Dimension culturelle des espaces judiciaires et interprétation

This contribution examines the complex relationship between the activity of a court interpreter and the context in which it is carried out. The judicial space is seen as a set of physical and symbolic places, defined by specific constitutive elements and animated by actors who, beyond their status as initiates or laymen, present different socio-cultural identities. In this sense, the judicial space is the expression of a certain idea of justice and, more generally, of a civitas. In a transdiscipli¬nal approach, the study highlights the polyphonic, cultural, ritual and theatrical nature of a trial and underlines the importance of verbal and non-verbal acts. Far from being a purely interlinguistic intervention in a situation of exolingual interaction, the activity of a court interpreter mobilises a cultural dimension which is not only a matter of the languages and cultures involved, but of the configuration of judicial spaces as well.