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C. Complete the sentences with the words and word combinations from C.
1 ___________ are adopted by authorized state agencies, and they are made
binding by the state through the fostering of legalconsciousness in its citizens.
2 The law of ______________ is closely related to, but not co-extensive with,
the law of restitution.
3 The ______________ is our main register. Introduced in 1981, it's a register
of who owns land and property in Scotland.
4 This is a ___________ possession, a conception both of fact and of law.
5 ______________ refers to act that is not condemned as illegal.
6 ________ refers to the source of law where past decisions of the judges create
law for future judges to follow.
D. Match the beginnings of the sentences to its endings.
Typical legal institutions of the
on legal principles.
Common Law include
The Common Law is predominantly a case-based system of law
The Civil Law jurists focus trust, tort law, estoppel and agency
The Civil Law developed in Continental Europe
The key features of the Common
has unique legal institutions
Law include
The Civil Law was founded on a system of case law or
judicial precedent.
¾ TRANSLATION PRACTICE
Translate the text from English into Russian.
In terms of case law, in the Common Law, specific rules are set out to specific
sets of facts. Case law in the Common Law provides the principal source of
law, whereas in the Civil Law system, case law applies general principles and is
only a secondary source of law.
In the Civil Law world, the general legal principles are embodied in codes and
statutes, and legal doctrine provides guidance in their interpretation, leaving to
judges the task of applying the law. The Civil Law is highly systematised and
structured and relies on declarations of broad and general principles, often ignoring details. The key or primary sources of law in Civil Law are codes and
enacted statutes. Civil Law courts base their judgments on the provisions of
codes and statutes, from which solutions in particular cases are to derive on the
basis of the general principles of codes and statutes.
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Unit 3. Legal Translational Equivalence: Possibility and Impossibility
¾ STARTING UP
1) Do you think equivalence can be achieved when translating legal docu-
ments?
2) What factors need to be taken into account when foreign laws, legal con-
cepts and practices are translated?
3) What does the degree of equivalence depend on?
¾ Part 1. Translational Equivalence
A. Read the text and check your answers to questions in STARTING UP.
Given the complexity and difficulty of legal translation, one may wonder
whether law is translatable and whether true equivalence can be achieved in
legal translation.
We can look at this issue from several perspectives. Firstly, it is a fact that we
translate law between different legal families and legal traditions, and we have
been doing so for the last few centuries. In fact, the laws and legal systems in
many countries and continents have been developed on the basis of legal transplant from other legal systems. Legal concepts, practices and entire legal systems have been introduced to new political, social, cultural and legal environments this way. So, real life experience, and successful experience at that, tells
us that translating law, irrespective of
is not only possible, but also highly productive. This does not mean that there
are no problems or the job is easy.
Secondly, if we look at this from the angle of translational equivalence, a number of factors need to be taken into account
and practices are translated that have no existing equivalents in the TL. Naturally, there needs to be a link that establishes a degree of equivalent relationship
between the SL and TL for translation to take place. But what kind of equivalent relationship?
Equivalence is the reproduction of a SL text by TL means. Equivalence is a
combination of, or compromise between, the two basic types of constraints
what systems and families are involved,
when foreign laws, legal concepts
that
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draw from the incompatible poles of the target system and the source text and
system. Equivalence is not a constant but a variable quantity and the range of
variability is considerable. The degree of equivalence depends on the linguistic
means used in the SL texts and on the functional style to which the text belongs.
It can be argued that, conceptually and pragmatically, translation, including the
legal kind, is not solely the question of crossing languages or the question of
identity or synonymy. This is because the validity of a translation
dent of whether an element in one code is synonymous with a correlated element in another code. Translators decide on the specific degree of equivalence
they can realistically aim for in a specific text.
Take legal concepts for example. Legal concepts from different countries are
seldom, if ever, identical, because, firstly, the nature of language dictates that
two words are rarely identical between two languages and even within the same
language. Secondly, human societies with their own cultural, political and social conditions and circumstances are never duplicate
. Law is a human and social institution, established on the basis of the diverse moral and cultural values
of individual societies. Nevertheless, the other side of the same coin
common sense tells us human societies share many things in common
things combine than divide us, our differences notwithstanding. Some legal
concepts may overlap
in different societies but seldom identical. Therefore, it is
futile to search for absolute equivalence when translating legal concepts. Thirdly, in this connection, the issue of comprehending translated law, after the initial
linguistic transfer, is also a related consideration. In people’s understanding of
translated texts originally written for different audiences in different languages,
inevitably, sometimes there are confusions and misunderstandings
be written and read in the same language but people’s interpretations in the SL
and TL differ due to the differences in language use.
B. True or false?
1 Translational equivalence cannot be achieved in legal texts.
2 The laws and legal systems in many countries and continents originated from
other legal systems.
3 The degree of equivalence depends on the linguistic features and the functional style.
4 Legal concepts never overlap in different societies.
5 The validity of a translation is independent of whether an element in one code
is synonymous with a correlated element in another code.
is indepen-
is that
. More
. Words may
63
¾ GLOSSARY
A. Study the English words and phrases and their Russian equivalents:
legal transplant юридическое заимствование
irrespective of независимо от
from the angle of translational
equivalence
to be taken into account принимать во внимание
constraints ограничения
validity of translation правильность перевода
correlated element коррелирующий (связанный) элемент
duplicate дублировать
moral and cultural values моральные и культурные ценности
other side of the same coin другая сторона монеты
share many things in common имеют много общих черт
overlap перекликаться, совпадать
initial linguistic transfer начальный лингвистический перевод
confusions and misunderstandings путаница и недопонимание
B. Complete the sentences with the following words and phrases: moral and
cultural values, validity of translation, take into account, misunderstanding,
duplicate.
1 There are different methods of evaluating the ______________.
2 A translator has to ______________ a variety of factors, including linguistic
features of the SL and the specifics of the legal system.
3 Various causes of possible ____________ between Great Britain and France
were removed by the convention of 1904.
4 Can you _________ whatever this is?
5 ____________________ are vital for the success of Malaysia’s Transformation Plan.
C. Word-building. Look through the text in Part 1 and complete the chart.
Verb Adjective Noun
translate
---------------- valid
interpret interpretational
misunderstand -------------------
c точки зрения эквивалентности перевода
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¾ TRANSLATION PRACTICE
A. Improve the machine translation of the text.
Take legal concepts for example.
Legal concepts from different countries are seldom, if ever, identical,
because, firstly, the nature of language dictates that two words are
rarely identical between two languages and even within the same
language. Secondly, human societies
with their own cultural, political and
social conditions and circumstances
are never duplicate. Law is a human
and social institution, established on
the basis of the diverse moral and
cultural values of individual societies. Nevertheless, the other side of
the same coin is that common sense
tells us human societies share many
things in common. More things
combine than divide us, our differences notwithstanding. Some legal
concepts may overlap in different
societies but seldom identical.
Therefore, it is futile to search for
absolute equivalence when translating legal concepts. Thirdly, in this
connection, the issue of comprehending translated law, after the initial linguistic transfer, is also a related consideration. In people’s understanding of translated texts originally written for different audiences
in different languages, inevitably,
sometimes there are confusions and
misunderstandings.
Возьмите, например, юридические
концепции. Правовые концепции
из разных стран редко, если
вообще когда-либо, идентичны,
поскольку, во-первых, характер
языка. Во-вторых, человеческие
общества со своими культурными,
политическими и социальными
условиями и обстоятельствами
никогда не дублируются. Закон –
это человеческий и социальный
институт, созданный на основе
различных моральных и культурных ценностей отд
Тем не менее, другая сторона той
же монеты – это здравый смысл.
Несмотря на то, что всё больше
сочетается, чем разделяйте нас,
несмотря на наши различия.
Некоторые правовые концепции
могут пересекаться в разных
обществах, но редко совпадают.
Поэтому бесполезно искать абсолютную эквивалентность при переводе правовых понятий. В-третьих,
язи с этим вопрос о понимании
в св
переданного права после первоначального лингвистического перевода. В понимании людей,
написанных в основном для
разных аудиторий на разных языках, неизбежно, иногда возникают
путаницы и недоразумения.
ельных обществ.
65
¾ Part 2. Types of equivalence
A. Read the text about the types of equivalence. How are they different?
Equivalence implies variability and consequently several types of equivalence
can be distinguished.
First Type – Formal Equivalence
Language and culture and social contexts are closely integrated and interdependent.
Язык культура и социальные контексты тесно интегрированы и
взаимозависимы.
The content, the structure of the sentence and the semantic components (language units) are similar. Each element of the SL text has a corresponding one in
the TL text. But such cases of complete similarity are rather rare.
Second Type – Partial Correspondence Equivalence
Non-corresponding elements may be lexical, grammatical or stylistical. Equivalence of the second type is usually achieved by means of various transformations: substitution or replacements (both lexical and grammatical), additions
and omissions, paraphrasing and compensation.
All through the long foreign summer
depressed by the rubber quality
Во время продолжительного летнего пребывания за границей
американских туристов угнетало непрерывное сокращение
покупательной способности доллара.
Although a considerable degree of equivalence has been achieved a number of
transformations, certain losses have been incurred, namely, compactness and
vividness.
Attention should be paid to the stylistic aspect of equivalence because of its
importance in achieving the second type of equivalence. The stylistic aspect of
equivalence implies the rendering in translation of stylistic and emotive connotations. Stylistic connotations presuppose the use of words belonging to the
same layer of the vocabulary (literary, neutral and colloquial). Emotive connotations presuppose the use of words evoking similar connotations. The following example illustrates the rendering of stylistic connotations:
the American tourist abroad has been
of his dollar.
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The German U-boats which were hanging around
scared off by depth-charges from accompanying destroyers.
Глубинные бомбы сопровождавших эсминцев успешно отгоняли
германские подводные лодки, которые всё ещё шныряли
Third Type – Situational or Factual Equivalence
The content or sense of the utterance is conveyed by different grammatical and
lexical units.
Situational equivalence is observed when the same phenomenon is described in
a different way because it is seen from a different angle:
The police cleared the streets
Полиция разогнала демонстрацию
Unemployed teenagers are often left without means of gaining food and
shelter.
Безработные подростки часто оказываются без средств к
существованию
The Commonwealth countries handle
На страны британского содружества приходится
мировой торговли.
This type of equivalence also comprises the translation of clichés, orders, warnings and notices, phraseological units and set expressions, formulae of politeness, etc.
There were no survivors.
Все погибли.
In this way, the third type of equivalence conveys the sense, the meaning of the
utterance without preserving its formal elements.
B. Complete the sentences, using the ideas from the text.
1 Equivalence implies variability and…..
2 Non-corresponding elements may be….
3 Although a considerable degree of equivalence has been achieved…..
4 Situational equivalence is observed when….
5 The stylistic aspect of equivalence implies….
.
.
.
a quarter of the world’s trade.
were most effectively
в океане.
четвертая часть
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Unit 4. Legal Terminological Issues in Translation
¾ STARTING UP
1) What terminological areas may pose problems in legal translation?
2) Why is it difficult to translate legal concepts?
3) Do you know any examples of legal vocabulary which are close equivalents, partial equivalents or non-equivalents?
A. Read the text and check your answers to the questions in STARTING UP?
¾ Part 1 Major Terminological Issues
Words are the building blocks of language. It is commonly acknowledged that
one distinctive feature
bulary. Legal terminology is the most visible and striking linguistic feature
legal language as a technical language, and it is also one of the major sources of
difficulty in translating legal documents.
There are four major terminological areas that may pose problems in legal
translation applicable to most languages. These are
(1) legal conceptual issues and the question of equivalence and nonequivalence
of legal concepts in translation;
(2) legal terms that are bound to law and legal institutions;
(3) legal language as a technical language in terms of ordinary vs. legal meanings, and legal synonyms;
(4) terminological difficulties arising from linguistic uncertainty such as vagueness and ambiguity.
Translating Legal Concepts
Legal concepts are abstraction of the generic legal thoughts and rules within a
legal system. Concepts are important in law. Law is systematic and structured.
Law is often described in categories, for instance, criminal law, property law,
contract law, and torts.
In the sphere of language, a concept is identified by a term that may consist of a
single word or of a group of words or even of a group of words or even of letters or graphical symbols. When it is necessary to translate a term from one
language into a term in another language, we may study the relevant concepts
associated with the terms in question and examine whether they actually correspond. Legal translation is not the automatic transposition of a concept from
of legal language is the complex and unique legal voca-
of
68
one language into another, but rather it requires thorough knowledge of the two
legal systems that interface with one another as well as a comparative analysis
of the text and the terms to be translated.
There are two major scenarios in translation: firstly, when there are no existing
equivalent concepts and words in the TL, that is, they are linguistically or conceptually absent, new words must be created or new meanings introduced; and
secondly, when there are existing words in the TL that are linguistic equivalent
to the SL, these words in the two languages may only carry partially equivalent
meanings in law or sometimes may not be functionally equivalent in law at all.
For the first situation of linguistic and conceptual absence, as a result of the
separate legal traditions and developmental processes, there are Common Law
concepts in English unknown to the Civil Law system and vice versa. Such
unique legal concepts are deployed exclusively in different legal systems. For
these situations, the translators sometimes need to use borrowing or create new
words.
For the second scenario in translating legal concepts, that is, similar words exist
in the SL and TL, normally, such existing terms in the TL are used in translation, even if they are not completely identical. These may be near or close equivalents, partial equivalents or non-equivalents. For example:
Article 3
Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.
Каждый человек имеет право на жизнь, свободу и личную
неприкосновенность.
Article 17
Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with
other.
No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
Каждый имеет право как на единоличное владение собственностью,
так и в компании с другими.
Никто не может быть дискреционно лишён его собственности.
Article 24
Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of
working hours and periodic holidays with pay.
Каждый имеет право на отдых и досуг, включая разумное ограничение
рабочего времени и оплачиваемый периодический отпуск.
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An example of false friends that is worth singling out is the English word ‘jurisprudence’. It has different meanings as compared with its counterpart in Russian.
In English, jurisprudence [Latin jurisprudential knowledge of or skill in law,
and from Latin juris, genitive of jus right, law and prudentia wisdom] has two
basic meanings: firstly, it means philosophy of law or legal theory; secondly, it
means ‘case law’. In Russian, the equivalent of the word «юриспруденция»
has only one meaning – philosophy of law, or combination of laws.
In terms of translation methods and strategies, given the vast differences and
diverse situations between different language pairs and different legal systems,
many different methods may be utilised. For instance, translation methods can
vary from literal translation (or formal equivalence, or word for word translation), functional equivalence, to borrowing and descriptive equivalence.
B. True or false?
1 One distinctive feature of legal language is complex and unique legal vocabulary.
2 Law is never described in categories.
3 Legal translation is an automatic transposition of a concept from one language into another.
4 There are two major scenarios in translation.
5 When there are no existing equivalent concepts and words in the TL, new
words must be created or new meanings introduced.
6 False friends are words which sound identical but h they have different meanings in SL and TL.
C. Complete the sentences, using the ideas from the text.
1 Legal concepts are abstraction of….
2 When it is necessary to translate a term from one language into a term in
another language, we….
3 For the first situation of linguistic and conceptual absence….
4 For the second scenario in translating legal concepts…..
5 Translation methods can vary from…………… to………….
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