Chapter I. General Theory of Translation 1.

1 Definition and linguistic theory Translation is a means of interlingual communication performed by the translator that makes possible an exchange of information between the users of different languages by producing in the target language (TL or the translating language) a text which has an identical communicative value with the source (or original) text (ST). The science of translation or translatology is concerned both with theoretical and applied aspects of translation studies. Theoretical research: is to discover what translation is to find out, what objective factors underline the translators intuition, to describe the ways and methods by which the identity of the communicative value of ST (source text) and TT(target text) is achieved. The functional status of translation is supported by its structural and semantic similarity with the original. The translator is expected to refrain from any remarks or instructions in this text that may betray his authorship thereof. He is expected to efface himself as fully as he can to avoid interference with the process of communication between speaker and translator. As a kind of practical activities translation is a set of actions performed by the translator while rendering ST into another language. These actions are largely intuitive and the best results are naturally achieved by the translators who are best suited for the job, who are well trained or have a special aptitude, a talent for it. The past masters of the art, true artists in their profession, create masterpieces in translation. At its best translation is an art, a creation of a talented, high skilled professional. As any observable phenomenon, translation can be the object of scientific study aimed at understanding its nature, its components and their interaction as well as other factors influencing it or linked with it in a meaningful way. The
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science of translation is concerned both with theoretical and applied aspects of translation studies. A theoretical description of the translation phenomenon is the task of the theory of translation. Theoretical research is to discover what translation is, to find out what objective factors underline the translators intuition, to describe the ways and methods by which the identity of the communicative value of ST and TT is achieved. The objective knowledge obtained can be used to help the translator to improve his performance as well as to train future translators. Translation is a complicated phenomenon involving linguistic, psychological, cultural, literary, ergonomical and other factors. Different aspects of translation can be studied with the methods of the respective sciences of translation. Up to date of theoretical research of translation has been done within the framework of linguistics. The linguistic theory of translation is concerned with translation as form of speech communication establishing contact between communicants who speak different languages. The basis of this theory is linguistics in the broadest sense of the word that is, macro linguistics, text linguistics, communicative linguistics, etc., studying the language structure and its functioning in speech in their relationship to mind, culture and society. Language, which makes possible communication between people, is part of all human activities, of the life itself. The general theory of translation deals, so to speak, with translation universals and is the basis for all other theoretical study in this area, science it describes what translation is and what makes it possible. An important part of the general theory of translation is the theory of equivalence aimed at studying semantic relationships between ST and TT. It has been noted that there is a presumption of semantic identify between the translation and its source text. At the same time it is easily demonstrable that there is a presumption of semantic identity for even a cursory examination of any translation reveals inevitable losses, increments and changes of the information transmitted. The general theory of translation describes the basic principles that hold good for each and every translation event. In each particular case, however, the
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translating process is influenced both by the common basic factors and by a number of specific variables that steam from the actual conditions and modes of the translators work: the type of original texts he has cope with, the form in which ST is presented to him and the form in which he is supposed to submit his translation, the specific requirements he may be called upon to meet in his work, etc. 1.2 Types of translation Each type of translation has its own combination of factors influencing the translating process. The general theory of translation should be supplemented by a number of special translation theories identifying major types of translation activities and describing the predominant features of each type. There are five main types of translations, technical translation, scientific translation, artistic (literary) translation, translation of documents, and general translation. Technical translation is a type of specialized translation involving the translation of documents produced by technical writers (owner's manuals, user guides, etc.), or more specifically, texts which relate to technological subject areas or texts which deal with the practical application of scientific and technological information. While the presence of specialized terminology is a feature of technical texts, specialized terminology alone is not sufficient for classifying a text as "technical" since numerous disciplines and subjects which are not "technical" possess what can be regarded as specialized terminology. Technical translation covers the translation of many kinds of specialized texts and requires a high level of subject knowledge and mastery of the relevant terminology and writing conventions. Scientific translation. To this kind may be referred medical translations, translations of scientific works in various fields of studies (such as chemistry, physics, mechanics), different research works.
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Literary translations don't only require a thorough knowledge of the source and target languages, but also the ability to correctly translate the original feelings and to employ the most appropriate language means in the translation. A literary translation is the translation of literature such as novels, poems, plays and poems. The translation of literary works is considered by many one of the highest forms of translation as it involves so much more than simply translating text. A literary translator must be capable of also translating feelings, cultural nuances, humor and other subtle elements of a piece of work. Translation of documents is a kind of translation that in all cases has to be ordered from a translation agency because almost always it requires a special certification. General translation is the simplest kind of all because it deals with a language without any special terminology or literary means. A general text means that the language used is not high level and to a certain extent could be in layman's terms. There is no specific or technical terminology used. Most translations carried out fall under this category. 1.3 Translation procedures Translation is a field of various procedures. In addition to word-for-word and sense-for-sense procedures, the translator may use a variety of procedures that differ in importance according to the contextual factors of both the ST and the TT. In the present research, we will try to define the most crucial and frequent procedures used by translators. a. Transliteration Transliteration occurs when the translator transcribes the SL characters or sounds in the TL (translation language). In other words, this procedure refers to the conversion of foreign letters into the letters of the TL. Actually, this operation
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usually concerns proper names that do not have equivalents in the TLT. In fact, many scholars and authorities refuse to consider transliteration as a translation proper, since it relies on transcription rather than searching for the cultural and semantic equivalent word in the TL. Yet, if we believe in the truth of this judgment, how can we define or call the operation where the translator finds himself obliged to transcribe proper nouns or culturally-bound words in the SLT for the sake of preserving the local color? b. Borrowing

Concerning borrowing, we can say that this task refers to a case where a word or an expression is taken from the SL and used in the TL, but in a naturalized form, that is, it is made to conform to the rules of grammar or pronunciation of the TL. An example of Borrowing is the verb 'mailer', which is used in Canadian-French utterance; here, the French suffix-er is added to the English verb 'mail' to conform to the French rules of verb-formation Borrowed words may sometimes have different semantic significations from those of the original language. For instance, the Moroccan word tammara, which is borrowed from Spanish, means in Moroccan Arabic 'a difficult situation', whereas in Spanish it conveys the meaning of a 'type of a palm tree'. The same thing can be said about the word flirter, which refers in French to a sexual foreplay, while in English the term means behaving towards someone as though one were in love with but without serious intentions. Borrowing in translation is not always justified by lexical gap in the TL, but it can mainly be used as a way to preserve the local color of the word, or be used out of fear from losing some of the semiotic aspects and cultural aspects of the word if it is translated. c. Calque

On the other hand, the term calque, or Through-Translation refers to the case where the translator imitates in his translation the structure or manner of
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expression of the ST. Actually, this is the core of difference between calque and borrowing, since the latter transfers the whole word. Calque may introduce a structure that is stranger from the TL. For instance, champions league, weekend and iceberg are used in French, though the latter does not consist of such purely English structure 'NP+NP'. Further, more examples of calque translation are to be found in names of international organizations. The latter consist of universal words that can be imitated from one language into another: e.g., European Cultural Convention- Convention culturelle europenne; study group- group d'tude . Calque expressions consist of imitating the manner of expression of the ST in the TT. According to Vinay and Darbelnet, Canadians are accustomed to use the expression 'les compliments de la saison', which is an imitation of the English expression 'season greeting'. d. Transposition Transposition, or shift reflects the grammatical change that occurs in translation from SL to TL. Transposition consists of four types of grammatical changes. The first type concerns word's form and position, for instance: furniture des meubles; equipment - des quipements. Here, we see that the English singular words are changed to plural in French. The second type of transposition is usually used when the TL does not have the equal grammatical structure of the SL. In this case, the translator looks for other options that help conveying the meaning of the ST. For example, the gerund in the English expression 'terrorizing civilians' might be translated into French in two variable ways: The subordinate clause: 'si vous terroriser les civils,'
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The verb-noun : 'le terrorisme contre les civils' For the third type, "the one where literal translation is grammatically possible but may not accord with the natural usage in the TL." Transposition, here, offers translators a plenty of possible versions. For instance, the SL verb can be shifted into a TL empty verb plus noun: J'ai parl au parlement hier. I gave a speech in the parliament yesterday. The SL adverbial phrase becomes an adverb in the TL: ST: D'une faon cruelle. TT: Cruelly. Concerning the fourth type, it occurs when the translator uses a grammatical structure as a way to replace a lexical gap. E.g. ST: Aprs sa sortie. TT: After he'd gone out. Here, we notice that the grammatical structure of the TLT is used as a way to compensate for or replace the lexical gap existing in its linguistic system. In short, transposition concerns the changes of grammatical categories in translation. This procedure is the most frequent device used by translators, since it offers a variety of possibilities that help avoiding the problem of untranslatability. Besides, translators mostly use transposition intuitively, while looking for ways to transfer the ST into the TT. e. Modulation
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Modulation is defined as "a change in point of view that allows us to express the same phenomenon in a different way." Actually, this semantic-pragmatic procedure that changes the category of thought, the focus, the point of view and the whole conceptualization is distinguished, into two types: recorded modulation, also called standard modulation, and free modulation. For the first type, recorded modulation, it is usually used in bilingual dictionaries. It is conventionally established, and is considered by many to be a ready-made procedure. Concerning the second type, free modulation, it is considered to be more practical in cases where "the TL rejects literal translation Linguists distinguish between eleven categories or types of free modulation: Negated contrary, for example, is a procedure that relies on changing the value of the ST in translation from negative to positive or vice versa, e.g. 'it is difficult' may be translated by 'ce n'est pas facile'; 'he never lies' can be translated by 'il est honnte'; 'remember to pay the taxe' - 'n'oublier pas de payer la taxe'. It should be noted here that these examples are all free translations and their correctness depends on the context. Yet, modulations become compulsory when there is a lexical gap in opposition. Another category of modulations is 'part of the whole', e.g. 'la fille aime de l'Eglise' stands for 'France'. In addition, free modulation consists of many other procedures: abstract for concrete, cause for effect, space for time, etc., but impersonal or active for passive is still the most frequent and useful procedure. An example of the latter is: He is said to be serious. On dit qu'il est srieux. In sum, modulation as a procedure of translation occurs when there is a change of perspective accompanied with a lexical change in the TL. Yet, this
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procedure should better be avoided unless it is necessary for the naturalness of the translation. f. Reduction and expansion

These two procedures are usually used in poor written texts, and lead to a change in lexical and stylistic aspects. Expansion refers to the case where the translator exceeds the number of words of the SLT in translation, e.g. 'homme noir', 'dark skinned man'. Here, we notice a shift from n+adj in French into adj+ptp (compound adj) +noun. Further, expansion procedure also occurs when the translator tries to move from the implicit into the explicit. For instance, 'the child cries for the game', should not be translated by 'l'enfant pleure pour le jeux', since the element 'pour' does not convey the right meaning, and may mislead the reader. So, here the translator should look for another explicit meaning of the element 'pour', which is (in order to get), 'pour avoir', thus the example is correctly read as 'l'enfant pleure pour avoir le jeux'. In reduction procedure, the translator is more likely to reduce in the number of elements that form the SLT. This procedure should respect the principle of relevance, that is, the translator should make sure that no crucial information is dropped in translation. An example of reduction in translation is 'science politique' - 'politics'. Here, the SL adjective plus noun becomes a general noun (politics) in the TL. g. Adaptation In adaptation, the translator works on changing the content and the form of the ST in a way that conforms to the rules of the language and culture in the TL community. In general, this procedure is used as an effective way to deal with culturally-bound words/expressions, metaphors and images in translation. That is,
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the translator resorts to rewriting the SLT according to the characteristics of the TLT. Linguists argue that adaptation is based on three main procedures: cultural substitution, paraphrase and omission. Cultural substitution refers to the case where the translator uses equivalent words that are ready-made in the TL, and serve the same goal as those of the SL. In other words, the translator substitutes cultural words of the SL by cultural words of the TL. An example of cultural substitution is clearly seen in the translation of this proverb: She is innocent as an egg - elle est innocente comme un agneau. In this example, we notice that the translators substitute the STs by expressions which are culturally specific in the TL. Yet, if the translator cannot find a cultural specific expression that substitutes the cultural expression of the SL, he should resort to paraphrase. Paraphrase as another procedure of adaptation aims to surpass all cultural barriers that the ST may present. This procedure is based on explanations, additions and change in words order. Actually, paraphrase is not only used in culturally-bound texts, but also in poor written and anonymous texts, which show omissions. Besides, the translator should not use paraphrase in all the parts of the text unless necessary, otherwise his translation would be judged as different from the original. Omission means dropping a word or words from the SLT while translating. This procedure can be the outcome of the cultural clashes that exist between the SL and the TL. In fact, it is in subtitling translation where omission attains its peak in use. The translator omits words that do not have equivalents in the TT, or that may raise the hostility of the receptor.

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In short, undoubtedly, adaptation, as one of the most intricate procedures of translation, enhances the readability of the TT in a way that helps receptors comprehend the ST ideas, images, metaphors and culture through their own language and culture. Cultural substitution, paraphrase and omission offer various possibilities for translators. However, the latter two types are still the subject of much debate, especially for those who defend the idea of fidelity in translation. h. Additions, notes and glosses In general, these procedures are used by translators to add information about a culturally-bound word/expression, or a technical term that is related to a specific domain. They may occupy various places within the text. They might be used inside the text, and here they can be positioned between round or square brackets, except in case these brackets are used as parts of the SLT. They are also used as notes in the bottom of the page, or at the end of the chapter, unless the chapter is too long. Further, additional information can be written as glosses in the end of the book, with the help of number references. Yet, the latter procedure is less favored, since it is an irritating and exhausting task for the reader, who finds himself obliged to go to the end of the book every time he comes across a foreign word. Finally, the use of these procedures depends on the readership and the degree of the gap that exists between his language and the SLT. Besides, these procedures should not be used at random in translation. They should better be preceded by a short introduction, where the translator discusses the difficulty of the authors' terms and his ways and degrees of assistance in transferring their meanings. At length, it is clear from the above discussion that translation procedures are different in characteristics and uses. Each procedure has its own advantages that differ according to the texts under translation. In our opinion, no one can judge the sufficiency of one procedure on the other, and it is up to the translator to choose the one he sees more practical and helpful in his translation task. Besides, the translator may restrict himself to one procedure, or exceed it to two, three, or
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even four procedures in the same translated text, and this is what we refer to as couplets, triplets and quadruplets. 1.4 Principles of translation There are some general principles to all translation: a. Meaning. The translation should reflect accurately the meaning of the original text. Nothing should be arbitrarily added or removed, though occasionally part of the meaning can be transposed b. Form. The ordering of words and ideas in the translation should match the original as closely as possible. (This is particularly important in translating legal documents, guarantees, contracts, etc.) But differences in language structure often require changes in the form and order of words. When in doubt, underline in the original text the words on which the main stress fall. c. Register. Languages often differ greatly in their levels of formality in a given context (say, the business letter). To resolve these differences the translator must distinguish between formal or fixed expressions and personal expressions, in which the writer or speaker sets the tone. d. Source language influence. One of the most frequent criticism of translation is that it doesnt sound natural. This is because the translator thoughts and choice of words are too strongly moulded by the original text. A good way of shaking off the source language (SL) influence is to set the text aside and translate a few sentences aloud, from memory. This will suggest natural patterns of thought in the first language (L1), which may not come to mind when the eye is fixed on the SL text. e. Style and clarity. The translator should not change the style of the original. But if the text is sloppily written, or full of tedious repetitions, the translator may, for the readers sake, correct the defects. f. Idiom. Idiomatic expressions are notoriously untranslatable. These include similes, metaphors, proverbs and sayings(as good as gold), jargon, slang,
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and colloquialisms(user-friendly, the Big Apple, yuppie, etc.), and(in English) phrasal verbs. If the expressions cannot be directly translated, try any of the following: - retain the original word, in inverted commas: yuppie - retain the original expression, with a literal explanation in brackets: Indian summer(dry, hazy weather in late autumn) - use a close equivalent: talk of the devil=vorbeti de lup (literally,the woolf at the door) - use a non-idiomatic or plain prose translation: a bit over the top=puin peste msur The golden rule is: if the idiom does not work in the L1, do not force it into the translation. 1.5 Translation of English words into Romanian The English language is permanently evolving and developing. New words and expressions are coined and existing words change their meaning as society, culture and technology progress. Comparing the English dictionary with the Romanian one the translator comes across different types of correspondence between the lexical units of the two languages. I. The meaning of the English word corresponds completely to the meaning of the Romanian word and it is rendered into Romanian by one and the same equivalent irrespective of the context. To these words belong: proper names, geographical names, names of the days and Months, some scientific and technical terms (molecule/molecula; oxygen/oxygen; etc.), A part of the fiction and political vocabulary also belong to this group (braggart fanfaron; repartition repatriere; citizenship cetenie; to ratify a ratifica; etc.)
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II. Several words from the target language correspond to an English monosemantic word. Thus, for example, the English word substantial has five corresponding variants in Romanian: real, important, durabil, avut, nutritiv. E.g. a substantial house cas trainic; a substantial improvement mbuntire important; a substantial agreement acord esenial; a substantial man om cu stare/avut; a substantial contribution contribuie real. The English word resolution has the corresponding Romanian variants: decizie, deznodmnt, trie(de caracter), descompunere(ch.), soluie. E.g. the government resolution decizie oficial; the story resolution deznodmntul povestirii; a man lacking in resolution un brbat fr trie de caracter; substance resolution descompunerea substanei; the resolution of an issue soluionarea problemei. The choice of the corresponding variant of translation of such words as resolution and substantial depends on the way of combinability or on the context. The Romanian words may also have a wide meaning not covering only one English word. E.g. lecie particular private lesson; semne particulare distinguishing features; scopuri particulare private use; grij particular special care. III. English polysemantic words having several meanings in Romanian may differ to some extent. In order to translate the polysemantic words, the translator tries to find the required meaning and, then, chooses the corresponding variant for the given context. Let us analyze, for example, the use of the polysemantic word consider in different contexts:
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E.g. 1. The council of Europe considered the definition of the basic democratic freedoms related to the human dignity including the freedom of assembly and association within the European Court of Human Rights. Consiliul Europei a examinat definirea libertilor democratice fundamentale privitor la demnitatea uman care includ libertatea ntrunirilor i asociaiilor n cadrul Curii Europene a Drepturilor Omului. 2. Nowadays when government antitrust enforces consider the effects of a corporate merger, they are less likely to assume that bigness is going to be harmful. Astzi cnd susintorii oficiali ai antitrusturilor iau n consideraie consecinele fuziunii corporatiste este mai puin probabil s cread c ntreprinderile mari sunt periculoase. 3.People who go to elections consider them very important. Oamenii care merg la alegeri le consider foarte importante. 4.They would be grateful if you would consider this idea, and would then if you agree invite the rapporteurs to their sessions. Ar fi recunosctori dac ai accepta aceast idee i, ulterior, ai invita raportorii la edinele lor. In the first example consider is part of the combination to consider the definition which means a examina; in the second example to consider the effects means to take smth into account a lua n consideraie, in the third sentence consider has been translated as a considera, and in example four consider has the meaning of a accepta. IV. The forth group consist of words that do not have in the EnglishRomanian dictionary ready-made correspondents. We should take into
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consideration the fact that even a very complete dictionary cannot give all the shades of meaning found in one or another context. The contextual meaning is connected with the semantic structure of words and in spite of all the difficulties of finding the Romanian correspondence this helps the search. For example, the word meltdown as a noun is not to be found in the bilingual dictionary, while as a phrasal verb to melt down it means a se topi, a disprea ncet. According to our examples this word acquires the following meanings: financial failure, slump, chrisis, which can be translated into Romanian as criz, recesiune, eec, declin. E.g. 1. The commitee is concerned that an economic meltdown could fuel support for extremism. Comitetul se ngrijoreaz de faptul c eecul economic ar putea duce la susinerea extremismului. 2. The president believes that while the bailout will not immediately stop the recession, it will soften the effects of the economic meltdown and will turn the U.S. economy in the right direction. Preedintele consider c n timp ce planul de salvare economic nu va pune imediat capt recesiunii, acesta va atenua efectele declinului economic i va redireciona economia SUA pe un fga corect. The English word to erode means a eroda, a roade according to the EnglishRomanian dictionary. Let us consider its translation in the following example: Japanese companies are being hurt further by the strength of the yen, which makes them less competitive and erodes the value of their earnings abroad. Companiile japoneze continu s fie afectate de creterea puterii yenului, ceea ce le face s fie mai puin competitive i le diminueaz valoarea ctigurilor din strintate.
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None of the dictionary meanings corresponds to our context in which to erode means to decrease gradually a diminua, a scdea treptat. The bilingual dictionary does not give us any meanings of the phrasal verb to back away, while the Oxford Dictionary explains it as to move backwards because of fear or dislike. In our context backing away from means trying to stop being dependent on a ncerca s nu depind de. E.g. But China has been backing away from the dollar for a while. ns China ncearc pentru o perioad s pun capt dependenei fa de dolar. The English word clout has the following meanings in Romanian: palm; int (la tragere cu arcul); scutec. None of these meanings is available for our example: E.g. Japan meanwhile is hoping that hosting the conferenca will help increase its international clout. Conform ateptrilor Japoniei, gzduirea conferinei va contribui la creterea influenei sale pe plan mondial. International clout means power and influence around the world, which has been translated as influen pe plan mondial. One difficulty in translation stems is the fact that most words have multiple meanings. Because of this fact a translation based on one-to-one substitution of words is seldom acceptable. We have already seen this in the above-mentioned examples that serve as evidence of the need to distinguish between possible meanings of a word when translating it and paying close attention to the given context.

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1.6 Interpreter/Translator Code of Ethics Interpreters and translators encounter a variety of ethical issues and questions in the course of their work. Ethical behaviour and the maintenance of high ethical standards are essential to good practice, in developing the profession and in maintaining positive opinions and perceptions. While working as an interpreter or translator, ethical responsibilities overlap with your duty of care. That is the requirement to exercise the skill, care and diligence of a reasonable person performing similar work. Although the codes of ethics mentioned above may differ in some parts, they are generally concerned with similar underlying ethical principles. The general principles contained in the different codes of ethics require translators and interpreters to: to convey meaning between people and cultures faithfully, accurately, and impartially; to hold in confidence any privileged and/or confidential information entrusted to us in the course of our work; to represent our qualifications, capabilities, and responsibilities honestly and to work always within them; to enhance those capabilities at every opportunity through continuing education in language, subject field, and professional practice; to act collegially by sharing knowledge and experience; to define in advance by mutual agreement, and to abide by, the terms of all business transactions among ourselves and with others; to ask for and offer due recognition of our work, and compensation commensurate with our abilities and possibilities; to endeavor in good faith to resolve among ourselves any dispute that arises from our professional interactions,mindful that failure to abide by these principles may harm ourselves, our fellow members, the Association, or those we serve.
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1.7 Client Translator and Translator Client relationship In the translators work an important role plays the interaction between the translator and his client. The combined effort of the translation client and the professional translators is extremely essential in order to obtain excellent professional translation. The most important rules for the Translator are: ask for more information Thank the clients for contacting you and let them know that in order to provide them with a detailed quote, youll need to get some more information Inform about rates and terms of service Respond promptly to all inquiries from potential clients Clarify your payment terms and methods Ask the client to confirm the rate, deadline and payment terms in writing For the Client the most important rules are: there should be no communication gap between the translation client and the professional translator It is very important that the translation client keep some patience and give sufficient time to the professional translator to complete his task The source data provided by the client to the professional translator must be accurate and must contain all the relevant information which needs to be translated The client must provide a genuine feedback to the language translation service regarding the quality of the work done by the professional translators

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