During a lunch at the Marvin W. Meyer Faculty Athenaeum, Dr. Nora Rivera (English) and Dr. Pilar Valenzuela (World Languages and Cultures) realized the unique interconnections of their research using testimonios, a Spanish term for first-person narratives that share personal experiences of social or political injustice, oppression or marginalization. It was then that they decided to compare the life experiences of Indigenous interpreters in Mexico, Peru, and California.

Dr. Valenzuela is a linguist who specializes in Peru’s Amazonian languages and collaborates with Indigenous communities to revitalize their languages and Dr. Rivera has also worked with Indigenous interpreters and translators on several projects. Together they brainstormed ways to examine the background of Indigenous interpreters and translators in their roles as technical communicators in the production of testimonios.

Drs. Rivera and Valenzuela were awarded a Chapman Faculty Grant for Research, Scholarship & Creative Activities (FGRSC) for fieldwork in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Their project aims to expand understanding of interpreting and translating practices from Indigenous lenses while also examining these practices from interdisciplinary perspectives: from technical communication through Dr. Rivera’s expertise, from linguistics through the expertise of Dr. Valenzuela, and the fields of linguistic human rights as well as Indigenous translation and interpretation through the expertise of the Indigenous professionals.

Seven participants were recruited for the project: three from Peru (Wampis, Shipibo, and Quechua speakers), two from Mexico (Maya and Tepehuano speakers), and two from California (speakers of two Mixteco variants from Oaxaca, Mexico).

“We met in Oaxaca, Mexico, in mid-December of 2023. We conducted individual interview sessions, small group discussions, and large group sessions that included discussions around topics such as the role of language, interactions with non-Indigenous groups, the role of Indigenous interpreters and translators today, gender differences, and memorable cases in which participants worked as interpreters,” said Rivera.

“The grant was crucial for completing the fieldwork and transcriptions of audio recording material,” said Dr. Rivera. “Although each personal history recounted unique experiences that reflected the context of their community, all the participants initially became involved in translation and interpretation out of the necessity to help a family member or a close friend.”

In addition to individual experiences, participants were also able to compare the experiences of Indigenous professionals in other contexts and regions within the three countries.

“The ultimate goal is to assemble an edited collection of full-length testimonios. We hope to publish the collection as a bilingual book in English and Spanish.”

(Photo header – Left to right, top row: Salustia Ávila, speaker of Mixteco, from California, Rocio Cjuiro, speaker of Quechua, from Peru, Dr. Nora Rivera (English), Dr. Pilar Valenzuala (World Languages and Cultures), Mayusa Gonzales Cauich, speaker of Maya, from Mexico, Dina Ananco, speaker of Wampis, from Peru. Bottom row: Jeiser Suarez, speaker of Shipibo, from Peru, Fernando Hernandez, speaker of Mixteco, from California José Ángel Rivas, speaker of Tepehuano, from Mexico.)