ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the exceptions alluded to the translations of Malay heroic epics and of Arabic Islamic texts that made their way into Makassarese. Contrasting these two areas and the meanings that attached to them enables one to rethink the motivations and meanings that can be attached to translation and to the larger mission of Translation Studies. Malay was the language of trade and diplomacy as well as the conduit introducing the refined customs and art forms of legendary Malay centres like Melaka and Minangkabau. The story of translation in Makassar is about how cross-cultural interactions are conditioned by historical circumstances, cultural attitudes and social needs. The history of translation in Makassar underscores the degree to which translation is an activity that is always enmeshed in social relationships their establishment and perpetuation. Arabic, the holy language of the Quran, became the language of devotion and from this beginning an avenue to intellectual traditions and knowledge across the Islamic world.
