Challenging Oblivion

Women Translators and the Mediation of Scientific Knowledge

Abstract

Throughout history, translation has played a crucial role in the dissemination of scientific knowledge, yet the contributions of women translators have been largely overlooked. From the late seventeenth century, women became increasingly involved in the translation of scientific and philosophical texts, thus facilitating access to knowledge beyond elite male circles. Figures such as Maria Ardinghelli and Giuseppa Eleonora Barbapiccola in Italy translated key works of natural philosophy, making them accessible to a wider audience.

Despite their contributions, women translators have often been seen as mere facilitators rather than active participants in intellectual life. Yet, as recent scholarship has shown, they exercised considerable agency, adapting and reframing texts through prefaces, commentaries, and critical interventions. Some, like Barbapiccola, openly asserted their intellectual authority, while others, like Ardinghelli, employed strategies of selective invisibility to overcome social constraints.

This article explores the complex role of women translators in the dissemination of scientific thought, highlighting their active mediation rather than passive transmission of knowledge. By reconsidering their contributions beyond the framework of invisibility, this study argues for a re-evaluation of their role as intellectual agents, and thus challenges the persistent marginalisation of women in the history of science.