Olivia Cockburn

Research summary

Olivia completed her PhD at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain. Her research focuses on Spanish historical linguistics, sociolinguistics, and translation and bilingualism in the ancient Mediterranean. Her interests lie specifically in translations from Ancient Greek into Latin of technical and medical treatises and the interlinguistic transfer of specialised terminology.

Teaching summary

• Director of MA in Translation (Translation Studies | Translation and Culture | Research) at UCL's Centre for Translation Studies (CenTraS) (2021-)
• Lecturer - CMII0095 Scientific and Technical Translation from Spanish into English (CenTraS MSc Translation & Technology: Scientific, Technical, Medical) (2019-)
• Lecturer - CMII0096 Medical Translation from Spanish into English (CenTraS MSc Translation & Technology: Scientific, Technical, Medical) (2019-)
• Lecturer - SPAN0034 Spanish to English Translation (SPLAS) (2020-21)
• Lecturer - SPAN0066 Advanced Spanish to English Translation (SPLAS) (2020-21)

Olivia is an Associate Lecturer (Teaching) in Translation at UCL’s Centre for Translation Studies (CenTraS) and is Programme Director of MA courses in Translation (Translation Studies | Translation and Culture | Research). A professional translator and Chartered Linguist herself, Olivia teaches Medical, Scientific and Technical Translation at CenTraS and also lectures in Spanish to English translation in the Department of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies.

Olivia completed her PhD at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in 2012 and joined UCL in 2019. She also teaches Scientific and Technical Translation at Imperial College London, and has taught as a Visiting Lecturer at the University of Westminster (2020-2021).

Olivia graduated from the University of Leeds in 2005 with a BA First Class Hons in Latin, Spanish and Portuguese. She holds an MA and PhD in Latin Linguistics and Spanish Historical Linguistics from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (2006 / 2012). She is a professional Member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (MITI), a member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists (MCIL), and a Chartered Linguist (CL). Olivia also works as a professional translator of Spanish, Portuguese and Latin into English and runs her own translation company based in London.