Translation and Intellectual Security: A Dual Relationship

Abstract

The last few years have witnessed the emergence of a new concept in Arab countries, namely intellectual security. It has been primarily developed to protect society from the chaos of ideas and values that may threaten its religious and cultural identity. Arab researchers have been increasingly exploring intellectual security in its relation to several aspects of life, including education, public security, mental health, and the Islamic religion. There is, however, a dearth of research on the relationship between intellectual security and translation, despite the key role that translation plays in transmitting ideas across geographical, linguistic, and cultural borders. This article aims to fill this gap by examining the relationship between translation and the intellectual security of societies. To do so, it draws on Fatima Ben Khalifa’s (2016) typology of intellectual security’s dimensions, namely the political, cultural, and economic. The article concludes that translation has the potential to both unsettle and reinforce intellectual security in its three dimensions. Accordingly, it offers recommendations not only for government policymakers but also for higher education officials and researchers given their role in training future generations of translators and providing the necessary theoretical foundation for ethical translation practices.