member of academic journals such as Atelier de traduction, Concordia Discors vs. Discordia Concors, Messages, Sages and Ages, Meridian Critic, Anadiss, SUSh Scientific Proceedings. Involved in projects Cultural Translation (2012–2016) and Translation History (2019–2025). Published three books on translation and sixty papers.
danielahaisan@litere.usv.ro
Dr. Anjela COȘCIUG
Associate Professor, PhD („Alecu Russo” State University of Bălţi, Republic of Moldova). Founder and editor-in-chief of Limbaj şi context / Speech and Context (2009–2025). Founder and director of the „Mircea Ioniţă” Laboratory of Comparative Linguistics and Translation Studies. Research interests: Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies.
angela.cosciug@usarb.md
Dr. Daniela HĂISAN
Associate Professor of Linguistics and Translation at FLSC, USV Suceava. Board member of academic journals. Involved in Cultural Translation (2012–2016) and Translation History (2019–2025). Published three books and sixty papers on translation.
danielahaisan@litere.usv.ro
Dr. Raluca-Nicoleta BALAȚCHI
Associate Professor at USV Suceava. 23 years in teaching French, Translation Studies, Pragmatics and Discourse Analysis. PhD on subjectivity in French; postdoctoral project Translating Subjectivity (CNCS, 2011–2013). Over 50 articles.
raluca.balatchi@usm.ro
Dr. Daniela-Maria MARȚOLE
Associate Professor in English at USV Suceava. 25 years in English linguistics and Translation Studies. PhD on Shakespeare's Macbeth. Authored 2 books and thirty papers. Interested in cultural, social and political factors in translation.
daniela.martole@usv.ro
Anton ZAZULEAC
PhD student in Philology at USV. Research: Translation Studies, Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Cinematography. Doctoral thesis: Analysis of Cinematic Discourse. Multiple Erasmus+ scholarships. Assistant lecturer at USV.
anton.zazuleac@usm.ro
Dr. Ecaterina FOGHEL
PhD in Philology, university lecturer at „Alecu Russo” Bălți State University. Research: conceptology, philosophy of language, translation studies, psycholinguistics. Two bachelor's degrees (philology + education sciences).
kateafoghel@gmail.com
Dr. Anjela COȘCIUG
Associate Professor at „Alecu Russo” USV Bălți. Founder and editor-in-chief of Limbaj şi context / Speech and Context. Founder and director of the „Mircea Ioniţă” Laboratory. Research: Contrastive Linguistics and Translation Studies.
angela.cosciug@usarb.md
Daniela PREAŞCĂ
Master in Public Administration (2012), BA in Foreign Philology (1998, State University of Moldova). Teacher of French and English, philologist, and interpreter. Speaks English, French, and Russian.
preascadaniela@gmail.com
Tatiana BOGDANICI
Educational professional with PhD from Alecu Russo State University of Bălți. Teaches Russian at Polytechnic College of Bălți since 2018. Research: functional-semantic fields and children's literature translation.
galandzovskayatanya@gmail.comThe scope of this project is to explore the relationship between translation, semiotics, and didactics in the context of interculturality and glocalization. The research enhances collaboration between researchers from Romania and the Republic of Moldova and sustains the progress of younger researchers from Moldova.
Corpus Development
Making a reliable, updated corpus of translated children's books into Romanian after the 1990s, accessible on a platform by all team members.
Iconotextual Specificities
Identifying iconotextual specificities in children's books translated from English, French and other languages into Romanian.
Concept Enrichment
Illustrating, re(de)fining and enriching key concepts in translated children's literature: adaptation, retranslation, dual readership, multimodal text, creativity, education through fiction.
Text/Image Redefinition
Taking stock of how translation redefines text/image for young readers.
Transnational Research
Contributing to a transnational approach to children's literature: investigating translation flows, translation policy, and the role of agents (institutions, translators, publishers, teachers, promoters of creative industries).
2025
The results of the first stage (September–December 2025)
4 Papers Presented at Conferences
- Ecaterina FOGHEL (Bălţi) and Raluca-Nicoleta BALAȚCHI (Suceava), plenary talk: “Aspects ludiques et créativité dans la traduction des titres de littérature de jeunesse”, Student Conference Liter@t, „Ştefan cel Mare” University of Suceava, 13–15 November 2025.
- Daniela HĂISAN (Suceava) and Ecaterina FOGHEL (Bălţi), “Multimodality in Children's Books: A Romanian Version of Oscar Wilde's The Devoted Friend (2020)”, The Annual International Conference of the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures (Visibility in Translation, Terminology and Lexicology, IV), University of Bucharest, 20–22 November 2025.
- Daniela HĂISAN (Suceava) and Anjela COȘCIUG (Bălţi), “O istorie a traducerilor în limba română (2021–2025): 5000 de pagini de traductologie românească”, Conference on Contemporary Perspectives in Translation Studies, „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iaşi, 4–5 December 2025.
- Anton ZAZULEAC (Suceava) and Daniela PREAŞCĂ (Bălţi), “Multimodality, Creativity, and Localization in the Pixar Animated Film Onward (2020)”, Conference on Contemporary Perspectives in Translation Studies, „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” University of Iaşi, 4–5 December 2025.
6 Papers Published / Accepted
- “La dynamique des traductions pour les enfants sur les marchés éditoriaux roumain et moldave après 1989. Esquisse d’une cartographie”, Raluca-Nicoleta BALAȚCHI & Anjela COȘCIUG, Limbaj şi Context / Speech and Context, ISSN 1857-4149 Published
- “Aspects ludiques et créativité dans la traduction des titres de littérature de jeunesse”, Ecaterina FOGHEL & Raluca-Nicoleta BALAȚCHI, Atelier de traduction 43-44, ISSN 2344-5610 Accepted
- “Transliteration as Freedom. The Romanian Language in the Republic of Moldova after 1989”, Daniela-Maria MARȚOLE & Tatiana BOGDANICI, Concordia Discors vs Discordia Concors 24/2025, ISSN 2065-4057 Accepted
- “Some Features of the Romanian Interpretation of the Animated Series Masha and the Bear: A Cultural-Pragmatic Approach”, Tatiana BOGDANICI & Daniela-Maria MARȚOLE, Limbaj şi Context / Speech and Context, ISSN 1857-4149 Published
- “Certaines considérations sur les particularités psycholinguistiques de la traduction et de l’autotraduction comme processus de médiation culturelle”, Daniela PREAŞCĂ & Anton ZAZULEAC, Limbaj şi Context / Speech and Context, ISSN 1857-4149 Published
- “Macro- and Micro-Context Determinations in the Selection of Texts for Translation”, Ecaterina FOGHEL & Anjela COȘCIUG, Philologica Jassyensia (A category, Web of Science) Accepted
2026
Results for 2026 will be available after the completion of the second stage of the project.
2027
Results for 2027 will be available after the completion of the final stage of the project.
Romanian Translations Database
The database of Romanian translations will be developed during the project and made accessible to all team members.
November 13th 2025: Liter@t (Scientific Student Conference)
„Ştefan cel Mare” University of Suceava — Two members of the research team (Ecaterina FOGHEL and Raluca-Nicoleta BALAȚCHI) delivered a plenary speech.
