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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

TODAY ONLY! ✨ We're offering a #NationalPoetryDay discount on our subscriptions. Subscribe save 26% – simply use this link and the discount will be auto-applied: modern-poetry-in-translation.subs.io/26-FOR-26/

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Join us online to celebrate our latest issue – At the Gate of Exile: Focus on Archives 🗓 Mon 12 Oct, 1–2pm UK time With Norman Erikson Pasaribu, Ni Made Purnama Sari, Yoo Heekyung and Stine An, hosted by Editor, Janani Ambikapathy. Free / pay what you feel www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/launching-...

eventbrite.co.uk

Launching MPT At the Gate of Exile: Focus on Archives

With Norman Erikson Pasaribu, Ni Made Purnama Sari, Yoo Heekyung and Stine An

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

We’re Recruiting: Editorial Assistant, Modern Poetry in Translation. Apply by 31 August Please share! modernpoetryintranslation.com/were-recruit...

modernpoetryintranslation.com

We're Recruiting: Editorial Assistant, Modern Poetry in Translation - Modern Poetry in Translation

Apply by 31 August 2026

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

'those no longer here are there, in the uterus of paradox, listening to the other-time, as it beats, beats, beats, but does not break up' From 'Crossing, out' by Anna T. Szabó translated from Hungarian by Ági Bori, published in the latest MPT. modernpoetryintranslation.com/poem/three-p...

A poetry graphic with a short quote: those no longer here are there, in the uterus
of paradox, listening to the other-time,
as it beats, beats, beats

By Anna t Szabo, translated from Hungarian by Agi Bori

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 30/06/2026

From 'Story—All of us victims of the especial shape we come in' – Yoo Heekyung translated from Korean by Stine An, published in the latest MPT. Read in full on the MPT website – alongside 🔈audio recordings🔈 by Yoo Heekyung and Stine An. modernpoetryintranslation.com/poem/three-p...

A black graphic with white text and the words: "He became a desk and it began to rain. He listened intently to the rain. There was no other choice. Yoo Heekyung, translated from Korean by Stine An."

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

The seventh and final essay from our special feature on archives is written by Rishi Dastidar who, rather than writing on a decade of the magazine, turned his attention to the adverts from historic editions... More from this issue: modernpoetryintranslation.com/magazine/at-...

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 29/06/2026

The final decade in our archives essay series is covered by Quyên Nguyễn-Hoàng, looking at the years 2015-2025. Quyên Nguyễn-Hoàng writes 'To My Faraway Friend: A Letter in Nine Cuts', a moving epistolatory prose-poem. modernpoetryintranslation.com/subscribe/

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

The next essay in our feature on archives is written by Mantra Mukim, on the fifth decade of MPT: 2005-2015. Mantra Mukim writes about the 'secrets' lodged in a translated poem by the event of its crossing from one language into another. Find this essay in the print edition & via @exacteditions

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

Mayada Ibrahim – on the traumatic effect of watching the grotesque spectacle of violence and genocide on our screens day in and day out. Free to read on our website: modernpoetryintranslation.com/counter-memo...

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Oxford Translates @oxfordtranslates.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

A reminder to sign up (QR code or link below) for Ann Morgan's Oxford Translates keynote 'How translators changed my life'! Monday 6th July @ 5pm BST on Zoom. With thanks to our generous sponsors for making this event and so much of work possible.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 25/06/2026

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

In his essay ‘New Troubadours: The Translation of Song ‘, responding to MPT's third decade 1985-95, James Appleby makes connections between troubadours, Baker Boy, Terrance Hayes, Faiz Ahmad Faiz and much more. Also included alongside this essay is a Spotify playlist (link in the next post!)

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

The latest MPT includes a special feature on archives, with a series of essays on our sixty year archive. Ottilie Mulzet responds to 1965-1975, tracing the work of Szilárd Borbély & the deep influence of the many Hungarian poets published in those early years of MPT.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Our latest issue is OUT NOW! At the Gate of Exile: Focus on Archives Featuring Ottilie Mulzet, Vidyan Ravinthiran, James Appleby, Mayada Ibrahim, Mantra Mukim, Quyên Nguyễn-Hoàng, Rishi Dastidar – and more. modernpoetryintranslation.com/magazine/at-...

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Sasha Dugdale @sashadugdale.bsky.social · 21/06/2026

History has not yet reached the outer confines of the body, as it awaits the transhuman at the Gate of Exile Szilárd Borbély’s poem gives this @mptmagazine.bsky.social issue its name. The poem, accompanied by an essay by translator @ottiliemulzet.bsky.social, is so worth your attention.

To the Posthuman
History has not yet reached the outer confines of the body, as it awaits the transhuman
at the Gate of Exile, where footprints lead to the desert. There the angel stands,
in Nowhere, when there is no where, in that place where there is no when. There is only waiting, for all eternal time, which
is not waiting itself. From where the breeze of the superhuman body shrieks. In the tempest,
an angel leans forwards, grasps at the air. It cannot step across the borders of history, because it is posthuman.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Cover reveal! With gorgeous artwork by Justin Moore. MPT 'At the Gate of Exile: Focus on Archives' Featuring Ottilie Mulzet, Vidyan Ravinthiran, James Appleby, Mayada Ibrahim, Mantra Mukim, Quyên Nguyễn-Hoàng, Rishi Dastidar – and much more.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

We are deeply saddened to learn of the death of poet Lieke Marsman, who passed away on 3 June 2026, aged 35. You can find Theophilus Kwek's review of her collection 'The Following Scan Will Last Five Minutes (tr. Sophie Collins)' on our website modernpoetryintranslation.com/interrupting...

modernpoetryintranslation.com

Interrupting Mortality - Modern Poetry in Translation

Theophilus Kwek reviews 'The Following Scan Will Last Five Minutes' by Lieke Marsman, translated by Sophie Collins, Liverpool University Press, 2019.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Last month we were delighted to welcome Jeffrey Yang to the UK to deliver the MPT 60th Anniversary Lecture, 'Flower Covered Grove: The Practice of Poetry and its Translation' You can now watch the whole lecture online over on our YouTube channel 💫 www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTEE...

youtube.com

Flower-Covered Grove: Jeffrey Yang | MPT's 60th Anniversary Lecture at the Queen's College Oxford

YouTube video by MPT Magazine

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Wasafiri Magazine @wasafirimag.bsky.social · 24/04/2026

Today's date, 24 April, marks Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day. In 2024, we published a special issue on Armenia (Wasafiri 120: Armenia(n)s – Elevation) which shines a light on modern Armenian identities and experiences. To purchase the issue, use code ARMENIA2026 for 20% off. Valid until 30 May.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

Tonight! With Phoebe Giannisi, Brian Sneeden, Kostya Tsolakis & Calliope Michail. It's officially a launch party, though this issue sold out a long time ago. However, we have kept a few copies for this eve – so if you'd like to buy one, this is your chance! helleniccentre.org/event/modern...

helleniccentre.org

Modern Poetry in Translation - The Antidote to Agony: Focus on the Poetry of Greece and Cyprus – Hellenic Centre

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

ISSUE LAUNCH 💫 Join us at the Hellenic Centre on 16 April to celebrate our latest issue! Featuring readings from contributors Kostya Tsolakis, Calliope Michail, Phoebe Giannisi & Brian Sneeden – introduced by issue editor, Jessica Sequeira. Tickets & more helleniccentre.org/event/modern...

Graphic promoting the launch for MPT the antidote to agent: focus on the poetry of Greece and Cyprus. Thurs 16 April 2026 at the Hellenic centre, London. With contributors Phoebe Giannisi, Brian Sneeden, Calliope Michail and Kostya Tsolakis. Introduced by Jessica Sequeira. Tickets £5/£4 or free for Hellenic centre members.

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Surely this is the day all the winter gardens will shatter, release their crystal treasure, the pent-up breath of our ambition, so tomorrow, life will be measured in a value greater than the body’s weight in blood #Hungary @mptmagazine.bsky.social modernpoetryintranslation.com/poem/while-w...

modernpoetryintranslation.com

While We Wait for Sunrise, 23rd May 1912 - Modern Poetry in Translation

Faltering dawn, the Avenue: a stammer of light. Yesterday’s waiters hover tired, yet a fresh brew steams the air and a single cloud splits from yellow to blue above the park, above the boulevard of pe...

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

'Poetry can be a very wide sea, an inexhaustible expanse. I am suddenly aware of the confines we are so used to: the narrow valley of the local' On 'Crow’s Eye View by Yi Sang, translated from Korean by Jack Jung' By @sashadugdale.bsky.social modernpoetryintranslation.com/from-the-arc...

modernpoetryintranslation.com

From the archive: Crow's Eye View by Yi Sang, translated from Korean by Jack Jung - Modern Poetry in Translation

Sasha Dugdale writes on Yi Sang's ‘Crows Eye View’, translated from Korean by Jack Jung.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 25/03/2026

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

From the archive: Crow’s Eye View by Yi Sang, translated from Korean by Jack Jung Selected by poet, translator and former editor of Modern Poetry in Translation, @sashadugdale.bsky.social modernpoetryintranslation.com/from-the-arc...

modernpoetryintranslation.com

From the archive: Crow's Eye View by Yi Sang, translated from Korean by Jack Jung - Modern Poetry in Translation

Sasha Dugdale writes on Yi Sang's ‘Crows Eye View’, translated from Korean by Jack Jung.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

London poetry friends! Join us on 16 April to celebrate the latest issue of MPT focusing on the poetry of Greece and Cyprus! With issue contributors Kostya Tsolakis, Calliope Michail, and Brian Sneeden Find out more and book: modernpoetryintranslation.com/launching-mp...

modernpoetryintranslation.com

Launching MPT The Antidote to Agony: Focus on the Poetry of Greece and Cyprus - Modern Poetry in Translation

With Kostya Tsolakis, Calliope Michail, and Brian Sneeden | 7.00pm, 16 Apr 2026, The Hellenic Centre, London

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World Literature Today @worldlittoday.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

“M.’s story, a book for today, speaks eloquently to our own experience, as great literature is supposed to do.” Kevin M. F. Platt reviews Maria Stepanova’s “intriguing short novel, written in lyrical, magnificently translated prose." worldliteraturetoday.org/2026/march/d...

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National Centre for Writing @writerscentre.bsky.social · 26/02/2026

Would you like to stay and write in a global literary hub? Here are the latest opportunities: 1. Residency in Lyon for French-language poetry (dl 28 Feb) 2. Korean–English translation residency in Norwich (dl 9 March) 3. Norwich–Jakarta circular residency (dl 31 March) buff.ly/vziVRSz

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

This sold out over the weekend, BUT we do have a few returns – so the last handful of tickets are now available. If you're in or near Oxford, we do hope you'll join us for this special lecture with Jeffrey Yang!

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

A month has passed since the arrest of Ali Asadollahi in Iran, following nationwide protests. A steadfast voice for freedom and justice, we published his poem, 'I Used to Dream, I Used to Be Safe,' in MPT 'Rhythms of the Land'.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Due to popular demand we’ve released 25 additional places for our previously sold-out 60th anniversary lecture with Jeffrey Yang. Find out more and book your free place via Eventbrite. We hope to see you in Oxford in a few weeks' time! www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/mpt-60th-a...

eventbrite.co.uk

MPT 60th Anniversary Lecture | With Jeffrey Yang

Flower-Covered Grove: The Practice of Poetry and Its Translation

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

eventbrite.co.uk

MPT 60th Anniversary Lecture | With Jeffrey Yang

Flower-Covered Grove: The Practice of Poetry and Its Translation

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

ICYMI! You can now re-watch our December online launch for The Antidote to Agony over on YouTube: youtu.be/sXppBjX57BI?... Featuring issue contributors Phoebe Giannisi, Brian Sneeden, Dimitra Kotoula and Maria Nazos, chaired by issue editor Jessica Sequeira

youtu.be

Launching MPT The Antidote to Agony: Focus on the Poetry of Greece and Cyprus

YouTube video by MPT Magazine

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

We are alarmed to learn that the poet Ali Asadollahi, who featured in recent editions of MPT, has been violently arrested from his home by security forces in Iran. Please join his supporters in raising awareness. www.en-hrana.org/ali-asadolla...

en-hrana.org

Ali Asadollahi Arrested by Security Forces in Tehran - Hrana

HRANA – On January 25, Ali Asadollahi, a poet and writer, was arrested in Tehran by agents of the Ministry of Intelligence. Based on information received by HRANA, Mr. Asadollahi was arrested last nig...

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

en-hrana.org

Ali Asadollahi Arrested by Security Forces in Tehran - Hrana

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Padraig Reidy @padraigreidy.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Ugh no

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

'I will not repeat Phryni…' Iliassa Sequin Translated from Greek by Calliope Michail From our (now sold-out) issue: The Antidote to Agony: Focus on the Poetry of Greece and Cyprus

I
I will not repeat Phryni by stripping myself bare before You
— — — —
I confess that I possess the Memory that I am descended
from a generation of poets
The sea buzzes, Homer’s sea foams
with an anger—that I inherit—I do not assuage it —
nor do I incite it but I let it carry me away:
a ravishing and ruthless death I have
O Horror of an immoral destiny whose weight I bear
on my transparent and anaemic back
without promise—nor expectation of light blue horizons—
Memory moves through me like a woman in black
shouting and cursing: A curse, a curse on Beauty
which sucks me up and lightens blue my Black hair
fills it with suns that reap and burn me
Sickles reap me and I shriek.

My Orphic song that you annihilated
and sweetened, You, the ignorant of Proper Sound.
The light blue crystals cut me and I deform.

II

My Eurydical face you redeem with counterfeit gold
You, the ignorant of Beauty, my Traders
You bought out my Happiness
My Hellenic Memory

and abandoned me to my fate of traversing and circling
like a bird—a Free bird.
Who among You will defend,
who will kill
my Freedom?
Who ever killed the Human?
the Human I embody
the Human of mourning
I’m enamoured with her,
I surrender to her,
I birth her the Earthquakes—my poems—
I love her
the human that gestates within me, I love—

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

D'oh! This should say Thursday 11th December. Join us!

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Reminder! Online Launch: Thurs 12 Dec Join us to celebrate the latest issue of MPT, The Antidote to Agony: Focus on the Poetry of Greece and Cyprus With Phoebe Giannisi, Brian Sneeden, Dimitra Kotoula, Maria Nazos, chaired by issue editor Jessica Sequeira. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/launching-...

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

Polysyllabic Words by Jazra Khaleed Translated from Greek by Jason Rigas Featured in the latest MPT: The Antidote to Agony: Focus on the Poetry of Greece and Cyprus

I don’t like polysyllabic words.
Railroads originating in the larynx and terminating at the lips,
a rolling stock of phonemes tearing up tonsils.
Tongue-cutting wire mesh,
tongue twisters slurping up vowel after vowel,
housing complexes blocking airways.

I don’t like polysyllabic words.
It’s hard to fit them into my poems,
they ooze out of verses,
flattening feet.
They trip on the tip of my tongue when Ι mumble them,
hobbling out of my mouth.

The longest word in the Greek language dates back to antiquity and
appears in Aristophanes’s Ekklesiazousai:
raysharkskullbitmixlaserwortcrayfishhoneydrizzlethrushblackbirddove-
pigeonroastedroosterheadwagtailrockdoveharesyrupcrispywingplatter.

In the sixth century AD, Dioscorus of Aphrodito gave us this thirty-
eight-letter mouthful: worthybeastlybirdystarlightcosmication.

In the thirteenth century AD, John Apokaukos called someone a
calculospiriteconomist.

The following two words were passed down to us from the ecclesiastical
tradition of Byzantium: panhyperprotohonoromagnificent and
photoluminoselenophosphorific.

I don’t like polysyllabic words.
This is the polysyllabic word I like the least: thegreekstate.

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

'The sea’s remorse surfaces every time the waves appear. Not the wild, raging, frightening waves but the other kind sweet and soothing, like lullabies.' * – The sea’s remorse Argyris Stavropoulos Translated from Greek by Gigi Papoulias modernpoetryintranslation.com/poem/the-sea...

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Modern Poetry in Translation @mptmagazine.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

'In the beginning was the grazing the pasture, sections of earth gathered extended suffused from rain and the elements eaten by footsteps, the cursive of animals and humans echoing' Phoebe Giannisi, tr Brian Sneeden modernpoetryintranslation.com/poem/transhu...

Transhumance I

Phoebe Giannisi

Translated from Greek by Brian Sneeden
for Eleonora and Dimitri

It was I who sent
my treasure
by my own free will
silently I step upon the earth

i.
In the beginning was the grazing
the pasture, sections of earth gathered extended
suffused from rain and the elements
eaten
by footsteps, the cursive of animals and humans
echoing
the valleys, streams, and summits beyond
brought back voices.

In the beginning was the field.
To move out I had to gather.
I had to cull
the things.
The things, the animals, the things, the things.

iii.
— What do you carry on you when you leave?
— My dark. My own piece of dark.
— What do you carry when you leave?
— The markings on the body.
— What do you carry when you leave?
— My spell:

Forgot –tenacts –forgot –tenwords
fragme –ntsof –theform –erlife
tokeep –ascharm –tokeep –asnew –redcru –cifix.

iv.
— To move on I had to cull
the things, the fragments
my children
left behind
before leaving me to begin their own lives

v.
— Kiatra kraapa omlou nou kriapa
(A stone breaks, a man does not break.)

vi.
— Still
the fragments are glass
pressed deep under skin
traveling in the flesh
choosing their own paths,
one ascends to the heart,
another pierces your abdomen.

— What does God cast down that the earth does not swallow?
— Wound through and through.
I spit it from my mouth like a bitter seed
but not a single teardrop touched my cheek,
why I had for years now
clenched my teeth.

— You cannot eat a stone, mother says
instead of
you cannot escape your fate.

— In order to leave
I had to cull the things.
That agony lasted months.
An entire winter.
Heavy and dark, stripping layer by layer
the vessels of memory.
But what hurt most
was what had, for so long, slipped
between my fingers like air.
What had been forgotten.
The missing.
What had not happened.

— Λεῦσσε δ’ ὅμως ἀπεόντα νόῳ παρεόντα βεβαίως
Parmenides says:
but see with your mind those who are missing, as if
they were present.

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