One of the early challenges
facing Rotary was the "translation" from Paul Harris' idea
in Chicago to other cultures and languages.
Now, Rotary Global History is
following the same path, or rather a plan, to bring the
history of Rotary to all languages of Rotary. The task will
take years and many volunteers from the "Language
Communities" of Rotary.
Jack M. B. Selway
In Chapter 4, page
87 of "This Rotarian Age" (1935)
founder Paul Harris writes of the skepticism some had that
Rotary could even make the leap to the social structure of
London. Today, Rotary in England is very strong and became
so from the outset.
On page 89, he writes: "A
Chicago member, who was about to make a business visit to
Cuba, was prevailed upon to attempt the organization of a
club in Havana. He did his best, but his efforts were doomed
to failure. In a spirit of hopefulness he had undertaken his
mission; in a spirit of despair he returned, contending that
Rotary was solely an Anglo-Saxon idea; that it never could
be appreciated or understood by other races. Those who have
been privileged to become acquainted with the splendid Latin
American Rotarians know how erroneous were his conclusions."
In early 2003, clubs from District
4150 in Mexico began
our first project to translate the entire history into
Spanish. This work was created by Carlos Garcia Calzada,
then of RC Puerto Vallarta Centro, Mexico.
