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INITIATION TO TRANSLATION
Translation Strategies/Procedures

PR. KHALID SAID

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INITIATION TO TRANSLATION
Translation Strategies/Procedures

PR. KHALID SAID

INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies/Procedures
01
❑ Newmark uses Vinay and Darbelnet’s term 'translation procedures’
02 highlighting the difference between this term and the term ‘translation
methods’ by stating: 'While translation methods relate to whole
texts, translation procedures are used for sentences and the smaller
03 units of language' (1988, p. 81).

04 ❑ Essentially, the translator chooses one, two or even more of the

translation strategies to resolve a certain translation problem or
05 difficulty, be it linguistic, rhetorical or cultural, depending on factors
such the genre, register, text-type, purpose, intentions and readership
of the translation
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies/Procedures
01
These strategies include (but not limited) the following :
02 o borrowing,
o calque,
03 o Omission:
o Addition:
04 o Substitution.
o literal translation,
05 o transposition,
o modulation,
o Adaptation
o Transliteration and Transcription
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 1. Borrowing ‫ الترجمة بالدخيل‬، ‫االقتراض‬
❑ Borrowing is a technique that doesn’t seem to be a “translation” since it
02 uses words or expressions from the source language. As its name suggests, it
borrows the word from the original text and inserts it into the target
language without any alteration. (Loan words)
03
❑ In using this strategy, the translator transfers the SL word form to the TL to
04 fill “a lexical gap or to create a certain effect” (Vinay & Darbelnet, 1995)

❑ In other words, when there is no equivalent counterpart for a certain word

05 in the TL, the translator uses the same SL word but in TL transcribed letters

❑ In translation, borrowing is not always dictated by the lack of equivalent

words in the target language. Sometimes it is used to add a local/cultural
colour
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 1. Borrowing ‫ الترجمة بالدخيل‬، ‫االقتراض‬

02 Examples of Borrowing

03 o hijab, kebab , jehad

o ‫ جهاد‬،‫ كباب‬،‫حجاب‬
04
o ‫ كمبيوتر‬،‫ تويتر‬،‫ فيس بوك‬،‫انترنيت‬
05 o computer, internet, Facebook, Twitter

o ‫ برجوازية‬, ‫ دمقرطة‬, ‫ إمبريالية‬,‫ ديكتاتوري‬,‫ديموقراطي‬

o democratic, dictatorial, imperialism, democratization, bourgeoisie
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 2. Calque: ‫الترجمة بالنسخ‬

02
o According to Vinay and Darbelnet (1995, p. 32), this strategy is ‘a
special kind of borrowing’. It is used when a translator wants to
03 replace the same expression or structure of the SL with the same
expression or structure in the TL using a literal translation method.
04
o A calque or, to use Newmark's 1988's terminology, a 'loan
05 translation' is a translation strategy whereby the individual
elements of an SL item are translated literally to reproduce a TL
equivalent (Shuttleworth and Cowie 1999:18).
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 2. Calque: ‫الترجمة بالنسخ‬

02 Examples of Calques

•
03 •
Bonne chance
Red line
‫حظ سعي‬ o
‫خط أحمر‬ o
• The Cold War
04 • The Iron Curtain
‫الحرب البارد‬ o
‫الستار الحديدي‬ o
• Fast-food restaurants
/ ‫مطاعم الوجبات السريعة‬ o
05 • Weekend holiday
‫عطلة نهاية االأسبوع‬ o
• World Health Organisation
‫منظمة التجارة العالمية‬ o
• twist his arm
‫يحصل على نصيب األسد‬ o
• get the lion's share
‫يلوي ذراعه‬ o
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 3. Translation by Omission ‫الترجمة بالنقصان‬, ‫الترجمة بالحذف‬
02 o This is a translation loss whether done consciously or unconsciously. The
translator sometimes purposefully resorts to this strategy to avoid
tautology or transferring unnecessary information into the Target Text by
03 omitting certain words.
Examples of Omission
04
o ‫العاصمة البريطانية لندن‬ o /‫عم‬/ ‫خال‬
05 o The capital of Britain, o uncle’,
o London
.‫ هذا وقد صرح وزير الصحة التركي أن أعداد المصابين بالفيروس ينخفض تدريجيا‬o
o The Turkish Health Minister announced the infection rate of the
virus has been decreasing gradually.
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 3. Translation by Omission ‫الترجمة بالنقصان‬, ‫الترجمة بالحذف‬

02 o ‘From all over the Gulf and Middle East’

‫ من شتى أنحاء الشرق األوسط‬o
03 o ‘Perhaps no other place in India has a history as rich and colourful
as Rajasthan’
04
‫ ربما ال يوجد مكان آخر في الهند لديه تاريخ عريق مثل والية راجستان‬o
05
‫ التقى جاللة ملك األردن عبد هللا الثاني بأخيه جاللة ملك المملكة العربية‬o
‫السعودية عبدهللا بن عبدالعزيز خادم الحرمين الشريفين‬
o The King of Jordan met with his Saudi counterpart.
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 4. Translation by Addition ‫الترجمة بالزيادة‬
This is the strategy taken when a translator feels obliged to add
02 something to the Target Text which is not in the Source Text in order
to transfer its meaning more clearly and accurately for the TL
03 reader. Here the Examples of Addition

04 o “I'll book you in at the Hilton

o ‫سأحجز لك غرفة في فندق هيلتون‬
05
o ‘You’ll cross a first unforgettable pass’
o ‫حيث تعبر أوالً مسارا ً ذا مناظر رائعة ال تنسى‬

o ‘What makes you different?’

o ‫ما الذي يجعلكم مختلفين عن غيركم‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
5. Translation by transposition, ‫الترجمة بالتحوير‬or ‫التبديل‬
01 • Transposition can be defined as recategorization, i.e. a change at the level of
grammar while translating from SL to TL. Even within the same language, we come
across cases of transposition (i.e. paraphrasing) with no or little change in meaning.
02 • In short, transposition is the most frequent device used by translators since it offers
a variety of possibilities that help in overcoming the problem of untranslatability.
03 ‫اعمل ذلك قبل أن تذهب " أو " اعمل ذلك قبل ذهابك‬
04 Examples of Transposition
o He called us before he came back
05 o ‫اتصل بنا قبل عودته‬ o ST: Talking to you was a pleasure
o ‫اتصل بنا قبل أن يعود‬ o TT: ‫من دواعي سروري الحديث معك كا‬
o ‫نسررت بالحديث معك‬
o She is a creative painter
o ‫إنها رسامة مبدع‬
o ‫ترسم بإبداع‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
Translation by transposition, ‫الترجمة بالتحوير‬or ‫التبديل‬
01
o “Go for help” o ‘she screamed when she saw the snake’
02 o ‫“اذهب واطلب النجدة‬ o ‫لقد صرخت عند رويتها الثعبان‬
o ‫" اطلب النجد‬
03
o “as soon as they returned home
04 o ”‫فور عودتهم إلى المنزل‬
o ‫المؤمنين‬
05 o ‘those who believed’.

o ‫الذين يؤتون الزكاة‬

o ‘zakat payers’ or ‘those who pay zakat
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 6. Translation by Modulation ‫الترجمة بالتكييف‬
❑ Unlike transposition, which is basically syntactic, modulation is at the same
02 time a semantic-pragmatic and syntactic or lexical procedure that results
from variation in point of view (perspective) or a change in degree of
certainty when there is no translation equivalent or when the literal translation
03 sounds awkward in the TL.
Examples of Modulation
04 ▪ A negative/positive SL expression, for example, is changed to a positive/Negative
TL expression
05
o It is not a strong argument’
o ‫حجة واهية‬ o ST: He acted at once
o TT: ‫لم يتردد في التصرف‬
o ‫منبع العلم‬
o the fountain of knowledge) o SL: ‘Remember to pay the tax’,
o ‘the root of knowledge o TL: .‫ال تنس أداء الضريبة‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
6. Translation by Modulation ‫الترجمة بالتكييف‬
01
o SL: He is said to be serious.
o TL : ‫يقولون بأنه يتحلى بالجدية‬
02
o SL: He had to be forcibly restrained from leaving.
03 o TL:)‫اضطررنا الستخدام القوة للحيلولة دون رحيله (لمنعه من الرحيل‬

04 o SL : ‫شبعت‬
o TL: I am no longer hungry
05
o SL: It is not difficult to show.
o TL: ‫من السهل أن نبرهن‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 7. Translation by Adaptation ‫الترجمة باالقتباس أو التصرف‬
• Adaptation has been described as the ‘freest form of translation’
02 (Newmark, 1988, p. 46) which can be used whenever the context referred
to in the original text does not exist in the culture of the target text,
thereby necessitating some form of re-creation″ (Bastin, 1998,p. 6).
03 • This strategy is employed to create situational/cultural equivalence
• Some Scholars argue that Adaptation is a ″betrayal of the original
04 author″ (Bastin, 1998, p. 6).
examples
o ‘Hello’
05 o can be adapted to be ‫السالم عليكم‬, instead of its linguistic equivalent ‫أهال‬

o Translating swear words (e.g. ’fuck’, ‘damn’)

o ‫تبا‬, ‫اللعنة‬

o Translating ‘boyfriend’ and ‘girlfriend’

o ‫صديقى‬/‫صديق‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 7. Translation by Adaptation ‫الترجمة باالقتباس أو التصرف‬

02 o SL: Breast milk is best as designed by nature to give your baby

everything he needs.
03
o TL: ‫حليب األم هو أفضل غذاء للطفل من وحي الطبيعة ليمنح طفلك كل ما يحتاج إليه‬
04
o SL: This product left our house in perfect condition
05 o TL: ‫هذا المنتج قد غادر مستودعنا في حالة مثالية‬

o SL: The sight of those apples announced the re-opening of school

o TL : ‫كان منظرالدفاتر واألقالم والمحافظ المدرسية يشير إلى الدخول المدرسي‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 7. Translation by Adaptation ‫الترجمة باالقتباس أو التصرف‬
o SL: spring and March
02
o TL: ‫الربيع وآذار‬
03
o SL: Can I offer you a beer on terrace and then we will take the
04
stuff home?
05 o TL: ‫هل أجلب لك شرابا ثم نحمل حاجياتنا إلى البيت‬

o ST: I wish I could feed the fish, he thought. He is my brother

o TL: .‫ انها اختي‬.‫ ليتني أطعم السمكة‬:‫فكر‬
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION: THE BASICS
Translation Strategies
01 7. Transliteration

o Transliteratoin is a literal spelling of the English

02
proper name in Arabic letters as it is exactly
03 pronounced and vice versa with regard to
transliterating Arabic names in English, for
04 example: Bob- , ‫بوب‬Frank- , ‫فرنك‬Lucy- ‫لوسي‬and
‫عبد هللا‬Abdullah, ‫أحمد‬Ahmad, ‫علي‬Ali, respectively
05
 THANK YOU
INITIATION TO TRANSLATION
Translation Strategies/Procedures
PR. KHALID SAID