Translation methods and additional procedures Flashcards
Name all translation methods.
Word-for-word translation, literal translation, faithful translation, semantic translation, adaption, free translation, idiomatic translation, and communicative translation.
Name all additional translation procedures.
Back translation, accepted translation, contextual recreation, sub-text translation, shift or transposition, notes and other additions.
Word-for-word translation?
A translation where the TL is immediately beneath the SL words. With this method the translator preserves the SL word order and words are translated as single units and out of context. This method may be of use as a pretranslation or as a means of understanding the SL text but should never be used as a final version.
Literal translation?
This method is regarded as a pretranslation procedure which is used to convert SL grammatical constructions to their nearest TL equivalents, whereas lexical units are translated singly and out of context.
Faithful translation?
This method is used to reproduce the precise contextual meaning of the original but within the constraints of the TL grammatical structures. Culture specific words and similar fixed phrases are replaced by appropriate TL constructions. However, any other characteristic of the SL text that makes the original unique is preserved in the TL and the translation thereby faithfully represents all the intentions and text realisations of the SL writer.
Semantic translation?
This method is more flexible and less dogmatic than faithful translation. The translator may disobey particular grammatical and lexical rules in SL because they are different or inappropriate in the TL. He has more freedom of choice and a certain level of individuality. He is focused on meaning and trying to make the translation as natural as possible. He can sacrifice certain poetic device, word-play or other form of expressive language in the SL if it cannot fit the translation because it either does not exist in the TL or makes it sound awkward.
Adaptation?
Adaptation is probably the freest form of translation and it is better not to use it for official documents. The translator can bend the rules to the extent that most of the original is sacrificed if the meaning, the tone, the atmosphere, the intention are supposed to be transferred into the TL. It is mainly used for popular literature, movies, theatrical performances etc. Its basic intention is to make the translation sound and seem as funny, sad, ironic, poetic as the original, and if the SL has to be altered it will be.
Free translation?
This method if often referred to as intralingual translation and some authors say that it is not a translation at all but a free reproduction of the original in a form that suits the translator best. It may be regarded as a paraphrase of the SL rather than a translation.
Idiomatic translation?
The main characteristic of this method is that it reproduces the message of the original but tends to disregard some specific nuances of the original. Some translators may even add structures such as colloquialism or idiomatic expressions that do not exist in the SL text because they want to make the translation sound as natural as possible.
Communicative translation?
This method is focused on the meaning of the context whereby the translator makes sure that content and language are shaped in such a way that the readership can easily accept and comprehend it. It is usually used when translating chliches, proverbs, idioms, etc.
Back translation?
A translator takes either a complete translation or just a part of it and translates it back into the SL in order to see how much the TL text differs from the original.
Accepted translation?
This procedure refers to some transparent institutional terms that are translated literally in several European countries and are accepted as such.
Contextual recreation?
If all other types of translation prove insufficient or inaccurate a translator will have to try contextual translation for smaller units, that is to translate between words and find solutions which might be completely different from the SL text but unavoidable.
Sub-text translation?
Similar to the contextual recreation with the difference that it is more applicable for the translation of literature than official documents.
Shift or transposition?
This type of translation procedure is recommended and necessary when the translator faces a grammatical structure which either does not exist in the target language or does not fit the context of the translation. This is the only procedure concerned with grammar.
Notes and other additions?
When a unit can not be translated at all the translator will insert a note. Notes should be used sparingly as to not annoy the readers.
What are borrowed words?
Borrowed word form is a lexical unit which is used outside the language or dialect which it first appeared in. Four types of borrowed words: Loan words, loan blends, loan shifts, loan translations.
Loan words?
Where both the form and the meaning are borrowed from the SL whereas the pronunciation is slightly adapted to the phonological system of the TL (portfolio-portfolio, sektor-sector, finansijski menadzer-financial menager)
Loan blends?
Where only one part of the lexical unit is of foreign origin and the other part is a unit from the TL (kompjuterska greska-computer mistake, licni sekretar-personal secretary, slobodni stil-freestyle)
Loan shifts?
Where the meaning is borrowed from the SL and packed into a form already existing in the TL extending the meaning of the unit in the TL into a new one (zvezda-star meaning celebrity)
Loan translations?
Where the individual morphemes in the unit from the SL are translated separately (natcovek-super+man, vodopad-water+fall, neboder-sky+scraper)
