A DIGITAL RE-EXPLORATION OF THEATRE TRANSLATION HISTORY IN TÜRKİYE (1923-1973): A BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

As a research method, bibliometrics is used to compile and analyse large-scale, scattered data. It detects hidden patterns and tests claims that lack empirical basis. This study explores the potential of bibliometrics, digital tools and artificial intelligence (AI) to excavate the history of theatre translation in Türkiye from 1923 to 1973 with the purpose of illuminating common trends and heterogeneities. To this end, the authors (1) used optical character recognition (OCR) to digitise multiple in-print theatre bibliographical sources, (2) extracted data from the digitised files using an AI model, and (3) constructed a bibliometric dataset comprising 841 distinct translated play entries categorized by language, author, translator, publisher, and publication year. The analysis reveals a marked dominance of French (38.9%) and English (24.4%) source texts, alongside distinct production peaks during the state-sponsored Translation Bureau era of the 1940s and the private theatre boom of the 1960s. Furthermore, the data reveal an institutional reliance on state-driven patronage, with the Ministry of National Education alone accounting for over half of the catalogued repertoire (443 titles). This research demonstrates how a combination of bibliometrics, digitisation and AI can be employed to shed light on under-researched aspects of translation history. It also aims to encourage researchers working in Translation Studies to embrace research methods of digital humanities (DH).