Examining the College of Interpreters and translation issues in colonial Vietnam, 1862–90

When the French occupied Cochinchina in 1862 they encountered many issues related to language and communication that hindered their ability to effectively govern the local population. This article will discuss how the French attempted to establish a College of Interpreters to institutionalise interpreters and to enforce a translation regime where quốc ngữ served as the intermediary script between Chinese and French to overcome translation challenges. Their translation surveillance system, via legal protocols, ultimately failed to discipline local interpreters and regulate translation, nor did it protect French colonial interests and agenda in Vietnam, due to pedagogical, financial and administrative constraints.