Latvian translates Chinese verse for European readers

RIGA — For Latvian poet and Sinologist Ieva Lapina, ancient Chinese poetry is more than art — it is a bridge connecting two distant cultures through shared emotions and timeless beauty.

"Ancient poetry is a unique symbol of Chinese culture," Lapina said in a recent interview. "Through translation, I hope Latvian readers can feel the rhythm, imagery and spirit of Chinese poetics."

Lapina's book, River Snow: Anthology of Ancient Chinese Lyrics, was published in 2024 and quickly garnered several major honors, including the Latvian Poetry Days Award, the Latvian Book Art Award Golden Apple Tree, and the Latvian Literature Award in 2025.

Lapina recalls that her passion for Chinese literature took root during her studies at the University of Munich, one of Germany's leading universities. Some of her professors were internationally recognized Sinologists in history and literature.

"They opened my eyes to the vastness of Sinology, a world where literature is just one facet. It was immediately clear to me that this was what I wanted to study. You can never say you know it all; that's the beauty of it," says she.

For Lapina, translation is not merely about words but about transmitting meaning and emotion across languages. "Through translation, I try to convey the essence of the original text, whether it's a poem or a scholar's reflections," she explains. "When the translation reaches the reader, it takes on a new life. The reader encounters China as interpreted through the translator's eyes."

Lapina hopes that her work will deepen Latvian readers' interest in Chinese literature and art. "Poetry transcends time," she says. "It can be read 100 years ago and 100 years from now, because the themes in classical Chinese poetry — human existence, nature and relationships — are timeless."

Latvian literature, Lapina notes, is relatively young, while Chinese poetry boasts millennia of development and refinement, with rich forms and a vast number of remarkable poets. "Translating from ancient Chinese into modern Latvian was a great challenge," she says.

River Snow features works by literary giants including Tao Yuanming, Xie Lingyun, Li Bai, Du Fu, Wang Wei, Su Shi, and Xin Qiji, spanning from the Eastern Jin (317-420) to the Song (960-1279) dynasties. Lapina carefully reproduces the imagery and rhythm of the originals while blending them with the musicality of Latvian verse, creating a poetic dialogue that bridges cultures.

The anthology also includes detailed annotations that explain historical events, poet biographies, and Chinese words with various meanings.

"Without these explanations, many allusions in Chinese poetry might be lost to European readers," Lapina notes. The attention to context and depth has made the book a favorite among Latvian poetry enthusiasts.

Fluent in German and Chinese, Lapina began studying Chinese at the University of Latvia in the 1990s before earning her master's degree in Sinology, Literature and Intercultural Communication at the University of Munich. From 2010 to 2011, she taught German at Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University in Zhuhai, Guangdong province. In recent years, she has devoted herself to translating and introducing Eastern literature to Latvian readers, particularly classical Chinese poetry.

"Poetry is like a snowflake that crosses mountains and rivers and falls into the heart of a distant land," Lapina said in her acceptance speech at the Latvian Literature Award ceremony earlier this year.