Irmengard Wohlfart

Maui - Jesus - Potiki? Patricia Grace's Potiki: Culture Twice Translated: Maori / English - German. What Do Readers Miss? Irmengard Wohlfart

This monograph investigates a dual translation: 1) the English-Maori original Potiki by Patricia Grace (1986), a translation of Maori culture, postcolonial and neocolonial challenge; 2) the German translation (Martini-Honus & Martini 2005). It seems the book's essence embedded in a complex interweaving of Maori myths and biblical parallels was not recognized by readers of the German translation. Grace's challenge presents Maori spiritual beliefs as equal, if not a positive development of beliefs brought to New Zealand by the colonizers, indicating also that these beliefs can be compatible. The reviews and the German text also show that certain mistranslations distort important messages from the original. All readers of translations potentially contribute to indigenous people regaining their voice, but only if these readers can decipher the original actions and discourses in their languages. This monograph delivers a key to understanding, which is important given the significance of Potiki, a classic text widely used in teaching and already translated into at least five languages, i.e. Dutch, Finnish, French, German and Spanish.