Describes the linguistic and cross-cultural intricacies of the psychotherapy of an autistic Turkish girl who was treated from the age of 3.5 to 9 yrs, mostly in her mother tongue, by a succession of psychotherapists assisted by interpreters. S was hospitalized in 1981 for autistic regression triggered by the emigration of her family to France. Of the S's therapists, 2 were of Turkish origin (although not proficient in Turkish) and one was French. S communicated verbally and nonverbally with all her therapists, but interpreters were needed for the complex and difficult interaction with S's family members. (0 ref)