The Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Foundation announced on Wednesday that the writer’s timeless masterpiece, published in New York in 1943, had been translated into a Panamanian dialect in June.
On June 25, 2024, as part of the “The Little Prince at the bedside of the world’s languages” project, the 600th translation of Saint-Exupéry’s masterpiece will take place.Antoine de Saint-Exupéry was presented at the National Library of Panama, in Dulegaya, the language of the indigenous Guna people of northeastern Panama and Colombia. 1,500 copies of this Dulegaya edition, entitled Sagla Massi Bibbiwere printed in the spring of 2024 by the Panamanian publishing house El Hombre de la Mancha.
“ The 600th translation confirms the cultural and social impact of the Little Prince, that transcends borders and becomes a link between peoples. This tale is much more than just a story. It’s a celebration of cultural diversity “underlines the Fondation Antoine de Saint-Exupéry in a press release published on its website. On June 25, 2024, the book was officially presented in the presence of the Panamanian Minister of Culture, the President and Director of the Alliance Française de Panama and the French Ambassador to Panama. The 1,500 copies will be distributed to schools and libraries in the Guna Yala region from 2025.
A work of conservation of linguistic heritage
The author, who disappeared in the Mediterranean Sea in 1944, just over a year after the book’s publication, probably never imagined it would be such a success. Over time, the world’s most translated work after the Bible has confirmed its universal dimension, while helping to safeguard many endangered languages. In April 2017, there were 300 translations of the Little Prince. “ Thanks to the passion of its translators, this work has been transposed into rare languages and endangered dialects, thus contributing to the preservation of the world’s linguistic heritage. “the foundation continues.
Behind Saint-Exupéry’s tales of adventure, there was also a deep melancholy, which gave rise to his “The Tales of Saint-Exupéry”. The Little Prince . Under the guise of a simple children’s tale, the author is in fact talking about the modern world, which is at odds with the childhood spirit embodied by his fair-haired character. “ Saint-Exupéry shares with Malraux and Bernanos a common concern What future for man in the new era? ? Does progress elevate it or enslave it? ? What meaning does he give to his life ? “wrote the journalist at Figaro, Étienne de Montety, in a column published in 2017. For its part, the Fondation Antoine de Saint-Exupéry believes that “Le Petit Prince is much more than a book: it is a bridge between generations and cultures, and a testament to the power of words and imagination. “.