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Between English and Arabic
Between English and Arabic:

A Practical Course in Translation
By
Bahaa-eddin Abulhassan Hassan
Between English and Arabic: A Practical Course in Translation,

by Bahaa-eddin Abulhassan Hassan
This book first published 2014
Cambridge Scholars Publishing
12 Back Chapman Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2XX, UK
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Copyright 2014 by Bahaa-eddin Abulhassan Hassan
All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner.
ISBN (10): 1-4438-5821-8, ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-5821-2
To my family
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface ........................................................................................................ ix
List of Abbreviations .................................................................................. xi
List of Figures........................................................................................... xiii
Chapter One ................................................................................................. 1
Nature of Translation
1.1 Knowledge
1.2 Decision Makers
1.3 Translation as Rewriting
1.4 Criteria for a Good Translation
1.5 Three Steps for Novice Translators
1.6 Translation Problems
1.7 Translation Shifts
1.8 Possible Strategies in Translation
1.9 Contrastive Linguistics in Translation
Chapter Two .............................................................................................. 23
Meaning-based Issues in Translation
2.1 Changes in Meaning
2.2 Types of Lexical Meanings
2.3 Problems Related to Lexical Items
2.4 Translating Metaphors
2.5 Translating Proverbs
2.6 Case Grammar in Translation
2.7 Culture
Chapter Three ............................................................................................ 55
Grammatical Issues in Translation
3.1 Morphological Level
3.2 Syntactic Level
3.3 Cohesion and Coherence
3.4 Register and Style
3.5 Sentential Issues in Translation
viii
Table of Contents
Chapter Four .............................................................................................. 77

Phonological Issues in Translation
4.1 Two Different Sound Systems
4.2 Phonic Issues in Translation
4.3 Graphical Issues in Translation
Chapter Five .............................................................................................. 85
Editing and Proofreading
5.1 What is Editing?
5.2 What is Proofreading?
5.3 Bad Translations
5.4 Good Transposition
5.5 Rubric for Grading a Translation
5.6 Translated Texts for Assessment
Chapter Six ............................................................................................. 113
Suggested Questions
References .............................................................................................. 117
Index ........................................................................................................ 121
PREFACE
This book does not attempt a new theory of translation, but rather an
introductory course for students of translation. It is designed to improve
understanding of translation between Arabic and English. The book draws
upon contrastive linguistics. Contrastive linguistics is a linguistic study of
two languages, aiming to identify differences between them. Contrastive
linguistics is a relatively modern discipline which began to develop in the
1930s, and the American linguist Benjamin Lee Whorf (1941: 240)
foresaw its place as a successor to the comparative study of languages.
There is still an interest in contrastive linguistics because it is
theoretical and descriptive. Translators transfer meaning between two
different languages. One could therefore avoid problems of translation
through a prior contrastive analysis in the two languages. It is probably
most useful in pointing out areas where direct translation of a term or
phrase will not convey accurately in the target language the intended
meaning of the first. At the macro-level, it leads the translator to look at
broader issues such as whether the structure of the discourse for a given
text-type is the same in both languages. Furthermore, although contrastive
linguistics is commonly used, there are some theoretical and practical
problems in its application. The solution lies in identifying a common
ground for comparison, comparing features of different languages, taking
account of socio-cultural factors, and taking account of extra-textual and
inter-textual factors. We have to take into consideration that the two
languages must have some common measure or ground by which they can
be compared; otherwise the contrastive task is not possible, a constant that
underlies and makes possible the variables that are identified; this is
known as the tertium comparationis (TC). Firstly, a particular grammatical
structure in one language may be a requirement while in another it may be
one choice amongst several; secondly, the choice which is represented by
a grammatical structure in one language may have a different significance
in that language from the choice represented by an apparently equivalent
structure in another language; thirdly, a particular structure in one
language may be unmarked while in another it may be marked. A pair of
sentences might be semantically and/or pragmatically equivalent but have
widely varying likelihoods of occurrence in the languages from which they
are drawn.
Preface
Contrastive linguistics deals with systems rather than their users.

Consequently it seems to be relevant to translations as products rather than
to the process of translating - which many current translation specialists
(e.g. Hatim and Mason 1990; Bell 1991) see as central to an adequate
theory of translation. With regard to the conflict between product-oriented
approach or process-orientated approach, we can consider that while
contrastive linguistics focuses on the finished text - the product, it does
not, cannot, ignore the process of translating. Contrastive analysis can
shed light on translation strategies in different languages. Hatim and
Mason (ibid.), for example, analyze co-reference strategies in French and
English and text-signaling strategies in Arabic and English in order to
account for translators' decisions.
This book is divided into six chapters. The first chapter is a short
introduction to translation. It is a summary of possible strategies in
translation. Chapter two tackles meaning-based issues in translation.
Chapter three describes grammatical issues in translation. Chapter four
touches upon phonological issues in translation. Chapter five deals with
the process of editing and proofreading a translation. Chapter six gives
suggested questions about the course.
Finally, I am aware that such a book has its limitations, and I hope that
the selection of topics will prove an interesting introduction to students of
translation studies. I also hope that this book may whet the reader's
appetite and encourage him/her to read further.
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
SL
source language
TL
target language
SLT
source language text
TLT
target language text
LIST OF FIGURES
Fig 1-1 Overview of the Translation Task ................................................... 4

Fig 1-2 KFC logo....................................................................................... 21
Fig 2-1 Hair styles ..................................................................................... 37
CHAPTER ONE
NATURE OF TRANSLATION
Translation is the interpretation of a source text meaning and the

production of an equivalent text meaning in another language. Translation
is a process that deals with meaning across language barriers. Throughout
its long history, translation has never enjoyed the kind of recognition and
respect that other professions enjoy. Translators have constantly
complained that translation is underestimated as a profession (Baker
1992:2).
In its nature, translation is a science, an art, and a skill. It is a science in
the sense that it necessitates complete knowledge of the structure of the
two languages concerned. It is an art since it requires artistic talent to
reconstruct the original text. It is also a skill because it entails the ability to
smooth over any difficulty in the process of translation.
1.1 Knowledge
The most important task for translation lies in the preservation of
meaning across two different languages (House, 1977: 25). Scholars
like Nida have been trying to deal with translation as a principled science,
due to the nature of human languages and linguistics. Newmark (1981: 19)
believes that translation theory is neither a theory nor a science, but the
body of knowledge that we have, and have still to have about the process
of translating. As Newmark argues, with more knowledge about the
process of translation and more research about meaning across cultures,
we enrich our knowledge about the process of translation to make it more
adequate in transferring texts across languages. The translator should have:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Target language (TL) knowledge

Source language (SL) knowledge
Text type knowledge
Subject area (real world) knowledge.
Contrastive knowledge.
Chapter One
Moreover, a fully competent translator isnt only bilingual, but also

bicultural.
1.2 Decision Makers

The work of the translator is nothing but taking decisions. Decision
making can be seen as the cognitive process which results in the selection
of a translation strategy among several alternative strategies. A final
choice is produced within every decision making process. A translator has
to deal with:
1) The purpose of the original (how to express it through the available
content),
2) The thematic structure,
3) And the style of the original.
1.3 Translation as Rewriting

Some scholars view a translator as a writer who writes the authors
original message in another language. The only difference between
her/him and the original writer is that these ideas are the latters. Another
difference is that the job of the translator is even more difficult than that of
the original writer. The writer is supposed to produce directly his/her ideas
and emotions in his/her own language however intricate and complicated
his/her thoughts are. The translators responsibility is more difficult, for
s/he has to reproduce the experiences of a different person. Chabban
(1984) believes that, however accurately the translator may search into the
inner depths of the writers mind, the two texts cannot be fully equivalent.
1.4 Criteria for a Good Translation

A good translation is one that carries all the ideas of the original as
well as its structural and cultural features. A good translation is easily
understood as fluent and smooth and idiomatic. A good translation
conveys, to some extent, the literary subtleties of the original. It
reconstructs the cultural/historical context of the original. It should capture
the style or atmosphere of the original text. The best translations are
produced by persons who are translating into their native language.
1.5 Three Steps for Novice Translators

The present book shows three main steps for any translator who begins
his/her work in the field of translation: analysis of the syntactic and
semantic structures of the SL text; transfer from the SL to the TL; and
restructuring the underlying form of the transferred text. Nida (1984:
99) maintains that the translator is working at all three levels at the same
time so that s/he would be able to get both the underlying and the surface
meanings of the text. This is especially important when there are rhetorical
functions involved. McGuire (1980: 80) emphasizes a similar method to
Nidas suggesting that the translator ... first reads/translates in the SL and
then, through a further process of decoding, translates the text into the TL
language. Mental processing in the phase of decoding is of a semantic
nature when the translator identifies the relevant areas within the semantic
field of any single word or sentence; and it is of a pragmatic nature when
he or she deals with the logical match of the possible meanings with the
general context and the co-text. In contrast, mental processing is of a
syntactic nature when he or she tries to reconstruct the possible structure
of the sentence, i.e. the relations within its elements.
1.5.1 Analysis
The first phase of the translation process consists of reading the text.
The reading act, first, falls under the competence of psychology, because it
concerns our perception. When a person reads, his brain deals with many
functions in such rapid sequences that everything seems to be happening
simultaneously. Simply reading a text is, in itself, an act of translation.
Novice translators as well as student translators are advised to master the
basic reading comprehension skills. They should read for gist and main
ideas, read for details and identify the meaning of new words and
expressions using one or more components of the structural analysis
clause; prefixes, suffixes, roots, word order, punctuation, sentence pattern,
etc. They should identify the writers style: literary, scientific, technical,
informative, persuasive, argumentative, etc. They should also identify the
language level used in the text: standard, slang, etc.
A. Depth of the Analysis
The translator should be concerned with how deep he should go in the
analysis of the SL structure. From a theoretical standpoint, the translator is
advised to go to the deepest abstract meanings of structures to be able to
obtain the propositions. He should go into the deep structures of texts.
Chapter One
Larson (1984: 4) presents the following diagram to explain the translation

task.
Fig. 1-1 Overview of the Translation Task
Nida (1984: 99) shows that a procedure in which surface and deeper
structures are considered is only adequate at individual clauses and even
complex sentences, but if the depth of the analysis of structures is
extended to cover the text at paragraph level or more, it will be simply
inadequate and misleading. To avoid such problems, the translator has to
start with the surface meaning then go deeper until all its components are
found and adequately identified. Any level in language has its own
significance because it plays a role in the total meaning.
B. The Basic Unit for Analysis
Translators are advised to have a comprehensive idea about the work
they are dealing with. Therefore, they should acquaint themselves with the
whole text prior to analysis (de Waard & Nida, 1986: 53) and, basically,
consider it all when they start the process of translation. Much debate
among translation scholars is on the unit of translation. Should it be
defined structurally, for instance a word, a phrase, or a clause; or
semantically, for instance a proposition, an idea-unit, or a sense-unit? In
general, the clause is the most acceptable form to be selected by linguists
as translation unit, because events are mostly represented at clause level,
and because the differences between languages appear at the lower levels
(Catford 1965, Toury 1986 cited in Malmkjr 2001: 286). Moreover, it is

the smallest linguistic structure containing propositions (Isham and Lane
1993 cited in Malmkjr 2001: 286). Bell (1991) presents psychological
and linguistic evidence to prove that the clause is the smallest segment
which can be translated. However, other units can be more suitable in
other situations (Enkvist 1991: 7; Newmark 1982: 30). The unit of
translation is different from the translation equivalent. Equivalence can be
established between the source and target texts at one level or a number of
levels (of sound, structure, meaning, genre, text, discourse, function)
(Malmkjr 2001: 287).
In fact, translation units in the SLT may differ from those in the TLT.
An SL word should not necessarily be translated by one word in the TL
(Newmark 1982: 30; Enkvist 1991: 7). According to Malmkjr, the
target texts in which the units are larger appear more acceptable than
those in which the units are smaller (2001: 286). El-Ezabi (1990)
considers the communicative message to be the unit of translation. Thus,
any stretch of the text that carries a communicative message should be a
unit for translating. The study agrees with this choice since it clearly goes
in accordance with the shifts that may occur in the process of translation.
Since main ideas are expressed in paragraphs, Nida (1984:100) makes
it even more specific suggesting that the best unit for analysis is the
paragraph. The trend in translation known as text linguistics has made a
shift from the domain of individual sentences for semantic as well as
syntactic analysis to the domain of the text. Wilss (1982:112) says that
Translation, therefore, is text-oriented. Enkvist (1978:170) emphasizes
the significance of this shift:
The common creed of all these sects of embedded in the text linguistics is
that even though the syntactic units of a language function within the
clause and the sentence, the unit of communication is the discourse or the
text. We do not normally communicate with single sentences out of
context. A one-sentence text is a special case, a minimum. Rather we
communicate with the aid of strings of sentences. And these strings reveal
certain structural, linguistically describable patterns which go beyond the
confines of the clause and the sentence. This can be readily tested, because
our linguistic intuitions can distinguish a well-formed, coherent text from
an incoherent, random string of sentences.
1.5.2 Transfer of Meaning into the TL

Languages utilize their components in different manners to compose
texts. The situation is even made more difficult when cultural factors are
Chapter One
involved in the transfer process. It is noted earlier that cultural elements

are more resistant to translation than linguistic ones. The strenuous task of
the translator, then, starts at this stage. The translator has to sense the
cultural elements embedded in the text and consider them in the transfer.
Nida (1984:119) comes to a definition of translation after discussing the
transfer stage as:
Translation consists in the reproduction in the receptors language of the
message of the source language in such a way that the receptors in the
receptors language may be able to understand adequately how the original
receptors in the source language understood the original message.
Nida realizes the importance of this stage. He emphasizes avoiding formal

correspondences from one language to another and focusing instead on the
function. One may wonder at what level the translator should transfer the
meaning of the SL into the TL. Nida (1984, 1969) suggests that the
transfer occurs at the underlying level (i.e., the kernel level of structure).
To Nida & Taber (1982: 39) the idea is that languages agree far more on
the level of the kernels than on the level of the more elaborate structures.
Many approaches in translation have been proposed. Most of these
approaches are used to improve the quality of translation, both as a process
and as a product. One of these approaches is called the sociosemiotic
approach to translation. It provides a systematic procedure to determine
the meaning of the message. The theoretical basis for the sociosemiotic
approach is based on Hallidays sociosemiotic theory of language. He
emphasizes the unity of the text (language), context (linguistic or nonlinguistic), and social structure and advocates that language is a unique
system of signs with a social function, capable of expressing the meaning
of all the other sign systems. However, Peter Newmarks classification of
the functions of language into expressive function, informative function,
vocative function, aesthetic function, phatic function and metalingual
function is much superior to Hallidays classification into ideational
function, interpersonal function and textual function. The core of this
approach is Charles Morriss semiotic approach to meaning. He treats a
sign as a tripartite entity and classifies meaning in three dimensions of
semantics, syntax and pragmatics, namely designative/referential meaning,
linguistic meaning and pragmatic/associative meaning. The most
significant part of this approach is that social semiotics does not just
concern itself with what people say and do and how they do it; it also
focuses on when (in what context) and why, i.e. the large-scale social
consequences of such words and actions. Lexical items carry designative
(unmarked) and associative (marked) meanings. The distinctive features of
each of any involved lexical items must be defined with regard to its
context. The advocates of the sociosemiotic approach also assume that
syntactic structures have designative as well as associative meanings. The
setting is an important concept because it might be the only factor to clear
out an ambiguity in a certain message. The setting in this sense is parallel
to the cultural factors in revealing important information about a certain
message or part of it. It helps to show under what circumstances the
translated text was composed and when.
Nida (1984: 3) says that the verbal message is accompanied by a nonverbal message which is of two types:
1. Paralinguistic: intonation, quality of voice.
2. Extra-linguistic: gestures, hand movements.
The paralinguistic features may change the normal designative and
associative meanings of the oral message. So these non-verbal messages
are sometimes more important than the verbal message. Printed material
also has similar significant features such as orthography (certain type of
spelling (American/ British), form of type, page format, kind of paper,
binding).
Elements of the SL message include rhetorical features. The rhetorical
meaning is achieved by certain patterns of selection (at the level of
contrasting similar sounds or major themes) and arrangement (words in
simple clauses or large units). The author may make changes in the natural
syntactic order to call the attention of the receptors, or for emphasis.
Rhetorical structures are higher than the syntactic ones because the former
are more inclusive than the latter, rhetorical structures start when syntactic
ones stop. Repetition, rhythmic features, and novelty are also rhetorical
features. The major functions of rhetoric are:
1. Wholeness: Wholeness involves two elements.
a. Completeness in the sense that the text has everything related to its
purpose. De Waard and Nida (1986) suggest that shared backgrounds do
not need to be included in the translation.
b. Unity which is the manner in which the parts of the text are arranged
together.
2. The aesthetic appeal
This feature depends, to a certain extent, on the use of rhetorical
devices such as repetition, shifts in order, figurative language, irony,
rhythm and so on. The translator has to determine the function of the
repetition and find the functional equivalence in the TL. Because in natural
Chapter One
languages sound and meaning correspondences are arbitrary, repeated

sound effects are almost always lost in translation. Notice the repetition in
the following Arabic saying:

3. Appropriateness
It is the choice of language form for a certain theme, e.g., a soft poetic
language for love, and naturalness or a slang for down-to-earth life.
4. Coherence
The harmony between the text and the world of the receptors; the
translation should not look odd to them to have a successful
communication.
5. Progression and Cohesion
Progression is how a text progresses from stage to stage. Cohesion is
how the parts of a text are connected to each other.
6. Focus, which involves these relationships:
a. Foregrounding and back-grounding,
b. New and old information,
c. Theme and rheme
1.5.3 Recomposition
The role of the translator at this level is to change the level of the text
from the kernel to a normal text in the TL. S/he transforms the text from
its underlying level (transfer stage) to text composition. At this stage the
translator uses his/her skill and theoretical knowledge. The translator
should know how the TL employs its vocabulary to form natural
appropriate sentences. A natural structure in the TL does not mean that it
should be grammatical only, but also it should not look strange to the
receptors (even if it is grammatical). Nida (1984: 104) discusses the
translators ability to render natural translation:
A person, for example, may speak a foreign language without grammatical
error, but the combinations of words, though intelligible, may still seem
unnatural or at least the range of attribution may be highly irregular.
In addition, the translator should be aware of the cultural factors in both

languages. Rhetorical as well as stylistic features must be considered in the
reconstruction process according to the rules and style of the TL. But there
are instances where there are no functional equivalences of certain
linguistic and/or cultural elements of the SL in the TL. At this point, the
role of the translator is to do his best to compensate for the losses

according to the structure of the TL. If that is not possible, then he should
point that out in a footnote to the reader.
Receptors play a crucial role in any communication. No analysis of
communication can be complete without a thorough study of the role of
receptors of a message (Nida & Reyburn, 1981: 9). In the case of
translation, one basic criterion to decide the correctness of a translated text
is to know who the receptors are. The translator should make sure to
whom he is translating in terms of social class, education, interests,
attitudes, economical status, background, etc. Nida rejects the idea that
receptors play only a passive role in the process of any communication.
The interaction between the translator, by means of the translated text, and
the receptors determines to what extent the transfer of the message is
successful. If the translator transmits his message at a wave length that
the receptors cannot receive, there will be a bad or no communication. De
Waard & Nida (1986: 70) argue that individuals have quite different
interpretations of verbal signs on the higher levels of mental operation
because these signs must pass through so many neural grids, both personal
and cultural. The receptors are the most reliable and effective means to test
the translation. The kind of response to the translated message is an
indicator to how successful it is. The feedback is important to the
translator for any corrections to the translation.
The receptors of the message should be psychologically aware of both
meanings. The impact of the figurative language depends on the novelty of
the figurative meaning. The figurative meaning depends on the actual
settings in the SL. Therefore, if these settings cannot be created in the TL,
the translator has to explain that to its speakers. Notice how the word
is translated in the following sentences in the short story
by the Syrian writer (Dickins et al 2002: 27).
: .
Ibrahim lifted the veil away from her beautiful shiny face and
dark eyes. Fawaz gasped with amazement and delight.
If the word is translated literally, it will mean pale or scared.
White is not the right word to use in this context. One rarely refers to
skin as being a certain color. In modern spoken English the idiom old ball
and chain refers to a mans wife or girlfriend. It doesnt sound very nice,
but its kind of true and funny at the same time. If a woman controls her
husband or boyfriend and doesnt give him much freedom, the guys male
friends will laugh at him and call her an old ball and chain. This
10
Chapter One
figurative meaning can be rendered in Egyptian Arabic as

because it gives the same meaning in similar situations.
1.6 Translation Problems

Translation problems can be divided into linguistic problems and
culture problems: the linguistic problems include lexicon, morphology,
syntax, textual differences, rhetorical differences, and pragmatic factors.
Much work has been done on the problems of translation between
individual languages. The most intensive work has been conducted by
Nida (1983), (1984), Nida & Taber (1969), de Waard & Nida (1986),
Newmark (1981), and others. All these works concentrate on building up a
theoretical frame work for translation. R. Jakobson stresses that
translation involves two equivalent messages in two different codes.
Dangers in the process of translation involve:
1) Staying too close to the original, at the cost of taste and the target
language.
2) Adhering too closely to the characteristics peculiar to the target
culture, at the cost of the original.
1.7 Translation Shifts

Shifts in expectancy play a great role in the amount of impact of the
message on the audience. Nida and others (1983: 36) maintain:
... shifts involve an increase in markedness. The tension which is
introduced in such shifts between the normal and the non-normal, between
the usual and the unusual, between the expected and the unexpected,
accounts for the significantly greater impact involved in such shifts.
Types of shifts include shifts from syntactic norms or word order: Words,
sentences, phrases are put in an unusual order for highlighting and impact.
Irony is considered shift in meaning caused by the use of words to express
an idea that is opposite to the literal meaning of the employed words. That
is to say that there is a contradiction between the designative meaning and
the associative meaning of a given expression. Figurative language is an
important kind of shift; it is important for impact, aesthetic appeal, and
new insights. For example the word fox is an animal as its actual
meaning. But if a person is referred to by saying this word, then it has a
different, figurative, meaning which is cunning.
11
Equivalence is the relationship between the ST and the TT. Its main
goal is to produce a text in the TL that will have the same effect as the
original text had on the receivers belonging to the SL culture. Formal
equivalence is the rigid adherence to the form of the original language. On
the contrary, dynamic equivalence is the complete disregard for the form
(not the message) of the original language. In fact, there are no complete
or full equivalent texts. The concept of equivalence is relative because of
linguistic and cultural differences.
Catford explores translation shifts which can be noticed in the process
of translating:
1) Structure shifts: grammatical change between the structure of the
ST and that of the TT (e.g. clause structure-questions, articles).
2) Class shifts: when a SL item is translated with a TL item which
belongs to a different grammatical class (verb noun) e.g.,
softly foaming facial wash
grazing grounds
Elham let out a joyous, shy laugh
Some words belong to different classes go as a verb is different from go
as a noun:
a go of brandy
full of go
it is a go
no go
on the go
The word feel is sometimes used as a noun:
I know that feel
Very turning feel
3) Unit shifts: Changes in rank (phrase word/clause).
4) Intra-system shifts: when translation involves selection of a noncorresponding term in the TL system (SL plural TL singular)
e.g.,

The minister states that his country is safe
The notion of translation shifts is based on the distinction between formal
correspondence and textual equivalence. Textual equivalence means that
Chapter One
12
the ultimate aim of the translator is equivalence at text level. Text is a

meaning unit, not a form unit (Baker 1992: 6). It communicates the overall
meaning. A student of translation (a novice translator) cannot understand
translation strategies at text level without getting familiar with the lower
levels: (word, phrases and grammatical structure). At lower levels
translation problems can be classified into:
1)
2)
3)
4)
phonological
morphological
syntactic
semantic (lexical)
1.8 Possible Strategies in Translation

Literal and free translation can be considered as two basic skills in
practice. Literal translation is designed to translate the original text
adequately, keeping the original message form, structure, including the
word order, image used in metaphor and so on, unchanged. Free
translation aims at an accurate representation of the original texts, paying
little attention to the form and structure, also it must result in a version
fluent and natural. But free translation does not mean to delete or add
anything unnecessary to the original. Translations are measured according
to degrees of freedom between the two extremes of literal and free
translation. The degrees of freedom are infinitely variable. Literal
translation is said to have bias to the source language and free translation
is said to have bias to the target language.
An example of free translation is communicative Translation. A
communicative translation is produced, when, in a given situation, the ST
uses an SL expression standard for the situation, and the TT uses a TL
expression standard for an equivalent target culture situation. This is true
of very many culturally conventional formulae that do not invite literal
meaning (Dickins et al 2002: 17)
No smoking
Dont mention it.
A good example of communicative translation is provided by the fact
that the Standard English equivalent of is riot police
(rather than anti-riot police, or riot combat police, etc.). Examples of
communicative translation can be seen in religious formulae such as
which can be translated as nice hair cut. The translation of the expression
13
depends on its meaning in the situation. It can mean I hope or

I promise or I am not sure.
Literal
SL bias
Free
TL bias
y
Literal: What passed died
Free: Let bygones be bygones

Literal: A day for you, a day against you
Free: You win some, you lose some
On the scale between free translation and idiomatic translation is

idiomatic translation. It uses a fixed figurative expression whose
meaning cannot be deduced from the denotative meanings of the words
that make it up (Dickins et al 2002:18).

It is not my cup of tea
Consider the different translations for the following sentence. They
range from literal to free translations.
Chapter One
14

Literal
The likes of these things have much demand now.
Faithful
Things like these are in great demand now.
Balanced
This kind of things in great demand at the moment.
Idiomatic
This type is all the rage.
Free
This ones dead trendy.
Nidas theory of translation is characterized by the distinction between two

types of equivalence: formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence. For
formal equivalence, the translator focuses on the message itself, that is, its
form and content, and there should be a close similarity between the ST
and the TT message (Nida, 1964).
Forbidden is the entrance
with the well-being
Concerning dynamic equivalence, Nida mentions that this type is based on
the principle of equivalent effect, in which the relationship between
receptor and message should be substantially the same as that which
existed between the original receptor and the message (Nida 1964: 159).
no entry
goodbye
According to Nida (1964:159), the relation between receptor and message
should be substantially the same as that which existed between the original
receptors and the message. Communicative translation may be said to be
an example of dynamic equivalence. However, in all cases translation loss
is inevitable.
Incomplete replication of the ST in the TT that is, the inevitable loss of
textually and culturally relevant features There is translation loss even at
the most elementary level For instance, in most contexts and cow
will be synonyms But and cow clearly sound different: there is
significant translation loss on the phonic and prosodic levels But if the
ST word is part of an alliterative pattern in a literary text, or, worse, if it
rhymes, the loss could be crucial. (Dickins et al 2002: 21)
Professional translators use a list of translation strategies in order to cope
15
with the lexical and syntactical differences between Source Language and
Target Language.
1.8.1 Addition
It is translation strategy in which something is added to the TT which
is not present in the ST. Notice how the following underlined words in the
translation of Naguib Mahfouzs Trilogy are enriched in the TT.

Ive decided to perfect my religious observance by marrying.
.. :
Immediately afterwards you would have liked to echo the Prophets
words when he would feel a revelation coming and cry out for help:
Wrap me up! Cover me with my cloak!
!
Anyone hearing her complain about me in the store under such
adverse conditions would have thought I was a cold-blooded killer like
those dreadful women in Alexandria: Rayya and Sakina.

plus five-like the five fingers of the prophets granddaughter Fatima
held up to ward off the evil of infidels
Addition is used in explanatory translation of poetry.

When a mans honor is not defiled
By base deeds and villainy, then
Whatever dress he wears is beautiful
(For, the most important thing in man
I his honor and not his appearance)
******
If you do a favor for a good man,
He will always be grateful
(to you and never forget your kindness)
But if you do a favor to a villain
(he will think that you are weak and will not
Respect you)
16
Chapter One
1.8.2 Omission
This strategy may sound rather drastic, but it does no harm to omit
translating a word or expression in some contexts, if the meaning
conveyed by a particular item or expression is not vital enough to the
development of the text. Omission can occur for many legitimate reasons:
A- Background information is sometimes not translated: Arabic for
example uses different patterns of cohesion. Arabic radio
broadcasts usually use of the phrase .... or as a
signal in Arabic that what comes next is background information to
the main argument (Cf. Hatim 1997: 67-74). Thus, such phrases are
not expected to be translated in an English TT.
B- Another occasion for omission is when the information conveyed
is not particularly important (Dickins et al 2002: 23).

Two days ago, the American President, Bill Clinton confirmed.
Unlike Arabic, English does not afford the concept two days ago
in the evening.
C- Cultural differences provide another area in which simple omission
may be a reasonable strategy. The ST word in the
following example is better omitted because Western readers would
be unaware of any Popes other than the Catholic one.

Pope John-Paul II
1.8.3 Using General Words

This is one of the most common strategies for dealing with many types
of non-equivalence. It depends on the semantic notion superordinate, e.g.
Shampoo the hair with a mild WELLA-SHAMPOO

Snow
17
1.8.4 Paraphrase Using a Related Word

The word , for example, is either translated as halal or
paraphrased as slaughtered by hand with a sharp knife as per Islamic
rules.
Sweets shredded pasta bars
1.8.5 Cultural Transposition

Cultural transposition: any departure from literal translation that
involves replacing SL-specific features with TL-specific features, thereby
to some extent reducing the foreignness of the TT (2002: 29). According
to Dickins and others (2002: 29), the various degrees of cultural
transposition can be visualized as points along a scale between the
extremes of exoticism and cultural transplantation. It ranges between
exoticizing and naturalizing the text.
SL bias
Unidiomatic/strange
ness
Exoticism & calque
Cultural
borrowing
Communicative
translation
TL bias
Idiomatic/
familiarity
Cultural
transplantation
A- Exoticism
It is the use of ST features in the target text. The extreme options in
signaling cultural foreignness in a TT fall into the category of exoticism. A
TT marked by exoticism is one which constantly uses grammatical and
cultural features imported from the ST with minimal adaptation, and
which thereby constantly signals the exotic source culture and its cultural
strangeness (2002: 29-30).

Peace be upon you
B- Calque
Calque is an expression that consists of TL words and respects TL
18
Chapter One
syntax, but is unidiomatic in the TL because it is modeled on the structure

of an SL expression (2002: 31).
Play a role
Open fire
Cover news

It increased the clay moistness

The army strengthens its existence in the area
Eco-friendly
The following translations are idiomatic.
Play a role
Open fire
Cover news

Things have gone from bad to worse

The army bolster in the area
Eco-friendly
C- Cultural Borrowing
It means taking over an SL expression verbatim from the ST into the
TT; the borrowed term may remain unaltered in form, or it may undergo
some degree of transliteration. Cultural borrowing differs from calque and
exoticism, which do not use the ST expression verbatim, but adapt it into
the TL, however minimally.
19
Fatwa
Using a loan word sometimes requires explanation (cf. Baker 1992):
For maximum effect, cover the hair with a plastic cap or towel

D-Cultural Transplantation
It is the highest degree of cultural transposition, involving the
wholesale deletion of source-culture details mentioned in the ST and their
replacement with target-culture details in the TT.
Romeo and Juliet
touch wood
Cassandra
penny
Notice how some concepts in Shakespeares King Henry VI are translated
in Arabic.
York: Thy hand is made to grasp a palmers staff. (KH VI, V, 1, 97)
:
The expression ( ) is quoted from Islamic mysticism. In the
following example the term Elysium refers to Greek paradise.
Richard: How sweet a thing it is to wear a crown; within whose circuit
is Elysium. (KH VI, I, 2, 29-30)
:
The Arabic phrase ( ) is an Islamic name for paradise. In the
following example the Latin expression adsum means I am here.
Spirit: Adsum (KH VI, I, 4, 23)

The translation is taken from the Arabian Nights to associate with the
language of the genii. It is usually translated as your wishes my
command. In the following example the wilderness of England, where
there is water and wild plants but no human beings is quite different from
the desert of Arabia, which is waterless and lifeless.
20
Chapter One
A wilderness is populous enough,

So Suffolk had thy heavenly company. (KH VI, III, 2, 36-7)

1.8.6 Compensation
Translators need to palliate the effects of the use of calque by some
form of compensation (2002: 40). The following sentence which is taken
from the short story ( 1954:127) includes words which are
incomprehensible to the English readers.

...
According to Dickins and others (2002: 41), a transliteration of the
underlined words as cultural borrowings would maintain a certain
foreignness. These effects would be a betrayal of the ST effects, and
therefore count as a serious translation loss. The loss could be palliated by
adding an exegetic element. The word can be translated as let out a
ululation as women do at times of great joy. The word could be
rendered as communal invocations of the name of God or incessant
repetition of certain words or formulas in praise of God, often
accompanied by music and dancing. Notice how the word Gorgon is
translated in the following verse.
Approach the chamber, and destroy your sight
With a new Gorgon.

1.8.7 Illustration
This is a useful option if the word which lacks an equivalent in the
target language refers to a physical entity which can be illustrated. There is
no better way to translate the sentence Nobody does chicken like KFC
than the logo used worldwide.
21
Fig. 1-2 KFC logo
1.9 Contrastive Linguistics in Translation

Translation involves the process of comparing at least two language
systems. Therefore, translation can be approached from a contrastivelinguistics view. The following three chapters will adopt the contrastive
linguistics approach in English-Arabic translation. A translator should be
aware of how to compare two languages. Many a student of translation
should pay attention to comparing the grammars of the source language
and the target language. But the process of comparison should also include
the phonology and the style of the languages concerned.
In this study, English and Arabic can be taken as examples in the
contrastive-linguistics approach to translation because there have been a
few attempts to explore the problems of the translation between Arabic &
English. Every translation has points of strength and points of weakness
and every translation is open to improvement. In each chapter, an attempt
is made to identify translation problems at a certain level and possible
strategies for solving these problems. Translation strategies are not
prescribed; they are identified by analyzing authentic examples of translated
texts in English and Arabic.
Hatim (1997) acknowledges the link between contrastive linguistics and
translation. His book attempts to establish such a link. He adopts Reinhard
Hartmanns view that discourse analysis and contrastive linguistics are
inseparable and translation is an optimally appropriate framework within
which the entire enterprise of languages in contrast may be usefully dealt
with (1997: xiii).
CHAPTER TWO
MEANING-BASED ISSUES IN TRANSLATION
Though the translator is advised to consider the original text, at least, at

paragraph level in her/his analysis, s/he should also look into the meanings
of individual items because they are used to construct sentences which are
used to compose texts. The translator needs to study the words so that s/he
would be able to recompose the original meaning. Many lexical items have
multiple meanings according to different contexts. For this reason the
translator is required to establish which meaning s/he is dealing with in a
particular setting. Sometimes signs resist the process of translation either
because the system of the TL does not have equivalent signs, or they (the
signs) are used in different senses. In this chapter, I will investigate such
problems with regard to Arabic and English.
Prior to dealing with the nature of meaning, the translator needs to
have in mind a few basic factors. These factors are very important for
translators to be able to handle the problems which are associated with the
meanings of semantic units. They (the factors) also help the translator to
determine the meanings of semantic units and how to benefit from
lexicons.
1-Where there are a number of interpretations involved in the analysis
of a given lexical item in a given context, the translator should have in
mind that the right meaning of that lexical item is that which fits the
context best (de Waard & Nida, 1986: 139).
2-The translator should assume that, in general, lexical items probably
bare one meaning in a given context.
3-Other important assumptions could be that there is no complete
synonymy among lexical items, and that the sense of words (or semantic
units) is usually determined by other semantic units in a given context.
Signs can be defined by means of two classes of other signs, namely,
verbal, and non-verbal (de Waard & Nida, 1986: 140). The verbal signs
are those which occur in the same semantic domain of the verbal sign in
question. Nida (1975: 71) uses the matrix cited below to distinguish
features of the verbal sign chair assuming that its semantic domain would
include verbal signs such as these: bench, stool, and hassock.
Chapter Two
24
features
for one person vs. more
with a back vs. without
with legs vs. without
chair
+
+
+
bench
stool
+
+
hassock
+
-
But the word chair has a different connotation when uttered in a specific
setting. For example, when somebody, at a meeting, says Listen to the
chair, the hearer would not think of a piece of furniture, but of the person
who heads that meeting. Here the nonverbal context defines the word
chair not the semantic domain of the verbal signs listed above.
2.1 Changes in Meaning

One main characteristic of natural languages is that they are in a
constant process of change (semantically, syntactically, and phonologically)
with varying degrees from slight to drastic. This could be more important
when the translator deals with old literature which might exhibit such
changes. The translator needs to be aware that words may change their
meanings, or that two words may reciprocally change their meanings over
a period of time, long or short. In other words, the translator should deal
with the text having in mind its original setting. This is very important
because lexical items are not only linguistically and culturally bound, but
they are also bound in terms of time and place. However, the translator
should also be aware of the fact that For lexical change to occur, it is by
no means necessary that there be a change in the nature of kinds of things
to which we refer (Jeffers & Lehiste 1979: 126).
An example of lexical change is the lexical item which is, at some
time, used to refer to more than one member of a certain class and is now
restricted to include less members of that class. For example the English
word girl used to refer to both sexes (Middle English gurle). In Modern
English the word girl refers to young females or children (Websters,
1976: 486). Moreover, two lexical items which used to be employed to
alternatively signify any one of two concepts in the language are employed
to signify only one concept each. That is to say that each lexical item is
specified to exclusively signify only one concept leaving the other concept
to be exclusively signified by the other lexical item. For example, the
lexical items kusuf and xusuf used to be alternatively
used to refer to any of the two eclipses (Ibn Manzur 1984, v. 9: 67, 298),
but later people started to specify kusuf for the sun eclipse and xusuf for
the moon eclipse. Wehr (1976: 239) renders xuuf as lunar eclipse, and
(p. 827) kusuf as solar eclipse.
25
New words are coined. Two lexical items are coined to form one word
which inherits some or all of the semantic content of the two original
words. This type of innovation is formed by taking parts of two existing
words and putting them together to form a new word. For example the
English word brunch is formed from the English words breakfast /br-/
and lunch /-unch/. These mechanisms of innovations seem to differ from
language to another. One of the most common ways to accomplish this
technique of invention of new words is by adding affixes, for example the
English word weather-wise (weather plus the suffix -wise, and the
Arabic word ra?sumal capital which consists of the words ra?s
chief and mal wealth. The Arabic suffix -iyya can be used to form the
abstract noun ra?sumaliyya capitalism.
2.2 Types of Lexical Meanings

Lexical meanings operate at more than one level specified by the
contexts where words occur. De Waard and Nida (1986) recognize two
levels which they call the denotative lexical meaning, and the connotative
lexical meaning. De Waard and Nida provide the best discussion of the
types of meanings of lexical items and determining their meanings.
Therefore, most of the discussions in the next sections are based on their
handling of the meanings and types of lexical items.
2.2.1 Denotative Meaning

Denotative meaning is the conventional range of referential meaning
attributed to a linguistic expression. It is also known as cognitive or
propositional meaning (cf. Baker 1992:13-14). It is also sometimes
referred to as literal meaning. In the case of words, it is denotative
meanings that are given in dictionary definitions. In fact, words may, and
typically do, have more than one denotative meaning. The situation in
which a word has more than one different and distinct denotative meaning
or more technically more than one sense is known as polysemy.
Polysemy can be illustrated by the word plain, which means (i) clear
(as in a plain sky), (ii) unadorned (as in a plain paper bag), and (iii)
obvious (as in its a plain case of forgery). There are sometimes
problems in deciding between cases where two uses of a word represent
more than one sense i.e. cases of polysemy and where the two uses in
question are merely variants of a single overall sense. (There are also
problems in deciding between what constitutes two senses of a single
word, and cases where two words happen to sound the same. This latter
Chapter Two
26
situation is known as homonymy. An example of homonymy which is

fairly frequently quoted is bank = side of a river vs. bank =
institution for the investment and borrowing of money.
2.2.1.1 Sense Relations and Polysemy
Polysemy occurs when one word in a language has several different
meanings. The word mouth, for example, is a polysemous form in
English which indicates several different meanings; it is one lexeme with
several different senses such as organ of body, entrance of cave, etc. It
is not necessary, however, that a polysemous word in English should have
a similar diversity of meaning in another language. Therefore, we would
expect to find a different set of polysemous words in Arabic. For example,
the verb he found is a polysemic word which has an original
meaning find out and many additional meanings, which can be shown in
the following tree diagram. While it has one surface structure (SS), it has
three deep structures (DS).
DS
DS
DS
FIND
HATE
LOVE
These three meanings of can be best understood when used in

sentences, as in the following:
(1)
The boy found his book.
(2)
Ahmed got angry with ziyad.
(3)
Ahmed loved Sucad.
2.2.1.2 Synonymy and Lexical Translatability
Synonymy occurs when two or more words can be used to substitute
for one another in a particular context, and still give similar but not
necessarily identical meanings. Many linguists have considered that
27
complete synonymy does not exist in any language, and consequently

complete equivalence in translation is something unattainable. Eugene
Nida defines synonymy in language as words which share several (but
not all) essential components and thus can be used to substitute for one
another in some (but not all) contexts without any appreciable difference
of meaning in these contexts, e.g. love and like (Nida 1969:73). He then
tries to illustrate the phenomenon of synonymy by drawing a pattern of
overlapping, as in the following figure which shows the relationship
between the two synonymous words.
Figure (1)
Peter Newmark takes a position similar to that of Nida when he declares

very clearly, I do not approve of the proposition that translation is a form
of synonymy (Newmark 1981:101). Further, Bassnett-McGuire maintains
that equivalence in translation should not be approached as a search for
sameness, since sameness cannot even exist between two TL versions of
the same text, let alone between the SL and the TL versions (BassnettMcGuire 1980:29).
The nearest semantic equivalent for translating the denotative meaning
of an ST expression usually falls short of being a full TL synonym. A
simple example of this kind of failure is provided by a comparison
between uncle in English and or in Arabic (Dickins et al
2002:54-55). How can we translate the following verse?

Here the English term uncle might be a typical translation equivalent of

the Arabic or ; uncle may refer to fathers brother or mothers
brother. Therefore, to have a synonymous relationship translators resort to
paraphrase their translation by using maternal uncle for and
paternal uncle for . The relation between uncle and and between
uncle and is known as superordinate-hyponymy. An expression
with a wider, less specific, range of denotative meaning is a hyperonym or
28
Chapter Two
superordinate. Conversely, an expression with a narrower, more specific

range of denotative meaning is a hyponym. Lexical loss arises from the
fact that exact synonymy between ST words and TL words is relatively
rare. The word , for example, might be considered an exact synonym
of English meat. For many Arabs, however, chicken may not count as
, and fish almost certainly will not (2002: 54-55).
It was indicated that the Arabic poets of the pre-Islamic era always
enjoyed describing certain aspects of life in the desert, using rich
vocabulary in synonymous uses. For example, the words , ,
, and , stood for horse; , , , , and
stood for sword, and , , and stood for sea. The question
which will inevitably arise here is the following: does each synonymous
word in the above examples have the same factual meaning as every other
synonym? In other words, are all these synonyms substitutable for one
another in real contexts? And consequently, how can the translator
approach this problem without losing or gaining unnecessary associations?
Let us take the words for horse, for example, and look up the
meanings of all those synonymous uses related to that word. In Lisan AlArab, an Arabic dictionary by Ibn Manzur, we find that the meanings of
those words include the following components:
(1) : horse; male; singular.
(2) : horse; male or female; singular,
(3) : horse particularly one which is fast, male or female,
singular.
(4) : horse particularly one which is completely black, male or
female, singular.
According to Nida, when dealing with synonymous words, we must look
at the different componential features of the meanings of these synonyms
and select only those meanings which compete in the same semantic
fields (Nida 1969:64). They show certain overlapping areas of meaning
which compete in the same semantic field. Relevance ranks synonyms
based on how closely a synonyms sense matches the sense we select. We
can enrich our translation by using explanatory words; e.g. can be
translated as black horse and can be translated as race horse. It is
important to note that synonymous words in English may not be
synonymous in Arabic. The Arabic word is based on the sense of
sight but the word is based on the sense of hearing. This
difference does not exist between the English words self-conceit and
pride.
29
2.2.1.3 The Problem of Antonymy

Discussing the issue of synonymy will certainly invoke another
question, the investigation of the nature of antonymy. Dictionaries rarely
deal with one of these conceptions without referring to the other. It is
important to establish norms according to which problems of antonymy
can be analyzed. These norms will include (a) the analysis of antonymous
forms in terms of their relationship to human/non-human or
animate/inanimate features, and (b) the analysis of antonymous forms in
terms of their degree or level of occurrence, i.e. their relative or absolute
opposition. There are different gradable antonyms in English and Arabic.
Between hot and cold in English is a continuous scale of values which
may be given names such as (warm, cool, or tepid). In Arabic there are
four different divisions:
// (cold / cool)
// (hot) weather
// (hot) object
// (warm)
2.2.2 Connotative Meaning

The meaning of a text comprises a number of different layers:
referential content, emotional coloring, cultural associations, social and
personal connotations, and so on. Connotation is the implicit overtones
that a linguistic expression carries over and above its denotative meaning.
Associative meaning is an example of connotative meaning. It is that part
of the overall meaning of an expression which consists of expectations that
are rightly or wrongly associated with the referent of the expression.
The word nurse is a good example. Most people automatically associate
nurse with the idea of female gender. Given the relative cultural distance
between the Arab world and the English speaking world, associative
meanings are likely to be a problem. Consider the potential difficulty of
translating into English; a denotative near-equivalent might be teahouse, tea-garden, coffee-house, coffee-shop or possibly caf.
A simple contrast of two occurrences of the same lexical item may
help make the difference between denotative meaning and connotative
meaning clear. When we say
That animal with the big tail is a fox
30
Chapter Two
the word fox is used to refer to a certain animal. But when we say
This man is a fox,
the word fox does not refer to the animal, rather it only refers to someone
who is clever and good at deceiving people. It refers to one of the
characteristics which people have associated with this animal. So, the
word fox in the second context signifies a different meaning from the
former context.
To determine the denotative meaning of lexical items, two semantic
ranges of meaning must be examined: the first range involves the
examination of the lexical item against other similar lexical items within,
in Nidas words, the same semantic domain where all such lexical items
share one or more features. De Waard and Nida (1986:144-5) put the word
whisper on the basis of these features (voiceless, low volume, nonmusical,
verbal, oral communication) within this class of words: shout, mumble,
sing, shriek, and hiss, as its same semantic domain, for all these lexical
items share the feature of oral communication. In the second range, the
lexical item in question would be examined against other lexical items
which are in a related semantic domain. For example the word whisper,
in contexts like:
1. whisper campaign
2. she is always whispering about her neighbors
3. the wind was whispering in the trees
has a new set of features which, to a certain extent, differ from the ones
listed above (i.e. there are negative contexts (1, 2), and voiceless and low
volume are irrelevant here). The word whisper should be contrasted with
lexical items such as gossip, tattle, and criticize.
2.2.3 Collocative Meaning

Collocative meaning is the connotative meaning lent to a linguistic
expression by the meaning of some other expression with which it
frequently collocates. Pretty and handsome, for example, have a shared
sense of good looking in English. However, pretty collocates readily
with girl, boy, woman, flower, garden, color, village, while
handsome collocates with boy, man, vessel, overcoat, airliner,
typewriter (cf. Leech 1981: 17; also, for translation implications of
collocation, see Baker 1992: 46-63). Consider the following examples:
31
close cooperation (not, for example, firm cooperation,

commercial acumen (not commercial intelligence),
forced smile (not artificial smile). An important area for
collocation is the use of conjoined phrase on the pattern X and Y. Thus,
English tends to say knives and forks rather than forks and knives
(Dickins et al 2002: 71). English tends to say night and day or day and
night but it is in Arabic. Some collocations of this kind have
become established idioms. The phrase has to be translated as
flesh and blood, rather than the reverse blood and flesh.
Problems in the process of translating may arise from non-equivalence
when words combine with other words. First, there are selectional
restrictions in any language; restrictions on the co-occurrence of words.
hot temper
break laws
strong tea
Some words are collocated, e.g.
pay a visit
Most of these patterns are arbitrary.
deliver a letter
deliver a speech /lecture
deliver a news
deliver a blow
deliver a verdict
deliver a baby
In English we find the collocation bread and butter which means a job or
activity that provides you with money we need to live, but in Arabic we
find . Other collocations include the following:
night & day (day & night)
clear as crystal

heavy smoker

war break out

peace prevails

smoking gun

stumbling block

Chapter Two
32
Meaning of a word in a collocate differs in another collocate, e.g.

dry voice = cold
Run a car drive a car fast
Christmas is just around the corner
Fan the flames
Translators should make the necessary adjustments.
2.2.4 Idiomatic Meaning

Idioms are very intricate expressions. Thus they are not easy to
translate. First, idioms are culture-bound, i.e. specific to particular culture
and society. Second, their meaning is rather metaphorical than literal.
Notice the following examples.
Keep it under your hat
Idioms with the word onion in Arabic:

not worth a damn

keep your nose out of other peoples business
a posy from the beloved is a ruby
Idioms with the word beans in Arabic:
Every jack has his Jill
as like as two peas in a pod
spill the beans
know the ropes
Idioms with the word in Arabic:

Mr. Right

One of good breading
Nice fellow

Happy go lucky

A good sort

A man of whims
Made for the job
Jokester

Born businessman

33
Idioms with the word in Arabic:

Bloody hell

How cute

Dear me

What a dead loss you are
You dumb ox
Big deal

In English we notice idioms with the word pig:
sweat like a pig
when pigs fly

Notice the difference between the literal and non-literal meanings of some
idioms:
(1) break the ice
Literal:
Non-literal:
(2) he looks blue
Literal:
Non-literal:
(3) he is a black sheep
Literal:
Non-literal:
(4) he is in the clouds
Literal:
Non-literal:
2.3 Problems Related to Lexical Items.

Translation between English and Arabic involves certain morphological,
syntactic and semantic problems. To understand these problems, one has
to return to the cultural and social background of the Arabic language and
try to discover how these may affect the process of translating into
English. It is also essential to note that Arabic is a VSO, non-IndoEuropean language whose speakers differ in cultural and social behavior
from those of the western languages. Those problems can be solved
through:
34
Chapter Two
1) looking into the cultural and social background of Arabic, and.

2) accounting for the peculiarities of Arabic lexicon and structure.
Observing the root-system of Arabic is not merely to understand the
derivational process in which the root plays a role, but, more important,
because almost all the derivations from a given root are interrelated
semantically. Every primary conception in the Semitic languages is
expressed by means of three consonants. These three consonants form the
root. Primary modifications of the meaning are expressed by internal
vowel variations, secondary modifications partly by the same method and
partly by affixes and inserted consonants. W. Wright, in his book A
Grammar of the Arabic Language (1967) refers to the three consonants of
the root as radicals. He further notes that the simplest and most basic
form in Arabic in which these consonants (radicals) appear is the verb.
Hence, the 3d pers. sing. masc. perf., being the simplest form of the verb,
is commonly used as paradigm (Wright 1967:29), such as the verb qatala
he killed.
To illustrate the modifications of the meaning of the root as expressed
by internal vowel variations, we may note that from the root ( )
(Q-T-L), which consists of three consonants and conveys the idea of
killing, we can form the verb [qatala] he killed, another verb
[qaatala] he fought, the noun [qatl] killing the adjectival nouns
[qatil] a killer and [qattal] one who takes killing as a hobby
or profession, and [qatiil] one killed, with its plural [qatla],
and a number of other derivations. That is the reason why every kind of
dictionary (Arabic-Arabic, or Arabic-English or Arabic-French, etc.) lists
the entries by root rather than alphabetically, in all derivations. For
instance, if we wish to find the meaning of the word [maktaba] in
Hans Wehrs Arabic-English Dictionary, we must look it up under the root
( ) (K-T-B), and we find the following derivations: [kataba]
to write, [kitab] book, with its plural [kutub], [kuttab]
Koran school, [kutayyib] booklet, [kitaba] writing,
[maktab] office, desk, with its plural [makatib], and
[maktaba] library, bookstore, and a number of other related derivations
Wehr 1976:812, 813). Arabic verbs are inflected for the grammatical
categories by internal vowel variation.
The translator must be aware that the Arabic verb encompasses a wide
range of aspects. The various modifications commonly expressed by
modals in English are expressed in Arabic by one model, the verb
[Kana] to be, by several verbal particles, such as sa (indicating
future), and by various independent verbs, such as [istaTaa] to
35
be able. The exact English translation for a given Arabic verb form
depends on these features and, to an important degree, on the larger
context. For example, the verb form [Kasar-a] he broke is formed
from the root ( ) [KSR]. Another verb form is [Kassar-a]
which is formed by doubling the second consonant. It implies that the act
is done with great violence. When the verb is intransitive such as
[FaRiH-a] be became glad, it may become transitive by doubling the
second consonant, e.g. [FaRRaH-a] he caused to be glad. When the
first vowel is made long, the verb form implies reciprocity, e.g.
[QaTaL-a] he killed but [QaaTal-a] he fought with
[SaRa-a] he throw down but [SaaRa?-a] he wrestled
with.
2.3.1 Arabic Lexicon and Translation

Words are linguistic symbols that are free, arbitrary and conventional.
Meaning, therefore, does not exist without words. Meaning, according
to Newmark, arises from sights, sounds, smells, tastes, surfaces, as
well as drives, feelings, ideas, memories, images, etc., that reach
consciousness; but all these can only be mediated by words, assisted
sporadically by mental images (Newmark 1981:98). Yet when one
translates, s/he does not transfer free words from the SL to the TL.
Although the freedom of symbols, according to Nida, enables us to enter
and use different symbols already known in one language to describe new
objects which come into the culture (Nida 1964:49), yet when we
translate we translate words that are used in context, that is, words that
are lexically conditioned and constrained by collocation and connotation,
grammatically by syntax, into nationally by word-order, sometimes
phonetically by assonance, alliteration, onomatopoeia, and moreover they
are normally referentially bound (Newmark 1981:135). In the next
section, I shall explain how the Arabic lexicon affects the process of
translating into English. So, on the lexical level, I shall be concerned with
the problems of semantic derivation and lexical gaps, and words and
meaning.
2.3.2 Semantic Derivation and Lexical Gaps

It is not always the case, however, that every lexical unit in the
language has a single word entry to express an inchoative or causative
Chapter Two
36
form. When some lexical units in the derivational paradigm are missing,
there is a lexical gap. In English, for instance, there is no one word for
become blue, or make sneeze, but the idea can be paraphrased. It is
important to note that the lexical gaps which occur in English may not
necessarily occur in Arabic. Let us examine the following derivational
forms in both languages.
Table 2-1 Lexical Gaps between English and Arabic
State
1
2
3
Ar
En
Big
Blue
Dead
Process
Ar
En
(gap)
(gap)
Die
Action - Process
Ar
En
(gap)

(gap)
(gap)
A semantic field is an area of meaning which can be delimited from

others in a language. Thus we might talk about a semantic field of FOOD
or CLOTHING or EMOTIONS. Within CLOTHING, for example, we
find words for all the different kinds of garments. Semantic Field is a
somewhat elastic term. Thus we could say that ANIMALS and PLANTS
are semantic fields, or we could group them together into a single larger
field called LIVING THINGS. In English there are different hair styles
such as Spiky / Crew cut / Strait / Curly / Flat top / Plait
(braid) / Mohican / Wavy / Skinhead / Dreadlocks / Cornrows.
Semantic fields are composed of smaller groupings called lexical sets
or sub-fields. Within EMOTIONS, we can identify lexical sets of words
for Love, Fear, and Anger, etc.
One can say that a semantic field is a collection of words that fell
under one category. For example, a semantic field of bugs/insects could
include bees, wasps, spiders, moths, flies etc. Thus, a semantic field of
dog might include, for example, Labradors, Alsatians, poodles, terriers
etc, rather than a list of different ways in which the word dog can be
used. Put simply, its not so much words that define dogs, its words that
are examples of dogs. English makes a distinction between blue and
green but some languages do not. On the other hand some languages
treat light (often greenish) blue and dark blue as separate colors, rather
than different variations of blue, while English does not.
37
Fig. 2.1 Hair styles (Cambridge Dictionary)
Languages differ in their semantic fields. There is more agreement

among languages on the hyponym and less agreement as sub-divisions of a
semantic field. Notice differences in the field of furniture. In English
stool and chair differ and bench is different from sofa. In Arabic,
stool is rendered as and sofa as
or . Componential analysis can be a useful tool to the translator.
According to the componential model, words display what is called
distinctive features, which are the building blocks that words consist of
and can be broken down into. Kinship words differ from a language to
another. The word uncle is used to refer to parents male sibling and
aunt to parents female sibling. In Arabic there are four words, e.g. ,
, , and . Flora and species differ because of different
environment, e. g.,
duck drake /
goose gander
Another example of non-equivalence of a specific word (hyponym) in
Arabic is the variety of hyponyms which English has under the word
38
Chapter Two
house; e.g. bungalow, cottage, croft, chalet, lodge, hut,

mansion, manor, villa. The verb disgorge does not have an
equivalent word in Arabic. It means , , or .
The subway disgorges people
The word attic is not lexicalized in Arabic. It means a space or room
under the roof of a house often used for storing things. It is sometimes
rendered as .
It is interesting to note that, although Arabic and English show
similarity in the system of semantic derivations illustrated above, semantic
domains of the vocabulary in the two languages may not be so similar. In
English, for example, expressions like chairman, chairperson, and he
chaired the meeting are all related to the word chair, which is
considered the semantic domain of these expressions. In Arabic, the
equivalents of the above-mentioned English expressions are related to a
completely different semantic domain. The corresponding Arabic
expressions are [ra?iis] chairman, or chairperson, and [ra?isa
l-jalsata] he chaired the meeting. All the above Arabic derivations are
related to the word [ra?s] head. The English word Seabed
which means the solid surface of the Earth which lies under the sea
is related to the semantic domain bed.
2.3.3 Words and Meaning

When dealing with the meaning of words, we do not assume that the
translator should depend on literal or word-for-word translation;
rather, we would like to emphasize that words are textually and culturally
bound. But this section is focusing on words. When the translator is faced
with words which are un familiar to her/him, or in a more general term,
ambiguous, s/he will usually want to refer to the dictionary for help. It is
obvious that the dictionary may not be the only reliable source for a final
or better solution, for the translator has to reconcile several possible
meanings, including the authors intended meaning, the dictionary
definition, and his own interpretation of the word or phrase (Duff
1981:17). The dictionary may furnish several possible meanings for one
word, and the translator may be faced with another, more subtle, intriguing
issue, when he has to choose the appropriate equivalent for that word. We
can investigate this difficulty in the following text, translated into English.
SL text
39

.
The TL Text is translated as follows
The Minister of Agriculture declared (stated) that he would be
primarily concerned with (lit. keep in-front of his eyes) the raising of
the standard of agriculture in the country, and that he would spare no
effort to place, as far as was possible, the most recent innovations
achieved by modern science within reach of the farmers (cultivators),
through the employment of mechanical aids, with one aim in view and
that was the facilitating and building up of an up-to-date wellorganized agriculture.
In the SL text, means mentioned or said, but the translator prefers
to use other words, such as declared or stated. The latter equivalents
seem to give a more prestigious status to the Ministers speech. In the SL
text means results or outcome. The translator uses a totally
different word in the TL, innovations, which may serve best to suit the
textural meaning. It is evident that the translator is trying to improve the
SL text, by using his own intuition to select a better equivalent. In the TL,
the prepositional phrase in view has no counterpart in the SL text, but the
translator adds this phrase to the TL text in order to clarify the situation in
the SL phrase for a single aim. Here too it is obvious that the
translator is trying to improve the SL text. In the TL text, up-to-date
stands for two different words in SL text modern and
recent which have similar meaning in the SL text. It seems that the
translator preferred to pack up these two words in one word up-to-date
which served him well to produce redundancy.
2.3.4 Ambiguity
Ambiguity arises when a single surface structure has many possible
deep structures. This can be the result of polysemic predicates. A
polysemic predicate is a verb that has a single form, with many different
meanings. John Lyons (1977) considered the following sentence
ambiguous: they passed the port at midnight, where port may denote or
a kind of fortified wine (Lyons 1977:397). Consider the different
possible meanings of the underlined words:
Chapter Two
40
We saw her duck.

(1) We saw her lower her head.
(2) We saw the duck belonging to her.
The chicken is ready to eat.
(1) The chicken is ready to be eaten.
(2) The chicken is ready to eat some food.
The problem of homonymy is solved through context. In homonymy a
word has two different senses which are far apart from each other.
Punch
Blow with a fist
Kind of fruity alcoholic drink
bark
Of a dog
Of a tree
Context plays an important role in disambiguifying words. Another type of
ambiguity is structural ambiguity. Some sentences are syntactically
ambiguous at the global level, in which case the whole sentence has two or
more possible interpretations.
He hit the boy with the stick.

41
Old men and women

Flying planes can be dangerous

2.4 Translating Metaphors

Larson (1984) identifies the problems of translating metaphors.
Difficulty in translating metaphors is due to the fact that the image used
in the metaphor or simile may be unknown in the receptor language
(1984: 250). Moreover, the image may be unclear and difficult to be
interpreted by the TLT reader. The receptor language sometimes draws
comparisons which are different from those which occur in the SL
metaphor (1984: 251). Dickins and others (2002) give illustrative
examples of metaphors. As Larson comments,
In light of these various problems the difficulty in discovering the
meaning of metaphors in the source language and the misunderstanding
which there may be in their interpretation the translator must give careful
consideration whenever a metaphor is found in the source text A literal
translation of a metaphor or simile often leads to wrong meanings or no
meaning at all. (1984: 252)
Larson summarizes five ways of translating metaphors.

1- The metaphor may be kept if the receptor language permits (that is,
if it sounds natural and is understood correctly by the readers)
having the same vehicle in the TL.

The walls had witnessed his joy and sadness
2- The stock SL metaphor can be replaced with a stock TL metaphor
having a different vehicle. In the following excerpt in the
translation of Mahfouzs Trilogy Zanuba tells al-Sayyid that she
does not understand him. The metaphor of being in two different
valleys is used in the SLT to mean that the two speakers are
different.
42
Chapter Two
:
( 105 ) ... She hid the smile his praise had inspired and pretended to be
astonished as she said, I absolutely do not understand what
you mean. Its clear that were mountains apart. (Palace of
Desire, p.101)
The translators chose to change the metaphor. In English the
idiomatic expression worlds apart means that people are
different. But the translators use the word mountains to keep the
atmosphere of the original metaphor.
3- A metaphor may be converted into a simile (adding like or as).

The river appeared heart broken as if clothed in sadness
4- The metaphor may be kept and the meaning explained (that is, the
topic and/or point of similarity may be added).
5- The meaning of the metaphor may be translated without keeping
the metaphorical imagery (1984: 254).

He was about to feel sleepy
Dobrzynska (1995) advocates the first, third and fourth solutions. The first
choice means preserving the exact original metaphor. The third presents
the substitution of an SL metaphor with a TL metaphor that has a similar
sense. The fourth refers to the strategy of explicitness. Therefore,
Dobrzynska considers three possibilities:
1. M M procedure = preserving the original metaphor
2. M1 M2 procedure = using another TL metaphor
3. M P procedure = explacating or paraphrasing the metaphor.

Dobrzynska considers explicitation as better than absolute faithfulness to
the original or introduction of a metaphor that is false from the cultural
point of view (1995: 603). In fact, the problem of translating metaphor is
a problem of being either faithful or beautiful. As Dobrzynska comments,
43
it is not always possible to adhere to the principle of faithfulness, M

M, without risking that a metaphorical utterance will become
incomprehensible or will lead to an interpretation which is incompatible
with the one intended in the original (1995: 600). Sometimes it may be
appropriate to introduce other features in the TT in order to compensate
for the loss of the metaphor. Allusion from the Holly Quran is used to
compensate for the metaphor in the ST.
After a storm comes a calm

2.5 Translating Proverbs

Proverbs are said to be close to metaphors (Levinson 1983: 151).
Norrick (1985) distinguishes literal proverbs from figurative ones. When
the literal reading of the proverb does not correspond to its interpretation,
the proverb is figurative (Ibrahim and Kennedy 1996: 183). Ibrahim and
Kennedy argue that [a] figurative proverb may also be metaphoric
(1996: 183). Thus, proverbs can be analyzed as implicatures. In the
following example, al-Sayyid speaks of his son Kamal and points at
himself.
(244 )
Hes this lions cub. (Palace Walk, p. 256)
He means that his son behaves like him. The implied meaning is like
father like son. But the translators preserve the metaphor of the lion at the
cost of comprehension. The same meaning is expressed in another
situation when Fahmy speaks of his brother Yasin but with a different
metaphor.
(296 ) .. The son of the goose is a good swimmer (Palace Walk, p. 310)
Fahmy intends the same implied meaning. The translations of the two
proverbs are literal. Ibrahim and Kennedy (1996: 205-207) notice that
Egyptians use too many proverbs for the same situation. Their Arabic
language is formulaic and full of figures of speech.
Understanding proverbs is relatively different among language users.
Native speakers of Arabic understand Arabic proverbs because they are of
the same culture. But non-native readers of a translation of an Arabic
44
Chapter Two
proverb would be sometimes unable to grasp the relevance of the proverb.

The problem of losing relevance in the translation of proverbs is evident
when the proverb is figurative.
A speaker would use proverbs which would be maximally relevant to
the hearer. For example, the following Arabic proverb cannot have a
satisfactory interpretation for a target language community.

Tomorrow well sit beside the wall and hear the noise
In a study of figurative language Ibrahim and Kennedy (1996) find that
American interviewees cannot understand the given proverb. They notice
that the American interviewees do not maintain semantic connections with
the literal translation of the proverb through the words wall, hear and
noise (1996: 201).
Figurative proverbs are distinguished from literal proverbs (Norrick
1985). When the literal reading of the proverb does not correspond to its
interpretation, the proverb is figurative (Ibrahim and Kennedy 1996: 183).
A figurative proverb is metaphoric. Translators follow different strategies
in translating metaphors in proverbs. First, the metaphor may be kept if the
receptor language permits (that is, if it sounds natural and is understood
correctly by the readers).

Birds of a feather flock together

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Second, a metaphor of the receptor language which has the same meaning
may be used in case of non-equivalence of the source metaphor; the
substitution of a source language metaphor with a target language
metaphor that has a similar sense.

The shoe-makers wife is ill-shod.

A posy from the beloved is a ruby.
45
Third, the meaning of the metaphor may be translated without keeping the
metaphorical imagery.

What must be must be.
The criterion which governs the use of one of these strategies is relevance.
A proverb may be entertained in different ways and to different degrees by
different language users. Thus, a figurative proverb that is relevant to the
source language community may be best translated as literal proverb that
is relevant to the target language community. Understanding a proverb has
to be a trade-off between being metaphoric and being relevant. Thus, the
most accessible interpretation is the most relevant.
Relevance can also help translators compensate the loss of social
meaning. Social meaning may be lost in the process of translating
proverbs. Social meaning conveys the idea that the use of proverbs by
native language users is a confirmation of their solidarity and common
knowledge because they belong to a shared world. To the contrary, the
target language community always loses that sort of social meaning when
interpreting a proverb of a different culture. The only factor which
compensates the loss of social meaning is the relevance of the proverb.
Therefore, translators should consider relevance in the translating of
proverbs. Relevance is one of the factors which they should pay special
attention in the interpretation of proverbs. The translation of a source
language proverb should be relevant to the target language community.
Non-native reader of the translation of the following Arabic proverb may
not be familiar with its interpretation.

Like mother, like daughter.
In successful translations the information presupposed by the writer to be
known to the source language reader should be clear to the target language
reader (Nord 1991: 96). In translating proverbs pragmatic failure may
occur. If the translators use some information not to be known by the
target language reader, relevance loss will be likely to come about in the
translation. They must refer to the world of the target language reader. The
probability of relevance being present can be calculated from the
distance of the source language community and the target language
community to the cultural environment of the subject matter.
46
Chapter Two
Proverbs bear cultural presuppositions. Ibrahim and Kennedy (1996)

consider proverbs as a component of a context of shared knowledge or
what Quinn and Holland (1987) term a communitys cultural models.
Cultural models are presupposed, taken-for-granted models of the world
that are widely shared by the members of a society and that play an
enormous role in their understanding of that world and their behavior in it.
(1987: 4 cited in Ibrahim and Kennedy 1996: 185)
Ibrahim and Kennedy (1996) argue that interpretations of given proverbs

by people from differing cultural backgrounds should show corresponding
differences in the use of language (1996:181). For example, not all
proverbs should be translated literally. Translators should find a pragmatic
equivalent in case of not finding a literal equivalent. Notice how the
following proverbs are translated.

Dont abuse the kindness of a friend.

There is always a way.
Once bitten, twice shy

()
In fact, the problem of translating metaphorical proverbs is a problem of
being either faithful or beautiful. In any case, it is not always possible to
adhere to the principle of preserving a metaphorical utterance. Preserving
metaphors in figurative proverbs will lead to an interpretation which is
incompatible with the one intended in the original. Bastin (2001) confirms
that a successful translation is one that looks or sounds like an original
piece of work (2001: 8).
2.6 Case in Translation

Case Grammar models deal with the semantic content of sentences and
ignore their syntactic structure. As stated above, the (propositional)
content (or deep structure) of the sentence is analyzed in terms of a central
verb and a series of case-marked noun phrases associated with that verb.
The system was created by the American linguist Charles J. Fillmore in
47
1968, in the context of Transformational Grammar. This theory analyzes

the surface syntactic structure of sentences by studying the combination of
deep cases (i.e. semantic roles) -- Agent, Object, Benefactor, Location or
Instrumentwhich are required by a specific verb. For instance, the verb
give in English requires an Agent (A) and Object (O), and a Beneficiary
(B); e.g. Jones (A) gave money (O) to the school (B).
1- John / broke / the window / with a hammer
A ..
O
I
2- The hammer / broke / the window,
I
..
O
3- John / broke / the window.
A ..
O
4- The window / broke,
A
..
The active and passive uses of a verb, like break, are considered as
diverse surface structures related to identical deep role structures, as in the
following (using Fillmores case labels):
(1) The door broke (intransitive).
SV+O
(2) a. The hammer broke the door.
SV+O+I
b. The door was broken with the hammer.
SV+O+I
(3) a. John broke the door.
SV+O+A
b. The door was broken by John.
SV+O+A
(4) a. John broke the door with a hammer.
SV+O+I+A
b. the door was broken by John with a hammer . S V + O + I + A
However, case grammar emphasizes that the semantic relations among
different constituents remain unaltered whether the sentence is ultimately
actualized as a passive or a non-passive.
The active and passive uses of the verb break, as we have seen above,
are considered diverse surface structures related to identical deep role
structures. Comparing, these uses of the passive to Arabic, we find that the
verb has the same case frame as that of its equivalent in English,
break. Let us consider the following illustrations:
(5)
(The door broke)
SV+O
48
Chapter Two
(6) a.
SV+O+I
(The hammer broke the door)
b.
SV+O+I
(The door was broken with the hammer)
(7) a.
SV+O+A
(Ahmed broke the door)
b.
SV+O+A
(The door was broken)
(8) a.
SV+O+I+A
(Ahmed broke the door with the hammer)
b.
SV+O+I+A
(The door was broken with the hammer)
One use of case grammar in translation is the recovery of verbs and verbal
force (that is, the verbal meaning) in verbless clauses, which is obviously
central in the bilingual communication situation where the translator has to
tease out the semantics from the source text and build up a semantic
representation to encode into a target text. This is relevant in the
translation of a lot foreign languages into English, where stylistic
constraints in many cases require the main verb to be there in English,
while it may be left out in other languages. As it happens, Arabic and
English are quite alike in this respect. There are some situations where
they differ, one being the exclusion of verbs in adjunctive adverbial clause
in English:
He smiled sardonically, his finger on the trigger.

2.7 Culture
2.7.1 Culture & Translation
Culture is far more complex phenomenon than it may seem to the
translator. The more a translator is aware of differences between cultures,
the better a translator s/he will be. Cultural differences have been a main
issue in translation theory. The main concern has traditionally been with
words and phrases that are so heavily and exclusively grounded in one
culture that they are almost impossible to translate into the terms - verbal
or otherwise - of another. Long debate has been held over when to
paraphrase, when to use the nearest local equivalent, when to coin a new
word by translating literally, and when to transcribe. All these
49
untranslatable cultural-bound words and phrases continued to fascinate

translators. Mounin (1963) underlined the importance of the signification
of the lexical level. The problem with this theory is that all the cultural
elements are not only reflected on the lexical level, what should a
translator do in the case of cultural implications which are implied in the
background knowledge of SL readers?
Nidas definitions of formal and dynamic equivalence in 1964 consider
cultural implications for translation. According to him, a gloss
translation mostly typifies formal equivalence where form and content
are reproduced as faithfully as possible and the TL reader is able to
understand as much as he can of the customs, manner of thought, and
means of expression of the SL context. However, dynamic equivalence
tries to relate the receptor to modes of behavior relevant within the
context of his own culture without insisting that he understand the
cultural patterns of the source-language context 1964: 59-60).
2.7.2 Readership
Once the ideal ST readership has been determined, considerations must
be made concerning the TT. The translators first and major difficulty is
the construction of a new ideal reader who, even if he has the same
academic, professional and intellectual level as the original reader, will
have significantly different textual expectations and cultural knowledge.
Problems related to cultural differences which include many
extralinguistic features, such as religion, social backgrounds, unfamiliar
natural phenomena, and others. Cultural problems include dichotomies
such as translatability or untranslatability and adaptation or cultural
equivalence. Culture is an umbrella term that includes various problems in
the process of translation such as problems arising from mixing between
the denotative and connotative meanings of words, forms of address, and
the problems associated with idioms and metaphors. Dickins and others
(2002) stress the seriousness of cultural problems in translation. Decency,
for example, is culture specific and relative to people. Notice how
considerations of decency are made in the following translation.
Petruchio: Come Kate, Well to bed.
(The Taming of the Shrew, V, 2, 184)
:
The same applies to the following example.
50
Chapter Two
Talbot: Shall all thy mothers hopes lie in one tomb?

John: Ay, rather than Ill shame my mothers womb. (KH VI, 5, 34-5)
:
:
2.7.3 Translatability and Untranslatability

The translatability of a text depends on many aspects. It depends on the
degree to which the source text is embedded in its own culture. The more
culture-bound a text is, the more difficult it is to translate. The less culture
bound a text is, the less it needs to be adapted to suit the TL readership.
We should speak of a sliding scale of translatability, largely depending on
the degree to which a text is embedded in SL culture. The translatability of
a text is deeply connected with the communicative function of the text.
Promotional leaflets, business letters and poetry are meaningful examples
of different degrees of translatability. An example of untranslatable
models is case. It is a grammatical value which cannot be equal in
languages.
Mary and I went to the ceremony.
The letter was addressed to Mary and me (not Mary and I)
The issue of translatability and untranslatability has been debated by many
linguists over a long period of time. While a group of linguists argue that
translation from one language to another is not possible because of some
losses, another group argues that it is possible. Dinneen (1967) states that
if a full equivalence of the SL message is aimed at in the TL by
translation, then translation is not possible by any means. Von Humboldt
paradoxically asserted the impossibility of translation and presented
untranslatability as a challenge to be taken up (Baker 2009: 301). Von
Humboldts words, from a letter to A.W. Schlegel, dated July 23, 1796,
exemplify this approach to translation:
All translation seems to me to be simply an attempt to solve an impossible
task. Every translator is doomed to be done in by one of two stumbling
blocks; he will either stay too close to the original, at the cost of taste and
the language of his nation, or he will adhere too closely to characteristics
peculiar to his nation, at the cost of the original. The medium between the
two is not only difficult, but downright impossible. (As in Wilss, 1982: 35)
De Waard and Nida (1986: 42) also confirm that absolute communication
in translating is impossible due to the fact that some losses in the message
51
are inevitable for the reason, they state, that sources and receptors never
have identical linguistic and cultural backgrounds (de Waard & Nida,
1986: 42).
Jacobson (1959) also has addressed the issue of untranslatability,
especially with regard to poetry, for which he maintains that:
Phonemic similarity is sensed as semantic relationship. The pun, or to use a
more erudite and perhaps more precise term - paronomasia, reigns over
poetic art, and whether its rule is absolute or limited, poetry by definition is
untranslatable. (Jacobson, 1959: 238)
Catford (1965: 99) distinguishes between two types of untranslatability:

linguistic, and cultural. The linguistic type of untranslatability arises when
linguistic features, mainly stylistic and phonological, cannot be
recomposed in the system of the TL. That is to say that there is linguistic
untranslatability when there are certain linguistic differences between the
SL and the TL structures which do not allow the transfer of the exact
message. Playing on words or jokes can be a typical example because they
involve semantic as well as phonological and/or stylistic features which
have to go together. The cultural type of untranslatability, on the other
hand, according to Catford (1965: 99), occurs when a situational feature,
functionally relevant for the SL text, completely absent from the culture of
which the TL is a part. In such a case, the SL and the TL have different
socio-cultural background.
Newmark (1981: 134-5) puts the matter in a different way when he
considers the reasons for translatability or untranslatability as being
tangible or mental. The comments of Newmark bring us to the second
view about the possibility of translation, which divides into two groups:
one group believes in complete translation; the other group believes that
there is translation but it is not complete. In other words, there are losses
which cannot be made up by any techniques. Although there are
difficulties in translation, some scholars in the field still believe it is
possible to translate, and that some special certain techniques may help
reduce losses to minimum.
Jacobson (1959: 232-5) has addressed the issue of the possibility to
convey knowledge from one language to another. He maintains:
All cognitive experience and its classification is conveyable in any existing
language. Where there is deficiency, terminology may be qualified and
amplified by loanwords or loan translation, neologism, or semantic shifts,
and finally by circumlocution.
52
Chapter Two
Nida (1969: 483-98) argues that translatability is possible because of the

fact that this world is the same for all people, and people express their
thoughts about the world in a variety of different languages.
2.7.4 Allusion
Allusion, as a culture-specific concept, is a brief reference, explicit or
implicit, to a person, place, or event or to another literary work or passage.
As Wheeler (1979: 5) puts it, Allusion helps to elucidate the meaning of
each text and to indicate the literary modes and conventions in which its
author works. For example, we can say that one sonnet of Shakespeare
alludes to a specific part of the Bible. Allusions enrich the texts in which
they are used when it is not possible to speak directly because of social or
political considerations. It can rightly be said that allusion plays the most
important role in persuading its readers to accept what the author says
especially when they quote some parts from religious texts or famous
literary works. Modern Western Culture has inherited beliefs from the
ancient Greeks and Romans. The Arabic reader is not familiar with these
classical ideas. The translator in the following excerpt from King Henry
VI chose to explain the allusion.
Now am I like that proud insulting ship
Which Caesar and his fortune bare at once. (KH VI, 1, 2, 138-9)

Proper name allusions might be real-life or fictional figures, names of
well-known people in the past, writers, artists, etc. Sometimes, they are
quoted from myths, films, advertisement, various catch phrases, clichs, or
proverbs. Sometimes, phrases from religious texts are mentioned as key
phrase allusions. Religious texts have always been a source of inspiration
for poets and authors of literary texts .In fact they allude to religious texts
to attribute value to their works.
An example of a good allusion is clear in Mahfouzs Palace of Desire
in the utterance of Kamal when he hears Aida calling his name.
( 21 ) .. :
Immediately afterwards you would have liked to echo the Prophets
words when he would feel a revelation coming and cry out for help:
Wrap me up! Cover me with my cloak! (Palace of Desire, p.18)
53
The enrichment of the utterance is a good decision from the translators to

make the allusion clear. It gives the TL reader knowledge about the
religious expression ... . A competent and responsible
translator, after noticing an allusion in a passage of the ST and after
analyzing its function in the micro and macro context, must decide how to
deal with it. Retention of the allusion, changing it somehow or omitting
the allusion is a culture-based decision. Differences arise from the fact that
key phrases may only exceptionally be retained in their source-language
forms. But proper-name allusion is indeed based on retention of the name,
replacement of the name by another name and omission of the name, each
strategy with some additional variants. (Leppihalme, 1997) suggests nine
strategies. The following are examples of these strategies:
(1a) Retention of the name as such
Joseph
(1b) Retention of the name with some additional guidance
John, the prophet
(2a) Replacement of the name with another source-language name
Gods son
Virgin
Gate of heaven, Morning star, Tower of ivory, are some of titles of
Saint Mary used by Catholics. Since TL readers from another religion may
not understand these words the translator uses the general word.
(2b) Replacement of the name with a target-language name
Romeo and Juliet
(3) Footnotes, endnotes, forewords and other additional explanations
outside the text itself:
a- Some words are culture-specific; the SL word is unknown to the
reader.
Ex. ( - )
b- Some words have cultural connotations or expressive meaning.
Ex.
c- Some words bear cultural presupposition.
Ex.
In Mahfouzs Palace of Desire Khadija is speaking of her mother-in-laws
complaint about her. She says that people will think that she is like
.
54
Chapter Two
!
( 238 )
Anyone hearing her complain about me in the store under such
adverse conditions would have thought I was a cold-blooded killer like
those dreadful women in Alexandria: Rayya and Sakina. (Palace of
Desire, p.231)
The utterance is successfully translated because it is
pragmatically enriched to help the target reader understand the meaning.
(4) Simulated familiarity, internal marking (marked wording or syntax):
It occurs when the translators make use of stylistic contrast to signal an
allusion. In addition to these strategies Leppihalme suggests that it is
possible that the allusion is left untranslated, that is, it appears in the
target text in its source-text form.
CHAPTER THREE
GRAMMATICAL ISSUES IN TRANSLATION
All the demonstrable features contained in a text could (in another text)
be different; i.e. each textual variable constitutes a genuine option in the
text. There must be certain shifts in translation which depend on the
stylistic systems of individual languages and on the vocabulary. We can
distinguish several levels where maintaining equivalence in translating
could be problematical. The most significant are: the word level, the
grammatical level and the textual level.
Describing a grammar of a language includes description of its
morphology and syntax. There are two types of grammatical structure: (1)
morphological patterns affecting individual words affixation/inflection,
compounding and derivation; (2) syntactic patterns, whereby words are
linked to form more or less complex pattern phrases and sentences. In
both, what concerns the translator is the fact that the structural patterns
differ from language to language.
3.1 Morphological Level

The word level refers principally to the idea that not all languages
function on the same basis because the concepts of one language may
differ completely from those of another language. For example, there is a
range of prefixes in English which have to be translated into Arabic as
separate words: rewrite has to be transferred into write again ( ) in
Arabic. This suggests that there is no one-to-one correspondence (Baker
1992: 11) between words and morphemes across languages. An example
of the different word formation in English and Arabic is the derivational
morphemes; e. g. English adjectives with the suffix able can be
translated as passive verbs or by adding words such as or .
Adjectives such as portable and edible can be rendered as and
or as and . The adjective livable meaning
endurable is better translated as . However, some adjectives
with the suffix able have more than one meaning; e.g., the adjective
readable is translated when it modifies writing or
56
Chapter Three
print but is translated as when it modifies book. Some

suffixes in English words are substituted with Arabic articles such as the
negative in the words wireless which are translated . Some
prefixes and suffixes in English convey a sort of meaning which cannot be
easily expressed in Arabic, for example, the suffix ish in greenish and
ize in standardize. The suffix ese is difficult to translate unless it is
paraphrased: e.g. legalese, Journalese.
The marked use of grammatical structure is very common in literary
texts. Examples of distinctive grammatical structures can be seen in
morphological repetition (Dickins et al 2002: 100). Dickins and others
(2002) explain different types of morphological repetition.
1- Pattern Repetition
Pattern repetition involves repetition of the same pattern ( - -
-- etc) in two or more words in close proximity. It is an
extremely common feature of Arabic and frequently occurs without
any particular stylistic significance.

2- Root Repetition
It involves repetition of the same morphological root in close
proximity in a text. It is a stylistic feature which can be compensated in
the TT (2002: 103).

We studied this lesson
The use of the absolute accusative in Arabic potentially gives a sense of
emphasis. Consider the following:

It grew so rapidly
The English translation has included an emphatic particle so, which
seems to reflect the emphasis which is a function of the root repetition.
Elsewhere, other translation techniques may be used to compensate for
some degree of emphasis in the TT. Alliteration and assonance are used in
the following example to relay the emphasis of the original root repetition.
57

in order to bid his mother a final farewell.
The choice final farewell is more successful than final goodbye.
3- Suffix Repetition
It is repetition of the same suffix at the end of words in close
proximity. It is a stylistic feature which can be compensated in the TT.
It is less important than pattern and root repetition, but still significant
(2002: 108).

The land of prophecies and divine messages, superstitions
and secret services
Suffix repetition emerges from the grammatical structure of Arabic, in this
case from the use of the suffix as one of the means of forming the
plural. Typically suffix repetition would seem to be an emphatic device
used in more or less poetic contexts. Very often it is better ignored in
translating. Sometimes other means of emphasis may be adopted in the
translation. In the above extract the four elements displaying suffix
repetition in the ST have been split into groups in the TT, the first positive
(prophecies and divine messages) and the second negative (superstitions
and secret services). The use of alliteration and assonance in the TT is
another means of relaying the suffix repetition in the ST.
4-Lexical Repetition
It is repetition of a single word. It is very common in Arabic (2002:
108). It functions not just as a stylistic feature, but as a text-building
device contributing to the cohesion of the text. As with lexical item
repetition, English tends to go for variation in phrases, while Arabic
frequently prefers repetition.

The notions of dialogue between cultures, or civilizations, or religions,
all relate to a single topic.
3.2 Syntactic Level

Syntactic patterns differ from a language to another. Translators are
concerned with cross-linguistic similarities and differences.
Chapter Three
58
Differences in the grammatical structures of the source and target

languages often result in some change in the information content of the
message during the process of translation. This change may entail adding
to the target text information not expressed in the source text or omitting
information specified in the source text in the target text (Baker 1992:
87).
Present perfect tense in English could serve us as an example when

translated into Arabic because in Arabic it does not exist. Arabic therefore
does not dispose of any linguistic features to express it and the translator
has to decide whether to translate it into present or past tense in Arabic. It
is essentially important for the translator to reveal the intention of the
source language text. The intention may be expressed by such grammatical
structures as passive voice, impersonal verbs or propositions like
unfortunately or hopefully (Newmark 1988: 12) which can be
understood as evidence of the authors different points of view. These
structures represent the source language writers attitude towards the
subject matter. Notice how adverbs are formed in English and Arabic. The
common accusative suffix is recognized as a means of forming
adverbs in Arabic and ly is its English counterpart.
Infrequently
Quickly
It is more common, however, to find complex forms of various kinds in
Arabic translated as English verbs. Among other things, these may be:
1- as prepositional phrases
Recently
Persistently
Quickly
Slowly
Cheerfully
2- as cognate accusatives (absolute accusatives)

he wept bitterly
One of the common errors in translating from English into Arabic is the
negligence of cognate accusatives. The previous sentence is sometimes
translated as
59
( )
This structure is not rhetorically motivated in Arabic.
3- as (-clause)
her eyes twinkled happily
he walked on stiffly and quickly
The way how genitive structure is translated is a good example of
grammatical difference between English and Arabic. Notice the different
ways of the translating the following phrase:
The new curtains of the bedroom
The curtains of the new bedroom
Arabic therefore frequently resorts to more complex phrases in order to

avoid such ambiguities, for instance through the use of ; thus
the new curtains of the bedroom or the new bedroom
curtains. Grammatical differences are clear in verb tenses. The system of
tenses of Arabic is quite different from English; , for example, can
mean both buys and is buying.
Exclamation is one of the grammatical structures which can be
contrasted in English and Arabic. The grammarians choice to describe
exclamatives in English as one of the sentence types is based on the fact
that most of exclamatives begin with what or how without inversion of
subject and operator. These utterances cannot be easily categorized as
declaratives or as interrogatives.
What a shoddy trick it is!
How shoddy that is!
Arabic shows an interesting type of exclamative construction. There are
two types of exclamatives in Arabic. The first type is rhetorical; it is
governed by speakers choice or use of language. Rhetorical exclamatives
60
Chapter Three
have no fixed form and are entertained via context. In this type language
speakers use the vocative particle /ya:/ or words such as /lilah/ or / adda/
or /9ajabtu/ or /sobHan/. Consider the following examples of the first type:

What a man he is

What a generous man!

The man is much too proud!

I wonder who doesnt know the matter!

Glory to God!
Rhetorical exclamatives can be expressed through interrogative forms.

Who cares?
The second type of exclamatives in Arabic is idiomatic or formulaic. It is
standardized or has fixed rules. There are two main formulas. The first
formula is the use of particle // and a verb form based on the pattern /
/, i.e. Arabic verb formation in this formula is based on the tri-consonantal
root. The verb is followed by a noun phrase that functions as an object.

How big the pyramid is!

What a liar he is!
The second formula is the use of an imperative verb form, i.e. Arabic verb
formation in this formula is based on the tri-consonantal root / /. The
verb is followed by a prepositional phrase. The prepositional phrase has
the structure /bi/ as a preposition and a noun phrase which is in the
genitive case. Notice the following example.
61

How beautiful the red rose is.
Note the two verbs and , which are only used in certain stock
phrases in the Holy Quran, e.g.
! How well you have done!
! What an evil fate it is!
The vocative is another construction which can be contrasted in English
and Arabic. The vocative in Arabic is introduced by the interjection but
in English it is preceded by O!
O boy
O Mohammed
A rhetorical and rather pompous way of introducing the vocative in Arabic
is to prefix / which must be immediately followed by the
definite article.
O people!
O brave officer!
The optative is also another field for Arabic English contrastive. The
optative in English is expressed by the use of the modal may, while in
Arabic by the perfect of the verb although in modern Arabic the imperfect
is more commonly used, e.g.
! May God have mercy on him!
! May God bless you!
The negative of the optative is introduced by not , e.g.
!
May you not drink pure water all your life.
One of the common mistakes in English/Arabic translation is the use of
to mean still or remain. The expression should be used.
Notice the following example:
62
Chapter Three
Dialogue between cultures was and remains the main road for the
development of human civilization.

The verbal particle is used in Arabic but English uses (O) would
that or If.

Would that youth were to return one day!
If youth were to return one day!

Would that we had never heard that piece of news!
Many Arabic passive structures have English passive correspondences.
Though there are some exceptions to this generalized rule. For example,
is a passive sentence in Arabic and cannot be rendered into an
English passive sentence [*the man was died]. The sentence Coca Cola is
enjoyed all over the world is rendered as the rhetorically motivated active
constructions or
. Notice the following English sentence and its Arabic translation.
The head of the mission is the person charged by the sending state.

The English sentence is translated as passive because it is not the actual
head of the mission but the term head of the mission that is being talked
about here. The by-agent passive in the sentence is more idiomatically
rendered in Arabic as active. Theoretically speaking it is not at all
accepted to translate form to form rather than function to function or
meaning to meaning. Formal equivalence cannot deal with problems in
translation posed by the semantic features of Arabic and English. Nida and
Taber (1982:13) maintain that meaning must be given priority, for it is the
content of the message.
Another example of the difference in grammatical structure between
English and Arabic is the order of adjectives. The phrase two nice old
round red candles follows the normal order for adjectives in English
which is represented in the following table. On the contrary, Arabic has no
fixed word order of adjective.
63
Table 3-1 Adjective order in English
determiner
two
Adjectives
Opinion
age
nice
old
Noun
fact
shape
round
color
red
candles
Some grammatical words may give meaning in a certain context.

Prepositions are examples of this grammatical meaning. Prepositions can
be confusing. The difference between on time, in time, and just in
time is an example. Notice the use of prepositions with the divisions of
time, e.g., at Christmas, but on Christmas Day, and on Christmas
morning.

Upon the eighth night I was very cautious.
Another example of grammatical meaning is phrasal verbs. Notice for
example the difference in meaning resulting from the phrasal verb wait.
Wait at/on table
While she was pregnant, her husband waited on her hand and foot.

Dont wait dinner for me - Ill be home late.

Adverbs of degree vary in meaning. The word rather, for example, is
similar to the word quite which means less than very but more than a
little. We use rather mainly with negative words and negative ideas.
She is quite intelligent but rather lazy.
When we use rather with positive words (nice/interesting), it means
unusually or surprising. For example, rather nice means unusually
nice or surprisingly nice or nicer than expected. The adverb quite
may mean completely with a number of adjectives (such as sure, right,
true, clear, different, incredible, amazing, certain, wrong, safe, obvious,
unnecessary, extraordinary, impossible). In English there is a difference
between the conditional in case and the conditional if.
64
Chapter Three
1) I will buy the food in case you come (whether you come or not).
2) I will buy the food if you come.
Translators should pay attention to grammatical meanings in the ST and
the TT.
Languages do differ in the way they express similar ideas. While one
uses a verb, for example, another may use an adjective and a third may
differ from both of them. Syntactic structures usually bear different
semantic meanings in different languages even when languages exhibit
similarities in their syntactic structures. Nida (1984: 75) states that:
One of the serious mistakes made by the study of combinatory meaning is
to assume that if constructions are syntactically similar, they are therefore
likely to be semantically similar. This assumption can be extremely
misleading.
3.3 Cohesion and Coherence

Texture is said to be provided by the cohesive relations. Halliday and
Hasan (1976:02) point out that what distinguishes a text from non-text is
its texture. Cohesion is a network of lexico-grammatical relations which
link various parts of a text and that can be defined as continuity to its total
unity. In Halliday and Hasan words (1976: 04):
Cohesion occurs where the INTERPRETATION of some elements in the
discourse is dependent on that of another. The one PRESUPPOSES the
other in the sense that, it cannot be effectively decoded except by recourse
to it. When this happens, a relation of cohesion is set up, and the two
elements, the presupposing and the presupposed, are thereby at least
potentially integrated into a text.
The following is an example suggested by Yule (2006:125) to illustrate the

importance of the cohesive ties in creating text unity and meaning:
My father once brought a Lincoln convertible. He did it by saving
every penny he could. That car would be worth a fortune nowadays.
However, he sold it to help pay for my college. Sometimes I think Id
rather have the convertible. (Underlined words are by the author of
this work).
65
Readers assume that this is a meaningful whole. This text makes sense
through the function of its various cohesive markers. It is clear that the
underlined items are referents: the pronoun he stands for my father,
my refers to the speaker I, and both that car and the convertible
refer to the Lincoln convertible. The cohesive relationships between
elements in a text are affected by the existence of the referring item and
the presence of the item to which it refers.
Different types of cohesive ties can be recognized within a text with
different frequency. It is a notion which helps analyze text cohesion and
identify the relation between its propositions. Halliday and Hasan
distinguish between five types of ties, namely reference, conjunctions,
ellipses, substitution, and lexical cohesion.
Cohesive
Ties
Grammatical
Reference
Substitution
Ellipses
Lexical
Logical
connectives
Reiteration
Collocation
Notice the occurrence of the ST words and the occurrence of their English
correspondence in the following excerpt from Dickins and others (2002).
..
.. ..
..

Arab nationalism is not Gamal Abd al-Nasser, it is not Shukri alQuwatli, it is not any particular leader. It is stronger than all of this. It
is you my friends, the Arab people. Before today, I had not even met
you. However, in all your eyes I see the spirit of nationalism rising up,
Chapter Three
66
I see a deep belief in it. I see that every one of you is profoundly
convinced.
Arabic
Occurrence
2
3
4
3
2
4
2
2
5
2
2
English
Correspondence
No
nationalism
Arab
Is not
leader
All
Every one
No
No
See
eyes
Belief
convinced
Deep
profound
Occurrence
0
2
2
3
1
2
1
0
0
4
1
1
1
1
1
Lexical cohesion was overrepresented in the translation of Arabic learners

to English texts. The learners tended to prefer lexical cohesion over
referential linkage. They shifted most of the grammatical ties such as
pronouns and demonstratives that are used to refer to entities and events in
the source text, into lexical terms in the target language. In other words,
the learners preferred repeating the same lexical elements rather than
referring to them by other grammatical terms. Unlike English which tends
to rely heavily on pronominal reference in tracing participants, Arabic
generally seems to be more in favour of lexical repetition. In addition,
Arabic inflects verbs for person and number, and such grammatical
features provide additional means of relating process and actions to
specific participants without the use of independent pronouns. Baker
(1992), in turn, illustrates the tendency in English for relatively small
chunks of text to be explicitly conjoined in unambiguous ways using a
wide variety of conjunctions and a highly developed system of
punctuation. In contrast, Arabic tends to use a relatively small number of
conjunctions which must be interpreted according to the addressees
ability to infer relationships. The following example is taken from Dickins
and others (2002: 133)
67
{ }
{ } .
{ } {}
{ } . { }
{}
{}
.
{In addition }, the storing of ready-made building
materials presents unique difficulties as compared with other
manufactured units. {In view of } the large amounts of space
taken up, { } storage costs are huge, {and } warehouses
cannot cope, {despite } their relatively large size.
{Accordingly }, production policies need to be based on the
selling of products as soon they are produced {in order to } avoid
the problem of tying up invested capital, {and } to allow for
production policy to be changed according to assessments of future
consumer demand.
In the traditional sense, the coherence of the text is not imposed from
outside the text itself. Rather it is the properties of the textual resources
(e.g. theme, reference, substitution, conjunction, etc.) Thus, coherence
according to this view seems to be the essence of the textuality criterion of
the text (cf. Halliday and Hasan, 1976). Van Dijk (1995: 385) asserts, must
have also unity at a more global level. Carrel (1982: 482) asserts that
coherence is not cohesion. She criticizes Halliday and Hasans (1976)
cohesive concept as an index of textual coherence or texture, utilizing
schema theory which views text processing as an interactive process
between the text and the prior background knowledge of the reader. It
involves the study of such factors as the language users knowledge of the
world, the inferences they make and the assumptions they hold, and in
particular of the way in which communication is mediated through the use
of speech acts(Crystal 1985: 53). Such understanding of coherence makes
it a semantic property of a text. Yule (1996: 127) defines text coherence as
the familiar and expected relationships in experience which we use to
connect the meaning of utterances, even when those connections are not
explicitly made.
Coherence of the text is not a stable concept. Blum-Kulka (2002: 304)
examines the possibility that texts may change or lose their meaning
potential through translation. She distinguishes between text-focused shift
68
Chapter Three
and reader-focused shift. The former is linked to the process of translation

per se; that is, shifts occur as a result of particular choices made by a
specific translator: choices that indicate a lack of awareness on the
translators part of the SL texts meaning potential. The latter is linked to
a change in reader audiences through translation. Both types of shifts,
Blum-Kulka adds, can be studied to a certain extent by psycholinguistic
methods of text processing. She concludes that reader-focused shifts of
coherence in translation are to some extent unavoidable, unless the
translator is normatively free to transplant the text from one cultural
environment to another.
3.4 Register and Style

In linguistics, register is one of many styles or varieties of language
determined by such factors as social occasion, purpose, and audience. It is
also called stylistic variation. More generally, register is used to indicate
degrees of formality in language use. The different registers or language
styles that we use are sometimes called codes. Halliday developed an
analysis of context in terms of field, tenor and mode. These three
components offer a system which help illustrate any socio-linguistic
occurrence. The dialect is a very important component in register. Great
Expectations, for example, is rich in dialogue and is written in the dialect
of the working class and the poor of Victorian England. The things
characters say and how they speak is one of the ways in which readers get
to know them. Dialect is part of Hard Timess realism. In Hard Times
dialect is of the working poor of the North, because with the Industrial
Revolution it was there that the poorest people were congregated and it
was there the violence erupted most frequently in the nineteenth century.
Many of the authentically Lancashire features of the dialect used in Hard
Times could have been found in the Glossary: Loss of final -1 as in aw
all, fearfo, dreadfo, wishfo, wa, faithfo. The loss of l before a
consonant: awmost, fawt. Dickens would not have found the form th
the, or wi with, but these would ha ve been evident on a short visit to
Lancashire. Popular in Southern American writing and incorporates local
speech and patterns i.e. aint, yall etc. and misspelling of words to display
meaning i.e. yuh (you) and lak (like). The following English sentence,
when translated, can be compensated by using a local dialect in Arabic or
a local proverb.
You aint seen nothing yet

69
The translator may need to study the authors style, background

(educational, religious, political, cultural, social, etc.) attitudes,
motivations, etc. This information is in most cases very important to the
process of translation; it may clear out certain aspects of the message that
otherwise might be ambiguous to the translator and the receptors. The
translator may need to go over many of the works of the source to get
more information and to be acquainted with the authors characteristics for
his role involves primarily communicating the intentions of the original
author (de Waard & Nida, 1986: 32). The examples cited in this section
show that the translator uses a highly literary style in the translation of
King Henry VI.
Poter: Madam, I will. (KH VI, II, 3, 3)
:
Notice how the English glory and in arms are translated in the
following sentence.
Since Henry Monmouth first began to reign
Before whose glory I was in arms,
This loathsome sequestration have I had. (KH VI, II, 5, 23-5)

Ali M. Al-Kasimi focuses on translating the style of Hemingway in The
Old Man and the Sea. He translates the first two sentences as follows:
He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and
he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish. In the first
forty days a boy had been with him.

.
He translated the word old as and not as because the word
gives connotation of impotence and is lexically different. In an
translation the word old is translated as . That
translation is complicated and has allusion from the Holy Quran. However,
Hemingways technique is uncomplicated, with plain grammar and easily
accessible language. His hallmark is a clean style that eschews adjectives
70
Chapter Three
and uses short, rhythmic sentences that concentrate on action rather than
reflection. Al-Kasimi uses the word not for other lexical
reasons. Notice how the good style makes a good translation of Edgar
Allan Poes The Tell-Tale Heart:
TRUE! nervous, very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am;
but why WILL you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my
senses, not destroyed, not dulled them. Above all was the sense of
hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I
heard many things in hell. How then am I mad? Hearken! and
observe how healthily, how calmly, I can tell you the whole story.
It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my brain, but,
once conceived, it haunted me day and night. Object there was none.
Passion there was none. I loved the old man. He had never wronged
me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I think
it was his eye! Yes, it was this! One of his eyes resembled that of a
vulture -- a pale blue eye with a film over it. Whenever it fell upon me
my blood ran cold, and so by degrees, very gradually, I made up my
mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye for
ever.

!!
.

.

.
Sarcastic style, for example, should also be translated. The imperative verb
in the sentence Enlighten me is different from the verb in the question
Can you enlighten me? The ironic style can be translated as . Style
is very important in poetry translation. An example of the good literary
translation is Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam translated by Edward
Fitzgerald. Ahmed Rami, a famous late Egyptian poet, also translated the
work into Arabic. Nicholson has translated some segments of the
Muallaqat.
71
Once on the hill, she mocked at me and swore.

This hour I leave to return no more,
But ah, the deadly pair, thy streaming eyes,
They pierce a heart that all in ruins lies.
According to Khulusy (1982: 32), the translation may be better than the
original.
From too much love of living,
From hope and fear set free,
We thank with brief thanksgiving
Whatever gods may be
That no life lives for ever;
That dead men rise up never;
That even the weariest river
Winds somewhere safe to sea.
(By Algernon Charles Swinburne)

Mother to Son is a poem written from the point of view of a black mother,
telling her son of her hardships during her life. The writing style is
purposefully that of the language of an uneducated African-American.
Well, son, Ill tell you:
Life for me aint been no crystal stair.
Its had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the floor
Bare.
But all the time
72
Chapter Three
Ise been a-climbin on,

And reachin landins,
And turnin corners,
And sometimes goin in the dark
Where there aint been no light.
So, boy, dont you turn back.
Dont you set down on the steps.
Cause you finds its kinder hard.
Dont you fall now
For Ise still goin, honey,
Ise still climbin,
And life for me aint been no crystal stair.
Langston Hughes
Example of formal translation

Example of slang translation

Notice the style of the two different students translations of Miss

Thompson Goes Shopping which is another poem written by Martin
Armstrong.
So, having washed her plates and cup
And banked the kitchen-fire up,
Miss Thompson slipped upstairs and dressed,
Put on her black (her second best),
The bonnet trimmed with rusty plush,
Peeped in the glass with simpering blush,
From camphor-smelling cupboard took
73
Her thicker jacket off the hook

Because the day might turn to cold.
1
The language of Professor Nickolsons translation of Jamil Buthaynas

poems is written in archaic language to suit the style of the original.

:

! :

:

:

Oh, might it flower anew that youthful prime

And restore to us, Buthayna. The bygone time
And might we again be blest as we wont to be
When the folk were nigh and grudged what thou gavest me
Shall I ever meet Buthayna alone again?
Each of us full of love as a cloud of rain?
East in her net was I when a lad, and till
This day my love is growing and waxing still
I have spent my lifetime, waiting for her to speak,
And the bloom of youth is faded from off my cheek
But I will not suffer that she my suit deny,
My love remains undying though all things die.
74
Chapter Three
The translator, who is looked upon as the direct source of the translation,
is supposed to translate not rewrite the text. In other words, the role of the
translator is assumed to preserve the various values of the original
message. Nida & Reyburn (1981: 20) maintain that:
More fundamental, however, than knowledge of a language and its cultural
frame of interpretation are the attitudes that translators have toward such
languages, because their emotional identification with one or another
language is crucial.
However, some translators may exaggerate the concept of what Nida calls
the functional equivalence. For example, they would not hesitate to
translate the lamb of God as the the seal of God if the Eskimo is the
adopting culture to the translated message (Wilss, 1982: 50). De Waard
and Nida (1986: 38) also consider the exaggeration of this concept (i. e.,
the functional equivalence) as unjustifiable. They would prefer a marginal
note to explain the idea to the receptors of the TL instead of this kind of
alteration to the original message. The translator is advised in these
situations to explain such terms or idioms to his receptors rather than
making such changes in the translation see cultural transplantation.
3.5 Sentential Issues in Translation

The basic idea behind theme and rheme is that sentences can be
divided up into some elements which provide predictable information and
are known as the theme; and others which provide unpredictable
information and are known as the rheme. Theme refers to information
already known about in the text. Rheme, by contrast, is all new
information in the sentence. The standard order of information is themerheme order. The following example is taken from Dickins and others
(2002: 118).
What happened to you?
(a) I got stung by a bee.
(b) A bee stung me.
Response (a) follows the standard theme-first theme-rheme order.
Response (b), however, has the reverse rheme-theme order. Where rheme
precedes theme in English, as in A bee stung me, the sentence tends to
carry a certain emotional charge. In terms of Arabic-English translation
the distinction between thematic and rhematic information is most
75
problematic where it provides difficult or impossible to reproduce roughly

the same word order in English as in the original Arabic. If the word order
of the original Arabic can be roughly maintained in the English, this will
often reproduce the original theme-rheme structure, because English and
Arabic both have a tendency to start with the most thematic element and
end with the most rhematic element.

Egyptian engineers built this bridge
This bridge was built by Egyptian engineers
Here, the active Arabic sentence is translated as passive to maintain the
order of thematic information and rhematic information (Dickins et al
2002: 119).
CHAPTER FOUR
PHONOLOGICAL ISSUES IN TRANSLATION
4.1 Two Different Sound Systems

The process of comparing the English phonological system with the
Arabic phonological system involves the following:
1- The linguistic analysis of both sound systems: A complete
description of the two sound systems will be of great importance to
understand the nature of the two languages. It also includes relevant
data on the phonetic environment of the phonemes and their
variants and on their distribution.
2- Comparison of both sound systems: One should answer the
following questions to understand the difference between the sound
systems of English and Arabic.
A. Do English and Arabic have phonetically different phonemes?
B. Are the variants of the phonemes similar in both languages?
C. Are the phonemes similarly distributed?
One tries to find out whether the distribution patterns (sequences) occur in
positions in which they do not occur in the other language.
English is distinguished with 5 consonants which do not occur in
Arabic, i.e. /p/, /v/, /g/, // and //. Arabic is distinguished with 10 different
phonemes, i.e. //, //, //, //, /q/, /x/, //, / /, / / and / /. In translating
foreign words containing /g/ into Arabic there are 3 possible substitutes
i.e., [g] as in the Carriene dialect or [] or [k]. For example, both and
are possible spelling of golf. In Arabic, foreign sounds /p/ and /v/
are usually transcribed as [b] and [f], respectively. Sometimes Persian
letters (with 3 dots) / / and // are used for this purpose. These letters
have been approved by the Arabic Academy in Cairo, but as these letters
are not present on standard keyboards, they are simply written with //
and //, e. g. both and can be used. The use of both sounds
may be considered marginal and Arabic may pronounce the words
78
Chapter Four
interchangeably, besides, many loanwords, have become arabicized, e. g.

telephone/ telescope/ microphone/
microscope/ volt/ radar and laser.
The huge flux of scientific and technological words makes the idea of
coining Arabic equivalent words quite impractical. A basic rule in
translation is that words which have Arabic inherent equivalents are
translated. An example of the problems which a translator may face is the
different phonetic environment of the distribution pattern in the two
languages. For example, consonantal sequences are permitted in English
but not permitted in Arabic, e. g. words such as stereo and Brown are
translated with adding the letter alif as and .
4.2 Phonic Issues in Translation

The phonic level is the level of textual variables which is considered the
patterned organization of sound-segments (phonemes) in speech. In literary
STs, especially poetry, marked phonic features very often have a thematic
and expressive function that is, the message would be less complex and
have less impact without them. Repetition of sounds can generally be
classified either as alliteration or as assonance. Repetition of final sounds is
known as rhyme. One of the slogans heard during January 25th revolution in
Egypt is . It was often used by particular groups to
highlight economic injustice. It was translated by the Students of the
American University in Cairo (AUC) as Change, liberty, social equality.
While this slogan is traditionally translated as Change, freedom, and
social justice, Mehrez (2012) explains that the musicality of the source
language is reflected in that new creative translation of the AUC students.
According to Mehrez, slogans are meant to be chanted, they should create
an equivalent translation that can be easily chanted in the target language
of English. This was accomplished through the use of rhyme and
punctuation to aid the English reader in chanting the slogan. The Arabic
slogan can be broken down into three semantic segments with a rhyme
scheme of A B B. The translation should capture the rhyme and rhythm by
choosing liberty rather than freedom and equality rather than
justice. In the target language of English liberty and freedom are
usually interchangeable semantically in many contexts. While equality
varies slightly from justice, but as a meaningful unit, the phrase social
justice encompasses the notion of equality, whether economic or political.
Overall, this translated slogan is memorable and easily chanted and thus
succeeds in the purpose of a slogan in both the source and target languages.
Translation of homonymy is a case in this chapter. In the Shakespearean
79
sonnet 138 there is homonymy between lie (give false information) and lie
(make love).
When my love swears that she is made of truth
I do believe her, though I know she lies,
Therefore I lie with her and she with me,
An example of the phonic element in translation is the translation of
onomatopoeia. Onomatopoeia is a word whose phonic form imitates a
sound. Shunnaq and Al-Thebyan (2003) study onomatopoeic expressions
in Edwar Al-Kharrats Turabuha Zafaran and how they are translated
into English. To illustrate the above discussion further, consider the
following underlined words and how they are translated:

.

) .

(110-109 :
The rain batters against the window-pane in a quick driving rhythm;
the warmth inside the room causes a light misty veil to settle on the
glass. Through the condensation on the window I can see the lights in
the alley like a mass of twinkling stars. Then the lightning comes
ripping down in blinding flashes, and the houses seem to jump out,
roofs and clouds bathed in a silvery light before disappearing. The
lightning is followed after a second by the deep-throated boom of
thunder, rolling on and on, rumbling away like huge drums.
My heart leaps with excitement. Aida is screaming little screams
and Hana runs to her mothers arms; my mother laughs, and my
father soothes them. I feel a delicious trickle of fear lace my
excitement, in spite of my delight, making it more exciting and more
glittering. There is an atmosphere of safety and refuge in the nice
warm room; the charcoal is burning with a clear flame and a faint
hiss, audible after the tremendous clashing of the thunders cymbals;
a muffled shshsh and a happy, quiet flame.. (City of Saffron: 91)
80
Chapter Four
Phonetic issues in translation can be clearer in the translation of poetry.

Notice the manipulation of the sounds in the following poetic lines:
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
Note the examples of alliteration (which I have put in bold print) just in
the first stanza. The consistent use of the initial -S, -Th, and -W sounds is
alliteration. Notice that whose actually belongs with the H words, since
it is the sound and not the letters that create alliteration. Poems built on
alliteration and consonance are difficult to translate:
.......
......
The following lines from Shakespeares Othello achieves the idiosyncratic
s-sound repetition.
I do beseech you,
Though I perchance am vicious in my guess,
As, I confess, it is my natures plague
To spy into abuses, and oft my jealousy
Shapes faults that are not, that your wisdom,
From one that so imperfectly conceits,
Would take no notice, nor build yourself a trouble
Out of his scattering and unsure observance.
Notice how the second translation reproduces the sound repetition.
First translation

81
Second translation

Rhythm Translation is another challenge to the translator. Nicholson uses

corresponding English metres for the Arabic ones.
English
Iambic
Antispastic
Amphibrachic
Anapaestic
Ionic
Arabic

Notice the translation of the following lines by Nicholson:

In the glen there a murdered man is lying
Not in vain for vengeance his blood is crying.
He hath left me the load to bear and departed;
I take up the load and bear it true-hearted.
I, his sisters son, the blood-shed inherit,
I, whose knot none looses, stubborn of spirit;
Glowering darkly, shames deadly out-wiper,
Like the serpent spitting venom, the viper.
82
Chapter Four
The translation of William Shakespeares famous sonnet is another good

example.
Shall I compare thee to a summers day
Thou art more lovely and more temperate
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May
And summers lease hath all too short a date
Sometimes too hot the eye of heaven shines
And often is his gold complexion dimmed
And every fair from fair sometimes declines
By chance or natures changing course untrimmed
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest
Nor shall death brag thou wanderest in his shade
when in eternal lines to time thou growest
So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee
Mohammed Enanis translation

Fatina Al-Naebs translation

83
4.3 Graphical Issues in Translation

Graphical issues are concerned with orthography which is a
standardized system for using a particular writing system (script) to write a
particular language. It includes rules of spelling. Other elements of written
language that are part of orthography include hyphenation, capitalization,
word breaks, emphasis, and punctuation. This level is not always
adequately and congruently rendered in other languages.
Readers who read E. E. Cummings poetry recognize the distinctive
shape that a Cummings poem makes on the page: the blizzard of
punctuation, the words running together or suddenly breaking part, the
type spilling like a liquid from one line to the next. l(a is a poem by E.
E. Cummings. l(a is arranged vertically in groups of one to five letters.
When the text is laid out horizontally, it reads as l(a leaf falls)oneliness
in other words, a leaf falls inserted between the first two letters of
loneliness.
l(a
le
af
fa
ll
s)
one
l
iness
CHAPTER FIVE
EDITING AND PROOFREADING
5.1 What is Editing?

We have to think of editing as the big picture process. The translation
is compared to the original (source) text, and the translated text is
reviewed as a whole. The editor should check for things like word choice,
clarity, conciseness, consistency, jargon, and register. This editing process
should answer a few simple questions:
1. Does the translation accurately convey the meaning of the source
text?
2. Does the translation use the appropriate terminology and style for
its intended audience?
3. Is the translated text consistent? (This is especially important when
more than one translator was involved.)
5.2 What is Proofreading?

If editing is looking at the big picture, proofreading is like getting out
the magnifying glass and doing a careful inspection. At this stage, the goal
is to clean up the text; the source text is forgotten and the translated text
must stand on its own. Issues to consider:
1. Style Guides: In-house guide and/or professional guides (such as
The Chicago Manual of Style)
2. Mechanics: Spelling, capitalization, punctuation, abbreviations,
numbers
3. Sentence Structure: Run-on sentences, comma splices, sentence
fragments
4. Regional Differences: UK v. US English spelling and punctuation
86
Chapter Five
A proofreader may have specific duties that depend on the kind of

document or the client. My favorite client sends a checklist to all
proofreaders, to ensure that our work is consistent and covers everything
the client needs. After proofreading, the translation should be ready to use.
Most translators include some amount of editing and proofreading in
their workflow. For example, when I translate a document, I always
compare my translation with the original document. I check it for
accuracy, and then I rewrite any part that doesnt flow well in English.
After that, I proofread the entire document for mechanical and formatting
errors.
5.3 Bad Translations

I wonder how many errors can determine ours is a bad translation.
What kinds of errors are more likely to be accepted and what others are
not? Some translators suppose its not the same if we make 3 errors in one
page than if you make 8-10 errors in 10,000 words. However, I cannot
imagine how a translation can be a good one with errors. If there are
errors, then it is clearly not a good translation, and we dont really care
about the nature of the errors. The meaning of the ST is not being fully
communicated in the bad translation. Its style is clumsy. It does not follow
together and has frequent awkward or oddly placed elements. Numerous
word choices are either too formal or too colloquial for the TL domain.
Cultural references, discourse and register are at times inappropriate for
the TL domain, text type and readership. It shows some lack of control of
TL grammar, spelling and punctuation. It contains frequent unidiomatic or
inappropriate wording. It demonstrates some trouble in identifying and
overcoming translation problems. The following translated texts are
examples of bad translations.
Text 1

.

.
87
Text 1A
Splendor of Sultanate of Oman is not limited only in its fast growing
modern capital city, as the long Omani costs include many Super
beauty areas. Is there a better way to enjoy discovering that areas of
winter camping trip. The form of camping is a life style for the Omani
residence for thousands of years, tribes were migrate with there live
stock for camping in areas rich with pasture necessary to feed Herds
of camels, goats and sheep.
Text 2
Dialogue between cultures was and remains the main road for the
development of human civilization. Through the reciprocal
understanding and interpenetration of cultures over the centuries and
millennia, those cultures have been mutually enriched, and so have
made up the unique mosaic of human civilization. It is this dialogue
between cultures which can and must be the answer to the growing
danger of various manifestations of intolerance and violence,
including aggressive nationalism. This is the essence of the Dialogue
between Cultures project which was proposed in UNESCO and has
the support of cultural figures in various countries.
Text 2A
.
,
.

.
()
.
5.4 Good Translation

The meaning of the ST is masterfully communicated in the good
translation. It has a masterful style. It flows together flawlessly and forms
a natural whole. Word choice is skilful and apt for the TL domain.
Cultural references, discourse and register are completely appropriate for
the TL domain, text type and readership. It shows a masterful control of
TL grammar, spelling and punctuation. It reads smoothly. Wording is
88
Chapter Five
idiomatic and appropriate. It demonstrates able and creative solutions to

translation problems. The following translated texts are examples of good
translations.
Text 1B
There is more to the Sultanate of Oman than its busy capital, Muscat.
Its long coastline features many areas of outstanding natural beauty.
What better way to explore them than on a winter camping trip? For
thousands of years, camping was a way of life for the people of Oman
as the tribes moved lightly across the landscape, following herds of
camels, sheep and goats to their favorite grazing grounds.
Text 2B

.
.

.
Text 3
Salalah City receives its visitors with large vistas of grass and water
mist, opening its arms to them and spreading the shade of its palm
trees (locally called Coconut). The smell of frankincense wafts
through the city. This is the same frankincense that has been
portrayed on the walls of ancient Pharaonic temples ever since
Hatshepsut journeyed to Omans fertile lands. Salalah is famous for
its lights that sparkle through the nights lyrical breezes and the days
sun rays beating down on the waves that dance in celebration of
Salalahs eternal spring.

) )

.
89
Text 4
The evolution of architecture is a measure of a nations civilisation
and Oman abounds with a number of cultural buildings that stand as
a testament to this art. As a visitor to the cities of Oman, you will
surely observe the diligent efforts to preserve this ancient and
traditional architecture that is characterised by its simple lines. It
avoids high rises, yet maintains an understated elegance of its own.
The castles, forts and walls are a testament to an architectural style
that has defence in mind, the most famous being Jabreen Castle and
Bahla Fort and Walls (Sur Bahla), included in the World Heritage
Sites list.

.
Translators should be able to explain the strategic decisions that s/he has to
take after determining the text type. The following text is part of a news
report. Notice the changes in the underlined words.
American officials said that an announcement lately by the Iraqi
government that it was ready to open a formal discussion with the
United States about keeping some troops after the end of the year was
a positive step towards resolving the question about the American
militarys future presence in Iraq.
On August 3 the Iraqi government declared that it could begin talks
with the American administration about keeping a limited training
force in the country. Under 2008 agreement between the two
countries, about 48000 American troops remaining in Iraq must leave
by the end of 2011. As part of that agreement, the Iraqi government
ultimately decides if it wants some troops to remain.

.

.
Chapter Five
90
48000
2008 2011

.
Here is a list of the expected strategic decisions that should be taken by a
translator.
1
2
3
Source
said
an announcement
lately
formal discussion
5
6
the question
No
correspondence
On August 3
7
8
9
10
11
the country
No
correspondence
Under
2008
agreement
between the two
countries
As part of that
agreement
Target
Strategic decisions taken

more suitable for news reports
the word is already definite
addition
more commonly collocated in
Arabic
addition
pattern of cohesion in the TT
2008
word order according to theme

and rheme
more idiomatic in the TT
pattern of cohesion in the TT

and rheme

and rheme

Fisheries have received much attention from the state for the role they
play in food security. As renewable, sustainable resources of national
income and as they create job opportunities, the fisheries sector,
91
especially in light of good management, remains one of the basic

milestones for achieving economic developments in the country.
Here is a list of the expected strategic decisions that should be taken by a
translator.
1
2
Source

4
5

No
correspondence

Target
Fisheries
No
correspondence
As renewable,
sustainable
resources
good
achieving
as they create job
opportunities
Strategic decisions taken

More idiomatic in the TT
pattern of cohesion in the
TT
word order according to
theme and rheme
More idiomatic
pattern of cohesion in the
TT
word order according to
theme and rheme
5.5 Rubric for Grading a Translation

The following rubric can be used to measure or assess the quality of a
translation. The rubric is based on meaning, structure, appropriateness,
grammar and translation skill.
Word choice is skilful and

apt for the TL domain.
Cultural references,
discourse and register are
completely appropriate for
the TL domain, text type
and readership.
The T has a
masterful style. It
flows together
flawlessly and
forms a natural
whole.
The T has a style.

It flows together
well and forms a
coherent whole.
The meaning of the ST is

masterfully communicated
in the T.

proficiently communicated
in the T.
Word choice is
consistently good for the
TL domain. Cultural
references, discourse and
register are consistently
appropriate for the TL
domain, text type and
readership.
Situational
Appropriateness
Style and
Cohesion
Chapter Five
Source Text Meaning
T= translation; TL= target language; S= source
Table 5-1 Rubric for grading a translation
92
A= 5 =Excellent
B =4 =Good
T shows a
proficient control
of TL grammar,
spelling and
punctuation.
Occasional minor
errors.
T shows a
masterful control
of TL grammar,
spelling and
punctuation. Very
few or no errors.
Grammar and
Mechanics
T is almost entirely
idiomatic and
appropriate in
context. T
demonstrates
consistent ability in
identifying and
overcoming
translation
problems.
T reads smoothly.
Wording is
idiomatic and
appropriate. T
demonstrates able
and creative
solutions to
translation problems
Translation Skills
C =3=Satisfactory
D =2=Deficient
The T style may be

inconsistent. There
are occasional
awkward or oddly
placed elements.
The T style is
clumsy. It does not
follow together
and has frequent
awkward or oddly
placed elements.

appropriately
communicated in the T

not being fully
communicated in the T
Numerous word choices

are either too formal or
too colloquial for the TL
domain. Cultural
references, discourse and
register are at times
inappropriate for the TL
domain, text type and
readership.
Some phrasing and word

choices are either too
formal or too colloquial
for the TL domain.
mostly appropriate for the
TL domain, text type and
readership.

T contains
occasional
unidiomatic or
inappropriate
wording. T
demonstrates a
general ability in
identifying and
overcoming
translation
problems.
T contains frequent
unidiomatic or
inappropriate
wording. T
demonstrates some
trouble in
identifying and
overcoming
translation
problems.
T shows a weak
control of TL
grammar, spelling
and punctuation.
Frequent minor
errors.
T shows some lack

of control of TL
grammar, spelling
and punctuation.
Numerous errors.
93
94
E =1=minimal
T shows consistent and

major misunderstanding of
the ST
T lacks style. T
does not flow
together. It is
awkward.
Sentences and
ideas seem
unrelated
Most phrasing and word

choices are either too
formal or too colloquial
for the TL domain, text
type and readership.
consistently inappropriate
for the TL domain, text
type and readership.
Chapter Five
T shows a lack of
control of TL
grammar, spelling
and punctuation.
Serious and
frequent errors.
T contains
excessive and
disruptive
unidiomatic or
inappropriate
wording. T reflects
an inability to
identify and
overcome common
translation
problems.
95
5.6 Translated Texts for Assessment

..
2013 22 :
(cf. Ghazala: 2013) :

: .

.

.

.
.
.

.
.
. :
() .

() .
() .

.
. 1927

. .

.
() .

.
.

: .
.
96
Chapter Five
Iraqs dwindling rivers

A Mesopotamian odyssey
Oct 22nd 2013, 11:56 by A.F.
AZZAM ALWASHS face is deeply tanned, his nose peeling like it
did when he was an outdoorsy 11-year-old. I am proud of my sunburn,
he says, having recently arrived in Iraqs southern port city of Basra after a
hot, month-long expedition to sail three traditional boats from the river
Tigriss source in south-eastern Turkey. Mr Alwash, an environmentalist,
and his NGO, Nature Iraq, wanted to honor their countrys heritage and
draw attention to the dwindling water levels in its rivers.
While parts of Iraq are desert, two waterways feed lush farmland and
swathes of marsh full of water buffalo. The Greeks called it Mesopotamia,
meaning between the rivers. Some of the earliest agriculture began here,
and the Euphrates and Tigris have historically been arteries of trade and
travel between Arabs, Kurds and Turks. Now, a series of dams constructed
in Turkey since the 1960s have reduced the amount of water and made it
saltier, contributing to drought and desertification. Another, bigger dam
planned for the Turkish village of Ilisu will generate hydroelectricity for
Turkey, but deplete Iraqs water further. Agriculture is going to die in the
land where it was born, laments Mr Alwash.
So his colleagues and friends set to work on three boats. The guffa,
which traditionally sometimes lasted just a single long river voyage, is
made from straw woven over pomegranate branches and waterproofed
with pitch. The tarada, a long slim canoe, was made by a boatbuilder in
Basra, one of the few who still remembers how. The kelek, inflated
goatskins attached to a raft, was constructed in the Turkish town of
Hasankeyf, near the rivers source. An elderly local who claimed to have
made his first kelek journey to Basra in 1927 taught Mr Alwash and his
fellow sailors how to steer theirs.
Photographs of Iraq from a century ago show the cities banks teeming
with these craft. But these days they are an unfamiliar sight and on this
occasion elicited a mixed reception. The little flotilla, bolstered by support
trucks and modern rafts, made its way to Turkeys border with Syria, at
which point the boats were moved overland to avoid the fighting. The
voyagers re-joined the river in Iraq, only to be held up at the dilapidated
Mosul dam. Forbidden from crossing the lake, they again packed up and
drove to Baghdad, the Iraqi capital, where they were met by a deluge of
bureaucracy before being allowed to sail on. Further south, they received
warmer welcomes and sat with farmers to discuss the drought problem. Mr
Alwash, who favours negotiating with Turkey on resources, plans to take
97
the farmers to the Iraqi capital to meet politicians, so they know that
while in Baghdad they are arguing about security and power-sharing, Iraq
is in danger.

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China reaps benefits of Iraq war with oil deals
The Associated Press
Tuesday, June 8, 2010; 11:51 AM
WASIT, Iraq - Perspiration staining their orange jumpsuits, the Chinese
engineers and laborers form Al-Waha Oil Co. work alongside their Iraqi
counterparts under a sweltering sun readying an expanse of arid land
southeast of Baghdad for infrastructure to extract and carry the viscous
liquid on which Iraqs future lies: oil.
A red banner hangs at the entrance of the office of the company - the
Iraqi affiliate of Chinas state-owned China National Petroleum Corp. - its
Chinese characters promising anyone who can decipher them: We will try
our best to make this project a success.
The scene, an increasingly common one in the new postwar Iraq, is
more than a reflection of how the country home to the worlds third largest
proven reserves of crude is pushing to boost its output. Its also a
testament to the lengths to which China will go to secure the oil it sorely
needs to fuel its galloping economy as its own crude supplies fall far short
of demand.
For China, oil security is largely about avoiding disruption to supplies
and cushioning the effects of dramatic fluctuations in oil prices, said
Barclays Capital oil analyst Amrita Sen. Iraq has become an obvious
target to secure the barrels of oil for future consumption.
From among the most outspoken of critics of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion to
topple Saddam Hussein, China has emerged as one of the biggest
economic beneficiaries of the war, snagging five lucrative deals. While
Western firms were largely subdued in their interest in Iraqs recent oil
auctions, China snapped up three contracts, shrugging off the security risks
and the countrys political instability for the promise of oil.
The quest for crude has left a heavy Chinese footprint in a number of
countries where others have shied away, whether because of violence,
human rights violations or sanctions.
In the broader Middle East, China has helped develop and expand the
oil industry in Sudan, a nation whose president is under international
indictment for war crimes. It has also signed deals in Iran, where the
hardline government is facing a potential fourth round of U.N. sanctions
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over its controversial nuclear program. Iran has denied claims by the U.S.
and others that its nuclear efforts are geared to weapons production.
The result of its efforts is that about half of Chinas oil comes from the
region. It has ousted the United States as OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabias
top oil customer. Saudi Arabia has also set up a joint venture refinery in
China.
Iraq, however, has emerged as one of Beijings best hopes for oil in a
world where cheap, reliable sources of new crude are increasingly harder
to obtain. While dealing with Iran carries political baggage for China, Iraq
is a more calculated risk.
Sanctions in place against Iran sharply limit investments in the country
and have largely precluded Western oil majors from aggressively
following up on projects there. A potential new sanctions round before the
United Nations could expand those restrictions. Even so, Iran is Chinas
third largest supplier.
Iraq is extremely important for Chinese companies growth strategy,
especially given that Iran is likely to face much of a standstill for years,
said IHS Global Insights Mideast oil analyst, Samuel Ciszuk.
The country, whose oil sector has been battered by years of neglect, war,
sabotage and under-investment, produces only about 2.4 million barrels
per day - well below its pre-2003 invasion production levels.
But contracts awarded during two oil and gas field auctions over the past
year are expected to raise output to as much as 12 million barrels per day
within seven years, according to Iraqi officials. Analysts say those
estimates are too ambitious.
Either way, production will rise, and China will play a role and stands
to benefit.
While the 20-year contracts mainly gave companies a fixed price for
every barrel they produce, they also carry the option of payment in crude.
That affords the firms a long-term and stable supply of oil. The contracts
can also be extended for five more years.
Chinas energy needs are as obvious as they are challenging. While the
world struggled with its worst recession in over six decades, Chinas
economy expanded by 8.7 percent in 2009. The International Monetary
Fund forecasts growth of 10 percent this year.
A recent report by Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill
Cos, found that Chinas demand for oil hit 8.43 million barrels per day in
April, a 12.7 percent increase over April 2009 levels. Current demand is
more than twice Chinas domestic production.
Of a dozen deals the Iraqi central government awarded since 2003,
four went to China. The autonomous, oil-rich Kurdish region in the north
101
independently signed nearly two dozen oil deals with foreign companies,
one of them with China.
The Chinese oilmen with Al-Waha, sweating under the sweltering Iraqi
sun while drilling wells and preparing the ground to build other
infrastructure in the relatively peaceful Wasit province, are among the first
signs of that new cooperation.
The company started exploring the southeast of Baghdad near the
Iranian border last year, but ran into trouble with farmers there after it
destroyed some crops. Iraqi officials stepped in quickly, meeting with
local tribal leaders to calm tensions.
The incident showed Iraqs determination to not upset the international
oil companies operating in the country. It also speaks of the growing
presence of Chinese wildcatters in an industry once dominated by western
oil majors. Those companies, however, failed to bid as aggressively as
many anticipated - focusing their sights instead on fields in relatively
stable regions where the oil was also easy to extract.
The Chinese had no such qualms.
Officials have hired 350 people from the area to protect the oil
infrastructure, and dozens more will provide support services.
I think the political and social environment is good, said Miao Youliang
the Chinese project manager at al-Waha. The security was not so bad as
we imagined.

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Iraqi Christians: Better off than other Iraqi refugees?
Amman, Jordan
On Wednesday night, Americans tuning into Cornerstone TeleVision,
a Christian network, will hear what has become a familiar narrative to
Christian communities over the last seven years: the hardship story of their
fellow Iraqi believers.
Undercover with Persecuted Christians, which promises to take
viewers to places where believers suffer most for their faith, opens with
an episode about Iraqi Christians.
Of all the minority groups affected by fighting in Iraq, Christians may
be the one group Americans and the West have heard the most about. In
part, thats because Iraqi Christians have suffered a disproportionate
amount of violence throughout the war.
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But whats often not reported is that Iraqi Christians refugees tend to
receive more support than most other Iraqis. In large part due to a wellconnected and affluent Arab Christian community abroad, more so than
any other group in Iraq, Iraq Christians have had the least trouble
resettling overseas.
And despite persistent violence in Iraq, there are also signs that
peaceful cohabitation between Christians and other ethnic groups is
occurring in many places in the country.
Still, their numbers in Iraq have been depleted so much to almost half
of the population before the war many Iraqi Christians worry that those
who continue to take advantage of resettlement options abroad could bring
about the end to one of the oldest Christian communities in the world.
Since the war began, targeted attacks have forced nearly two-thirds of
Iraqi Christians from their homes and though they only made up 5 percent
of the Iraqi population before the war, they now make up 20 percent of
Iraqs refugees. Additionally, of the up to 1.4 million Christians in the
country in 2003, as few as 500,000 remain.
The flow of newly displaced refugees both in and outside of Iraq has
slowed to a trickle as violence remains at all-time lows, but a brief new
wave of displaced Christians made headlines in February as they fled
targeted attacks in Mosul. Many Western media outlets latched onto the
story as another example of Christian suffering in the Middle East.
For most it was a temporary exodus. A little more than a month after
an estimated 1,121 Christian families (about 6,726 people) were displaced,
all but 233 families have returned to their homes, according to a new
report by the International Organization on Migration.
In fact, a UNHCR report last November found that while the number
of newly registered Sunnis and Shiites refugees have been steadily
increasing, the number of Christians have decreased by 21.3 percent
compared to the end of 2008.
Iraqi Christians at front of refugee resettlement line Christians face the
same challenges as other refugees while awaiting asylum, but many people
who work with refugees say that they often have an easier time navigating
the resettlement process.
In some instances you could even say [Iraqi Christians] have actually
had greater access to resources, international connections, and solutions,
and, in some instances, you could also say theyve been favored by the
system, says Elizabeth Campbell, a senior advocate at Refugees
International, an advocacy group for displaced people.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees does not make
its records public on the religious or ethnic demographics of those
105
resettled, but Imran Riza, the UNHCR representative in Amman, says the
disproportionately large number of Christian refugees is reflected in
resettlement patterns.
Ms. Campbell says that the initial wave of Iraqis resettled in the US,
contained a disproportionately large number of Christians, even compared
to their already oversized presence among Iraqi refugees. This was not the
result of UNHCR policies that favored Christians, she says, but rather the
work of Christian and other religious groups who helped fellow Christians
understand the importance of registering with the UNHCR for resettlement.
Consequently, a large number of Christians ended up at the front of the
line for resettlement.
Meanwhile a number of other Iraqis failed to register with UNHCR
because they didnt feel the organization provided enough aid or they
feared possibly being deported because theyd illegally entered Jordan or
overstayed their visa.
Helping hand from Arab Christians in the US. For decades, a sizable
Iraqi and Arab Christian diaspora has been building outside the Middle
East. While Christians are a minority in most Arab countries, within Arab
communities abroad they often constitute the majority. In the US, for
example, 63 percent of Arab Americans identify as Christian, while only
24 percent say they are Muslim.
Inside Iraq the levels of a wider community of support are nonexistent for them, whereas outside of Iraq there are Christian groups that
will be in much greater solidarity with them, says Bill Frelick, director of
the refugee policy program at Human Rights Watch.
Although the UNHCR works to make the resettlement process as
egalitarian and need-based as possible, Mr. Frelick says that those who are
able to get help navigating the system, even if its something as simple as
learning how to access the UNHCR website, stand a much better chance at
resettlement.
While the UNHCR does not make its recommendations for
resettlement based on peoples religious or ethnic backgrounds, it does
consider how their background could contribute to their level of
vulnerability.
Christians have been targets and threatened in Iraq but in a way all
minority groups are targeted, says Riza.
Still, as more Christians find ways to leave Iraq, many in the Middle
Easts Christian community are asking if it might be better for them to stay
and preserve traditions in the region.
The local church in Jordan does not encourage Iraqi people,
Christians and Muslims, but particularly Christians to leave their country,
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because we need their presence there. They are one of the most ancient
ethnic and religious groups there is, says Father Hanna Kailbali, a
Jordanian Roman Catholic priest who has worked with Iraqi Christian
refugees.

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Pentagon tries to steer media coverage on Iraq
The Pentagon may be sharply reducing its combat forces in Iraq, but
the military plans to step up efforts to influence media coverage in that
country -- as well as here at home.
It is essential to the success of the new Iraqi government and the
USF-I [U.S. Forces-Iraq] mission that both communicate effectively with
our strategic audiences (i.e. Iraqi, pan-Arabic, international, and U.S. and
USF-I audiences) to gain widespread acceptance of core themes and
messages, according to the pre-solicitation notice for a civilian contractor
or contractors to provide strategic communication management services
there.
Calling strategic communications a vital component of operations in
Iraq, the notice says one goal is to effectively build U.S. decision
makers and the publics understanding of Iraqs current situation, future
and strategic importance as a stabilizing presence and ally against
terrorism in the Middle East.
The notice is a prime illustration of how the military is increasingly
integrating information operations into the heart of its commands. The
contractor team of 10 to 12 people is expected to provide work of
executive level quality, commensurate with that of a four-star military
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headquarters command. And, this being a military activity, the personnel

must display the highest degree of professionalism in appearance, personal
behavior . . . with no more than one personal conduct incident occurring
over the period of performance.
The contractor is to serve as a media advisor/speechwriter for the
USAF-I spokesman and shall provide support to the J9 STRATCOM
media outreach section, including prepping military officers for news
conferences.
Before interviews with USF-I commanders or spokesmen, the
contractor will have the task of talking with reporters (pre-engagement
with media outlets to determine the nature of the interview and the
questions that will be asked by the media during the interview . . . to
ensure that USF-I spokesman has maximum situation awareness prior to
the interview).
When interviews are concluded, the contractor will be responsible for
submitting an electronic report capturing the key questions from the
media and answers from the interviewee within 24 hours with a detailed
recap of the interview [as] the core component of the report.
The contractor can expect to prepare for between 20-40 media
engagements per month and to write 10-20 single or double page talking
point summaries monthly.
Another major effort for the contractor will continue to be media
monitoring, assessment and reporting. Both Arabic and Western sources
are to be monitored, including CNN, Fox News, and other U.S. and British
television channels, plus the major wire services and the Wall Street
Journal, USA Today, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and
The Washington Post. The assessments will cover the effectiveness of
USF-I strategic communications as well as attitudes among the Iraqi
population toward USF-I. Another element is to be the attitude of panArab/Western media and professionals toward the government of Iraq.
Interestingly, the notice recognizes that other media analyses are being
done, saying the contractor should do a cross-check against DIA
[Defense Intelligence Agency] media monitoring reports and other USF-I
contracts having media monitoring activities. It says this contractors
monitoring must have at least 95% similarly categorized media as found
in the other contractor reporting.
In developing the longer-term strategic communications plans and
campaigns, the contractor is to focus on areas such as national loyalty and
communal factors, inclusion or exclusion of factions within the GoI
[government of Iraq] and/or ISF [Iraqi security forces], capacity building.
But the contractor must also work as a team player with the State
109
Department and other U.S. governmental and nongovernmental agencies.

Finally, the contractor is to serve as Web site manager for USF-Is
unclassified English and Arab sites, delivering products under Defense
Department standards and guidelines for the protection and release of
information. This involves continuous updates on a 7-day, 24-hour
basis.
Its not surprising that the notice adds: All personnel assigned under this
contract will be expected to work a minimum 72-hour workweek.

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111
Obama, Bush and terror

President Barack Obama took office 16 months ago with a clear antiterror mission: Dont be Bush. Obama generally avoided the George W.
Bush term global war on terror. Team Obama preferred overseas
contingency operation.
But after two failed attacks on America, and an ill-conceived attempt at
a terror show trial near ground zero in Manhattan, the Obama
administration is embracing many Bushian anti-terror stances as its own.
A White House faced with the same threats the Bush administration faced
has matured into what must be a sobering realization: Protecting
Americas national security demands sterner stuff than Obama & Co.
realized when they were critics on the outside, looking in. Five examples:
Early this year, Obama extended three key provisions of the Bush antiterror centerpiece, the Patriot Act. One provision authorized roving
wiretaps of suspects who switch cell phones to elude detection; another
allowed federal agents to subpoena data such as library records.
Obama has continued the Bush practice known as rendition, sending
terrorism suspects to third countries for detention and interrogation. Even
though Obama had strongly suggested he would end the practice, he
settled for better monitoring of the treatment of prisoners sent to other
countries to ensure they werent tortured.
Obama was forced to reverse Attorney General Eric Holders decision
to try accused 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in a Manhattan
federal court. Holder had portrayed his decision as moral and legal: The
Obama administration would set itself apart from its predecessor by
showing its commitment to the rule of law. But Holders call proved to be
a boneheaded idea because of onerous security problems and costs posed
by the location.
The Obama administration has found itself in court defending terrorrelated presidential powers asserted by the Bush administration. On
warrantless surveillance, for instance, Obama officials tried and failed to
halt a lawsuit charging that Bush broke the law when he authorized
warrantless spying on terrorism suspects. Obama officials argued, as Bush
had, that the presidential state secrets privilege trumped federal law in
national security matters.
On questioning terror suspects, the administration now is backing off
its by-the-book instinct to quickly charge terrorists and let them lawyer up,
as it did with the Nigerian suspect in the attempted Christmas Day
bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner. The suspect, Umar Farouk
Abdulmutallab, was grilled for a scant 50 minutes before being advised of
his right to keep silent which he then did. On Sunday, Holder said the
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administration would seek a new law allowing investigators to interrogate

terror suspects without first informing them of their rights. Good move.
Obama administration officials have had the luxury of two dry runs two
failed terror assaults in five months: the Christmas Day airplane incident
and the May 1 attempted car bomb attack in Times Square by Faisal
Shahzad, a naturalized American citizen from Pakistan. Now it appears he
had help in this country. On Thursday, federal agents arrested three
Pakistani men suspected of providing Shahzad money.
These failed assaults have raised significant new questions about our
preparedness. So it was encouraging to hear a different tone from Holder
on Sunday. The attorney general now finally acknowledges that the
U.S. faces a relentless enemy who doesnt play by the book.
Holder said the administration would seek legislation giving interrogators
wider latitude in questioning terror suspects without advising them of their
rights. That would be an exception to the Miranda rule, which says
suspects must be warned of their rights to remain silent and to consult a
lawyer.
He said hed work to come up with a proposal that is both
constitutional but that is also relevant to our time and the threat that we
now face.
The threat that we now face. Holder is speaking from recent
experience, from the dangerous gaps exposed by these two failed terror
attacks. His words reflect urgency. Holder and Obama cant politely ask
the Pakistani Taliban, linked to the Times Square attack, to please
postpone its next terror plot against America for a few months, to give
Congress time to grapple with a new Miranda exemption. Or to hold off
for the years it could take for new interrogation laws to be deemed
constitutional or not by the courts. Or to wait while officials thrash
through changes on military tribunals or rendition or other issues.
The first priority when an attack is thwarted is to gain intelligence about
imminent threats, to learn who trained and sent the suspect. That trumps
the need to treat terror suspects as potential criminal defendants that is,
to observe all the legal procedures necessary to win a future conviction in
federal court.
The Obama administration lives with the same reality the Bush White
House did: The next attack may come today, tomorrow or next year. But it
will come.
CHAPTER SIX
SUGGESTED QUESTIONS
1-What do we mean by Source language and Target language? Do we

need to access the source culture and target culture? Why?
2-What are the three steps for a novice translator who begins his/her work?
3-Answer the following multiple choice question:
I-The original language of a text is called a __________________.
a. Source language b. Target language c. Mother tongue d. Other tongue
II-The language in which a text is translated is called a __________.
a. Target language b. Foreign language c. Native language d. Second
language
4-State whether the following statements are true or false:
A. Translation refers to the process of transfer of text. [True / False]
B. The translation processes involve at least one language. [True / False]
C. A good translator can translate all sorts of books. [True / False]
D. A translation should look like a translation. [True / False]
E. A translator of poetry need not be a poet himself. [True / False]
5-Who, according to you, would be the best suited to translate a literary
work - the original author, or any other translator with the TL as his
mother tongue? Give reasons.
6-What, in your view, should be the qualities of a successful translator?
7-Metaphors can be translated with the help of certain techniques,
support this statement with appropriate arguments and examples.
8-What are the problems that a translator has to face while translating
metaphors?
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Chapter Six
9-Describe with examples the problems of culture, time and place while
translating metaphors.
10-Fill in the blanks with appropriate words:
A. In literary translation a ___________ should be maintained between
word and sense.
B. Utterances are of two kinds, literal and ___________.
C. Irony conveys just __________ of what is said in a sentence meaning.
D. Plane and Plain are the examples of ___________.
11-How does contrastive linguistics play a role in translation?
12-What are the rhetorical features of the SL message which a translation
should consider?
13-One basic criteria to decide the correctness of a translated text is to
know who the receptors are Explain.
14-Give examples to explain the types of translation shifts.
15-Discuss the issue of synonymy in translation.
16-It is said that the word fox in the following sentence does not refer to
the animal, Explain.
This man is a fox
17-The more culture-bound a text is, the more difficult it is to translate,
Explain.
18-What are the different strategies of translating metaphors in proverbs?
19-How do you consider root repetition when you translate the following
sentence?

20-How do you translate the word JerUSAlem if it is a title of a book?
21-Explain how the following adverbs can be translated into Arabic:
recently - persistently - quickly - slowly bitterly
Suggested Questions
115
22-Explain how you translate Arabic lexical repetition into English in the
following sentence:

23-In light of the following translation of the Holy verse explain themerheme issues in translation:

Those truly fear Allah
Among His Servants
Who have knowledge
24- Explain the following concepts:
a) Communicative translation
b) cultural transplantation
c) dynamic equivalence
25- Identify translation problems in the following translated sentences:
1. a
b. A day for you, a day against you.
2. a.
b. worthy of mention
3. a
b. entrance is forbidden
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INDEX
A
addition, 15
allusion 43, 52, 53
ambiguity 35
antonymy 25
C
Calque 17
case 46
coherence 64
cohesion 64
collocation 30, 31
communicative translation 13
connotation 29
contrastive linguistics 21
cultural borrowing 18, 19
cultural transposition 19
culture 48, 49, 50
D
denotative 25
E
equivalence 27, 31, 49
exclamative 59
exoticism 17
F
free translation 12, 13, 14
G
genre 5
geographical 82
I
idiomatic 13
122
Index
L
lexical gaps 35
literal translation 12
literary 52, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73
M
metaphor 12 , 32, 41
morphological 55 , 56
N
Newmark 6, 10, 27, 35, 51
Nida 14, 23, 25, 30, 35, 27, 28, 49, 50, 51, 52, 62, 64, 69, 73, 74
O
omission 16
P
phonological 79, 80
polysemy 25
proverbs 43
R
repetition 56, 57
rheme 74 , 75
S
shifts 11
strategies , 12 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20
stylistic 51, 54, 55, 56, 57, 68
synonymy 25
syntactic 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63
T
texture 64
theme 74, 75
translatability 50, 51

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Between English and Arabic

Between English and Arabic:

Bahaa-eddin Abulhassan Hassan

Between English and Arabic: A Practical Course in Translation,

Chapter Four .............................................................................................. 77

Contrastive linguistics deals with systems rather than their users.

source language text

target language text

Fig 1-1 Overview of the Translation Task ................................................... 4

Translation is the interpretation of a source text meaning and the

Target language (TL) knowledge

Moreover, a fully competent translator isnt only bilingual, but also

1.2 Decision Makers

1.3 Translation as Rewriting

1.4 Criteria for a Good Translation

1.5 Three Steps for Novice Translators

Larson (1984: 4) presents the following diagram to explain the translation

(Catford 1965, Toury 1986 cited in Malmkjr 2001: 286). Moreover, it is

1.5.2 Transfer of Meaning into the TL

involved in the transfer process. It is noted earlier that cultural elements

Nida realizes the importance of this stage. He emphasizes avoiding formal

languages sound and meaning correspondences are arbitrary, repeated

In addition, the translator should be aware of the cultural factors in both

role of the translator is to do his best to compensate for the losses

figurative meaning can be rendered in Egyptian Arabic as

1.6 Translation Problems

1.7 Translation Shifts

the ultimate aim of the translator is equivalence at text level. Text is a

1.8 Possible Strategies in Translation

depends on its meaning in the situation. It can mean I hope or

On the scale between free translation and idiomatic translation is

The likes of these things have much demand now.

Things like these are in great demand now.

This kind of things in great demand at the moment.

This type is all the rage.

This ones dead trendy.

Nidas theory of translation is characterized by the distinction between two

Professional translators use a list of translation strategies in order to cope

1.8.3 Using General Words

1.8.4 Paraphrase Using a Related Word

Sweets shredded pasta bars

1.8.5 Cultural Transposition

syntax, but is unidiomatic in the TL because it is modeled on the structure

A wilderness is populous enough,

Fig. 1-2 KFC logo

1.9 Contrastive Linguistics in Translation

Though the translator is advised to consider the original text, at least, at

2.1 Changes in Meaning

Meaning-based Issues in Translation

2.2 Types of Lexical Meanings

2.2.1 Denotative Meaning

situation is known as homonymy. An example of homonymy which is

These three meanings of can be best understood when used in

Meaning-based Issues in Translation

complete synonymy does not exist in any language, and consequently

Peter Newmark takes a position similar to that of Nida when he declares

Here the English term uncle might be a typical translation equivalent of

superordinate. Conversely, an expression with a narrower, more specific

Meaning-based Issues in Translation