ISSN: 1579-9794

Hikma 25 (1) (2026), 1 - 3

KÜNZLI, ALEXANDER & KAINDL, KLAUS. HANDBUCH

AUDIOVISUELLE TRANSLATION. ARBEITSMITTEL FÜR WISSENSCHAFT,

STUDIUM, PRAXIS. BERLIN, FRANK & TIMME, 2024, 429 PP.,

ISBN978-3-7329-8957-7.

This concise but highly informative open-access handbook is sure to

prove indispensable, not only to the many groups of scholars it envisages as

its target readers, but also to a general readership. The discipline of

audiovisual translation (AVT) is not short of handbooks and reference books

in English. In fact, substantial and useful volumes by Bogucki and Deckert

(2020), Pérez-González (2021), and Zabalbeascoa (2024) have recently

joined the other seminal volumes on our shelves. However, scholars and other

readers looking for similar in German have, until recently, been disappointed.

This volume more than adequately fills this gap.

Leading with an extremely useful list of abbreviations, which clears up

any terminological ambiguity from the start, the book then proceeds to a short

and thoughtful introduction. This places the volume in context and clarifies the

purpose of the book: to serve as a reference source for researchers, students

and practitioners alike. The editors are clear about the limitations of the form

and the necessary choices with which they have been faced. They go on to

describe the structure of the book, namely 33 brief articles divided into five

sections: theoretical and disciplinary approaches to AVT; modes of AVT;

industry aspects; research methods, and central themes in AVT.

In common with other books of this nature, each article is followed by a

list of cross-references to other relevant topics in the book with page

references and hyperlinks in the digital version; a brief list of further reading

suggestions, and a reference list. The book ends with short profiles of the

contributing authors, a list which in itself would be a good starting point for

someone wishing to collate essential reading in the area.

The work on the whole is to be commended for both the breadth of

topics and the clear and direct way in which each topic is introduced,

expounded, and then summarised in a concise and useful manner. All the

chapters are short, but complete, suggesting a surefooted editorial approach

that has prevented this handbook from being bloated and overwhelming. The

language used is academic but accessible, and suitable for students,

experienced academics, and practitioners alike. It is also notable that the

volume has an international focus, but remains anchored in the German-

speaking world, with case studies in several chapters focusing on the

particularities of this region, for example, AVT in the Austrian state

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broadcaster Österreichische Rundfunk (ORF), and AVT in museums through

the lens of the experience of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

An article-by-article review would be lengthy and lacking in utility, but

some highlights for this reader were the following:

A thoughtful and thought-provoking article on accessibility and AVT by

Gutermuth and Hansen-Shirra that places the theory and practice of access

firmly in the wider world and considers users, society, technology, and AVT in

the round. Incidentally, this chapter –amongst others– is also interesting to

translation students for the way it illustrates how different languages and

cultures can discuss the same issue from different viewpoints, steered by the

lexicon available to them, e.g., Barrierefreiheit [Literally “freedom from

barriers”] as opposed to “accessibility”.

A short but interesting snapshot of the history of subtitling in Künzli’s

article on the subject in the “Modes of AVT” section. Historical overviews of

subtitling are uncommon yet fascinating and this two-page summary provides

a taster for anyone seeking an introduction to the genesis of the practice. This

is mirrored by a similar overview of lip-synch dubbing in the following chapter

by Koloszar-Koo.

Nagel’s introduction to the concept and actuality of professional

associations in AVT, an under-researched yet crucial topic. Following an

explanation of the concept of a professional association, its function, purpose,

and genesis, Nagel zooms in on the professional associations in Germany

before panning out to consider AVTE (Audiovisual Translators Europe), the

umbrella organisation for country-specific professional associations in

Europe.

A thoughtful overview of AVT and gender by Jaki, who, whilst accepting

that issues of gender are not confined to audiovisual translation, looks at both

relevant research and practical issues of gender in AVT. A useful overview of

the work in the area is followed by a summary of the research on the

translation of queer identities, which finds heteronormative bias in most of the

translations examined. A short section on gender bias in machine translation

presents the well-known and persistent issues in this context. This section,

whilst not explicitly addressing generative AI, probably because of the

publication date of the book, raises issues that are pertinent to the current

state of the art. The section concludes with a call for research into gender bias

in accessibility, in particular audio description, and the wish for gender issues

to be addressed more specifically in translator training.

In an interesting choice to round out the volume, the final contribution

is from one of the founding fathers of AVT scholarship, Henrik Gottlieb, who

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examines AVT and politics, or perhaps more accurately, the politics of

language and language policy. Starting with the observation that politics is

expressed through policy, and this can be found in all areas of AVT, he moves

from examining the choice of programmes to be acquired and then translated,

through thinking about the mode of AVT chosen –usually subtitling or dubbing

for a variety of reasons, some historical, some cultural, but also financial and

language political– to translation choices. The matter of who translates is also

politically motivated, he argues, citing issues around price pressure, quality,

fandubbing, and working conditions as of interest here. His final thoughts

concern the wishes and needs of the watching and listening public, and he

concludes with a critical reflection on the role of AVT in the growth of English

as lingua franca.

In general, it is tricky in such a volume to present information about

those areas of the discipline that are changing rapidly, for example, the

broadcast and streaming landscape and the role of technology in the field.

This is an inevitable issue for volumes of this type and, in fact, for all writing

on such themes. The editors have kept such areas to a minimum whilst not

neglecting them. It is difficult to suggest anything that would improve this

practical and efficient book, but one idea could be to highlight the chapters

that would be of most use to a beginner coming at the topic with little or no

knowledge. This would allow them to start with those areas that will present

them with a brief guide to AVT and enable them to then choose their onward

path.

These small points notwithstanding, this is a valuable German-

language resource for anyone working, studying, or researching in AVT as

well as the curious layperson. It is easy to navigate, well-written and edited,

and it never loses the reader’s attention. It is a welcome addition to any library

and already well-used in mine.

REFERENCES

Bogucki, Ł. & Deckert, M. (Eds.). (2020). The Palgrave handbook of

audiovisual translation and media accessibility. Palgrave Macmillan.

Pérez-González, L. (Ed.). (2019). The Routledge Handbook of Audiovisual

Translation. Routledge.

Zabalbeascoa, P. (2024). Audiovisual Translation. Taylor & Francis.

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