‘Things Fall Apart’ translated into Irish Language

At 60 years, since its first edition was released, Chinua Achebe’s ‘Things Fallen Apart’ has continued to grow in leaps and bounds. The book which was released in 1958 and has so far been translated into 50 languages, has been translated into Goidelic language of Ireland, by the former Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mrs. Irene […]

At 60 years, since its first edition was released, Chinua Achebe’s ‘Things Fallen Apart’ has continued to grow in leaps and bounds.

The book which was released in 1958 and has so far been translated into 50 languages, has been translated into Goidelic language of Ireland, by the former Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mrs. Irene Lynch. It is translated as ‘Titleann Rudai as a Cheile.’

In celebration of this addition, Dr. Uzoma Emenike, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Ireland, recently hosted members of the diplomatic community and lovers of Achebe’s works.

At the event which included the Nigerian community and diaspora Africans, Emenike eulogised Achebe for his great literary works and commended Mrs. Lynch for sustaining the legacy through her translation of the book.

Lynch said she fell in love with the works of Chinua Achebe when she encountered his ‘Anthills of the Savannah.’

Speaking on doing the translation, she said the experience gave her a deep sense of fulfilment and was hopeful that ‘Titleann Rudai as a Cheile’ would bring enlightenment and knowledge to her native Irish readers.

Achebe, described as the greatest figure of the 20th Century African literature, wrote his magnum opus, in response to the depiction of Nigeria in ‘Mr. Johnson’ by Joyce Cary, an Irish novelist.

The book title itself was taken from a line in the poem, ‘The Second Coming,’ by another Irish writer, William Butler Yeats.

The piece which is often referred to as the greatest piece of literature to come out of Africa, is a novel set in colonial Nigeria. It is also reputed to be one of the world’s most widely translated works of fiction.