The worldwide bestseller “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling has been published in 80 languages, including Latin and Ancient Greek. Two years ago, that collection expanded to include a Yiddish translation published as "Harry Potter un der filosofisher shteyn" - and sold out in 48 hours.

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How did such an unusual edition come to be produced nearly 23 years after its source material’s publication? The work of Arun Schaechter Viswanath, an Indian-American Jewish translator, and printed by a publishing house in Sweden, is as remarkable as the story it tells.

Join us for a fascinating conversation between Arun Schaechter Viswanath - ‘Harry Potter' Yiddish translator, and Gili Bar-Hillel Semo, 'Harry Potter' series Hebrew translator.

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Arun Schaechter Viswanath grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey in a Yiddish- and Tamil-speaking home and has a BA in Linguistics. Harry Potter marks his first foray into literary translation, though he also recently completed a translation of a Faroese children's book about a wayward young puffin (expected publication in 2023). In his free time, Arun enjoys bouldering, learning new languages and playing musical instruments. He lives with his wife and daughter in Manhattan, where he works in analytics at a tech company. The book can be ordered online www.harrypotter.olniansky.com, and a recording of the first chapter is available on Youtube - listen here.

Gili Bar-Hillel Semo is an English-Hebrew translator from Israel, best known for translating the Harry Potter series into Hebrew. Bar-Hillel studied at Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University, and Harvard University, and received a Bachelor of Arts in dramatic writing and dramaturgy.

The worldwide bestseller “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling has been published in 80 languages, including Latin and Ancient Greek. Two years ago, that collection expanded to include a Yiddish translation published as "Harry Potter un der filosofisher shteyn" - and sold out in 48 hours.

‍

How did such an unusual edition come to be produced nearly 23 years after its source material’s publication? The work of Arun Schaechter Viswanath, an Indian-American Jewish translator, and printed by a publishing house in Sweden, is as remarkable as the story it tells.

Join us for a fascinating conversation between Arun Schaechter Viswanath - ‘Harry Potter' Yiddish translator, and Gili Bar-Hillel Semo, 'Harry Potter' series Hebrew translator.

‍

Arun Schaechter Viswanath grew up in Teaneck, New Jersey in a Yiddish- and Tamil-speaking home and has a BA in Linguistics. Harry Potter marks his first foray into literary translation, though he also recently completed a translation of a Faroese children's book about a wayward young puffin (expected publication in 2023). In his free time, Arun enjoys bouldering, learning new languages and playing musical instruments. He lives with his wife and daughter in Manhattan, where he works in analytics at a tech company. The book can be ordered online www.harrypotter.olniansky.com, and a recording of the first chapter is available on Youtube - listen here.

Gili Bar-Hillel Semo is an English-Hebrew translator from Israel, best known for translating the Harry Potter series into Hebrew. Bar-Hillel studied at Hebrew University, Tel Aviv University, and Harvard University, and received a Bachelor of Arts in dramatic writing and dramaturgy.

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