ELF and translation/interpreting in Italy

The spread of English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) and the growing number of non-native speakers has changed and continues to change the nature of English today, calling into question traditional views about the relationship between a language and the culture of its speakers. The double role of English as a local language and as a lingua franca, which allows communication among speakers of different languages, complicates the scenario even further. However, one of the areas in which the implications of such spread are particularly significant, and nevertheless largely unexplored with few exceptions (see Albl-Mikasa, 2013), is translation and interpreting training. After examining the need for a pedagogical approach allowing students to become familiar with varieties of English and with ELF, I will examine the gap between the Italian education system and professional translation and interpreting. More specifically, by focusing on how texts and speeches in ELF are used in degree courses in translation and interpreting in Italy, I will show precisely that filling such a gap requires students’ awareness on a number of issues, such as the problematic nature of texts written in ELF - as in the case of documents by international organizations and multinationals - and the challenges of professional translation and interpreting.