Translation Studies Lecture 15/16

How to Deal with Problems in Translation

Lecture 15/16 How to deal with Problems in Translation

This lecture builds on the general approaches outlined in the previous lectures to examine specific features, challenges and problems which arise in technical documentation. These will include areas such as terminology, language con­straints and register, as well as practical issues such as knowing when to contact the client, what to do with confusing or inaccurate source texts, and even how to manage your files in a translation project. You should be able to identify the main features of technical documentation and then select an appropriate strategy in order to produce an effective translation.

While a good awareness of some basic translation approaches and strategies can allow us to tackle texts with some kind of purpose, there will inevitably be scenarios where we need specific strategies. One of the most interesting aspects of translation is that there will always be cases like this, which cannot be neatly dealt with using a general translation strategy. There will always be a word, a sentence or even an entire text, which poses problems that depend on the text, the context, the subject, the client, the target audience or any number of other factors. In the following sections, we will look at some of the typical features, problems and potential pitfalls presented by technical documentation and ex­amine some sample strategies which can help you to deal with them.

Abbreviations and acronyms

Alongside specialized terminology and numbers, acronyms and abbreviations are among the most attention-grabbing and potentially intimidating aspects of a technical text for translators. The primary motivation for using acronyms and abbreviations is brevity and to avoid repeated use of the same words. Abbrevia­tions and acronyms are very useful in many cases but they can pose problems for readers and translators alike, depending on their nature and the context in which they are used. We can group abbreviations and acronyms into a number of categories:

• International Organizations, such as NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Orga­nization), EU (European Union), WHO (World Health Organization) National Organization, ICTU (Irish Congress of Trade Unions), BSI (Brit­ish Standards Institution),

• Name of Companies, such as ICI (Imperial Chemical Industries), RENFE, (Red Nacional de los Ferrocarriles Espaholes), AIB (Allied Irish Bank)

• Technical Entities, such as GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), GP (General Prac­titioner), Laser (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation)

• Geographical Locations, such as USA (United States of America), UAE (United Arab Emirates),

• Latin, such as q.e.d. (quod erat demonstrandum), i.e. (id est)

• Ad-hoc or specially coined acronyms, usually only used in a particular context or document and for a finite period of time.

The way in which they are dealt with is determined by various contextual fac­tors such as the text type and age, readership, importance, the lifespan of the acronym and how well known they are.

In the case of acronyms relating to international organizations and, in certain notable cases, national organizations, either they will remain the same regard­less of the language or there will be accepted equivalents in different languages. Acronyms which form part of company names, like company names themselves, should never be translated, as they are likely to be part of the legal identity of the company. However, ad-hoc acronyms or acronyms which are used in docu­ments solely to avoid unnecessary repetition can either be reconstituted in the target language or retained.

Some acronyms and abbreviations are not unique and they can be used in other disciplines with different meanings attached to them; some are even shared within the same general area. For example, GP can mean General Practitioner, General Psychiatrist or Glycerate Phosphate, so you need to study the context carefully. A useful way of finding more information on an acronym is to type it into a search engine along with one or two keywords from the source text to narrow down the search to what you hope will be the correct subject area.

If a specialized acronym appears in a general text, it does not always need to be transferred intact - a translation and definition will generally work quite well. However, if the acronym appears in a specialized text, transfer and possibly definition are most appropriate courses of action.