Susanna Witt

Susanna Witt, Professor of Slavic Languages at Stockholm University, specializes in Russian literature and Soviet-era literary translation. She is affiliated with the Department of Slavic and Baltic Languages and actively participates in the Language and Power Network. Her research focuses on translation as a cultural phenomenon, particularly examining indirect practices like podstrochnik (interlinear translation) and their ideological implications.

• Education: PhD in Russian Literature from Stockholm University (2001), Associate Professor there (2011)
• Previous Affiliations: Uppsala University (2002–2007, 2012–2015)

Witt’s work bridges Translation Studies and Slavic Studies, analyzing how translation shaped Soviet cultural identity and national literature. She has led major research projects funded by Riksbankens Jubileumsfond and the Vetenskapsrådet, and co-edits volumes with collaborators like Brian James Baer. Her recent projects explore Soviet translation practices during 1945–1985 and the formation of a Russian literary canon in Cold War contexts.

Her publications address themes such as the 1936 All-Union Conference of Translators, the Soviet School of Translation, and intertextual strategies in Soviet literary works. Witt also investigates modern Ukrainian literature and has translated poetry into Swedish.

She has taught courses including Text Analysis and Translation, Literary History, and Translation and Power at Stockholm University and HSE Moscow. Witt’s research network, established through conferences like Translation in Russian Contexts (2014), spans 15+ countries.