On some Ambiguities, Alterations and Anomalies of the Editions of Garnier’s Translation of the Wealth of Nations

Successive editions of Germain Garnier’s translation of the Wealth of Nations into French, apart from undisputable qualities, present certain questionable translation choices and contain some surprising anomalies and alterations. A noteworthy aspect of some of the latter is that they appear in the course of successive reprints of the book, in "revised" or "augmented" editions subsequent to the translator's death. We draw up a non-exhaustive selection, mainly focused on book 1 of the WN. While some of these choices and alterations are of secondary importance, others more substantial may have played a part in the perception of Smith's thought, at a time when French enjoyed the status of a lingua franca in European scholarly circles.