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Ethnography in Nguyen Van Huyen street, Cau Giay district, Hanoi for description and
analysis. From these sources, we will analyse and draw out the methods and techniques used
in the translation. Furthermore, some translators who have translated the labels, will also be
interviewed for more specific information about the translation.
V. DESIGN OF THE STUDY
This study consists of three major parts: Introduction, Development, and Conclusion; a
bibliography, and some photographs for illustration.
Part I - Introduction
The rationale of the study is given in this part. It also gives the aims, scope and methods of
the study.
Part II - Development
Chapter I - Literature review
This chapter provides the theory of translation, translation equivalence, translation strategies
and procedures.
Chapter II - The translation of exhibit labels in the Vietnam Museum of Ethnography
This chapter presents the current context of the translation of exhibit labels in VME; it also
deals with the methods and procedures used in the translation.
Part III – Conclusion
This part summarises all the things mentioned in chapter II and gives comments on the
suggestions for better translation and further research on the problem.
The appendix shows photographs for illustration.
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PART II – DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I – TRANSLATION THEORIES
I.1. Definition of translation
Translation has been approached from a scientific point of view by linguists through times
and thus has been defined variously. Many have concluded that translation is scarcely an
aspect of applied linguistics or it is just regarded as a complicated process of communicating,
in which one decodes from one language and encodes into another. Some others, who have
considered translation as something scientific, however, think of translation merely in terms
of complex techniques of comparative linguistics (Jumpet 1961, Carry and Jumpet, 1963). In
order to find an adequate definition of translation, prominent figures in linguistics such as
Cat Ford, Bell, Hatim & Mason, Nida, and many others have carried out careful analyses of
the process of translating, especially in the case of source and receptor languages having
quite different linguistic structures and cultural features.
We start with a definition quoted from the Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics
(1992:4739):
“Translation is the replacement of a text in one language (Source Language-SL) by an
equivalent text in another language (Target Language-TL).”
And it is then followed by the linguists’ definitions:
“Translation is the expression in another language of what has been expressed in another,
source language, preserving semantic and stylistic equivalences.”
Bell (1991:5)
“Translation is basically a change of form. In translation the form of the source language is
replaced by the form of the receptor (target) language.”
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Larson, M.L. (1984:3)
“Translation is a communicative process which takes place within a social context.”
Hatim & Mason (1990:3)
“Translating consists of producing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent to
the message of the source language, first in meaning and secondly in style.”
Nida, E.A. (1975:33)
These five definitions, in spite of slight differences in the expressions, share common
features that they all emphasize the importance of finding the closest equivalence in meaning
by the choice of appropriate target language’s lexical and grammatical structures,
communication situation, and cultural context. Through their definitions these scholars also
confirm the possibilities of effective interlingual communication by translation if a set of
basic requirements which are considered “Laws of Translation” could be achieved. Nida
(1964:164) proposes four major principles:
1. Making sense
2. Conveying the spirit and manner of the original
3. Having a natural and easy form of expression
4. Producing a similar response
Whereas Savory (1968:54) sets up twelve objectives for a translation:
1. A translation must give words of the original
2. A translation must give the idea of the original
3. A translation should read like an original work
4. A translation should read like a translation
5. A translation should reflect the style of the original
6. A translation should possess the style of the original
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7. A translation should read as a contemporary of the original
8. A translation should read as a contemporary of the translation
9. A translation may add to or omit from the original
10. A translation may never add to or omit from the original
11. A translation of verse should be in prose
12. A translation of prose should be in prose
Nida and Savory’s principles are different in number. However, they all pay their first
attention to correspondence of meaning over correspondence of style. And it is also
recognizable that equivalence in both meaning and style cannot always be retained
altogether. In concrete textual situation, it is the translator that decides which principles must
be achieved and it is the meaning that must have priority over the stylistic forms.
I.2. Translation equivalence
Equivalence can be considered a central concept in translation theory; many theorists define
translation in terms of equivalence relation. Pym (1992) has even pointed to its circularity:
equivalence is supposed to define translation, and translation, in turn, defines equivalence.
Here are some elaborate approaches to translation equivalence:
Nida 91964) distinguishes formal equivalence and dynamic translation as basic orientations
rather than as a binary choice:
+ Formal equivalence is achieved when the source language and target language words have
the closest possible match of form and content.
+ Dynamic equivalence is achieved when the source language and target language words
have the same effect on their effective readers
Newmark (1988a) terms Nida’s dynamic equivalence as ‘equivalence effect’ or ‘equivalence
response’ principle: “the overriding purpose of any translation should be to achieve
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‘equivalence effect’, that is to produce the same effect (or one as close as possible) on the
readership of the translation as was obtained on the readership of the original” (Newmark
1988a). He also sees equivalence effect as the desirable result rather than the aim of any
translation except for two cases: (1) if the purpose of the source language text is to affect and
the target language translation is to inform or vice versa; (2) if there is a pronounced cultural
gap between the source language and the target language text.
Koller (1979) considers five types of equivalence:
+ Denotative equivalence: the source language and target language words refer to the same
thing in the real world.
+ Connotative equivalence: provides additional values besides denotative and is achieved by
the translator’s choice of synonymous words or expressions.
+ Text-normative equivalence: the source language and target language words are used in the
same or similar context in their respective languages
+ Pragmatic equivalence: with readership orientation, the source language and target
language words have the same effect on their respective readers.
+ Formal equivalence: produces and analogy of form in the translation by either exploiting
formal possibilities of target language, or creating new forms in target language.
I.3. Non-equivalence at word level
According to Baker (1992:20), non-equivalence at word level means that the TG has no
direct equivalent for a word which occurs in the ST. The type and level of difficulty posed
can vary tremendously depending on the nature of non-equivalence. Different kinds of non-
equivalence require different strategies, some very straightforward, others more involved and
difficult to handle
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I.3.1. Different kinds of non-equivalence
(a) Culture-specific concepts
The SL word may express a concept which is totally unknown in the target culture. The
concept in question may be abstract or concrete; it may relate to a religious belief, a social
custom, or even a type of food. Such concepts are often referred to as ‘culture-specific’.
Speaker (of the House of Commons) has no equivalent in many languages. It is often
translated into Russian as ‘Chairman’, which does not reflect the role of the speaker of the
House of Commons as an independent person who maintains authority and order in
Parliament.
(b) The SL concept is not lexicalised in the TL
The SL word may express a concept which is known in the target culture but simply not
lexicalised, i.e. not allocated a TL word to express it. Landslide has no ready equivalence in
many languages, although it simply means ‘overwhelming majority’.
(c) The SL word is semantically complex
This is a fairly common problem in translation. A single word which consists of a single
morpheme can sometimes express a more complex set of meanings than a whole sentence.
(d) The SL and TL make different distinctions in meaning
The TL may make more or fewer distinctions in meaning than the SL. What one language
regards as an important distinction in meaning another may not perceive as relevant.
(e) The TL lacks a superordinate
The TL may have specific words (hyponyms) but no general word (superordinate) to head
the semantic field.
(f) The TL lacks a specific term (hyponym)
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More commonly, languages tend to have general words but lack specific ones, since each
language makes only those distinctions in meaning which seem relevant to its particular
environment. English has many hyponyms under article for which it is difficult to find
precise equivalents in other languages, for example feature, survey, report, review and many
more.
(g) Differences in physical or interpersonal perspective
Physical perspective may be of more importance in one language than it is in another.
Physical perspective has to do with where things or people are in relation to one another or to
a place, as expressed in pairs of words such as come/go, take/bring.
(h) Differences in expressive meaning
There may be a TL word which has the same propositional meaning as the SL word, but it
may have a different expressive meaning. The difference may be considerable or it may be
subtle but important enough to pose a translation problem in a given context. Differences in
expressive meaning are usually more difficult to handle when the TL equivalent is more
emotionally loaded than the SL item. This is often the case with items which relate to
sensitive issues such as religion, politics and sex.
(i) Differences in form
There is often no equivalent in the TL for a particular form in the source text. Certain
suffixes and prefixes which convey propositional and other types of meaning in English
often have no direct equivalents in other languages. English has many couplets such as
employer/employee, trainer/trainee, and payer/payee.
(j) Differences in frequency and purpose of using specific forms
Even when a particular form does have a ready equivalent in the TL, there may be a
difference in the frequency with which it is used or the purpose for which it is used. English
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uses the continuous –ing form for binding clauses much more frequently than other
languages which have equivalents for it.
(k) The use of loan words in the source text
The use of loan words in the ST poses a special problem in translation. Quite apart from their
respective propositional meaning, loan words such as au fait, chic in English are often used
for their prestige value, because they can add an air of sophistication to the text or its subject
matter. This is often lost in translation because it is not always possible to find a loan word
with the same meaning in the TL.
I.3.2. Strategies used by professional translators
(a) Translation by a more general word (superordinate)
This is one of the commonest strategies for dealing with many types of non-equivalence,
particularly in the area of propositional meaning. It works equally well in most, if not all,
languages, since the hierarchical structure of semantic fields is not language-specific.
(b) Translation by a more neutral /less expressive word
Baker (1992:29) gives an example to illustrate this.
Source text: the shamanic practices we have investigated are rightly seen as an archaic
mysticism.
Target text (back-translated from Japanese): the shamanic behaviour which we have been
researching should rightly be considered as ancient mysticism.
The translator could have used a Japanese phrase which means ‘behind the times’ and which
would have been closer to both the propositional and expressive meanings of archaic. This,
however, would have been too direct, that is too openly disapproving by Japanese standards.
The expressive meaning of archaic is lost in the translation.
(c) Translation by cultural substitution
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This strategy involves replacing a culture-specific item or expression with a target-language
item which does not have the same propositional meaning but is likely to have a similar
impact on the target reader. The main advantage of this strategy is that it gives the reader a
concept with he/she can identify, something familiar and appealing.
E.g. Source text: The Patrick Collection has restaurant facilities to suit every taste – from the
discerning gourmet, to the Cream Tea expert.
Target text (back translated from Italian): to satisfy all tastes: from those of the demanding
gastronomist to those of the expert in pastry.
In Britain, ‘cream tea’ is ‘an afternoon meal consisting of tea to drink and scones with jam
and clotted cream to eat. It can also include sandwiches and cakes. ‘Cream tea’ has no
equivalent in other cultures. The Italian replaced it with ‘pastry’, which does not have the
same meaning. However, ‘pastry’ is familiar to the Italian reader and therefore provides a
good cultural substitute.
(d) Translation using a loan word or loan word plus explanation
This strategy is particularly common in dealing with culture-specific items, modern
concepts, and buzz words. Following the loan word with an explanation is very useful when
the word in question is repeated several times in the text. Once explained, the loan word can
be used on its own; the reader can understand it and is not distracted by further lengthy
explanations
E.g. Source text: Morning coffee and traditional cream teas are served in the conservatory.
Target text (back-translated from Japanese): Morning coffee and traditional afternoon tea
and cream cakes can be enjoyed in the conservatory (green house)
The underlined word in the ST is used as loan words in the Japanese text, not because they
have no equivalents in Japanese but because they sound more modern, smart, high class.
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(e) Translation by paraphrase using a related word
This strategy tends to be used when the concept expressed by the source item is lexicalised
in the TL but in a different form, and when the frequency with which a certain form is used
in the source text is significantly higher than would be natural in the TL.
E.g. Source text: There is strong evidence, however that giant pandas are related to the bears.
Target text (back-translated from Chinese): but there is rather strong evidence that shows
that big pandas have a kinship relation with the bears.
(f) Translation by paraphrase using unrelated words
If the concepts expressed by the source item is not lexicalised at all in the TL, the paraphrase
strategy can still be used in some contexts. Instead of a related word, the paraphrase may be
based on modifying a superordinate or simply on unpacking the meaning of the source item,
particularly if the item in question is semantically complex.
E.g. Source text: ….the lower mixed broadleaf forests….are the areas most assessible to and
disturbed by Man.
Target text (back-translated from Chinese): …the mixed broadleaf forests of the lowland
area …are the places where human beings enter most easily and interfere most.
The main advantage of the paraphrase strategy is that it achieves a high level of precision in
specifying propositional meaning. One of its disadvantages is that a paraphrases does not
have the status of a lexical item and therefore cannot convey expressive, evoked, or any kind
of associated meaning. Another advantage of using this strategy is that it is cumbersome and
awkward to use because it involves filling a one-item slot with an explanation consisting of
several items.
(g) Translation by omission
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