Translation Theory and Practice-Full

Translation Theory and Practice
Compiled by
Dr. Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren,

M.Hum
Acknowledgment
This book is compiled for students of English Department to help them

understand about the basic of translation theory and practice. This book is a compilation
of different popular translation books and some sources from the Internet. The theory is
presented and followed by real-life practices and examples including with pictures and
organized instructions (step-by-step). Therefore, students will not only understand the
theory of translation, but also the practices of translation itself.
The book consists of the introduction to translation theory, translation

techniques, common problems and solutions in translating text, translating subtitles and
comics, translating cultural specific terms, computer assisted translation tools,
translation quality assessment, running a translation service, conducting researches in
translation field, and professional translator communities. By the end of this course,
students should be able to understand the use of computer as assisted tool for
translating text, develop their own translation business, and enlarge students’
understanding in conducting translation research.
The students will learn the translation theory step by step, and it will be useful
for them for analyzing translation techniques, translation quality, and translation
ideology, conducting translation research for publication, and participating in national
and international conferences of translation field as presenters. In this book, the
students learn how to translate different kinds of text, looking for clients for their
translation agency, design translation agency brochures, advertisements, and videos
that they upload to YouTube and other social media. The theory lets the students have
an opportunity to learn about entrepreneurship by guiding the students to run a
translation agency service which can give them basic experience as translators. This
opportunity will guide them to be professional translators in the future. From this book,
the students also learn about the use of computer assistance translation tools and video
subtitling.
Many of the ideas for writing this book have grown out of conversations and
interactions with my colleagues and fellow English lectures at Tarbiyah Faculty, State
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Islamic University of North Sumatra and Faculty of Cultural Studies in University of

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Sumatra Utara. Special thanks to Prof. Dr. Syahron Lubis, M.A., Dr. Muhizar Muchtar,
M.S., Dr. Umar Mono, M.Hum., in Faculty of Cultural Studies USU for their inspirations to
write this book. Special thanks to Prof. T. Silvana Sinar, M.A., Ph.D., Prof. Amrin Saragih,
M.A., Ph.D., Prof. DR. Busmin Gurning, M.Pd., Dra. Nurhayati Halil, for their motivations
and ideas. They have encouraged me and helped us by offering comments and
suggestions to this book.
Moreover, my gratitude and thanks are due to my beloved family, fellow

lecturers, friends, and students for their support, prayers, and care given to us. Finally, I
hope that this book will be useful for the students to enhance their understanding of
translation theories and practices. I hope after learning translation theories and
practices from this book, students will be able to be professional translators in the
future who master the theory of translation, and conduct a lot of translation researches.
Dr. Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren, M. Hum.
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Table of Content
Acknowledgment..................................................................................................................... i
Table of Content.................................................................................................................... iii
Chapter One: Introduction to Translation Theory .....................................................1
A. Translation Theories
B. Translation Process and Product
C. The Experts of Translation Field
Chapter Two: Translation Techniques ........................................................................ 23
A. Differentiating Translation Strategy, Method, and Technique
B. Translation Technique (Molina and Albir, 2002)
C. Analyzing Translation Techniques
Chapter Three: Common Problems in Translating Text........................................ 56
A. Common Problems in Translating Indonesian and English Text
B. Things to be Considered by Translators in Translating Text
Chapter Four: Translating Subtitles and Comics...................................................... 70
A. Translating Movie Subtitles
B. Translating Comics
Chapter Five: Translating Cultural Specific Terms.................................................. 88
A. Cultural Words
B. Strategies for Translating Cultural Specific Terms
C. Translator’s Ideology in Translating Text
Chapter Six: Computer Assisted Translation Tools...............................................106
A. Computer-Assisted Translation
B. Machine Translation
Chapter Seven: Translation Quality Assessment ...................................................118
A. Aspects of Translation Quality
B. Assessing Translation Quality by Using Nababan’s Model
C. Assessing Translation Quality by Using Back Translation
Chapter Eight: Running a Translation Service ........................................................127
A. Strategies to be a Freelance Translator
B. Translation Agency Service
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Chapter Nine: Conducting Researches in Translation Field...............................134
A. Research in Translation Field
B. International Journals
C. Reference Manager (Mendeley)
Chapter Ten: Professional Translators Communities ..........................................155
A. How to be a Professional Translator?
B. Steps to be a Professional Translator or Interpreter
C. Professional Organizations for Translators
REFERENCES........................................................................................................................177
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Chapter One: Introduction to Translation Theory
Chapter One
Introduction to Translation Theory
Translators have to prove to themselves as to others that they are in

control of what they do; that they do not just translate well because
they have a “flair” for translation, but rather because, like other
professionals, they have made a conscious effort to understand
various aspects of their work.
# Mona Baker
Language is a key of knowledge. There are many good books written in different
languages. We can share our views, take part in cultural activities, education, and
business matter with others, but there is a barrier to do them – language. Translation
service comes in handy to provide us the information that is written in foreign
languages.
When we hear the word “translator” we sometimes misinterpret it as “interpreter”, yet

translator and interpreter are two different professions that are closely related.
Translator translates written text, but interpreter translates spoken text. Translator has
ability to understand the source written text, use the dictionary, and render the message
accurately into the target language. On the other hand, interpreter has ability to
translate text on the spot orally without using dictionary. He should be able to memorize
the words that the source language speaker is saying and express it in another language
directly after the source language speaker finishes speaking.
Learning objectives:
By the end of this chapter, we will be able to understand the essence of translation, some
theories proposed by translation experts, the process of translating text, and the
importance of revising our translation product. Finally, in the end of chapter one, we will
practice to translate sentences after completing the exercises in the grammar book that we
have compiled earlier. Reviewing the grammatical structure of English is essential for us in
order to produce an accurate, acceptable, and readable translation product.
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A. Translation Theories
Before learning about translation theories, we might think that translation is a simple
activity. “To translate” means that we should translate the words from one language into
another language; let’s say from English into Indonesian. For example;
Source Text Target Text
Now, we are studying in the class. Sekarang kami sedang belajar di kelas.
It’s not that difficult to translate “Now, we are studying in the class” to be “Sekarang
kami sedang belajar di kelas”. However, let’s see the next example below:
Siapa namamu? Who is your name?
What do you think about the example above? We can say that the translator has
translated the sentence incorrectly because we know that in English, it should be “What
is your name?” rather than “Who is your name”. We know that it’s incorrect because we
have learned about English grammatical structures.
It is true that if we check our dictionary, we will find that “siapa” is “who” in English, so
“siapa namamu?” will be “who is your name”. However, “who” is a type of question
words that is used to ask for someone (person). Instead of using “who”, we should use
“what” which refers to “things” (namamu = your name). Therefore, the correct
translation for “siapa namamu?” is not “who is your name?”, but “what is your name?”.
From this example, now you might start thinking that “translating activity is not merely
translating words from one language into another language” right? Following is a
conversation between two students in Medan. Let’s say that it is a movie subtitle, and
someone is asked to translate it into English.
Source Text Target Text (First Version)
Firman : Dari mana kau Ferri? Firman : From where you Ferri?
Biasanya gak pernah kau pulang jam Usually never you go home this time.
segini. Ferri : From campus.
Ferri : Dari kampus. Firman : Why you are so long in
Firman : Kok lama kali kau di campus?
kampus? Ferri : There is discussion.
Ferri : Ada diskusi kelompok aku Tomorrow we wanna present.
tadi. Besok kami mau presentasi.
What do you think about the English version of the conversation above? Is there
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anything that sounds unnatural in English?

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The English version of the conversation above is correct in meaning if we translate it
word by word. For example; “Dari mana kau Ferri” = “From where you Ferri”. If we
check our dictionary, we will find that “dari” = “from”, “mana” = “where”, “kau” = “you”.
However, after learning about translation theory, we can say that it is translated
incorrectly.
Looking at the context of the conversation above, we can see that both of them are
friends, and they do not meet for the first time. Then, we know that “kamu dari mana” in
this conversation is not “where are you from?” (correct grammar) or “from where you?”
(incorrect grammar) which may be answered by “I’m from Indonesia” or “I’m from
Medan”. As the first and the second speaker are friends, the first speaker is trying to ask
“where have you been?” = “kamu dari mana?”. Following is the second version of the
English translation for the conversation above:
Source Text Target Text (Second Version)
Firman : Dari mana kau Ferri? Firman : Where have you been
Biasanya gak pernah kau pulang jam Ferri? It’s rare for you to go home this
segini. late.
Ferri : Dari kampus. Ferri : I was in campus.
Firman : Kok lama kali kau di Firman : What takes you so long
kampus? in campus?
Ferri : Ada diskusi kelompok aku Ferri : I have a group discussion. We
tadi. Besok kami mau presentasi. have a presentation tomorrow.
Which one sounds more natural for you? It should be the second version right? Because
the translator does not translate the sentences word by word, but the translator uses the
most equivalence word to replace the words, so the target reader can understand the
message better. To understand more about “the definition of translation”, please read
the following examples:
Now, let’s imagine that we are watching an English movie with Indonesian subtitles.
After that please decide, which one do you think is easier to understand?
Source Text:
Gray : Hi Max! Are you alright? You are in blue. What happened? I’m all ears.
Max : Hi Gray, it’s nice to see you. I got a very low score this semester. I don’t
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know how I should face my parent’s face.

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Gray : Keep your chin up! It can’t be helped that you got bad score this
semester, but you can do better and study harder for the next semester. It’s our
2nd year of study, we still have 2 years ahead waiting for us before graduation. You
should plan now, get the balls rolling, and you’ll achieve it.
Max : Thank you Gray! I’ll do my best this semester.
Gray : No problem. Just drop me a line anytime.
Subtitles: The first version

Gray : Hi Max! Apa kamu baik-baik saja? Kamu berwarna biru. Apa yang terjadi?
Saya semua telinga.
Max : Hai Gray, senang melihat Anda. Saya mendapat skor yang sangat rendah
semester ini. Saya tidak tahu bagaimana saya harus menghadapi wajah orang tua
saya.
Gray : Tetap semangat! Tidak dapatkah Anda mendapat nilai buruk pada
semester ini, tapi Anda bisa melakukan yang lebih baik dan belajar lebih giat
untuk semester berikutnya. Pada tahun kedua studi kami, kami masih memiliki 2
tahun ke depan menunggu kami sebelum lulus. Anda harus merencanakan
sekarang, mendapatkan bola bergulir, dan Anda akan mencapainya.
Max : Terima kasih Gray! Saya akan melakukan yang terbaik semester ini.
Gray : Tidak masalah. Turunkan saya kapan saja.
Subtitles: The second version

Gray : Hai Max! Kamu ok? Kamu keliatannya lagi sedih. Kenapa? Curhat ke aku
donk.
Max : Hai Gray! Aku seneng kamu datang. Nilai aku jelek banget semester ini.
Aku bingung bakal bilang apa kalau ketemu ibu sama ayah.
Gray : Semangat dong! Mau gimana lagi, semester ini memang kamu dapat nilai
jelek, tapikan kamu bisa belajar lebih giat buat semester depan. Kita kan masih
semester 4, masih ada 4 semester lagi kedepan sebelum kita lulus. Kamu musti
rencanain sekarang, jalanin rencana itu, terus kamu pasti berhasil.
Max : Makasih ya Gray! Aku bakal berusaha lebih giat semester ini.
Gray : Gak masalah. Hubungin aku kapanpun kamu mau.
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After reading both versions, we can tell that the second version is easier to understand
for Indonesian people rather than the first version which sounds unnatural and looks
like a translation product from online translation machine. In the first version, the
translator translates “You are in blue” as “Kamu berwarna biru”, yet “you are in blue” is
an English idiom, meaning “you look sad”.
The translator also translates “I’m all ears” literally as “Saya semua telinga”. It is correct
literally, but “I’m all ears” is also an English idiom meaning that “I am ready to listen
from you”. In the second version, the translator translates “I’m all ears” as “Curhat ke
aku donk” which means that “please tell me, I’d like to listen”.
Next, “I got a very low score this semester” is translated literally in the first version as
“saya mendapat skor yang sangat rendah semester ini”. It sounds so formal compared to
a conversation that we usually have with our close friends. The use of “saya” makes it
more formal. In the second version, the translator translates “I got a very low score this
semester” as “Nilai aku jelek banget semester ini”. The translator changes the point of
view of the sentence “I got a very low score” to be “Nilai aku jelek banget”. It makes the
target readers understand the context of the conversation that both of the speakers are
close friends.
Then, the first translator translates “It can’t be helped” as “tidak dapatkah Anda”.
Besides it sounds so formal (Anda), the expression “it can’t be helped” in English means
that “we cannot do anything about it” or “it happens”. That’s why the second version
sounds more natural in English because “it can’t be helped” is translated as “mau
bagaimana lagi”.
“Get the balls rolling” is also an idiom which means that “to start doing something big” or
“to do the plan”. The same case is also happens to “drop me a line” which means that
“call me anytime you need”. The translator of the first version translates “drop me a line”
as “turunkan saya kapan saja” which is unrelated to the context of this conversation. The
second version sounds better as “hubungin aku kapanpun kamu mau”.
After reading the examples above, we can conclude that translation is not merely an
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activity that we can do by translating the text word by word right? In one case,
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translating a sentences word by word is useful, but we cannot use this technique in
translating the whole text, unless we want to have unnatural translation product.
Moreover, you should be familiar with the abbreviations below:
SL (Source Language): The language of the source text. In the previous examples
(Max and Gray), the source language is English and the target language is
Indonesia.
TL (Target Language): The language of the target readers. In the previous
examples (Max and Gray), the target readers are Indonesian people.
ST (Source Text) : The text that we want to translate into another language.
TT (Target Text) : The translation product.
Now, please read the following definitions of translation from some experts in
translation field:
1. Newmark (1988) : “Translation is rendering the meaning of a text into
another language in the way that the author intended the text”. From his definition of
translation, we can say that Newmark considers a translation activity as a rendering
activity which relates to the author’s intention. It means, when we translate a text,
we should think about the purpose of the writer in the source text, find the most
equivalent words which can express that message well in the target text.
Newmark also believes that translation is a craft/art in replacing the written

message in one language by the same message in another language. According to
him, we should be able to produce a target text which has the similar message with
the source text, and for that it’s suggested to give detail explanation, so the target
readers can understand the message as what have been understood by the source
text readers. For examples;
Source Text Target Text 1 Target Text 2

A: Kamu dari mana? A: Where have you been? A: Where are you from?
B: Dari Supermarket. B: I’ve just come back from B: I’m from Indonesia.
the Supermarket
From the examples above, following the Newmark’s definition of translation, a

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translator should be able to express the message of the source text by considering the
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intention of the writer. In the example above, “Kamu dari mana?” can be translated into
“Where have you been?” (if the writer wants to ask “where someone has been going”
and “Where are you from?” (if the writer wants to ask “where someone’s from”. Then,
the translator should see the previous sentence or the next sentence (the answer of the
speaker) to decide the correct translation for “kamu dari mana?”.
2. Catford (1965): Translation is “The replacement of textual material in one language

(Source Language) by equivalent textual material in another language (Target
Language). From this definition, we can say that a translator should be able to find
the most equivalent words to replace the words of one language in another language.
The textual materials here can be the words, phrases, sentences, the language style,
and the grammatical structures. For examples:

A: What’s going on with A: Dia kenapa? A: Dia kenapa?
her? B: Dia warnanya biru. B: Dia sedang sedih.
B: She’s in blue. She lost Kucing kesayangannya Kucing kesayangannya
her dearest cat. hilang. hilang.
In the examples above, we can see that the second version sounds more natural than the
first version. As the target readers, we cannot understand why someone becomes blue
(in color) after she lost her cat. The second version sounds easier to understand. We can
tell that someone is sad because she lost her cat. In correspondence to Catford’s
definition of translation, a translator should be able to find the most equivalent
expression to replace “she is in blue” which is an English idiom by the most relevant
equivalents for Indonesian people (dia sedang sedih). The translator cannot translate
every text literally as he should find the most equivalent words to replace one
expression with another expression in the target text.
3. Nida and Taber (1974): “Translation is rewriting of the message contained in the
source language into the target language to find similarities”. Nida and Taber’s
definition of translation is quite similar to what Catford mentions. The main idea is
the translator can produce a translation which has the similar message as the source
text. Nida prefers to say “receptor language” which is called as “target language” by
other translation experts. Nida has three sets of theories; philological theories,
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linguistics theories, and socio-linguistics theories.

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The philological theories of translation are dealing with corresponding structures in the
source and target language in attempt to evaluate their equivalences. The theories
concern with all kinds of stylistic features and rhetorical devices.
The linguistics theories of translation are dealing with the comparison of the linguistics
structures of the source text and the target text. In the example below, it can be seen that
the translator should be able to understand when to use past tense and present tense.
Indonesia doesn’t have to change the form of verb as what English grammatical
structure has. By looking at the time signal “tahun lalu” (last year), the translator writes
the sentence “sisi dapat juara dua di kelas” in past tense as “sisi got the second place in
the class”. In philological theory, Nida wants the translator to consider the use of
grammatical structure in translating text, so the target readers can grasp the similar
message as the source text readers can.

Tahun lalu, Sisi dapat juara dua di Last year, Sisi got the second place in
kelas. Tahun ini dia juara satu. the class. This year she is in the first
place.
The socio-linguistics theories of translation are dealing with functions in the

communicative process, such as; simile, metaphor, irony, hyperbole, etc. in literary and
nonliterary text.
4. Mildred L. Larson (1984): “Translation is basically a change of form. Translation is

transferring the meaning of the source language into the receptor language. This is
done by going from the form of the first language to the form of a second language by
way of semantic structure”. Larson thinks that meaning should be a priority for
translators rather than the linguistics form. It means the translator should translate a
text by transferring the semantic meaning of the source text into the target text. Even
though the form of the source text changes, the meaning of the text is still the same.
The language forms that Larson mentions are words, phrases, clauses, sentences, and
paragraphs. Therefore in this theory, as translators, we should be able to replace the
form of the source text without changing the meaning. Changing the form and the
structures are ok, but changing the meaning is unforgivable. For example:
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He is cold hearted. Dia tidak punya hati.

In the example above, we can see that the translator understands that “Cold hearted”
means someone who has no emotional sympathy. Then, rather than translating the text
literally as “Dia berhati dingin”, the translator changes the form of the source text, and
finds another expression in Indonesia which can express the similar idea with the source
text; “Dia tidak punya hati” which also means that someone who doesn’t care and
doesn’t have any sympathy. Let’s see another example:
I cut my fingers. Jariku tersayat.
In the example above, it can be seen that the source text “I cut my fingers” literally
means “Saya memotong jari saya” which doesn’t make sense for Indonesian people
because it means “I have cut my fingers” in English. Therefore, the translator changes
the forms (the point of view of the sentence) to be “jariku tersayat”. That’s why, in
Larson’s theory, it is ok to change the form to express the most equivalent meaning.
Another example;
Siapa namamu? Who is your name? What is your name?
In the example above, the second translator doesn’t translate the sentence “Siapa
namamu?” literally as “Who is your name”. Even though “Siapa” is “Who” in English,
grammatically to ask someone’s name (thing), we should use “what” instead of “who”
which should be used for asking “someone” (person). Larson states that “To do effective
translation, one must discover the meaning of the source language and use receptor
language forms which express the meaning in natural way”. Larson’s theory accepts the
changing of forms as long as the translator can express the meaning correctly. In
Larson’s theory, a good translator is the one who finds the meaning of the source
language, transfers it in the natural form of the target language, and communicates the
meaning of the source language that can be understood well by the target readers.
Therefore, the target readers will give the same impression as the source language
readers do.
After exploring some examples and reading some definitions of translation, we can
conclude that translation is not merely an activity that we can do by translating the text
word by word. Translation is the process of rendering, replacing, rewriting, or
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transferring the meaning (message) in the source text with the most equivalent similar
meaning (message) in the target language. Now, we understand what translation is.
Next, let’s learn about the steps of producing translation product.
B. Translation Process and Product

Now, we understand that translating is not merely translating text literally, but finding
the most equivalence expression which can express the message of one language into
another language. To produce a good translation product, translator should go through
the following processes:
1. Translating
In this stage, translator reads the text to get the whole message of the source text. It is
faster to use online translation service, but we cannot depend 100% on its translation
product. Following is product of online translation service:
Source Text 1 Target Text
A: Where are you going? A: Kemana kamu pergi?
B/C/D: We are going to meet Mr. B/C/D: Kita akan bertemu Pak
Rahmat. Do you want to join us? Rahmat. Apakah kamu ingin
A: Sure! bergabung dengan kami?
A: Yakin!
We can see that the online machine translation cannot differentiate “kami” and “kita”,
yet in Indonesia “we” can be translated as “kami” or “kita”. For Indonesian people,
“kami” refers to the speaker and his friends excluded the person that the speaker is
talking to while “kita” refers to the speaker together with the person that the speaker is
talking to.
In the first source text, B/C/D are people that the speaker A is talking with. When B/C/D
mentions that “we are going to meet Mr. Rahmat”, they mean that they are going to see
Mr. Rahmat without speaker A. In this case, “we” that they mention is referring to B/C/D
(kami), meaning that it’s excluded the speaker A. That is why, they invite the speaker A
to join them. To cope with this problem, translator should revise the translation product
of the online translation service. Therefore, “kita akan bertemu Pak Rahmat” is incorrect,
the correct translation for “we are going to meet Mr. Rahmat” is “kami akan bertemu Pak
Rahmat” because the speaker A is excluded in the context of B/C/D talk.
Therefore, in this part, we will learn the process of translating text with the assistance of
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online translation service. In the following example, the source text is translated by
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using Google Translate:

Source Text Target Text (Google Translate)

A farmer must transport his dog, a Seorang Petani harus mengangkut
duck, and a bag of corn across a river. Anjingnya, Bebek, dan sekantong
Jagung di seberang Sungai.
The boat he has to use is very small— Perahu yang harus dia gunakan sangat
so small that he can take only one of kecil – sangat kecil sehingga dia bisa
the three in the boat with him at a mengambil hanya satu dari ketiganya
time. di kapal bersamanya sekaligus.
If he leaves the dog alone with the Jika dia meninggalkan Anjingnya
duck, the dog will kill and eat the duck. sendirian dengan Bebek, Anjing akan
membunuh dan memakan Bebek.
If he leaves the duck alone with the Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri
corn, the duck will eat up the corn. dengan Jagung, Bebeknya akan
memakan Jagung.
What is the least number of trips the Berapa jumlah minimal perjalanan
farmer must make to transport all yang harus dilakukan Petani untuk
three across the river safely? mengangkut ketiganya menyebrangi
sungai dengan aman?
2. Revising the translation product

In this stage, the translator checks and revises the text to ensure that the target text is
accurate, acceptable, and readable enough for the target readers. Most translators will
put the translation aside or overnight to find more errors in the translation product
later.
Mossop (2007) mentions few of many things that editor or reviser looking for in a text:
a. There are many typographical errors.
b. Sometimes the main numbered headings are bolded, and sometimes they are
italicized.
c. There are unidiomatic word combinations.
d. You often have to read a sentence twice to get the point.
e. You often come across a word like “it” or “they” and you cannot tell what it refers to.
f. The text contains a great many words which the readers won’t understand because
they are not very highly educated, or because they are not experts in the subject
matter of the text.
g. The text is not written in a way appropriate to the genre. For example, it is a recipe,
but it does not begin with a list of ingredients, it is rather vague about how to make
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the dish, and it is full of commentary on the history of the dish and chefs who are
famous for making it.
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h. If the text is a narrative, it is hard to follow the sequence of events. If it is an
argument, it is hard to follow the steps.
i. There are passages which contradict each other.
To revise a text, some people may print it out and start revising while the other people
may revise the text on screen (the soft copy in Ms. Word). To take the benefits from
computer in editing translation works, one can go to the editing functions of word
processors; Microsoft Word. (Mossop, 2007). Ms. Word has useful revising tools such as;
Spellchecker, Find and Replace, Grammar and Style checkers, and inserting comments.
We need to activate those tools on Ms. Words before we start revising the soft copy of
the translation product. Following is the previous translation product that has been
edited:
Source Text Target Text (Revised by translator)

A farmer must transport his dog, a Seorang Petani harus mengangkut
duck, and a bag of corn across a river. Anjingnya, seekor Bebek, dan
sekantong Jagung ke seberang Sungai.
The boat he has to use is very small— Perahu yang harus dia gunakan sangat
so small that he can take only one of kecil sehingga dia hanya bisa
the three in the boat with him at a mengambil satu dari ketiganya di
time. kapal bersamanya sekaligus.
If he leaves the dog alone with the Jika dia meninggalkan Anjingnya
duck, the dog will kill and eat the duck. sendirian dengan Bebek, Anjing akan
membunuh dan memakan Bebek.
If he leaves the duck alone with the Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri
corn, the duck will eat up the corn. dengan Jagung, Bebek akan memakan
Jagung.
What is the least number of trips the Berapa jumlah minimal perjalanan
farmer must make to transport all yang harus dilakukan Petani untuk
three across the river safely? mengangkut ketiganya menyebrangi
sungai dengan aman?
Can you tell the differences of the text before and after being revised?
It can be seen that translator has made some revisions to the translation product. Those
revisions are:
Before revision After being revised

Seorang Petani harus mengangkut Seorang Petani harus mengangkut
Anjingnya, Bebek, dan sekantong Anjingnya, seekor Bebek, dan
Jagung di seberang Sungai. sekantong Jagung ke seberang Sungai.
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In the table above, the translator adds “seekor” before “Bebek”. He also changes the
preposition “di seberang Sungai” to be “ke seberang Sungai”.

Perahu yang harus dia gunakan sangat Perahu yang harus dia gunakan sangat
kecil – sangat kecil sehingga dia bisa kecil sehingga dia hanya bisa
mengambil hanya satu dari ketiganya mengambil satu dari ketiganya di
di kapal bersamanya sekaligus. kapal bersamanya sekaligus.
In the table above, it can be seen that translator omits “sangat kecil” and changes the
position of “hanya”.

Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri
dengan Jagung, Bebeknya akan dengan Jagung, Bebek akan memakan
memakan Jagung. Jagung.
In the table above, it can be seen that translator omits “nya” of “Bebeknya”.
3. Proofreading
In this stage, the translation product that has been revised will be read by proofreaders
to check whether the target text sounds unnatural. The proofreaders could be the
speakers of the target language or the people who are experts in the target language.
The proofreaders will also detect inconsistencies of the punctuation, capitalization, or
typographical errors.
Following is the text that has been proofread:
Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

proofreaders)
Seorang Petani harus mengangkut Seorang petani harus membawa
Anjingnya, seekor Bebek, dan seekor anjing, bebek, dan sekantong
sekantong Jagung ke seberang Sungai. jagung ke seberang sungai.
Perahu yang harus dia gunakan sangat Perahu yang dia gunakan sangat kecil
kecil sehingga dia hanya bisa sehingga hanya bisa membawa satu
mengambil satu dari ketiganya di dari ketiganya ke atas perahu.
kapal bersamanya sekaligus.
Jika dia meninggalkan Anjingnya Jika dia meninggalkan Si anjing
sendirian dengan Bebek, Anjing akan sendirian dengan bebek, anjing akan
membunuh dan memakan Bebek. memangsa bebek.
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Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri Jika dia meninggalkan Si bebek

dengan Jagung, Bebek akan memakan sendirian dengan jagung, bebek akan
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Jagung. memakan jagung.

Berapa jumlah minimal perjalanan Lalu, berapa jumlah minimal
yang harus dilakukan Petani untuk perjalanan yang harus dilakukan oleh
mengangkut ketiganya menyebrangi petani untuk mengangkut ketiganya
sungai dengan aman? menyeberangi sungai dengan aman?
It the tables above, it can be seen that the proofreaders make some revisions to produce
the final translation product. The revisions are:

proofreaders)
Seorang Petani harus mengangkut Seorang petani harus membawa
Anjingnya, seekor Bebek, dan seekor anjing, bebek, dan sekantong
sekantong Jagung ke seberang Sungai. jagung ke seberang sungai.
In the table above, it can be seen that the proofreaders revise the use of capitalization
for “Petani”, “Anjingnya”, “Bebek”, “Jagung”, and “Sungai”. The proofreaders also change
the word “mengangkut” into “membawa”, omit “nya” in “Anjingnya”.

proofreaders)
Perahu yang harus dia gunakan sangat Perahu yang dia gunakan sangat kecil
kecil sehingga dia hanya bisa sehingga hanya bisa membawa satu
mengambil satu dari ketiganya di dari ketiganya ke atas perahu.
kapal bersamanya sekaligus.
In the table above, it can be seen that the proofreaders omit “harus” and “dia”. The
proofreaders also change the word “mengambil” into “membawa”. Then, the
proofreaders change the phrase “bersamanya sekaligus” into “ke atas perahu”.

proofreaders)
Jika dia meninggalkan Anjingnya Jika dia meninggalkan Si anjing
sendirian dengan Bebek, Anjing akan sendirian dengan bebek, anjing akan
membunuh dan memakan Bebek. memangsa bebek.
In the table above, it can be seen that the proofreaders add “Si” and omit “nya”, then
write “Si anjing” instead of “Anjingnya”. The proofreaders also correct the capitalization
of “Bebek” and “Anjing”. After that, the proofreaders change the word “membunuh” to be
“memangsa” that sounds more natural for referring to animals.
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proofreaders)
Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri Jika dia meninggalkan Si bebek
dengan Jagung, Bebek akan memakan sendirian dengan jagung, bebek akan
Jagung. memakan jagung.
In the table above, it can be seen that the proofreaders change “sendiri” into “sendirian”.
The proofreaders also correct the capitalization for “ Jagung” and “Bebek”. Then the
proofreaders add “Si” for “bebek”.

proofreaders)
Berapa jumlah minimal perjalanan Lalu, berapa jumlah minimal
yang harus dilakukan Petani untuk perjalanan yang harus dilakukan oleh
mengangkut ketiganya menyebrangi Petani untuk mengangkut ketiganya
sungai dengan aman? menyebrangi sungai dengan aman?
In the table above, it can be seen that the proofreaders add “Lalu” in the beginning of the
sentence. The proofreaders also correct the capitalization of “Petani” as “petani”.
C. The Experts of Translation Fields
Translation indeed is a unique and careful process of thinking to produce high

quality target text. Even so, many people are still going through the complexity of
translation and falling in love to its uniqueness. As you will see below are some of
thousands people who have given contributions to translation fields, and we called them
“Experts” of the field.
1. Amparo Hurtado Albir

She is a Spanish professor, translator and researcher. She has studied modern Philology
at the University of Valencia. She is currently a professor of Traductology at the
Autonomous University of Barcelona and is considered an essential reference for
Translation Theory and for the academic formation of professionals of language.
Hurtado Albir is also the principal researcher in PACTE research group. Her most
popular work is the proposed translation techniques. With Lucia Molina, she proposed
eighteen techniques of translation; adaptation, amplification, borrowing, calque,
compensation, description, discursive creation, established equivalent, generalization,
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linguistic amplification, linguistic compression, literal translation, modulation,

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particularization, reduction, substitution, transposition, variation.

2. Mona Baker
Mona Baker is a professor of translation studies and Director of the Centre for
Translation and Intercultural Studies at the University of Manchester in England. She
studied at the American University in Cairo, where she gained a BA in English and
Comparative Literature. Afterwards she studied applied linguistics at the University of
Birmingham, obtaining an MA. In 1995 she moved to the University of Manchester
Institute of Science and Technology where she became a professor in 1997. She
currently holds the Chair in Translation Studies. She is the founder of St. Jerome
Publishing where she was editorial director until 2014 when Routledge bought the St.
Jerome catalogue. She also founded the international journal The Translator. Since 2009
she has been an honorary member of IAPTI. In the framework of this association she
delivered a speech on “Ethics in the Translation/Interpreting Curriculum”. She is also
co-Vice-president of the International Association of Translation and Intercultural
Studies. As a researcher, she is interested in translation and conflict, the role of ethics in
research and training in Translation Studies, the application of narrative theory to
translation and interpretation, activist communities in translation and corpus-based
translation studies; she has published extensively in these areas. She has also edited
reference works. Some of her works are: In Other Words: A Coursebook on Translation
(1992); Routledge Encyclopedia of Translation Studies (1997); Translation and Conflict:
A Narrative Account.
3. Lawrence Venuti
Lawrence Venuti is an American translation theorist, translation historian, and a
translator from Italian, French, and Catalan. Born in Philadelphia, Venuti graduated from
Temple University. He completed the Ph.D. in English at Columbia University. He is
currently professor of English at Temple University. Venuti has concentrated on theory
and practice of translation. He is considered one of the most critically minded figures in
modern translation theory, often with positions that substantially differ from those of
mainstream theorists. He criticizes the fact that, too frequently, the translator is an
invisible figure. He has been engaged in translation criticism ever since he started
translating. His seminal work, The Translator’s Invisibility: A History of Translation, has
been a source of some debate since its publication.
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In it, he lays out his theory that so-called “domesticating practices” at work in society
have contributed to the invisibility of the translator in translations, claiming that legal
and cultural constraints make it so that “ ‘faithful rendition’ is defined partly by the
illusion of transparency”, such as that foreignizing or experimental types of translation
are “likely to encounter opposition from publishers and large segments of Anglophone
readers who read for immediate intelligibility”. This leads to a climate in which “fluency”
is the most important quality for a translation and all traces of foreigness or alterity tend
to be purposely erased in a manifestation of ethnocentric violence. As a solution to this
problem, Venuti puts forward the strategy of foreignization, which aims at “sending the
reader abroad” instead of “bringing the author back home”, as it is the case when a
translation is domesticated. Some of his works are:The Translation Studies Reader
(2000); The Translator’s Invisibility: A History of Translation (1994); The Scandals of
Translation: Towards an Ethics of Difference (1998).
4. Susan Bassnett
Susan Bassnett is a translation theorist and scholar of comparative literature. She served
as pro-vice-chancellor at the University of Warwick for ten years and taught in its Centre
for Translation and Comparative Cultural Studies, which closed in 2009; she is currently
a professor of comparative literature. Educated around Europe, she began her career in
Italy and has lectured at universities in the United States. In 2007, she was elected a
Fellow at the Royal Society of Literature. Among more than twenty books, several have
become mainstays in the field of literary criticism, especially Translation Studies (1980)
and Comparative Literature (1993). In her 1998 work Constructing Cultures: Essays on
Literary Translation, she states that “the shift of emphasis from original to translation is
reflected in discussions on the visibility of the translator. Some of her works are:
Translation Studies (1981); Postcolonial Translation: Theory and Practice (1998)
5. Jeremy Munday
Jeremy Munday is a British linguist and translator. He teaches as professor of translation
science at the University of Leeds and is a translator for the Spanish-English and French-
English and French-English language combinations. He was a professor at the Univeristy
of Bradford in 1997 in the field of Systems in translation: A computer-assisted systemic
analysis of the translation of Garcia Marquez, but the dissertation was not published.
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Afterwards, he was a lecture in Romance Studies at the University of Surrey, before

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taking up the Chair of Translation Studies at the University of Leeds. Some of his works
are: Introducing Translation Studies: Theories and Applications (2001)
6. Douglas Robinson
Douglas Robinson is an American academic scholar, translator, and fiction-writer who is

best known for his work in translation studies, but has published widely on various
aspects of human communication and social interaction (American literature, literary
theory, linguistic theory, gender theory, writing theory, rhetorical theory). He has
translated several finnish novels, plays, and monographs into English, and his own novel
was written in English but first was published in Finnish translation. Robinson is
currently Chair Professor of English at Hong Kong Baptist University. Some of his works
are: Becoming a Translator: An Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Translation
(1997).
7. Basil Hatim
Basil Hatim is an Iraqi-British translator, interpreter, linguist, and professor. He has
published publications on applied linguistics, text linguistics, translation / interpretation
and English as a second language (TESOL). He has worked as a text linguistics theorist
and has published titles on this subject as well as related fields. He is a member of the
executive board of several trade journals and has published 50 articles in the field of
intercultural communication. Some of this works are: Translation: An Advanced
Resource Book (2004); Discourse and the Translator (1990); The Translator as
Communicator (1996)
8. Eugene A. Nida
Eugene A. Nida was a linguist who developed the dynamic-equivalence Bible-translation
theory and one of the founders of the modern discipline of Translation Studies. Nida has
been a pioneer in the fields of translation theory and linguistics. His Ph.D. dissertation, A
Synopsis of English Syntax, was the first full-scale analysis of a major language according
to the “Immediate-constituent” theory. His most notable contribution to translation
theory is Dynamic Equivalence, also known as Functional Equivalence. Nida’s dynamic-
equivalence theory is often held in opposition to the views of philologists who maintain
that an understanding of the source text (ST) can be achieved by assessing the inter-
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animation of words on the page, and that meaning is self-contained within the text. Nida
sets the differences in translation, as he would account for it, within three basic factors:
a. The nature of the message: in some messages the content is of primary
consideration, and in others the form must be given a higher priority.
b. The purpose of the author and of the translator: to give information on both
form and content; to aim at full intelligibility of the reader so someone can
understand the full implications of the message; for imperative purposes that
aim at not just understanding the translation but also at ensuring no
misunderstanding of the translation.
c. The type of audience: prospective audiences differ both in decoding ability and
in potential interest.
Nida and Lawrence Venuti have proved that translation studies is a much more complex
discipline than may first appear, with the translator having to look beyond the text itself
to deconstruct on an intra-textual level and decode on a referential level – assessing
culture specific items, idiom and figurative language to achieve an understanding of the
source text and embark upon creating a translation which not only transfers what words
mean in a given context, but also recreates the impact of the original text within the
limits of the translator’s own language systems. Some of his major works are: Contexts
in Translating (2002); Toward a Science of Translating: with Special Reference to
Principles and Procedures Involved in Bible Translating (2012).
9. Peter Newmark
Peter Newmark was an English professor of translation at the University of Surrey. He
was one of the main figures in the founding of Translation Studies in the English
speaking world in twentieth century. He was also very influential in the Spanish
speaking world. He is widely read through a series of accessible and occasionally
polemical works: A Textbook of Translation (1988), Paragraphs on Translation (1989),
About Translation (1991), More Paragraphs on Translation (1998). He was associated
with the founding and development of the Centre for Translation Studies at Surrey. He
was chair of the editorial board of the Journal of Specialized Translation. He also wrote
“Translation Now” bimonthly for The Linguist and was an Editorial Board Member of the
Institute of Linguists.
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10.Etc.
Summary
1. Newmark considers a translation activity as a rendering activity which relates to

the author’s intention. It means, when we translate a text, we should think about
the purpose of the writer in the source text, find the most equivalent words
which can express that message well in the target text.
2. According to Catford, a translator should be able to find the most equivalent
words to replace the words of one language in another language.
3. According to Nida, translation is an activity in which the translator can produce a
translation which has the similar message as the source text.
4. According to Larson, as translators, we should be able to replace the form of the
source text without changing the meaning.
5. To conclude all the definitions of translation from the experts above, we can
summarize that translating is not merely an activity that we can do by translating
the text word by word. Translation is the process of rendering, replacing,
rewriting, or transferring the meaning (message) in the source text with the most
equivalent similar meaning (message) in the target language. It means translating
is the process of finding the most equivalence expression which can express the
message of one language into another language.
6. The translation processes consist of translating text, revising the translation
product, and proofreading the target text.
7. Some experts in translation field are: Amparo Hurtado Albir (translation
techniques, 2002), Mona Baker (A course book on Translation, 1992), Lawrence
Venuti (The translator’s invisibility: a history of translation), Susan Basnet
(translation: theory and practice, 1998), Jeremy Munday (Introducing
Translation Studies: Theories and Applications (2001), Douglas Robinson
(Becoming a Translator: An Introduction to the Theory and Practice of
Translation (1997)), Basil Hatim (Translation: An advanced Resource Book,
2004), Eugene A. Nida (context in translating, 2002), Peter Newmark (A textbook
of translation, 1988), and etc.
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Exercise 1: Translating Sentences
To produce a good translation product, translators should have a good understanding of

grammatical structures of both languages (source language and target language). To
improve your understanding about the grammatical structures of English, please
compile a grammar book which consists of grammar exercises. Every group should
present their books in front of the class. While you listen to the presentation of other
groups, please write the summary of what you have learned during the presentation.
Next, in the online Whats App group, please write a sentence that follows the grammar
theory from your grammar book. You should translate the sentence written by your
friends before you write your own sentence. The sentence that you write should be
related with the previous sentence written by your friends, so it will be a meaningful
connected story. After that, give comments and suggestions for a better translation to
your friends’ translation product. The Online Group Whats App Discussion example can
be seen as follow:
Online Whats App Group Discussion

Topic: Translating Sentences
Source Text: We have some tables in my house. (Preposition)

Target Text: Kami memiliki beberapa meja di rumah kami.
Suggestions: Kami memiliki beberapa meja di rumah. (omit “kami” to sound more
natural)
Source Text: If we don’t have some tables, we can’t put some flowers on the tables.
(Conditional Sentence)
Target Text: Kalau kami tidak memiliki beberapa meja-meja, kami tidak bisa
meletakkan beberapa bunga di atas meja-meja itu.
Suggestions: Kalau kami tidak memiliki beberapa meja, maka kami tidak bisa
meletakkan bunga di atas meja. (Omit “meja-meja” because in Indonesia “beberapa”
means “many”, so we do not need to repeat the word “meja” to show its number. The
word “beberapa” means more than one tables (meja).
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Source Text: My mom also told me to put some fruits on the tables. (Indirect Sentence)
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Target Text: Ibuku juga memberi tahu ku untuk meletakkan beberapa buah di atas
meja.
Suggestions: Ibu juga menyuruh saya meletakkan beberapa buah di atas meja. (omit
“ku” in “ibuku” because it has been understood that “ibu” is “my mom”. Change
“memberi tahu” as “menyuruh” because it will sound more natural in Indonesian
language. Change “ku” as “saya” to sound more formal.
Now, it’s your turn to create your own sentences, translate and give comments for your
friends’ translation. Good luck 
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Chapter Two: Translation Techniques
Chapter Two
Translation Techniques
In the previous chapter, we learn about the definition of translation, the steps in
translating text, and some translation experts. We also practice to translate sentences with
the correct use of English grammar. In this chapter, we will practice to translate a
paragraph (an abstract). However, please translate the following abstract into Indonesian
language by using your free translation strategy before learning about translation
techniques in this chapter.
Exercise 2: Translating a paragraph (an abstract)

Please translate the following abstract into Indonesian by using your free translation
strategy individually. You can use free translation. After that, exchange your translation
product with other groups. Then, check the general errors in the translation products
you get from your friends. Next, report the general errors and suggest the solutions for
better translation to the other groups. You need to move to the other groups to report
the general errors directly. After you get the general errors and suggestions from your
friends, give back the translation products that you have checked to the real owner.
Once you get your own translation product, write the summary of the general errors you
have received from your friends. You may create the summary with your own creativity.
For example; you may create mind mapping summary, summary with music, or you also
want to make the summary in the form of poem. Finally, upload your summary to your
lecturer’s Facebook, and give positive comments to the summary uploaded by your
friends.
The Translators’ intention in translating Surah Al-Waqi’ah into Angkola Language
Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren, M.Hum.

The State Islamic University of North Sumatra (UIN SU)
E-mail: titaancha@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
The Holy Qur’an has been translated into Angkola Language in order to motivate the local
people in understanding the message of the Holy Qur’an and also to preserve the existence of
the Angkola language itself. This language is widely used in the daily life and cultural
tradition of Angkola Bataknese people in South Tapanuli of North Sumatra. However, it is
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very important to maintain the message of the Holy Qur’an and prevent the translation shift
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that could happen in case of mixing with the culture of Angkola people. This study aims to see
the most dominant translation techniques, the translators’ ideology, and the quality of
Angkola translation of the Holy Qur’an. The methodology of this research is descriptive
qualitative which is an embedded-case study and oriented to translation product (Toury,
1995). The Translation techniques proposed by Molina and Albir (2002, p.509-511) are used
to analyze the data. The data of this study are words, phrases, and clauses in the 96 verses of
Al-Waqi’ah surah in Arabic and its translation in Angkola language translated by the
translator team in the Faculty of Ushuluddin and Islamic Studies, The State Islamic
University of North Sumatra in 2016 published by Puslitbag Lektur dan Khazanah
Keagamaan Ministry of Religion Affairs Jakarta. After analyzing the data, it can be seen that
1) the most dominant translation techniques used by the translators are literal (word by word
translation) and amplification techniques (giving additional information in footnote or body
note). 2) The translators have foreignization ideology. Even though the translators translate
the Holy Qur’an into Angkola language in order to get the local people access to the message
of the Holy Qur’an, the translators do not introduce the cultural items of the Angkola
language in the translation product. In attempting to produce the easy understanding
translation for the target readers (Bataknese Angkola people) the translators used a lot of
amplification techniques and literal technique to optimally express the message of the Holy
Qur’an without adding cultural items of Angkola language. The translators are being
“invisible” without showing the foreign identity of the source text. Instead, the translators
attempt to keep the cultural atmosphere of the source language (Arabic) to fully transferred
the message of the Holy Qur’an and prevent the translation shift. 3) The translation of surah
Al-Waqi’ah in Angkola language has good quality in the aspect of accuracy, acceptability,
and readability. Overall, it can be concluded that the translation of the Holy Qur’an
especially surah Al-Waqi’ah is accurate, acceptable, and readable for the target readers
(Angkola people) to read and understand because the translators have foreignization ideology
which maintain the originality of the source text without making additional changes to adapt
the translation to the culture of Angkola people.
Key words: Translation Techniques, Ideology, Quality, Al-Waqi’ah, Angkola
Now, we will learn the differences among translation strategy, method, and technique.
We will also learn to use the 18 translation techniques proposed by Molina and Albir
(2002). Please read the examples carefully, so you can understand the use of every
translation technique and you will be able to analyze the translation techniques used by
translators in translating text.
A. Differentiating Translation Strategy, Method, and Technique

Lucia Molina and Amparo Hurtado Albir have written an article that clarifies the notion
of translation technique. The article discusses about the existing definitions and
classifications of translation technique and its confusion. They also distinguish
translation techniques from translation method and strategies, and present a
classification of translation techniques that has been tested in a study of the translation
of cultural elements in Arabic translations of A Hundred Years of Solitude by Garcia
Marquez.
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We may ask what makes translation techniques differ with translation methods and
translation strategy. Let’s see the differences of translation methods, translation
strategy, and translation techniques:
1. Translation strategy
According to Molina and Albir (2002), translation strategy is: “Strategies are related to
the mechanisms used by translators throughout the whole translation process to find a
solution to the problems they find.” They also add “Strategies are the procedures
(conscious or unconscious, verbal or non-verbal) used by the translator to solve
problems that emerge when carrying out the translation process with a particular
objective in mind.”
The term “strategy” is conceptually broader than “procedure”, hence its use here to refer
to a method employed to translate a given element/unit (including a whole text) making
use of one or more procedures selected on the basis of relevant parameters. In general,
strategy can be constructed as a rule with the intrinsic ambiguity which characterizes
this concept, as well as others such as “norm” or “law” (Machali, 2006).
Unlike procedures, strategies are not directly visible as part of the observable
translation output. In principle, they fall into three categories; they can be conscious,
potentially conscious (e.g. instinctive motives of translational behavior may be accessed
through introspection, if required), or totally subconscious (e.g. as would be the case
with undesirable strategies such as the ones resulting in various forms of translation.
According to Newmark. Translation strategies are:

a. Semantic Translation: Semantic translation is the translation from a source text
with an absolute meaning in the parts of bases of syntaxes and semantic source
text meaning. Semantic translation results by having source message considered
exactly what the author wanted to say.
b. Communicative Translation: Communicative translation is the translation that
results the same impression among readers of the source and target language.
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According to Nida and Taber, translation strategies are:
a. Formal Translation: Formal translation is the translation that more concerns in
the grammar and meaning of the source text. Sometimes, it can be called as
denotative translation. It concerns in styles and meaning of the source text.
b. Dynamic Translation: Dynamic translation is the translation that results the same
reaction between the recipient of the source and target language. It tries to reach
the simple contents or meaning or the text, and creates the same reaction for the
reader of the source text and the target text through a suitable translation using
cultural and language understanding of the target language.
2. Translation method
Then, Molina and Albir define translation method as: “Translation method refers to the
way a particular translation process is carried out in terms of the translator's objective,
i.e., a global option that affects the whole text.” They also added: “The translation
method affects the way micro-units of the text are translated: translation techniques. For
example: the aim of a translation method is to produce a foreignising version, then
borrowing will be one of the most frequently used translation techniques.” (Molina dan
Albir, 2002).
Based on Macquarie Dictionary (1982), a method is a way of doing something, especially

in accordance with a definite plan. Based on this definition, two important things can be
drawn; that method is a way of doing something - how to perform a translation and
method with respect to a particular plan is in the implementation of the translation.
Translation method means the translation method used by translators in revealing the
overall meaning of the source language into the target language (Syihabuddin 2005:68).
According to Newmark (1988: 45-47), translation methods can be traced in terms of its
emphasis on the source language and the target language. Newmark lists the following
translation methods. One focuses on the source text while the other one focuses on the
target text.
a. Word for word translation: Word-for-word translation is the preservation of

word order, or individual word translation including cultural words. The source
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language word order is preserved and the words translated singly by their most
common meanings, out of context.
b. Literal translation: Literal translation is the translation which the grammatical
structures are converted into the nearest equivalent of the target language. The
source language grammatical constructions are converted to their nearest target
language equivalents, but the lexical words are again translated singly, out of
context.
c. Faithful translation: Faithful translation is the translation that constraints the
grammatical structures of the target text, but draws on certain contextual factors.
It attempts to produce the precise contextual meaning of the original within the
constraints of the target language grammatical structures.
d. Semantic translation: Semantic translation emphasizes more on naturalness than
in faithful translation, and it translates certain cultural words into neutral
equivalents in the TL. It differs from faithful translation only in as far as it must
take more account of the aesthetic value of the source language text.
e. Adaptation: Adaptation is the freest form of translation, and it is more of a target
language/culture based interpretation of the source text. This is sometimes called
document design. It is used mainly for plays (comedies) and poetry; the themes,
characters, plots are usually preserved. The source language culture is converted
to the target language culture and the text is rewritten.
f. Free translation: Free translation focuses on the content of the target text rather
than the form, which means that the same content is expressed in the target text
but with very different grammatical structures. It produces the target language
text without the style, form, or content of the original.
g. Idiomatic translation: Idiomatic translation uses idioms and colloquialisms that
are not present in the source text. It reproduces the message of the original, but
tends to distort nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms
where these do not exist in the original.
h. Communicative translation: It aims at reproducing the exact message of the
source text content and context, but it emphasizes on naturalness and
acceptability/comprehensiveness of reader from the target language. It attempts
to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both
content and language as readily acceptable and comprehensible to the
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readership.
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3. Translation techniques
Then, translation technique according to Molina and Albir: “Techniques describe the
result obtained and can be used to classify different types of translation solutions.”
Therefore, strategies and techniques occupy different places in problem solving:
strategies are part of the process, techniques affect the result.” (Molina dan Albir, 2002)
“A technique is the result of a choice made by a translator, its validity will depend on
various questions related to the context, the purpose of the translation, audience
expectations, etc.” (Molina dan Albir, 2002).
Molina and Albir (2002) define translation technique as procedures to analyze and
classify how translation equivalence works. They have basic characteristics for
translation techniques:
1) They affect the result of the translation

2) They are classified by comparison with the original
3) They affect micro-units of text
4) They are by nature discursive and contextual
5) They are functional
However, in their article, Molina and Albir (2002) define translation method as the way
a particular translation process is carried out in terms of the translator’s objective
(global option that affects the whole text). Thus, the translator should distinguish the
method chosen (literal or adaptation) that affects the whole text, and the techniques
chosen (literal or adaptation) that affect the micro units of the text.
If the aim of translation method is to produce a foreignizing version, then borrowing will
be one of the most frequently technique used. However, the translator may encounter
problems in the translation process because there may be a gap in the translator’s skills.
Therefore, translation strategies are used by the translator to solve those problems.
Strategies and techniques occupy different places in problem solving; strategies are part
of the process, but techniques affect the results.
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B. Translation Techniques (Molina and Albir, 2002)
After exploring the differences among translation strategies, translation methods, and
translation techniques, now we will learn to use the 18 translation techniques proposed
by Molina and Albir (2002):
1. Adaptation
This technique replaces the source text cultural element with the target text cultural
element. In other words, it is used to find the cultural equivalency of the source language
in the target language. For example;
Dear Sir, Dengan hormat,
Sincerely yours, Hormat saya,
As white as snow Seputih kapas
I answered with the term I’d always Aku menjawab dengan istilah yang
wanted to employ. “Son of bitch” sejak dulu sudah hendak kugunakan
“Si Brengsek”
In the table above, it can be seen that the translator chooses another expression for
Indonesian’s culture in opening their letters. In English, people will say “Dear Sir,” in the
opening part of their letters, but Indonesian people usually will say “Dengan hormat,” in
the opening of their letters. It also happens to “Sincerely yours,” as an expression to
close your letter in English, but Indonesian people usually close their letter by saying
“Hormat saya”. Next, “as white as snow” means “so pure and white as the color of snow”.
Because there is no snow in Indonesia, the translator decides to replace “Snow” with
“kapas” which can be found in Indonesia and is white in color. The last, “Son of Bitch” is
an impolite expression referring to someone that was born from prostitution. The
translator chooses less impolite expression to express this word with “Si brengsek”
which means as someone who is so bad.
2. Amplification
This technique introduces details that are not formulated in the source text. It gives
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more detail information about the source text. To translate a terminology, translators
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need to add notes to represent the contextual meaning of the word to get the readers’
understanding of the target text. The notes can be put as footnotes or endnotes. For
example;
Bulan depan adalah bulan Ramadhan. Next month is Ramadhan (The Muslim
month of fasting)
Pecal adalah makanan favorit saya. Pecal ( a kind of salad with peanut sauce) is
my favorite food.
Kemarin Bulang pergi ke Berastagi. Yesterday Bulang1 went to Berastagi.

1 A Karonese honorific to call grandparent.
It can be seen that the translator gives additional information in endnote to explain the
word “Ramadhan” in the target text. It also happens to the word Pecal. The translator
wants to introduce the word “Pecal” to the target readers, but he also wants the target
reader understands about what pecal is. Then, he gives additional information for pecal
in endnote. In the last example, the translator gives additional information for Bulang in
a footnote to make the target readers understand that Bulang is a honorific to call your
grandparent in Karonese culture.
3. Borrowing
This technique takes a word straight from another language. It can be pure borrowing or
naturalized borrowing. For example;
Lobby Lobby
Sandals Sandals
Orangutan Orangutan
Television Televisi (naturalized borrowing)
In the table above, it can be seen that the translator translates “lobby” as “lobby”. He
borrows the word “lobby” from the source text directly. It also happens to the words
“sandals” and “orangutan”. However, the translator translates “television” from English
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as “Televisi” in Indonesia. The translator uses naturalized borrowing technique to

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translate the word “television” into “televisi” because he makes something different to
the spelling (ion) as (isi).
4. Calque
This technique is a literal translation of a foreign phrase lexically or structurally. It is

used for translating morpheme of a language into another equivalent morpheme in
another language. For example;
Weekend Akhir pekan
Secretariat general Sekretaris jendral
Directorate general Direktorat jendral
Vice president Wakil presiden
In the table above, it can be seen that the translator translates “Weekend” as “akhir
pekan” in Indonesia which is “akhir” means “end” and “pekan” means “week”, so
“weekend” is “akhir pekan”. It also happens to the other examples.
5. Compensation
This technique introduces the source text stylistic effect in another place in the target
text because it can not be reflected in the same place as in the source text. For example;
Never did she visit her aunt Wanita itu benar-benar tega tidak
menemui bibinya.
A pair of scissors Sebuah gunting
I was looking for you, Your Highness Saya mencari Anda, Yang Mulia.
In the table above, it can be seen that the translator translates “a pair of scissors” as
“sebuah gunting” because the stylistic effect of “a pair of “ in English cannot be reflected
in the same place as in Indonesia (sepasang gunting). Indonesian do not refer “a pair of
scissors” as “sepasang” or something comes in pairs, but “sebuah” or “a”. Then, for the
expression “your highness” is referring to someone on the throne in English. Indonesian
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people refers someone who is on the throne and has a kingdom as “Yang mulia”.
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6. Description
This technique replaces a terminology with a description of its form or function. For
example;
Gadis itu menari dengan luwesnya. The girl is dancing with great fluidity
and grace.
Hari ini Ibuku masak Nasi Tumpeng. Today my mom is cooking rice with
turmeric designed in the shape of
cone.
Yuk, beli Rujak. Let’s buy some fruit salad with spicy
sauce.
In the table above, it can be seen that the translator replaces the word “luwesnya” as
“with great fluidity and grace” in the target text. The translator describes the expression
“Nasi Tumpeng” with “rice with turmeric designed in the shape of cone”. Then, the
translator describes “rujak” in English as “fruit salad with spicy sauce”. Indifferent with
the amplification technique, this description technique doesn’t mention the specific
terminology in the target text as what amplification technique does.
7. Discursive creation
This technique establishes a temporary equivalent that is totally unpredictable out of

context. It is often used for translating the titles of movies. For examples;
A: Kamu lagi nonton film apa? A: What are you watching now?
B: Si Malinkundang. B: The Rebellious Son.
A: Kamu suka film kartun apa? A: What’s your favorite cartoon?

B: Aku suka banget film Kenshin Si B: I love Samurai X.
Pengelana
A: Have you watched the live action of A: Kamu udah nonton film drama Putri
Sleeping Beauty? Tidur?
B: What? It turns out to be a live action? B: Apa? Film kartun Putri Tidur udah
I will watch it soon. jadi drama? Aku bakalan nonton.
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Si Malinkundang is translated as “The rebellious son” which is totally unpredictable out
of context because Si Malinkundang is a name of person. If we translate it literally, then
it will be “The Malinkundang” which probably will not be able to catch the target
readers’ attention as the target readers don’t know this person (Malinkundang) as
Indonesian people know. “Kenshin si pengelana” is a famous Japanese cartoon (Rurouni
Kenshin in Japanese), and it is translated into English as “Samurai X” which has totally
different meaning with the source text. If we translate the source text “Kenshin si
Pengelana” into English literally, then it will be “Kenshin the Explorer”, and it might not
be able to catch the target readers’ attention by the name “Kenshin” only. By saying
“Samurai X”, the target readers will know that this film is about a Samurai.
8. Established equivalent
This technique uses a terminology or expression recognized by dictionaries or language

in use as an equivalent in the target language. It is used by giving common expression
used everyday in the target text that is able to express the expression in the source text.
For example;
They are as like as two peas Mereka bagaikan pinang dibelah

dua
Pelajarann ini seujung kuku buatku. This lesson is as easy as pie for me.
In the table above, it can be seen that the translator finds an equivalent for the
expression “seujung kuku” in Indonesia as “as easy as pie” in English.
9. Generalization
This technique uses a more general terminology. For example;
Bus Public transportation
Becak Vehicle
Penthouse Tempat tinggal

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Helikopter Air transportation

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In the table above, it can be seen that the general word for “bus” is “public
transportation” (transportasi umum), the general word for “becak” is “vehicle”
(kendaraan).
10.Linguistic amplification
This technique adds linguistic elements, and it is often used for interpreting and
dubbing. For example; “No way” is translated as “De ninguna de las maneras”.
11.Linguistic compression
This technique synthesizes linguistic elements in the target text, and it is often used in
interpreting or subtitling.
12.Literal translation
This technique translates an expression word for word. For example;
It’s raining cats and dogs Ini hujan kucing dan anjing
I have a car Aku punya sebuah mobil
13.Modulation
This technique changes the point of view of the source text lexically or structurally. It is
a way used by translators to see the message of the source language from different
angle. This strategy is used when a literal translation produces unnatural translation. If
transposition functions to shift the language structure, then modulation functions to
shift the language meaning in order to make the message of the source text can be
understood well by the target readers. The shift in modulation here means to change the
point of view the text has. For example;
I broke my leg Kakiku patah
You are going to have a child Anda akan menjadi seorang bapak.
I cut my finger Jariku tersayat

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In the text above, the translator concerns about the object “leg”, not the subject “I” (This
example is also called as transposition because the active structure is changed into
passive).
Newmark (1988) suggested two kinds of modulation; modulation made as compulsory

and free modulation. A modulation made as compulsory is used when a translator can
not find the equivalent word or sentence in the target language, for example:
a. An active structure of source text shifts into passive in the target language and vise
versa. For example:
The problem is hard to solve Masalah itu sukar dipecahkan
Laporan itu akan saya serahkan besok I will submit the report tomorrow
pagi morning.
b. The subject structure of the source language is combined in the target language. For
example:
Buku tersebut telah disahkan The use of the book has been
penggunaanya oleh Dikti approved by Dikti.
Gerakan Non-Block dituntut The role of Non-Align Movement

peranannya. has been pursued.
Free modulation is used because of non-linguistics problems, for example:

a. Implicit information of the source language shifts into explicit information in the
target text. For example:
Environmental degradation Penurunan mutu lingkungan
b. Cause-effect prepositional phrase of the source language shifts into cause-effect

clause in the target language.
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For example:
We all suffer from the consequences of Kita semua menderita karena

environmental degradation (adanya) penurunan mutu
lingkungan
14.Particularization
This technique uses more precise or concrete term. This technique is opposite for
generalization. For example;
Public transportation Bus
Vehicle Becak
Tempat tinggal Penthouse
Air transportation Helikopter
15.Reduction
This technique suppresses the source text information in the target text. This technique
is the opposite for amplification. Reduction is also called as omission or deletion. It is
used by omitting words of the source text in the target text. In other words, these parts
are not translated into the target language. It is made because the words are not very
important and difficult to translate. It reduces the component of the source language, for
example;
Automobile Mobil
“Sama dengan raden ayu ibunya,” “Just like her mother,” she whispered.
katanya lirih.
Tomorrow is The Muslim month of Besok Ramadhan
fasting
Just and equitable treatment Hubungan yang adil
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It can be seen that the word “auto” is reduced in the target text. The word “raden ayu” is
also omitted in the target text. The word “The Muslim month of fasting” is shortened as
“Ramadhan” , and the words “just and equitable” are shortened as “adil”.
16.Substitution
This technique changes the linguistic elements for paralinguistic elements (intonation or
gestures). For example; an act of putting your hand on your heart is translated as “thank
you”.
17.Transposition
This technique changes the grammatical category. For example;
Musical instruments can be divided into Alat music bisa dibagi menjadi dua
two basic groups. kelompok dasar.
Musical instrument = alat music
Two basic groups = dua kelompok
dasar
I find it more difficult to translate a poem Bagi saya menerjemahkan puisi lebih
than an article. sulit daripada menerjemahkan
artikel.
It’s a great mistake to keep silent about Berdiam diri tentang masalah itu
the matter. merupakan kesalahan besar.
Suyawinata and Harianto (2003) mention that transposition is used by shifting the
grammatical structure of source language in the target language. They divide
transposition technique into four kinds:
1. Transposition as an obligatory because of grammatical structure. For example;

a. Plural noun shifts into singular noun
Source text Target text
A pair of trousers Sebuah celana
A pair of glasses Sebuah kacamata
A pair of scissors Sebah gunting

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b. The repetition of adjective in Indonesia shifts into the repetition of nouns in
English.
Gedung di Medan bagus-bagus. The buildings in Medan are built

beautifully.
c. Adjective+noun shifts into noun+adjective

Beatiful woman Wanita cantik
2. There is no equivalent of grammatical structure in the target language.

a. An object can not be put in the beginning of a sentence in English as Indonesia
does, then to translate this kind of sentence, a subject will be put in the
beginning of the sentence. For example:
Buku itu harus kita bawa We must bring the book
b. A verb in the beginning of a sentence is not common in English except to make

an imperative sentence, then the structure shifts into an assertive sentence. For
example:
Berbeda penjelasannya The explanation differs
telah disahkan penggunaannya Its usage has been approved
3. Transposition used because of the naturalization of terms. It happens when a text

can be translated literally but the translation product sounds unnatural. For
example:
a. Noun in the source language shifts into verb in the target language, for example:
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…to train intellectual men for the …untuk melatih para intelektual
pursuits of an intellectual life untuk mengejar kehidupan
intelektual
If the phrase above translates literally to be “melatih para intelektual untuk pengejaran
(the pursuits) kehidupan intelektual”, then it will sound unnatural in Indonesia.
b. Adjective+Noun of the source language shifts into Noun+Noun in the target

language. For example:
Engineering technique Teknik (pe)rekayasa(an)
Medical student Mahasiswa kedokteran
c. Participial clause of the source language shifts into full sentence in the target
text. For example:
The approval signed by the doctor Persetujuan yang ditandatangani

is valid oleh…
The cells carrying the germ are Sel-sel yang

dangerous membawa/mengandung…
d. Noun+Adjective of the source language shifts into Noun+Clause in the target text.
For example:
Lending bank Bank yang memberikan pinjaman
Thinking person Orang yang berpikir
4. Transposition used to set the language gaps as affixes; -lah, or –pun, word shifts
into clause, etc. For example:
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Perjanjian inilah yang diacu It is this agreement which is

referred to (not anything else)
adept sangat terampil
18.Variation
This technique changes the linguistic or paralinguistic elements that affect the
linguistic variation (textual tone, style, social dialect, geographical dialect).
C. Analyzing Translation Techniques
After discussing the translation techniques proposed by Molina and Albir, we have
understood more to know about what translation techniques are appropriate to
translate different kinds of text. In this chapter, we will learn and practice to analyze the
most dominant translation techniques used by the translators. For examples;
Translation techniques used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah
Sejarah Mekah is a book discussed about the history of makkah before and now. This
book is available in Indonesia and English version. The words, phrases, and sentences
written in these books were analyzed to get the objectives of this research. The aims of
this study is to find the examples of translation techniques used in the English version of
Sejarah Mekah, and to find the most dominant translation technique used in the English
version of Sejarah Mekah. 46 data were selected based on purposive sampling
technique. The words, phrases, and sentences written on the English version of Sejarah
Mekah were analyzed by comparing the Indonesia and the English version to find the
examples of translation techniques and the most dominant translation technique used.
Table 1: Borrowing technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah.

Data Source Text Target Text
It is difficult for the people in this
sulit bagi orang-orang yang shalat
8 large Masjid haraam to see the
untuk melihat langsung Ka’bah
Ka’bah and to face it directly
Masjidil Haram pada Masa Expansion of the Masjid Haraam
Pemerintahan Saudi During the Saudi Rule
Raja Abdul Aziz dari Keluarga Sa’ud In 1344 A.H. (1925) King Abdul
12 pada tahun 1344 H/1925 M Azeez issued the instruction that
40
mengeluarkan surat keputusan yang whatever repairs and renovations

memerintahkan untuk memperbaiki are needed for the Masjid Haraam
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bagian-bagian Masjidil Haram yang should be undertaken and

sekiranya perlu direnovasi, membuat completed. Mas’aa was then
lantai pada tempat sa’i sekaligus floored, a new roof was erected
memperbarui atapnya, dan and the buildings on the Mataaf
memperluas tempat thawaf dengan were demolished to make more
cara menghilangkan penghalang- room.
penghalang yang ada pada
permukaannya.
Besides all of this, the king also
Semasa hidupnya, beliau terus bekerja
gave due consideration to many
keras untuk merenovasi keseluruhan
others aspects of the building.
bagian-bagian Masjidil Haram, sebab
Nevertheless, no significant
sejak tahun 306 H/918 belum ada
13 extentions were done since 302
upaya perluasan yang memadai,
A.H. (918 A.D) and the Masjid
sehingga saat itu Masjidil Haram hanya
Haraam could accommodate a
cukup digunakan shalat untuk 50 ribu
maximum of only fifty thousand
orang saja.
worshippers.
After this expansion, Kaadimul
Pada masa Raja Fahd, beliau
Haramain King Fahad bin Abdul
memerintahkan untuk membangun
Azeez issued a royal decree to have
dan memperbaiki lantai tempat shalat,
the roof of the Masjid Haraam
yaitu dengan memberinya ubin
prepared to be used for salaah.
18 marmer yang dingin, melengkapinya
Facilities were then made for
dengan sistem pengeras suara dan
lighting, sound and water, together
pencahayaan, sistem distribusi air
with the installation of escalators
minum, serta tangga elekrtonik di
for access and the laying of a cool
setiap sisi-sisi Masjid.
stone floor.
Halaman sekitar mesjid
Berdasarkan petunjuk dari Raja Fahd The Courtyard of the Masjid
ibn Abdul Aziz – Semoga Allah Haraam
28 melindunginya--, maka halaman yang According to the royal decree, a
mengelilingi Masjidil Haram courtyard was established on all
disiapkan untuk dapat menampung four sides of the Masjid Haraam.
jemaah shalat
Doors of the Masjid Haraam
Pintu-pintu Masjidil Haram
The Quraish used to live in the
Ketika kaum Quraish masih
vicinity of the Ka’bah around the
menempati rumah-rumah di sekitar
Mataaf. There were alleyways
31 tempat thawaf dekat ka’bah, mereka
around their houses for people to
sengaja membiarkan gang-gang antar
pass through and no wall existed
rumah untuk keluar masuk ke tempat
between their houses and the
thawaf dan Ka’bah.
Ka’bah.
Namun, ketika Umar ibn al-Khattab Being the first to expand the
memperluas Masjidil Haram, beliau Masjid Haraam, Hadhrat Umar
membangun dinding atau tembok di also had walls erected around the
sekeliling Masjid dan Ka’bah and made doors in these
membuatkannya pintu-pintu yang walls.
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kemudian ditambah dan diperbanyak In the centuries that followed, the
hingga sekarang ini, setelah perluasan number of doors increased as the
41
yang dilakukan oleh Raja Fahd Masjid haraam was expanded.

jumlahnya mencapai 95 buah pintu, Eventually after the second Saudi
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termasuk yang ada di terowongan doors to the basement, to the first

bahwah tanah, lantai dasar, lantai atas, floor, those leading to the
tangga, penyebrangan di tempat sa’I, escalators and those leading to the
dan jembatan masuk di arah flyover walkways.
Sya’miyyah.
The tunnel also boasts parking
Dilengkapi dengan 4 buah terminal
bays where people can be dropped
pemberhentian guna memudahkan
off.
mengangkut dan menurunkan jemaah
45 From here, they can use the
dari dan ke halaman Masjid yang
escalators leading to the courtyard
melewati tangga-tangga biasa maupun
of the Haram so that they can
elekronik
perform salaah in the Masjid.
Table 2: Literal technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah

Data Source Text Target
5 Sehingga menuntut Khalid ibn Abdullah al The governor of Makkah Khaalid
Qusary, yaitu Gubernur Mekah (wafat 120 bin Abdullah (passed away 120
H) untuk menata dan menertibkan shaff A.H.) with the approval of the
(barisan) orang-orang shalat. Perbuatannya Ulema and Taabi’een of the time
ini mendapat dukungan dari ulama-ulama had circular rows made all around
besar dari ta’bi’in dan para ulama shalaf the Ka’bah.
yang shalih.
7 Perlu diingat pula bahwa bagi orang yang It should be borne in mind that
shalat di dalamnya, harus menghadap the person performing salaah
tepat kea rah Ka’bah close to the Ka’bah must face the
Ka’bah directly
12 Masjidil Haram pada Masa Pemerintahan Expansion of the Masjid Haraam
Saudi During the Saudi Rule
Raja Abdul Aziz dari Keluarga Sa’ud pada In 1344 A.H. (1925) King Abdul
tahun 1344 H/1925 M mengeluarkan surat Azeez issued the instruction that
keputusan yang memerintahkan untuk whatever repairs and renovations
memperbaiki bagian-bagian Masjidil Haram are needed for the Masjid Haraam
yang sekiranya perlu direnovasi, membuat should be undertaken and
lantai pada tempat sa’i sekaligus completed. Mas’aa was then
memperbarui atapnya, dan memperluas floored, a new roof was erected
tempat thawaf dengan cara menghilangkan and the buildings on the Mataaf
penghalang-penghalang yang ada pada were demolished to make more
permukaannya. room.
16 Perluasan Saudi Pertama The First Saudi Expansion
maka dimulailah pengerjaannya pada tahun The construction work began
1375 H/1955 M yaitu pada masa during the reign of King Abdul
pemerintahan almarhum Raja Sa’ud ibn Azeez’s son King Saud in the year
Abdul Aziz. 1375 A.H. (1953).
Table 3: Transposition technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah.

8 Perluasan pada Masa Umar ibn al- The Expansion done by Hadhrat Umar
42
Khattab During the periods of both

Tidak terdapat dinding atau tembok Rasulullah saw and Hadhrat Abu
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pada masa Nabi saw. maupun pada Bakr, there were no walls around the
masa Abu Bakar r.a. Masjid Haram, only houses
9 Sehingga mengharuskan pemerintah The government has calculated the
Kerajaan Saudi di bawah komando precise direction and engraved lines on
Raja Fahd untuk memberi garis the ground facing the Ka’bah. This line
melingkar di lantai pada sekeliling dan have then been coloured yellow to
sekitar Ka’bah guna memudahkan make it easy for people to face the
orang-orang yang shalat membuat correct direction.
shaff menghadap Ka’bah.
14 Namun, setelah pesatnya However, the number of people
perkembangan transportasi baik laut, performing Hajj and Umrah
udara, maupun darat, juga faktor increased dramatically because
keamanan di Saudi yang semakin transport had become much easier and
terjamin, maka bertambahlah much more available. People could now
jumlah jemaah haji dari tahun ke travel by ship, by air, by bus, by car and
tahun. by using various other modern means
of transport.
15 Oleh karenanya, almarhum Raja Abdul King Abdul Azeez consequently
Aziz pada tahun 1368 H/1948 M expressed the intention to extend both
mengumumkan kemauan kerasnya the Masjid Haraam and the Masjidun
untuk memperluas Masjidil Haram dan Nabawi in 1368 A.H. (1948).
Masjid Nabawi. Maka dimulailah Preparations were already underway
penelitian tentang berbagai hal yang when the king passed away in 1373
dibutuhkan dalam rangka perluasan A. H. (1953)
Masjid, yang berlangsung hingga
wafatya pada 1373 H/1953 M.
18 Pada masa Raja Fahd, beliau After this expansion, Kaadimul
memerintahkan untuk membangun Haramain King Fahad bin Abdul Azeez
dan memperbaiki lantai tempat shalat, issued a royal decree to have the roof
yaitu dengan memberinya ubin of the Masjid Haraam prepared to be
marmer yang dingin, melengkapinya used for salaah. Facilities were then
dengan sistem pengeras suara dan made for lighting, sound and water,
pencahayaan, sistem distribusi air together with the installation of
minum, serta tangga elekrtonik di escalators for access and the laying of a
setiap sisi-sisi Masjid. cool stone floor.
20 Selain itu, di Masjidil Haram seolah- This allowed a total area of 42.000 m²
olah terdapat lantai baru yang luasnya to become usable for salaah,
42.000 m² yang dapat menampung accommodating an extra 105000
kelebihan jemaah sekitar 105 ribu, worshippers.
terutama pada waktu-waktu puncak.
21 Raja Fahd ibn Abdul Aziz dari Keluarga In Shafar 1409 A.H. (1988) Fahad
Sa’ud secara simbolik telah meletakkan Abdul Azeez laid the foundation stone
batu pertama untuk perluasan dan for Saudi expansion of the Masjid
pembangunan Masjidil Haram yaitu Haraam. This expansion was then
pada bulan Shafar 1409 H/1988 M, completed in Dhulqa’dah 1413 A.H.
dan selesai secara resmi pada bulan (1993).
DzulQa’dah 1413 H/1993 M.
22 Perluasan ini meliputi bangunan As part of this project, a building was
antara Babul Umrah (Pintu Umrah) constructed in the area between the
43
dan Babul Malik Abdul Aziz (Pintu Raja Umrah Door and Abdul Azeez Door.
Abdul Aziz), dengan luas permukaan The building occupies and area of
Page
dasar 19.000 m² yang mencakup 19000 m² and includes four floors for
ruang bawah tanah, lantai dasar, lantai salaah. These are the basement, the
atas dan lantai atap. ground floor, the first floor and the
roof.
25 Selain itu, dibangun pula 3 kubah di This building has three domes, each
atas lantai atap dengan luas 15 x 15 m dome covering an area of 225 m²
= 225 m² dengan ketinggian sekitar 13 (15m²x15m²) and rising 13m high.
m, guna melindungi halaman lantai
dasar dan lantai satu.
29 Oleh karena itu, lantainya dibuat dari Cool white marble tiles have been
marmer dingin bercorak bundar dan laid on them an lines have also been
bergaris untuk shaff shalat, serta engraved to mark the rows. Facilities
dilengkapi dengan sistem pencahayaan for water and lighting have been seen
yang cukup. to very remarkable, with wudlu and
toiled facilities on each side.
31 Pintu-pintu Masjidil Haram Doors of the Masjid Haraam
Ketika kaum Quraish masih The Quraish used to live in the
menempati rumah-rumah di sekitar vicinity of the Ka’bah around the
tempat thawaf dekat ka’bah, mereka Mataaf. There were alleyways
sengaja membiarkan gang-gang around their houses for people to
antar rumah untuk keluar masuk ke pass through and no wall existed
tempat thawaf dan Ka’bah. between their houses and the
Ka’bah.
One sentence of the source text is
splitting into some sentences in the
target text.
32 Namun, ketika Umar ibn al-Khattab Being the first to expand the Masjid
memperluas Masjidil Haram, beliau Haraam, Hadhrat Umar also had
membangun dinding atau tembok di walls erected around the Ka’bah and
sekeliling Masjid dan membuatkannya made doors in these walls.
pintu-pintu yang kemudian ditambah In the centuries that followed, the
dan diperbanyak hingga sekarang ini, number of doors increased as the
setelah perluasan yang dilakukan oleh Masjid Haraam was expanded.
Raja Fahd jumlahnya mencapai 95 Eventually after the second Saudi doors
buah pintu, termasuk yang ada di to the basement, to the first floor, those
terowongan bahwah tanah, lantai leading to the escalators and those
dasar, lantai atas, tangga, leading to the flyover walkways.
penyebrangan di tempat sa’I, dan
jembatan masuk di arah Sya’miyyah.
34 Akan tetapi, perlu diingatkan juga It should be noted that some doors
bahwa penomoran tersebut belum were just recently added and are
termasuk pintu-pintu yang dibuka therefore not included in the count of
belakangan ini, yaitu pintu masuk pada doors. Amongst these is the door of the
jembatan samping Bab Bani Syaibah flyover walkway near the Banu
(Pintu Bani Syaibah) di tempat sa’I dan Shaybah Door, which is located at the
beberapa pintu yang baru dibuka di Mas’aa close to Marwah.
Marwa.
43 Panjang terowongan tersebut kira- This tunnel runs 1500m in length,
44
kira 15000 m (bagian terowongan beginning in the west from the

yang tertutup – karena di bawah tanah Shubaykah bridge and ending at
Page
– sepanjang 661 m) yaitu yang Mount Abu Qubais in the east.

terbentang dari jembatan Syubaikah The covered area of the tunnel is 661m.
sebelah Barat sampai ke jembatan
Abi Qubais di sebelah Timur.
45 Dilengkapi dengan 4 buah terminal The tunnel also boasts parking bays
pemberhentian guna memudahkan where people can be dropped off.
mengangkut dan menurunkan jemaah From here, they can use the escalators
dari dan ke halaman Masjid yang leading to the courtyard of the Haram
melewati tangga-tangga biasa maupun so that they can perform salaah in the
elekronik. Masjid.
46 Terowongan ini dilengkapi pula The tunnel is well lit and vented and
dengan sistem pencahayaan dan is also fitted with surveillance
pengaturan udara yang memadai, cameras as a safety precaution.
serta kamera pemantau.
Table 4: Modulation technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah.

5 sehingga menuntut Khalid ibn the governor of Makkah Khaalid bin
Abdullah al Qusary, yaitu Abdullah (passed away 120 A.H.)
Gubernur Mekah (wafat 120 H) with the approval of the Ulema and
untuk menata dan menertibkan Taabi’een of the time had circular
shaff (barisan) orang-orang shalat. rows made all around the Ka’bah.
Perbuatannya ini mendapat
dukungan dari ulama-ulama besar
dari ta’bi’in dan para ulama shalaf
yang shalih.
Modulation: The source text consists
of two separated sentences, and it
was combined to be a sentence in the
target text.
8 sulit bagi orang-orang yang shalat It is difficult for the people in this
untuk melihat langsung Ka’bah large Masjid Haraam to see the
Ka’bah and to face it directly
9 Sehingga mengharuskan The government has calculated the
pemerintah Kerajaan Saudi di precise direction and engraved lines
bawah komando Raja Fahd untuk on the ground facing the Ka’bah. This
memberi garis melingkar di lantai line have then been coloured yellow to
pada sekeliling dan sekitar Ka’bah make it easy for people to face the
guna memudahkan orang-orang yang correct direction.
shalat membuat shaff menghadap
Ka’bah.
10 Perluasan pada Masa Umar ibn al- The Expansion done by Hadhrat Umar
Khattab During the periods of both Rasulullah
Tidak terdapat dinding atau tembok saw and Hadhrat Abu Bakr, there were
pada masa Nabi saw. maupun pada no walls around the Masjid Haram,
masa Abu Bakar r.a. only houses.
14 Namun, setelah pesatnya However, the number of people
perkembangan transportasi baik performing Hajj and Umrah increased
45
laut, udara, maupun darat, juga dramatically because transport had

faktor keamanan di Saudi yang become much easier and much
Page
semakin terjamin, maka more available. People could now

bertambahlah jumlah jemaah haji travel by ship, by air, by bus, by car
dari tahun ke tahun. and by using various other modern
means of transport.
16 Perluasan Saudi Pertama The First Saudi Expansion
maka dimulailah pengerjaannya The construction work began during
pada tahun 1375 H/1955 M yaitu the reign of King Abdul Azeez’s son
pada masa pemerintahan almarhum King Saud in the year 1375 A.H.
Raja Sa’ud ibn Abdul Aziz. (1953).
22 Perluasan ini meliputi bangunan As part of this project, a building was

antara Babul Umrah (Pintu constructed in the area between the
Umrah) dan Babul Malik Abdul Umrah Door and Abdul Azeez Door.
Aziz (Pintu Raja Abdul Aziz), The building occupies and area of
dengan luas permukaan dasar 19.000 19000 m² and includes four floors for
m² yang mencakup ruang bawah salaah. These are the basement, the
tanah, lantai dasar, lantai atas dan ground floor, the first floor and the
lantai atap. roof.
23 Sehingga luas keseluruhan tempat The total area of these four levels is
shalat dalam perluasan ini menjadi 76000 m² (4x19000 m²).
(19000 x 4=76.000 m²).
26 Kemudian dibuat pula dua Access to and from the basement as
bangunan untuk tangga elektronik well as the first floors and the roof
untuk naik ke lantai satu dan is facilitated by staircases and
lantai atap. escalators.
27 Jumlah tiang di setiap lantainya Each floor has 530 pillars that have
mencapai 530 buah, dan di bagian air-conditioning units build in to
bawah tiang dilengkapi dengan them.
pendingin udara (AC).
28 Halaman sekitar mesjid The Courtyard of the Masjid Haraam
Berdasarkan petunjuk dari Raja Fahd According to the royal decree, a
ibn Abdul Aziz – Semoga Allah courtyard was established on all
melindunginya--, maka halaman four sides of the Masjid Haraam.
yang mengelilingi Masjidil Haram
disiapkan untuk dapat menampung
jemaah shalat
29 Oleh karena itu, lantainya dibuat Cool white marble tiles have been
dari marmer dingin bercorak laid on them an lines have also been
bundar dan bergaris untuk shaff engraved to mark the rows.
shalat, serta dilengkapi dengan Facilities for water and lighting have
sistem pencahayaan yang cukup. been seen to very remarkable, with
wudlu and toiled facilities on each
side.
Ketika kaum Quraish masih The Quraish used to live in the vicinity
menempati rumah-rumah di sekitar of the Ka’bah around the Mataaf.
tempat thawaf dekat ka’bah, mereka There were alleyways around their
46
sengaja membiarkan gang-gang houses for people to pass through

antar rumah untuk keluar masuk and no wall existed between their
Page
ke tempat thawaf dan Ka’bah. houses and the Ka’bah.

32 Namun, ketika Umar ibn al-Khattab Being the first to expand the Masjid
memperluas Masjidil Haram, beliau Haraam, Hadhrat Umar also had walls
membangun dinding atau tembok di erected around the Ka’bah and made
sekeliling Masjid dan doors in these walls.
membuatkannya pintu-pintu yang In the centuries that followed, the
kemudian ditambah dan diperbanyak number of doors increased as the
hingga sekarang ini, setelah Masjid Haraam was expanded.
perluasan yang dilakukan oleh Eventually after the second Saudi
Raja Fahd jumlahnya mencapai 95 doors to the basement, to the first
buah pintu, termasuk yang ada di floor, those leading to the escalators
terowongan bahwah tanah, lantai and those leading to the flyover
dasar, lantai atas, tangga, walkways.
penyebrangan di tempat sa’I, dan
jembatan masuk di arah Sya’miyyah.
35 Tangga Elektronik Escalators
Pada masa Raja Fahd ibn Abdul Aziz, During the reign of Khaadimul
telah dibangun tangga-tangga Haramain, seven escalators were
elektronik untuk melayani jemaah installed to make access to and from
yang ingin shalat di lantai atas dan the upper stories of the Haraam
lantai atap. easy.
36 Jumlahnya ada 7 buah, dengan Each group of escalators comprises

luas 375 m², yaitu di Babu Ajyad of four escalators and are housed in
dan Shafa, di Marwa, Babul Fath, di a building that covers an area of
al-Syamiyyah, dan di samping 375 m².
bangunan perluasan ke dua.
39 Toilet dan Tempat Wudlu Wudhu and Toilet Facilities
Toiled dan tempat wudlu untuk Buildings have been erected on the
lelaki dan perempuan dibangun courtyards on all sides of the
secara terpisah, masing-masing Haram to cater for wudhu and
terdiri dari dua lantai di bawah toilets facilities, with separate
tanah, yaitu yang berada di halaman amenities for men and women. One
pasar kecil (depan Babul Malik Abdul such building is located in front of the
Aziz), dan yang dekat dengan Abdul Azeez Door. Another such
halaman Marwa yang luas building is located near Marwah,
keseluruhannya mencapai 14.000 which also comprises of two floors. In
m². total the wudhu and toilet facilities
cover an area of 14000 m².
40 Saluran dan Penampungan Air Drainage
Masjidil Haram terletak di tengah Because the Masjid Haraam is situated
lembah, oleh karena itu, aliran air in a valley, it has always been
akibat hujan dan lain sebagainya subject to flooding
sangat membahayakan bangunan
Mesjid.
41 Maka Umar ibn al-Khattab dan para Khaadimul Haramain King Fahad bin
khalifah sesudahnya sepanjang masa Abdul Azeez issued instructions for
selalu berupaya untuk the development of a drainage
47
mengantisipasi bahaya banjir system that would drain water from

akibat aliran air yang akan the entire area.
Page
menggenang di lembah.
Table 5: Amplification technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah.
2 Penataan shaff di sekitar Ka’bah The beginning of the Circular Rows
Around the Ka’bah
11 Dan pada masa Umar r.a. dirasa oleh When a lack of space was felt during
penduduk semakin sempit, maka ia the period of Hadhrat Umar, he
lalu membeli halaman untuk bought the properties in the
memperluas Masjidil Haram. immediate vicinity and included
them within the Masjid Haraam.
17 Pengerjaannya meliputi tahapan- In various phases, the work was
tahapan tertentu dalam perluasan eventually completed after twenty
yang memakan waktu kurang lebih 20 years at a cost of over 62 million Saudi
tahun, menelan biaya sekitar 1 Milyar Riyaals. More than fifty-five thousand
Riyal, dan dikerjakan oleh lebih dari laborers and professionals
55 ribu pekerja (termasuk tenaga participated in the construction,
ahli) yang tergabung dalam which was contracted to the Bin
Perusahaan Ben Laden. Laden construction firm.
22 Perluasan ini meliputi bangunan As part of this project, a building
antara Babul Umrah (Pintu Umrah) was constructed in the area between
dan Babul Malik Abdul Aziz (Pintu the Umrah Door and Abdul Azeez
Raja Abdul Aziz), dengan luas Door. The building occupies and area
permukaan dasar 19.000 m² yang of 19000 m² and includes four floors
mencakup ruang bawah tanah, lantai for salaah. These are the basement,
dasar, lantai atas dan lantai atap. the ground floor, the first floor and
the roof.
37 Setiap tangga mengangkut rata-rata Every escalator can transport fifteen
1500 orang/jam. hundred people in an hour.
Table 6: Reduction technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah.

6 Maka diteruskanlah upaya baik This practice is in vogue to this day
menata shaff tersebut.
11 Dan pada masa Umar r.a. dirasa oleh When a lack of space was felt during
penduduk semakin sempit, maka ia the period of Hadhrat Umar, he
lalu membeli halaman untuk bought the properties in the
memperluas Masjidil Haram. immediate vicinity and included them
within the Masjid Haraam.
23 Sehingga luas keseluruhan tempat The total area of these four levels is
shalat dalam perluasan ini menjadi 76000 m² (4x19000 m²).
(19000 x 4=76.000 m²).
24 Perlu disebutkan di sini bahwa The foundation of this building has
pondasi bangunan tersebut sengaja been made strong enough to
dipersiapkan untuk penambahan accommodate another floor if the
tingkat jika suatu saat dibutuhkan. need ever arises.
25 Selain itu, dibangun pula 3 kubah di This building has three domes, each
atas lantai atap dengan luas 15 x 15 m dome covering an area of 225 m²
= 225 m² dengan ketinggian sekitar (15m²x15m²) and rising 13m high.
48
13 m, guna melindungi halaman

lantai dasar dan lantai satu.
Page
26 Kemudian dibuat pula dua Access to and from the basement as

bangunan untuk tangga elektronik well as the first floors and the roof is
untuk naik ke lantai satu dan lantai facilitated by staircases and
atap. escalators.
29 Oleh karena itu, lantainya dibuat Cool white marble tiles have been laid
dari marmer dingin bercorak on them an lines have also been
bundar dan bergaris untuk shaff engraved to mark the rows. Facilities
shalat, serta dilengkapi dengan sistem for water and lighting have been seen
pencahayaan yang cukup to very remarkable, with wudlu and
toiled facilities on each side.
30 Berikut keterangan luas dan daya Additional information about the
tampung tersebut. courtyards:
Ketika kaum Quraish masih The Quraish used to live in the
menempati rumah-rumah di sekitar vicinity of the Ka’bah around the
tempat thawaf dekat ka’bah, mereka Mataaf. There were alley ways
sengaja membiarkan gang-gang antar around their houses for people to
rumah untuk keluar masuk ke tempat pass through and no wall existed
thawaf dan Ka’bah. between their houses and the Ka’bah.
33 Penomorannya dimulai dari Babul The numbering of doors starts with
Malik Abdul Aziz (Pintu Raja Abdul the King Abdul Azeez Door and ends
Aziz) yaitu nomor 1 dan seterusnya with door number 95, which was the
hingga berakhir di pintu nomor 95 last put after the second Saudi
pada bagungan perluasan Raja Fahd Expansion
yaitu di Sullam Malik Abdul Aziz
(tangga Raja Abdul Aziz).
37 Setiap tangga mengangkut rata-rata Every escalator can transport fifteen
1500 orang/jam. hundred people in an hour.
39 Toilet dan Tempat Wudlu Wudhu and Toilet Facilities
Toiled dan tempat wudlu untuk lelaki Building have been erected on the
dan perempuan dibangun secara courtyards on all sides of the Haram
terpisah, masing-masing terdiri to cater for wudhu and toilets
dari dua lantai di bawah tanah, facilities, with separate amenities for
yaitu yang berada di halaman pasar men and women. One such building is
kecil (depan Babul Malik Abdul Aziz), located in front of the Abdul Azeez
dan yang dekat dengan halaman Door. Another such building is located
Marwa yang luas keseluruhannya near Marwah, which also comprises
mencapai 14.000 m². of two floors. In total the wudhu and
toilet facilities cover an area of 14000
m².
40 Saluran dan Penampungan Air Drainage
Masjidil Haram terletak di tengah Because the Masjid Haraam is
lembah, oleh karena itu, aliran air situated in a valley, it has always been
akibat hujan dan lain sebagainya subject to flooding
sangat membahayakan bangunan
Mesjid.
41 Maka Umar ibn al-Khattab dan para Khaadimul Haramain King Fahad bin
khalifah sesudahnya sepanjang Abdul Azeez issued instructions for
masa selalu berupaya untuk the development of a drainage system
49
mengantisipasi bahaya banjir akibat that would drain water from the
aliran air yang akan menggenang di entire area. Consequently, four meter
Page
lembah. high drains were dug underground to

channel the water away.
43 Panjang terowongan tersebut kira- This tunnel runs 1500m in length,
kira 15000 m (bagian terowongan beginning in the west from the
yang tertutup – karena di bawah Shubaykah bridge and ending at
tanah – sepanjang 661 m) yaitu yang Mount Abu Qubais in the east.
terbentang dari jembatan Syubaikah The covered area of the tunnel is
sebelah Barat sampai ke jembatan Abi 661m.
Qubais di sebelah Timur.
44 Jalan dalam terowongan terbagi The tunnels accommodates two
untuk dua arah, yaitu pertama arah roads, one for people coming from the
masuk dari Jeddah dan Barat kota west of Makkah and the other for
Mekah, dan kedua, arah masuk dari people coming from the east of
al-Masyair atau Timur kota Mekah. Makkah from places such as Mina,
Muzdalifah and Arafaat.
45 Dilengkapi dengan 4 buah terminal The tunnel also boasts parking bays
pemberhentian guna memudahkan where people can be dropped off.
mengangkut dan menurunkan From here, they can use the
jemaah dari dan ke halaman Masjid escalators leading to the courtyard of
yang melewati tangga-tangga biasa the Haram so that they can perform
maupun elekronik. salaah in the Masjid.
Table 7: The Frequency of translation techniques used in the English version of

Sejarah Mekah.
Translation Data
Techniques
Borrowing 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 18, 28, 31, 32, 39, 45, 46
15 data used borrowing technique
Literal 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 12, 15, 16, 39
9 data used literal technique
Established 2, 27, 29, 32
equivalence 4 data used established equivalence technique
Generalization 7, 28, 31
3 data used generalization technique
Particularizati 1, 28, 30
on 3 data used particularization technique
Transposition 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 25, 29,
31,32,34, 35, 38, 43, 45, 46
26 data used transposition technique
Modulation 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 26, 27,
28, 29, 31, 32, 34, 35, 36, 39, 40, 41, 42
30 data used modulation technique
Addition 2, 11, 12, 15, 17, 18, 22, 33, 37, 39, 44.
11 data used addition technique
Reduction 5, 6,9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 31,
33, 36, 37, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45,
29 data used reduction technique
50
Page
There are 46 data used for this study. The data are classified based on the words,
phrases, and sentences in the English version of Sejarah Mekah entitled Masjid haraam.
After analyzing the data, it was found that the most dominant translation technique used
in the English version of Sejarah Mekah is Modulation. In the table above, it can be seen
that the most dominant translation technique used is modulation. The frequency of
translation technique used in the English version of Sejarah Mekah can be ordered as;
Modulation technique was applied in 30 data, Reduction technique was applied in 29
data, Transposition technique was applied in 26 data, Borrowing technique was applied
in 15 data, Addition technique was applied in 11 data, Literal technique was applied in 9
data, Established equivalent technique was applied in 4 data, Generalization technique
was applied in 3 data, and Particularization technique was also applied in 3 data.
Therefore, it can be concluded that the most dominant translation technique used in the
English version of Sejarah Mekah is modulation technique.
51
Page
Summary
1. According to Molina and Albir (2002), translation strategy is: “Strategies are
related to the mechanisms used by translators throughout the whole translation
process to find a solution to the problems they find.” According to Newmark.
Translation strategies are: Semantic Translation and Communicative Translation.
According to Nida and Taber, translation strategies are: Formal Translation and
Dynamic Translation.
2. Molina and Albir define translation method as: “Translation method refers to the
way a particular translation process is carried out in terms of the translator's
objective, i.e., a global option that affects the whole text.” According to Newmark
(1988) translation methods are: Word for word translation, Literal translation,
Faithful translation, Semantic translation, Adaptation, Free translation, Idiomatic
translation, and Communicative translation.
3. Molina and Albir (2002) define translation technique as procedures to analyze
and classify how translation equivalence works. They have basic characteristics
for translation techniques:
1) They affect the result of the translation
2) They are classified by comparison with the original
3) They affect micro-units of text
4) They are by nature discursive and contextual
5) They are functional
However, in their article, Molina and Albir (2002) define translation method as the way
a particular translation process is carried out in terms of the translator’s objective
(global option that affects the whole text). Thus, the translator should distinguish the
method chosen (literal or adaptation) that affects the whole text, and the techniques
chosen (literal or adaptation) that affect the micro units of the text. If the aim of
translation method is to produce a foreignizing version, then borrowing will be one of
the most frequently technique used. However, the translator may encounter problems in
the translation process because there may be a gap in the translator’s skills. Therefore,
translation strategies are used by the translator to solve those problems. Strategies and
techniques occupy different places in problem solving; strategies are part of the process,
but techniques affect the results.
52
Page
4. The 18 translation techniques proposed by Molina and Albir (2002) are:
Adaptation, Amplification, Borrowing, Calque, Compensation, Description,
Discursive Creation, Established Equivalent, Generalization, Linguistic
amplification, Linguistic compression, Literal translation, Modulation,
Particularization, Reduction, Substitution, Transposition, and Variation.
53
Page
Exercise 3: Translating and Analyzing a paragraph by using Molina and Albir
Techniques
In chapter one you have learned and succeeded in translating sentences from English
into Indonesian. Now, in this chapter, you will go to the next level; translating a
paragraph. Therefore, translating an abstract will be a good practice for you. Translation
the following abstract into Indonesian individually by using the translation techniques
proposed by Molina and Albir (2002).

ABSTRACT
people in understanding the message of the Holy Qur’an and also to preserve the existence of
the Angkola language itself. This language is widely used in the daily life and cultural
tradition of Angkola Bataknese people in South Tapanuli of North Sumatra. However, it is
very important to maintain the message of the Holy Qur’an and prevent the translation shift
that could happen in case of mixing with the culture of Angkola people. This study aims to see
the most dominant translation techniques, the translators’ ideology, and the quality of
Angkola translation of the Holy Qur’an. The methodology of this research is descriptive
qualitative which is an embedded-case study and oriented to translation product (Toury,
1995). The Translation techniques proposed by Molina and Albir (2002, p.509-511) are used
to analyze the data. The data of this study are words, phrases, and clauses in the 96 verses of
Al-Waqi’ah surah in Arabic and its translation in Angkola language translated by the
translator team in the Faculty of Ushuluddin and Islamic Studies, The State Islamic
University of North Sumatra in 2016 published by Puslitbag Lektur dan Khazanah
Keagamaan Ministry of Religion Affairs Jakarta. After analyzing the data, it can be seen that
1) the most dominant translation techniques used by the translators are literal (word by word
translation) and amplification techniques (giving additional information in footnote or body
note). 2) The translators have foreignization ideology. Even though the translators translate
the Holy Qur’an into Angkola language in order to get the local people access to the message
of the Holy Qur’an, the translators do not introduce the cultural items of the Angkola
language in the translation product. In attempting to produce the easy understanding
translation for the target readers (Bataknese Angkola people) the translators used a lot of
amplification techniques and literal technique to optimally express the message of the Holy
Qur’an without adding cultural items of Angkola language. The translators are being
attempt to keep the cultural atmosphere of the source language (Arabic) to fully transferred
the message of the Holy Qur’an and prevent the translation shift. 3) The translation of surah
Al-Waqi’ah in Angkola language has good quality in the aspect of accuracy, acceptability,
and readability. Overall, it can be concluded that the translation of the Holy Qur’an
especially surah Al-Waqi’ah is accurate, acceptable, and readable for the target readers
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(Angkola people) to read and understand because the translators have foreignization ideology
which maintain the originality of the source text without making additional changes to adapt
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the translation to the culture of Angkola people.


Then, exchange your translation product with your friends. Check the general errors and
analyze the most dominant translation techniques that your friend used in translating
the abstract into Indonesian language. Next, when you give back the translation product
to your friend, explain to him about the suggestions that you have given for the general
errors that she makes or the appropriate translation techniques she may use to translate
the abstract better.
Then, when your friend gives the suggestions for the general errors you make or the
appropriate translation techniques you may use to produce a better translation, write
the summary of what he tells you. You may create the summary with your creativity, for
example; you turn the summary into mind mapping summary, song summary, or poem
summary that will make you remember what you have learned. After that, upload your
summary to Facebook and give comments to the summary that your friends upload.
Good luck .
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Chapter Three: Common Problems in Translating Text
Chapter Three
Common Problems in Translating Text
In the previous chapter, we have learned about how to choose the appropriate techniques in
translating text. We also have learned about how to analyze the most dominant translation
techniques used by the translators. Now, in this chapter we will learn about the common
problems in translating text. After learning about the common problems in translating text,
we will be able to avoid making errors in translating text..
In translating text, translators may face some problems which occur because of translation
activities, such as; the removal of meaning, meaning replacement, the addition of meaning,
or meaning interpretation. Larson (1984: 56) mentions that: “There will be the words in the
source language and receptor language that are very similar in context (contain the same
meaning components), but not all will match by any means. Not all language communities
have the same ideas.” It means translators have to accept the consequences that there will
be many words which do not have equivalents in the receptor language. It happens because
a single word may be translated with a number of words in the receptor language, and the
lexical structures of the two languages are different to the concepts which are expressed.
Usually, the central problem of translating text is whether to translate the text literally or
freely. Translating the text freely means that the translators consider translating the sense
not the words, the message not the form. However, considering the linguistic barriers of
languages and considering the language as the product of culture, it is attempted that the
translation product should be as literal as possible. Translation problem occurs because
there are some differences between both languages. Venuty (1995) also suggested that:
“Foreign text is the site of many different semantic possibilities that are fixed only
provisionally in anyone translation...”
Hoed (2006) also considered that there will never be two similar languages because every
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language has its own unique system and structure (sui generis), so in translating text,
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translator will certainly face many challenges. A good translation product will have the
target readers understand the text the same way as the source text readers understand do.
To do this, a translator needs to master both languages (TL and SL) and understands the
techniques of translating text. However, in fact, the process of translating has many
problems. The problems may come from both languages and translators.
In this chapter, we will discuss some problems of translation. Moreover, if we know the
most common problems in translation process, we can take steps to avoid them. Following
are some common problems faced by translators in translating text:
A. Common Problems in Translating Indonesian and English Text

Hoed argues that translator’s mistake only assessed if the error was merely about language
error (Hoed, 2006). Thus, there is no perfect translation because aesthetic factors and the
tastes of each translator can influence the translation process. Therefore, right-wrong
translation should be distinguished from good-bad translation. He then adds that there are
two main problems in translating text to foreign language;
1. The differences between Indonesian language and foreign language.

The differences between Indonesia and English occur because of the culture differences of
both languages. Moreover, there are no two similar languages because every language has
its own unique system and structure. Hoed explained that the most important thing a
translator should have is an ability to solve problems. Practically, there are two problems
encountered by a translator:
a. Translator does not understand the meaning of words, sentences, or paragraphs

including the message of the text.
b. Translator is difficult in translating words, sentences, or paragraphs despite of his
understanding of the text.
2. The translators do not master English as a part of culture.

Translating Indonesian language to English or English to Indonesian language also brings
the same difficulties for translators. However, a professional translator will take all of those
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problems into consideration when translating text. He will do the best to produce a
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translation which is acceptable for both readers (TL and SL). One example of problems in
translating Indonesian into English is ambiguity (Gunarwan, 2001); “anak perempuan
presiden yang kaya itu” can be translated into English as “the rich daughter of the
president” or “the daughter of the rich president”.
According to Hoed, problems can be solved by applying translation tips. Those tips are
procedures expected to improve the accuracy of translation and reach the optimal result of
translation. Newmark (1988) suggested four level of translation; textual level, referential
level, cohesion, and naturalness level. Textual level means the text should be translated at
the level of words and sentences. Referential level is the stage for translator refers to the
true meaning of a word, cohesion means to see the unified of translation, and also about the
cohesion among words in the sentence, and naturalness level means to see the acceptability
of translation. Generally there are some common problems in translating Indonesian text to
English or English to Indonesian text:
1. Problems at the sentential level
Problems at the sentential level generally occurs because of free sentence construction
which doesn’t not follow the rules of Indonesian grammar. For example;
Source Text The sentence doesn’t follow Indonesian
Grammar
Negara yang telah meratifikasi KHA, maka The predicate and conjunction in this
Negara tersebut terikat, baik secara Yuridis sentence are unclear.
maupun politis (P.1).
Dampak lain masa depan anak tidak The sentence is ineffective.
menentu serta menjadi “Unskill Worker”
sehingga mereka akan menjadi beban
negara di masa mendatang (p.2).
Hal itu mengakibatkan kurangnya fasilitas This sentence is run-on, ineffective, and no
sekolah yang memadai, rendahnya kualitas logic.
guru, sehingga pelatihan teknis
administrasi dan profesionalisme di bidang
pendidikan kurang terjamin (p.3).
Perhatian yang kurang dari orangtua dan This sentence is run-on and ineffective.
ketidakharmonisan komunikasi yang
terjadi dalam keluarga telah
mengakibatkan anak meraa dikucilkan
dalam interaksi sosial keluarga, sebagai
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akibat anak menjadi terlempat ke jalan

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(P.7).
2. Problems at the discoursal level

Problems at the discoursal level mostly occurs because of cohesion and coherence. The
writer may use transitional markers or other cohesive devices to connect ideas together,
but the ideas are irrelevantly connected to other ideas in the text. For example;
Source Text The sentence doesn’t follow

Indonesian Grammar
Indonesia telah meratifikasi KHA melalui This sentence is missing the traditional
Keppres No. 36/1990. Negara yang telah marker, and the ideas are loosely
meratifikasi KHA, maka Negara tersebut connected.
terikat, baik secara Yuridis maupun
politis (p.1).
Anak yang putus sekolah adalah anak- This sentence is missing its transitional
anak yang kehilangan hak pendidikannya marker, and it has an inappropriate use of
dan tidak memiliki kesempatan untuk ‘lain’.
mengembangkan dirinya secara
maksimal. Kondisi seperti ini adalah
kondisi yang sangat menyedihkan.
Dampak lain masa depan anak tidak
menetu serta menjadi “Unskill Worker”
sehingga mereka akan menjadi beban
negara di masa mendatang (p.2).
Munculnya anak yang hidup di jalanan This sentence is lack of focus, and the
adalah salah satu akses ketidakberdayaan ideas are loosely connected.
masyarakat dalam memenuhi kebutuhan
dalam keluarga khususnya kebutuhan
yang dieprlukan oleh anak. Perhatian
yang kurang dari orang tua dan
ketidakharmonisan anak merasa
dikucilkan dalam interaksi sosial
keluarga, sebagai akibat anak menajadi
terlempar ke jalan (p.7).
Kondisi kehidupan yang sedemikian The ideas are loosely connected, and it’s
keras tidak menutup kemungkinan missing cohesive devices.
munculnya tindak kekerasan yang
ditimbulkan oleh orang-orang dewasa
yang notabene sebagai orang yang
seharusnya melindungi. Perlakuan salah
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yang dialami anak-anak di jalan dapat

berupa kekerasan fisik, mental,
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eksploitasi ekonomi, kekerasan seksual

(pemerkosaan, sodomi, dan pornografi).
Masalah lain yang dihadapi anak-anak di
jalanan adalah beresiko tinggi terhadap
berbagai masalah kesehatan dan korban
penyalahgunaan obat-obatan terlarang
(p.7).
Before translating the source text into English, the source text has been problematic. Some
sentences are ambiguous, unconnected, lack of focus, and missing cohesive devices. This
kind of problem will surely be faced by translators soon or later. Other problems are in
translating pronouns and proper names.
3. Translating Pronoun
a) First – person pronoun
Indonesian language has inclusive and exclusive pronoun, but English has only one subject
pronoun for first – person plural (we). “We” may be “the speaker and someone else other
than the hearer” and in another time “We” may be “the speaker and the hearer”. Indonesian
language has two first – person plural pronouns; “kita” and “kami”. “Kita” refers to we and
you (inclusive), but “Kami” refers to we without you (exlusive). Inclusive means when
someone says “kita”, the hearer is included in the conversation. However exclusive means
when someone says “kami”, the hearer is excluded from the conversation. For example;

We believe we can do Kita percaya kita bisa Kami percaya kami bisa
this. melakukan ini. (Inclusive : the melakukan ini. (Exclusive:
hearer is included) the hearer is excluded)
To discover the correct meaning, translator should study the paragraph or the whole text
and the situation of the communication of the text. Therefore there are four possibilities for
the translation of “We believe we can do this”:
TL: Kami percaya kami bisa melakukan ini.

TL: Kami percaya kita bisa melakukan ini.
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TL: Kita percaya kita bisa melakukan ini.

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TL: Kita percaya kami bisa melakukan ini.
However, to translate Indonesian to English text, the translator simply uses “we” for “kita”
or “kami”. For example;
Kami percaya kita bisa melakukan ini. We believe we can do this.
b) Second – Person Pronoun
“You” in Indonesia will be varied according to formal or informal situation. “You” that you
use to address someone in a formal letter, an announcement, a formal speech script, and
other written messages wil be different. For example;
To address someone with the same level of social status, you can say: Kamu/Anda/Saudara
Here with I advise you to... 1) Bersama ini kami memberitahukan kamu
2) Bersama ini kami memberitahukan Anda
3) Bersama ini kami memberitahukan Saudara
It is consirered rude to address Bapak/Ibu/ as Saudara/Kamu/Anda, so to address

someone with a higher social status, you can say: Bapak/Ibu
Here with I advise you to... 1) Bersama ini kami memberitahukan Bapak
2) Bersama ini kami memberitahukan Ibu
In English, to translate an Indonesian text into English, the translator simply uses “you”. For
example;
Kami mengundang Bapak/Ibu/Saudara We would like to invite you to attend our
untuk menghadiri pernikahan anak son’s wedding.
kami.
Translating the SL literally will be unnatural and inaccurate; We would like to invite
Father/Mother/Brother/Sister to attend our son’s wedding.
c) Third - person pronoun

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“Dia/ia/-nya” can be translated as “he” or “she” in English. It happens because Indonesia
only has one third – person pronoun “Dia” without gender. For example;

Dia membayar hutangnya. 1) He paid his debt.
2) She paid her debt.
3) He paid her debt.
4) She paid his debt.
Saya mengundangnya. 1) I invite her.
2) I invite him.
To translate “Dia” into English, translator should discover what the gender of “Dia” is in the
text. However, to translate English to Indonesia text, translator simply translates he/she
into “dia”.
He paid his debt. Dia membayar hutangnya.
I invite him. Saya mengundangnya.
B. Things to be Considered by Translators in Translating Text

1. Translating Idioms
According to Collins English Dictionary, Idiom is a group of words whose meaning cannot
be predicted from the meanings of the constituent words. In other words, there are some
groups of words that have different meaning if translated literally. For example;

It’s raining cats and dogs. Ini hujan kucing dan anjing Hujannya lebat sekali
If this phrases translated literally to Indonesia it would be “Ini hujan kucing dan anjing”
that will ruin the real message of the source text because this phrase “It’s raining cats and
dogs” doesn’t have something to do with cats or dogs, it’s idiom. To translate this phrase, a
translator needs to use communicative method to create a functional equivalence that can
be understood easily by target readers, so the good translation for “It’s raining cats and
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dogs” is “Hujannya lebat sekali”. Other examples are:

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Tom is a lucky dog Tom adalah anjing yang Tom adalah orang yang
beruntung beruntung
A translator should understand about the phrase above before trying to translate it
literally. The translator needs to know who the text is talking about, is Tom is really a dog
or a human. If Tom is a human, then the translator should not translate the text into “Tom
adalah anjing yang beruntung” because it will ruin the message of the source text, then
the translator has to translate the text to be “Tom adalah orang yang beruntung”.

Don’t break your mother’s heart Jangan mengecewakan ibumu
A translator should decide to translate the text above into “Jangan membuat ibumu patah
hati” or “Jangan mengecewakan ibumu”. A good translation will be “Jangan
mengecewakan ibumu” because “patah hati” is often used for lovers.
As translators, we should not translate an idiom literally. Instead, we can give the
description of that idiom in the target text or find another idiom from the target language
that has an equivalence meaning to the idiom in the source text. Let’s see the examples
below:

Saya ingin memindahkan Saya ingin memindahkan
I want to move this desk to
meja ini ke kamar sebelah. meja ini ke ruang
the next room. Can you
Dapatkah Anda memberi sebelah. Dapatkah Anda
give me a hand?
saya sebuah tangan? membantu saya?
He said it is a difficult Dia bilang itu masalah yang Dia bilang itu masalah
problem, but I don’t agree. sulit, tapi saya tidak setuju. yang sulit, tapi aku tidak
It seems a piece of cake Sepertinya kue itu bagiku. setuju. Sepertinya ini
to me. mudah bagiku.
In the first table above, we can see that the translation for idiom “Can you give me a hand?”
is translated as “Dapatkah Anda memberi saya sebuah tangan?” in the first target text, and
“Dapatkah Anda membantu saya?” in the second target text. Which one do you think sounds
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better? Of course the second target text right? We as the target readers will understand it
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better than the first target text. For the second source text, “It seems a piece of cake to me”
is translated as “Sepertinya kue itu bagiku” and “Sepertinya ini mudah bagiku”. Which one
do you think sounds better for us? Of course the second target text.
Therefore, as translators, when translating idioms from the source text, we cannot translate
the text literally (word by word). We should find the equivalence words to replace the
information, so the target readers can understand it well.
2. Untranslatable Words
Sometimes, translators will find an expression that has no equivalent in the target language
(untranslatable). Therefore, translators usually will replace the untranslatable word with
its description in the target language. Sometimes, the translators will give additional
information for the untranslatable word in the target text in end note or footnote. Let’s see
the examples below:

Haluskan cabai, bawang merah, garam 1) Grind peppers, onions, salt, shrimp
dapur, terasi, dan tomat. paste, and tomatoes.
2) Grind peppers, onions, salt, terasi
(shrimp paste), and tomatoes.
In the table above, we can see that the translators translate “terasi” by giving the
description of it as “shrimp paste” in the first target text while in the second target text, the
translators mention the word “terasi” and give additional information about it in the
brackets “(shimp paste)”. The translators can choose to describe the untranslatable word
“terasi” by directly replacing it with its description or by introducing the word “terasi” in
the target text and give additional information for it in the brackets.
3. Linguistic differences
Every language has its own unique language structure; the vocabulary, the syntax, or the
grammar. Therefore, translators should not translate every sentence literally and just
follow the grammatical structure of the source text because it will affect to the unnatural
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translation product. Let’s see the examples below:

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a. Indonesian people start a question by a subject, for example:

Kamu makan apa? Or Kamu mau makan?. In English, we start a question by a
question word or an auxiliary word, for example: What are you eating? Or Are you
eating?.
b. In English, adjective is before a non (red car), but Indonesian people put a noun
before adjective (mobil merah).
c. Indonesian language has the same form of verb for in the past, now, or in the future
while English has different forms of verb based on the 16 tenses. For example;

Saya belajar bahasa inggris waktu SMA I learned English when I was in high
school.
Saya belajar bahasa inggris sekarang I am learning English now.
Saya akan belajar bahasa inggris besok I will learn English tomorrow.
In the table above, we can see that in Indonesian language, the verb “belajar” is the
same to talk something in the past, now, or in the future, but in English the verb
“learn” will change to be “learned” in the past, “learning” for now, and “will learn” for
the future action.
d. In Indonesian language, the plural forms of a word is by repeating the word (buku-
buku), but the plural forms in English has two categories; regular and irregular
(books, children, potatoes, matches, etc.)
4. Metaphor
According to Collin English Dictionary, a metaphor is a figure of speech in which a word or
phrase is applied to an object or action that it does not literally denote in order to imply a
resemblance. It means a metaphor is a special terms to say something or some condition.
For example:
She is a book worm Dia adalah seorang cacing Dia adalah seorang kutu
buku buku
You are a lion in the Kamu adalah seekor singa Kamu sangat hebat di
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class. dalam kelas kelas

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A translator should not translate a metaphor literally because the message of the source
text will be different in the target text, for example; a translator translate “She is a book
worm” into Indonesia literally, then it would be “Dia adalah seorang cacing buku”. The
translator should aware that the terms “cacing buku” is not general in Indonesia, so a good
translator have to find the terms for “book worms” that Indonesia people know well.
Established equivalence is a translation technique the translator can use to translate “book
worms” into Indonesia, by using this technique, “book worms” will be replaced to be “kutu
buku”, so the text will be “Dia adalah seorang kutu buku”.
The second text above should not be translated literally, because the text will be “Kamu
adalah seekor singa dalam kelas”. The message of the source text will be different with
the source text, so a good translator should translate the text by using adaptation technique
into “Kamu sangat hebat di kelas”.
5. The incorrect use of translation techniques

Here are some problems occurred after the incorrect use of translation techniques:
Source Text Target Text 1
When anyone opens a current account at a Apabila seeorang membuka suatu
bank, he is lending the bank money, catatan arus dalam sebuah bank, ia
repayment of which he may demand at any (laki-laki) sedang meminjami bank
time/ either in cash or by drawing a cheque uang, pembayaran kembali yang mana
in favor of another person. Primarily/the boleh ia minta pada segala waktu, baik
banker-customer relationship is that of dengan tunai atau dengan menarik
debtor and creditor – depending on whether sebuah cek untuk kepentingan daripada
the customer’s account is in credit or is orang lain. Pokoknya, bankir-pelanggan
overdrawn. hubungan adalah hubungan daripada
debitor dan kreditor – tergantung pada
apakah catatan pelanggan adalah
dalam kredit ataukah penarikannya
melebihi uangnya di bank.
a current account : catatan arus

the customer’s account : catatan pelanggan
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In the text above, the translators translate “a current account” literally as “catatan arus”. In
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translating specific terms, translators should consult to the way of saying the term in
another language instead of translating the term literally. For example; the word “current”
should be translated into “baru”, and the word “account” should be translated into
“rekening”, because in Indonesia, it is the way of saying “a current account” (rekening
baru). In the text above, the translator does not translate the text in economics context, yet
translator should concern about the target readers’ understanding of the text. This is a good
translation of the text above in economics context:
Source Text Target Text 1
When anyone opens a current account at a Apabila seseorang membuka rekening
bank, he is lending the bank money, baru pada sebuah bank, berarti ia
repayment of which he may demand at any meminjamkan uang kepada bank, yang
time/ either in cash or by drawing a cheque pengambilannya dapat ia lakukan
in favor of another person. Primarily the sewaktu-waktu, baik dalam bentuk
banker-customer relationship is that of tunai maupun berupa penarikan cek
debtor and creditor – depending on whether yang diperuntukkan bagi orang lain.
the customer’s account is in credit or is Pada pokoknya, hubungan banker-
overdrawn. nasabah merupakan hubungan debitur
dan kreditur, tergantung apakah
rekening nasabah tersebut berupa
kredit ataukah debit.
Following are other examples:

economic situation situasi keuangan situasi ekonomi
The word “economic” and “keuangan” can not replace each other, so the translator does not
need to use modulation in translating this text, instead the translator should use
naturalized borrowing to make the text well understood by the target readers. Then the
right translation for “economic situation” would be “situasi ekonomi”.

Siapkan bubur dari separuh Prepare a half of avocado Prepare a half of
alpukat yang matang porridge before preparing mashed avocado
sebelum menyiapkan masker the natural mask. before preparing the
alami tersebut. natural mask.
The word “bubur” literally can be translated to be “porridge”, but the translator should
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also concern that “porridge” is not suitable for this concept. The text above is talking about
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cosmetics, while the word “porridge” is for food. Then, translator can translate the word
“bubur” to be “mashed avocado”
6. Some common mistakes made by the translators

1. The translator leaves out some information from the source text. Sometimes,
translators leave out some information, such as; phrases, sentences, or paragraphs
that are important to express the message in the target text.
2. The translator misinterprets the meaning of the text and gives the wrong message.
For example; “No, benefits will be provided anyway” is translated as “No benefits
will be provided anyway”.
3. The translator incorrectly identifies abbreviations or misinterprets specific
terminology. For example, the translator writes that CIS, which in your organization
might mean “Customer Information Site”, means “Citizenship and Immigration
Services.”
4. The translator (or the client) includes text or examples that are culturally
inappropriate for the intended audiences.
5. The translator is inconsistent in using or defining key words or phrases throughout
the document or across different documents that are part of the same body of work.
Inconsistency can be confusing to readers, especially when the information being
presented is new to them.
6. The client accepts changes to the translation offered by unqualified, ad hoc
reviewers. Many times, clients are tempted to put their faith in unqualified
reviewers, because those reviewers just happen to read or speak the language of the
translated document. Do not put your faith in a reviewer unless you know that
person is qualified – that he or she is a well-educated native speaker and a good
writer who is knowledgeable about grammar, spelling, punctuation, and the other
elements of acceptable writing.
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Summary
1. Larson (1984: 56) mentions that: “There will be the words in the source language
and receptor language that are very similar in context (contain the same meaning
components), but not all will match by any means. Not all language communities
have the same ideas.” It means translators have to accept the consequences that
there will be many words which do not have equivalents in the receptor language.
2. Translating the text freely means that the translators consider translating the sense
not the words, the message not the form. However, considering the linguistic
barriers of languages and considering the language as the product of culture, it is
attempted that the translation product should be as literal as possible.
3. A good translation product will have the target readers understand the text the same
way as the source text readers understand do. To do this, a translator needs to
master both languages (TL and SL) and understands the techniques of translating
text.
4. Some common problems in translating Indonesian and English text are the
differences between Indonesian language and foreign language, the translators do
not master English as part of culture in sentential level, in discoursal level, and in
translating pronoun.
5. Several things to be considered by translators in translating text are: translating
idioms, untranslatable words, the linguistics differences, metaphor, the incorrect use
of translation techniques, and some common mistakes made by the translators.
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Chapter Four: Translating Subtitles and Comics
Chapter Four
Translating Subtitles and Comics
After learning about translating sentences in chapter one, translating paragraph by using
translation techniques in chapter two, and understanding some common mistakes in
translating text in chapter three, now in this chapter we will learn and practice to translate
subtitles and comics on computers.
A. Translating Movie Subtitles

The advanced of technologies in 21st century has enabled viewers to watch films with
audiovisual language (subtitles). Translation has played a significant role in providing the
subtitles in different languages. According to Luyken (1991: 11), “Audio visual language
transfer denotes the process by which a film or television program is made comprehensible
to a target audience that is unfamiliar with the original’s source language.” It means
translators should be able to produce a translation of subtitles that can be understood well
by the target audience who are not familiar with the original’s source language.
The process of translating subtitles is also called as AVT (Audio Visual Translation).
According to Diaz Cintas and Remael (2006: 13), “Audiovisual Translation refers to the
translation of products in which the verbal dimension is supplemented by elements in other
media”. It means, in translating subtitles, translators are responsible to support the verbal
dimension (the film) with elements (subtitle/dub) which can be played in other media.
a. Types of audiovisual translation

There are some types of audiovisual translation, they are; subtitling, dubbing, and voice-
over. According to Szarkowska (2005), one thing to be considered as an issue of audiovisual
translation is the applicable to contemporary times. For example; in translating the
subtitles of a movie, translators do not simply translate the words, but also the cultures (a
cross-cultural transfer). Subtitling and dubbing are different with the translation of a
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written text. Translating a book requires us to replace the original text with its equivalent
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meaning in the target text.

It means the text is transferred from one language into another language. However, in
translating subtitle or in dubbing, the message of the film is conveyed by various messages
such as; images, acts, sounds, and languages. Therefore, translators cannot replace all of
those messages in another language. On the other hand, when a film is dubbed, the visual
component will stay completely the same, but the auditory component is completely
changed. Then, when a film is subtitled, the actual translation is just added to the original
work. For instance, if there is something that has to be explained, the translators can use
footnote or include an explanation directly to the subtitle text.
There are two types of Audio Visual Translation:

1. Intra-lingual translation: In intra-lingual translation, the source language is the same
as the target language. Why do people need to subtitle or dub a film whose the
source language subtitle has the same language as the target language?. According to
Diaz Cintas and Ramael (2006: 6), there are some types of intra-lingual translation
that relates to its function for the target audience. First, the intra-lingual subtitle is
useful for the deaf and hard-of-hearing. Second, the dub (audio description) is useful
for the blind. The audio description for the visual elements of an audiovisual product
(films, TV programs, advertisement, live events, etc.). This is a kind of additional
narrative that fits the original dialogue and describes everything in the film on the
stage. It can describe the actions, facial expressions, clothing, and scenery. This will
help the blind to understand the plot of the story.
2. Inter-lingual translation: In inter-lingual translation, the source language is replaced
with the equivalent elements in the target language. According to Diaz Cintas (2006),
some types of inter-lingual translation are voice over (dubbing) and subtitling.
Dubbing refers to the replacement of the actor’s voices with those of different
performers speaking another language, which is called as “revoicing” in the film
industry while subtitling refers to the translation of the spoken or written source
text of an audiovisual product into written target text which is added onto the
images of the original product, usually at the bottom of the screen.
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Subtitling differs from other types of translation because it doesn’t only consist in
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translating a text from a source language to a target language, but also involves a shift from
oral to written language. The subtitle itself is divided into pre-prepared subtitles and
live/real-time subtitles. The pre-prepared subtitles are made after the program (the film)
while the real-time subtitles are made while the program is taking place. In pre-prepared
subtitles (subtitling films), the translator has all the time he needs to make a good
translation, but in the real-time subtitles, the translator has to do his best in order to make a
good translation even if the time to make it is not enough, for example; subtitling live
interviews, on air speech, and political statement. From a technical perspective, there are
open subtitles (hard sub) and closed subtitles. The open subtitles cannot be removed or
turned off because they are burned onto the image, and the closed subtitles leave the choice
up to the viewer who can decide to see or not to see them.
b. The process of subtitling

1. The starting process
The subtitling process usually starts when a client contacts the subtitling company with a
commission. The client could be a distribution company, a television station, etc. In the first
stage general details are discussed. First, the subtitling company has to watch the film to
make sure that the copy is not damaged, decide the dialogue list and check if there is
something else that needs translating too, (such as songs or inserts). If the dialogue list is
missing it has to be transcribed from the soundtrack. Some companies only give translators
the scenes that include dialogues leaving the rest in black (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006:90).
The next stage is spotting, also known as timing and cueing. It consists in deciding the
precise moment when a subtitle should appear on screen (in-time) and when a subtitle
should disappear from the screen (out-time). This is usually done by technicians who
usually do not have a good knowledge of the language spoken in the film. A copy of the film
and the dialogue is then sent to the translator. Moreover, translator sometimes work
without having any access to the screen version of the film or from a soundtrack without a
copy of the written text. This makes subtitling much more difficult. This occurs when clients
are afraid that illegal copies will be made or perhaps when there are tight deadlines.
Watching the whole film before translating it is very important to ensure a high quality
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translation, though it may not always be possible when deadlines are really tight. During
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the first viewing of the program translators:

1) Take notes of words and phrases that could prove problematic. For example, the
English word “funny” can have many different meanings.
2) Take notes of gender and number of nouns, pronouns and adjectives that are not
marked in English. For instance, the expression “You’re great” can have different
meanings depending on whether the addressee is male or female, or whether
speakers are polite or informal.
3) Decide on the formality or the informality of the pronouns used depending on the
context.
4) Identify exclamations with no fixed meanings such as “oh,my” or “Christ” which may
be understood only in some contexts. In the third stage the translator can start
translating the text from the source to the target language. Once the translation is
over it is sent to the client. Nowadays translators mainly send their work by e-mail
(Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006:98).
The translator was not asked to produce the actual subtitles, but rather the text translation,
the translation undergoes an adaptation process. Due to the constraints imposed by the
medium a technician or adaptor has to adjust the translation to an appropriate subtitling
length. A revision and proofreading of the subtitles follows. Ideally, a different person
should be responsible for this task, even if it does not happen all the time. All mistakes need
correcting, because spelling mistakes for example are more easily spotted on the screen and
could be irritating for the viewer. Before inserting the subtitles on the celluloid a simulation
of what the film is going to be like it is carried out in the clients’ presence. At this stage,
changes can still be made on the client’s request. Once the subtitling company’s work is
approved the next stage consists in laser engraving the subtitles on the celluloid.
This method is normally used for cinema subtitling. Electronic subtitling is used for events
like film festivals because it is cheaper. Once subtitling is over, the film is then sent to the
client, who can screen it on the cinema or perhaps broadcast it on television (Diaz Cintas,
Remael, 2006:100).
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2. The linguistics of subtitling
1) Text reduction
The written version of a speech in subtitles is almost always a reduced form of the oral
source text. Indeed, subtitling can never be a complete and detailed rendering and nor
should it be. Because of its multiple channels a complete translation is not required.
However, this does not mean that viewers do not have the right to high-quality translation
(Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006: 146). Why text reduction? First of all, because viewers can
absorb a speech more quickly than they can read, so subtitles must give them enough time
to register and understand what is written at the bottom of the screen. Secondly, viewers
must also watch what is happening on the screen, so they must have the time to combine
reading with watching. Finally, subtitles are limited to a maximum of two lines. How much
text they contain depends on the time available, the subtitling reading speed, and the speed
at which the source text is actually pronounced (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006:146).
There are two types of text reduction: partial and total reduction. Partial reduction is
achieved through condensation and a more concise rendering of the source text. Total
reduction is achieved through deletion or omission of lexical items. Usually, both processes
are combined and this leads to rewriting that is so typical of subtitling. In other words, a
subtitler has to assess how much time and space are available for the written translation
and then eliminates what is not relevant, or reformulates what is relevant in a concise form
as much as possible (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006:147).
In general terms, we could say that the subtitler must act on the principle of relevance. The
“mini-max effect” (Cintas, Remael, 2006:148) can explain very well how subtitling works. It
is the balance between the effort required by the viewer to process an item, and its
relevance for the understanding of the film narrative that determines whether or not it is to
be included in the translation. That is why subtitlers should view the film in its entirety
before subtitling. Having seen the entire film gives the subtitler a better idea of what is and
is not redundant.
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The amount of cutting and reformulating varies according to genre, context, speed of
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delivery etc. For instance, when subtitling off-screen commentators in a documentary film,
rendering all they say may be more important, and therefore a reformulation that allows
the subtitler to condense without losing information may be a better option than omitting
information. However, no general rules can be given as to when to condense, reformulate,
or when to omit (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006: 148). A good knowledge of the source and
target culture, as well as the information about the target audience could help the subtitler
to decide, for example, if the audience is familiar with a certain term.
2) Condensation and reformulation

How a subtitler should condense depends on what can be done as well as on what really
needs to be done. A subtitler must exploit the target language’s intrinsic possibilities to the
full. This is why a native or at least a near-native command of the target language is very
important. Moreover, since some changes are due to linguistic differences between
languages reformulation and condensation occur both at word level and at clause/sentence
level (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006: 150).
3) Omissions
Omissions or deletions are unavoidable in subtitling. Before deciding to omit, subtitlers
must ask themselves: will the audience understand the message or scene without too much
of an effort, or will they not misunderstand it? Usually the redundancy rule is the one to
follow as word or a phrase may be repeated elsewhere or perhaps an image may fill the gap
(Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006: 162).
4) Segmentation and line breaks

Segmenting means to divide something into separate parts. As far as subtitling is concerned,
segmentation is a division of the text into segments, in our case subtitles, that a viewer can
understand without difficulties. Moreover, subtitles are segmented on two levels: a
sentence may have to be distributed over two available lines of a subtitle, or line breaks, or
it may run on into two or more subtitles. The segmentation rules are the same within and
across subtitles but, when dividing text over more than one subtitle, a subtitler should keep
in mind that the viewers’ memory span is limited at any age (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006:
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172).
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However, a translator should not wait to fill the first line before venturing into the bottom
line. The second line can be shorter than the first one or vice-versa (Diaz Cintas, Remael,
2006: 172). A text should be subtitled at the highest possible syntactic node. In other words,
each subtitle should contain one complete sentence. When a sentence cannot fit into a
single-line subtitle, the segmentation on each line should coincide with the highest possible
syntactic node. However, it is not always possible to match a sentence with a subtitle, so it is
important to remember that each subtitle should make sense in itself, while somehow
indicating that the sentence continues in the next subtitle (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006: 173).
3. Some considerations
1) Spatial dimensions and maximum number of lines
Generally speaking, subtitling is limited to two lines. However, subtitling for the hard of
hearing often makes use of three or even four lines and bilingual subtitling may also have
four-lines subtitles. The standard position for subtitles is horizontal at the bottom of the
screen because this part of the screen is usually less important for the action. However, one-
line subtitles are sometimes needed to allow the viewers to see most of the film images. In
this case some companies prefer using the first (or top line) while others prefer the second
line. Nowadays, subtitling companies prefer using the second line to keep the image clean.
Subtitles can be moved from the bottom of the screen to another position if: the background
at the bottom of the screen is too light; some important action is taken at the bottom of the
screen; some important data are displaced at the bottom of the screen (Diaz Cintas, Remael,
2006:125).
2) Characters per line

The maximum number of characters can vary depending on guidelines or software used by
the subtitling company. A one line TV subtitle is usually 37, including blank spaces and
typographical signs, that also take up one space. However, sometimes clients might ask for a
maximum of 33 to 35 characters per line, or allow up to 39 to 41 characters. Only in film
festivals is a maximum of 43 characters per line allowed, while for the cinema and DVD a
maximum of 40 characters is allowed. Subtitlers get instructions from their clients, so once
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the number is known the programme takes care of counting. There is no fixed number as
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far as the minimum of characters are concerned. However, subtitles with less than 5
characters are rare. Any subtitle should stay on screen for at least one second so that the
eye of the viewer could see and read it (Cintas, Remael, 2006:127).
3) Reading time and the six seconds rule

The subtitle has to stay on screen enough time to give the opportunity to the viewer to read
the content comfortably. However, problems may arise when people on the screen speak
too fast and the viewer is not able to read the translation. It can be very frustrating for
viewers to see subtitles disappear when they have not finished reading them. They could
have a feeling that they read rather than watched the film. When deciding the audience’s
reading time their age and cultural background have to be taken into account. Subtitlers
should also keep in mind that not only the written text has to be read but the viewers need
to have enough time to scan the images and understand the photography. The distributional
channel could change the speed of the subtitles.
According to the six second rule, an average reader can read a two-line subtitle without no
difficulties in six seconds. This happens when each line contains a maximum of 37
characters (Diaz Cintas, Remael, 2006:140). Subtitles made for the television screen stay on
screen longer than in the cinema or DVD. This is because television is watched by a much
wider and various audience. Indeed, the profile of an average cinemagoer is usually
perceived as more educated than that of a television viewer.
c. Editing Subtitles
Following is an example of translating movie subtitles from English into Indonesian. The
source language subtitle (English) can be downloaded in a file format .srt that you can open
in Notepad. The translators need the Indonesian version for the subtitles, open the subtitle
file in Notepad, and edit the subtitles. For example: 77
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After translating the subtitles in the Notepad, remember to save the editing by clicking file-
save. Now, you can use the subtitle file that you have translated for the movie. Make sure to
use appropriate translation techniques to prevent mistranslating the source text.
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d. Making Subtitles
There are many subtitling soft-wares on internet either for free or not. In this part you will
practice to use Videopad Editor. Following are some steps to make subtitles using Videopad
Editor:
1. Download Videopad Editor on Internet. You can search on Google.
2. Install Videopad Editor to your computer.
3. Open Videopad Editor.
4. Add a video that you want to make the subtitle by clicking file-add files.
5. In timeline, click the red line to mark the scene of the video you want to give subtitle.
6. Click “Add text” to write the subtitle.
7. Save the video by clicking file-save (Save as type: MP4). You should be connected to
Internet to save the video.
B. Translating Comics
To gain an understanding of the place of comics in linguistics, it remains necessary to
examine what exactly is being analyzed. Comics do not fall within the normal scope of
inquiry for contemporary linguistics – not because they are an inappropriate topic, but
because language is a human behavior while comics are not. Comics are a social object that
is the result of two human behaviors: writing and drawing. Analogously, the sequential
images used in comics constitute their own “visual language”. Thus, the behavioral domains
of writing (written/verbal language) and drawing (visual language) should be the object of
linguistic inquiry, stripping away the social categories like “comics,” “graphic novels,”
“manga,” etc.
Comics then become the predominant place in culture that this visual language is used,
often paired along with writing ( a learned importation of the verbal modality into the
visual-graphic). That is, contrary to the metaphor used by their authors, comic themselves
are not a language, but comics are written in visual languages the same way that novels or
magazines are written in English. This makes comics potentially written in both a visual
language and a written language – reflecting the multimodality of human expression found
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in co-speech gestures (Clark, 1996) which have received much attention in

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linguistics.Comics are no more simply a work of prose than they are simply a collection of
unrelated pictures.
Comics, under the umbrella of sequential art, constitute their own special medium with
their own vocabulary, conventions, and use of symbols. They present their own unique
problems to the translator, not least of which is the fact that the translator must
successfully bridge the gap between not just two languages, but three: present in every
form of sequential art is an elusive visual language, which is at once universal and
provincial – and for which there are no dictionaries.
In Japan, where the comic medium (manga in Japanese) grew over time to become one of
the most pervasive forms of entertainment and communication, the visual language present
in comics reached levels of complexity and sophistication unseen on such large scale in
similar productions throughout the rest of the world until relatively recently, and even then
due in large part to the influence of these Japanese works. Below are some steps in
translating a comic:
*NOTE These tips are for PhotoShop 6 so if your using a different version or Paint Shop Pro
then these tips might not apply to you*
1) Cleaning the scans

What does cleaning the scan means?
Cleaning the scans involve using the leveling tool to whiten the scans from gray to
something closer to black and white. The Leveling tool can be found in Image->Adjust-
>Level or CTRL+L. To get the best result, it's best to judge by eye and move the left arrow to
the first peak and the right arrow to near the first depression. Again it's best to judge with
your eyes and have the zoom at a nice number like 100% or 50% so the picture is at a
better ratio and PhotoShop doesn't have to scale it (which causes distortions).
2) Tilting the scans

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What do you mean by tilting?

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Well when you scan an image, sometimes the scans aren't always 100% straight or it can
just be a little crocked cause of the original. To fix this, we can rotate the image a little to
compensate for it. *Note when you tilt, it is best to have the secondary color of the paint
tool be white, cause when you tilt, it replaces the area that's tilted with the background
color.To rotate/tilt the scans, got to Image->Rotate Canvas->Arbitrary. It's up to you to pick
clockwise or counter clock wise but it's best to use a small value like 0.1 or 0.5 until the scan
seems level. Again judge by eye.
Pre-titling: before rotating the picture
Post-titling: after rotating the picture
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3) Resizing the scans:
What do you mean by resizing?
Well when you scan an image, it doesn't give you an nice image height like 800, 1000, 1100
pixels. Also, it helps the overall presentation of the final product if all the scans are the
same size and not just random size cause you were too lazy to be consistent. To resize, got
to Image->Image Size. For HQ edits, its recommended that you have a resize height of
around 1100pixels or higher. Make sure you keep Constrain Proportions checked off.
4) Removing the text

What do you mean by removing the text?
Removing the text involves removing the Japanese/Chinese/whatever language scans your
using from the text bubbles. The easiest way for normal bubbles with white background is
to use the brush tool (shortcut key B), with pure white color. Note if sometimes the
background for the bubble is a different color, you can use the eye drop tool. Either select It
or hold ALT when you have the brush tool selected. If you encounter text over Art or
background that will be cover next. Other notes, it's best to use a brush solid brush as
oppose to a feather brushed. Examples, the one on the first row are solid brushes and the
one on the second row are feathered brushes. Another note, don't be scared to make your
own brush type if you need it. Just click on the little arrow like this. After that, just adjust
the new brush type to your needs.
Note: While removing the text, you should remove the blotches you see that you think isn't
part of the art. These blotches are cause by several things, either the scanner was dirty, the
original manga had them or the manga acquired them at one point or another maybe cause
they were old etc. Try your best to remove any of these blotches you see.
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Removing text Final brushing
5) Using the Clone Stamp Tool

What is the Clone Stamp Tool?
Well the clone stamp tool is a very useful tool that helps your replace are that was missing
as a result of text or as a result of the scans. To fully understand how to use the clone stamp
tool (shortcut key S) requires playing around with it, but I will try to give you an idea of
how to use it. Two examples of where you need to use the clone tool is when you have a 2
page spread that you want to merge or if you have art that was removed cause it was
underneath text. To use the clone tool, you need to know 2 main things. Use the ALT button
to select the starting area that you wish to clone stamp to start from. Looks like this. You
should use a medium size brush and use it repeatedly until the area where the are was is
replaced or as close to being replaces as possible. Also try and make sure that the area you
clone is aligned with the original art if possible, and also note that you don't have to replace
100% of the art since your going to add the translated text onto it.
Note: It is best to play around with it to get the hang of it. Also, you can use a mix of the
brush and the clone tool to replace the art.
6) Inserting the translated text:

What do I mean by inserting the translated text?
Well it means putting the text from the translated text file onto the actually picture. You can
do this in 2 ways, by cut and copying from the translation file OR by typing it in yourself.
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Also, you should proof read it a little if possible to prevent grammatical errors if you see
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them. To put text into the bubbles, use the text tool (shortcut key T). What the text tool
does is makes another layer over the background layer (if you don't know what I'm talking
about, read a PhotoShop FAQ). Anyways, after selecting the text tool, I make a text box with
it over the bubble.
7) Text Effects
Text effects are something like the white borders around text that you see. It is also
basically the only one you need for manga editing. The easiest way to make the borders
around the text is with the stroke effect. Layer->Layer Style->Stroke. The Stroke Tool. If
you use the stroke tool, pick a appropriate size for the effect etc and you can change the
color to meet your needs in the color option.
8) Saving the file

Just save the file? Make sure you save it as a .psd file so you can make changes later if
needed and save every now and then so you don't loose your work.
9) Converting from PSD to JPEG

Converting from PSD to jpg can be done in several ways. One way is to do it with
PhotoShop manually or with actions. Another way is to use an external program like
IrfanView or ACDSee. Either way, save it as Grayscale and use a setting like 7 in PS6, or
70% in ACDSee.
In translating a manga from Japanese into English, the translator has to deal with all of the
idiosyncrasies of the Japanenese written language as well as the visual language elements
which are specific to the Japanese audience. Visual language depends on commonality of
experience to communicate, and so while some aspects of it may be common to all readers,
others are specific to the Japanese experience. Naturally, these Japanese-specific remnants
appear most often when they are related to that which relates all Japanese readers: The
Japanese language itself.
The Japanese language is composed of a relatively small library of possible sounds when
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compared to other languages. Only a limited number of different syllabic combinations can
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be made, and as a result, many homonyms occur. Naturally, puns are a prime source of
humor in Japanese. Humor is often culturally specific, but few kinds of humor as language
dependent as puns. When the translator encounters these, some real creativity is required
to find a workaround. If the pun is just used as a throwaway joke, the translator may just
forego the humor completely for the sake of narrative continuity.
Other times, however, the narrative is dependent on the possible misunderstanding. In

these cases, the translator must find a set of words to try to mirror the Japanese homonyms.
Finding a pair of homonyms that have similar meanings in two different languages,
however, is a very tall order. Usually, whichever of the two words is more important to the
narrative is selected and translated, and a homonym for the translated word is shoehorned
into the narrative. This can present continuity errors, but the translator has little choice.
After discussing about the concepts of visual translation (comic), following are some steps
you need to do in translating comics. You may use Paint as the software for editing comics:
1) Scan the comics. Removing the source text. It means to remove the source language
scans in the bubbles. By using the brush tool or the eye drop tool. For example:
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2) Typing the translated text. You can also use another picture editing software to erase
the old text and add the new text. Here is the example:
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Summary
1. The process of translating subtitles is also called as AVT (Audio Visual Translation).
According to Diaz Cintas and Remael (2006: 13), “Audiovisual Translation refers to
the translation of products in which the verbal dimension is supplemented by
elements in other media”. It means, in translating subtitles, translators are
responsible to support the verbal dimension (the film) with elements (subtitle/dub)
which can be played in other media.
2. There are some types of audiovisual translation, they are; subtitling, dubbing, and
voice-over.
3. There are two types of Audio Visual Translation:
a. Intra-lingual translation: In intra-lingual translation, the source language is the
same as the target language.
b. Inter-lingual translation: In inter-lingual translation, the source language is
replaced with the equivalent elements in the target language.
4. The subtitling process usually starts when a client contacts the subtitling company
with a commission. The next stage is spotting, also known as timing and cueing. It
consists in deciding the precise moment when a subtitle should appear on screen
(in-time) and when a subtitle should disappear from the screen (out-time).
5. Why reducing text in translating subtitles? Viewers can absorb a speech more
quickly than they can read, so subtitles must give them enough time to register and
understand what is written at the bottom of the screen. Viewers must also watch
what is happening on the screen, so they must have the time to combine reading
with watching. Finally, subtitles are limited to a maximum of two lines.
6. Comics, under the umbrella of sequential art, constitute their own special medium
with their own vocabulary, conventions, and use of symbols. They present their own
unique problems to the translator, not least of which is the fact that the translator
must successfully bridge the gap between not just two languages, but three: present
in every form of sequential art is an elusive visual language, which is at once
universal and provincial – and for which there are no dictionaries.
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Chapter Five: Translating Cultural Specific Terms (CST)
Chapter Five
Translating Cultural Specific Terms (CST)
In chapter four we have learned about how to translate subtitles and comics, and what
considerations we should pay attention when translating subtitles and comics. After getting
used to translate sentences, paragraphs (abstracts), subtitles and comics, now we will discuss
about some techniques in translating cultural specific terms that are unique. To translate
cultural words in a text, we will observe the three ideology in translating cultural words;
domesticating ideology, foreignizing ideology, and neutralizing ideology. Every translation
product is unique, and translators may choose what ideology they adapt to translate the text.
Are they loyal to the source text, so they want to introduce the cultural words in the target
text? Do they have intention to get the target readers’ understanding by looking for the
equivalence meaning of the cultural specific terms in the target language? Or Will they decide
to introduce the cultural words in the target text, but also give the explanations for the target
readers to understand?
A. Cultural Words
Newmark (1988) defines cultures as the way of life and its manifestations that are peculiar
to a community that uses a particular language as its means of expression. More specifically,
he distinguishes “cultural” from “universal” and “personal” language. The words “die, live,
star, swim, mirror, and table” are universals – usually there is no translation problem there.
However, the words “monsoon, steppe, dacha, tagliatelle” are cultural words - there will be
a translation problem unless there is cultural overlap between the source and the target
language (and its readership). The universal words such as “breakfast, embrace, pile” often
cover the universal function, but not the cultural description of the referent.
Newmark (1988) explains that there is a translation problem due to the cultural “gap” or
“distance” between the source and target languages. Most “cultural” words are easy to
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detect, since they are associated with a particular language and cannot be literally
translated, but many cultural customs are described in ordinary language (“topping out a
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building, time, gentlemen, please, mud in your eye”), where literal translation would distort
the meaning and a translation may include an appropriate descriptive-functional
equivalent. Cultural objects may be referred to by a relatively culture-free generic term or
classifier (e.g. “tea”) plus the various additions in different cultures, and you have to
account for these additions “cram, lemon, milk, biscuits, cake”, various times of day) which
may appear in the course of the SL text.
Culture is the product of interacting human minds, and hence a science of culture will be a
science of the most complex phenomenon on Earth. It will also be a science that must be
built on interdisciplinary foundations including genetics, neuroscience, individual
development, ecology and evolutionary biology, psychology and anthropology. In other
words, a complete explanation of culture, if such a thing is ever possible, is going to
comprise a synthesis of all human science. Such a synthesis poses significant conceptual and
methodological problems, but also difficulties of another kind for those contributing to this
science. Scholars from different disciplines are going to have to be tolerant of one another,
open to ideas from other areas of knowledge. (Plotkin, 2001)
According to this definition, there are two tendencies in culture-studying considerations.

On one hand, the scholars try to find out what exactly is being studied and how it is being
studies when a particular approach is applied; and what can possibly be the proper field of
study for a general science of culture. This means that culture is not an existing object of
study that needs scientific analysis. Peter Torop (2009) focuses on the relation between
culture and translation as, Culture operates largely through translational activity, since only
by the inclusion of new texts into culture can the culture undergo innovation as well as
perceive its specificity.
According to Snell-Hornby (1993), addressing the potential problems existing in translation

between English and German, there could be five basic groups of prototypes which can be
briefly brought about as what follows:
1) Terminology/ nomenclature
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2) Internationally known items and sets

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3) Concrete objects, basic level items

4) Word, expressing perception and evaluation often linked to socio-cultural norms
5) Culture-bound elements
Moreover, Newmark (1988) is on the belief that a large number of words can be
reproduced to designate a special language or terminology of a speech community when
that community concretes on a particular topic. In line with this theory of cultural word,
five different classes of “cultural categories” are designated from each other. Newmark
states, cultural words can be categorized into five kinds. Those categories are as following:
1) Ecology
It is a geographical feature that can be normally distinguished from other cultural terms in
that they are usually value-free, politically and commercially. It includes flora, fauna,
mountain, river, natural conditions. For examples: Flora, fauna, winds, plains, hills:
“honeysuckle”, “downs”, “pampas”, “plateau”, selva (Tropical rain forest), “savanna”, “paddy
field”.
2) Material culture
It is the culture specific element that includes clothing, food, transportation, tools and
equipments, etc. For examples: kebaya, pempek, getek, etc.
a. Food: “zabaglione’, “sake”, “kaiserschmarren”
b. Clothes: “anorak”, kanga (Africa), sarong (south seas), dhoti (India).
c. Houses and towns: kampong, bourg, bourgade, chalet, low-rise, tower
d. Transport: bike, rickshaw, moulton, cabriolet, tilbury, caliche
3) Social culture
Work and leisure such as the names of music, games or dance that is typical in certain areas
such as keroncong, kuda lumping, malam takbiran, kopi darat, Ajaki amah, condotttere,
biwa, sithar, raga, reggae, rock.
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4) Organizations, customs, activities, procedures, concepts
The linguistic manifestations of this concept cannot be translated into a language where the
audience is unfamiliar with it, for examples; kepala desa, sumpah pemuda, and so on.
a. Political and administrative
b. Religious: dharma, karma, temple
c. Artistic
5) Gestures and habits
In this case, there is a distinction between description and function which can be made
where necessary in ambiguous cases; thus, if people smile a little when someone dies or
give a thumbs-up to signal OK, all of which occur in some cultures and not in others. These
are activities or actions carried out from generation to generation, such as; kerja bakti,
bersila, nujuh bulan, aben, lamaran, etc.
Newmark (1988) states that a few general considerations governing the translation of all
cultural words. First, the ultimate consideration should be recognition of the cultural
achievements referred to in the SL text, and respect for all foreign countries and their
cultures. Two translation procedures which are at opposite ends of the scale are normally
available; transference, which, usually in literary texts, offers local color and atmosphere,
and in specialist texts enables the readership to identify the referent - particularly a name
or a concept – in other texts without difficulty.
However, transference, though it is brief and concise, blocks comprehension, it emphasizes

the culture and excludes the message, does not communicate; some would say it is not a
translation procedure at all. At the other end, there is componential analysis, the most
accurate translation procedure, which excludes the culture and highlights the message.
Componential analysis is based on a component common to the SL and the TL, say in the
case of “dacha”, to which you add the extra contextual distinguishing components.
Inevitably, a componential analysis is not as economical and has no the pragmatic impact of
the original. Lastly, the translator of a cultural word, which is always less context-bound
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than ordinary language, has to bear in mind both the motivation and the cultural specialist
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and linguistic level of the readership.

Translation typically has been used to transfer written or spoken SL texts to equivalent
written or spoken TL texts. In general, the purpose of translation is to reproduce various
kinds of texts – including religious, literary, scientific, and philosophical texts – in another
language and thus making them available to wider readers. If language were just a
classification for a set of general or universal concepts, it would be easy to translate from an
SL to a TL; furthermore, under the circumstances the process of learning an L2 would be
much easier than it actually is. In this regard, Culler (1976) believes that languages are not
nomenclatures and the concepts of one language may differ radically from those of another,
since each language articulates or organizes the world differently, and languages do not
simply name categories; they articulate their own. The conclusion likely to be drawn from
what Culler (1976) writes is that one of the troublesome problems of translation is the
disparity among languages. The bigger the gap between the SL and the TL, the more difficult
the transfer of message from the former to the latter will be.
B. Strategies for Translating Cultural Specific Terms
Untranslatability is one problem that every translator faces. Untranslatability is

caused by the word of source language which can not be translated or hard to find the
direct receptor language word as the equivalent of source language word. Catford (1965)
states that “untranslatability occurs when it is impossible to build functionally relevant
features of the situation into the contextual meaning of the target language text.” Newmark
(1988) argues that untranslatability happens if a meaning of word cannot be rendered
literally and precisely to another word. There are two types of untranslatability based on
the cause:
1. Linguistic untranslatability. This untranslatability occurs when an ambiguity which is

strange in the source language text is a functionally relevant feature.
2. Cultural untranslatability. The reason of this untranslatability is a culture which has
characterization itself which can not be found in other cultures. In other words, there is
a distinction between the culture of source language and the culture of receptor
language.
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Every society has its own set of habits, value judgments and classification systems which
sometimes are quite different and sometimes overlap. Modern literature on translation
draws heavily on the important role of cultural gap between source language and target
language communities. As Javier Franco Aixela (1996, 54) notes, “cultural asymmetry
between two linguistic communities is necessarily reflected in the discourses of their
members, with the potential opacity and inaccessibility this may involve in the target
culture system”. He considers translation as a means which provides the target language
society with a variety of strategies, ranging from conversation to naturalization, against the
backdrop of the sense of otherness which conveys this difference with a set of cultural signs
capable of questioning or even denying our own culture.
The choice between these strategies is a function of the degree of receiving society’s
tolerance and its own solidity. What is especially important in the translation of culture-
specific items is the significant loss and gain in their connotations. The very meaning of the
original is at stake. Aixela’s attempt to clarify the notion of culture-specific items, therefore
leads to the following definition of them:
“Those textually actualized items whose function and source text involve a
translation problem in their transference to a connotation in a target text, whenever
this problem is a product of the non-existence of the referred item or of its different
intertextual status in the cultural system of the readers of the target text”.
He then presents several strategies for translating culture specific items which serve the
function of conversation:
1) Repetition
The original reference is retained as much as possible through being repeated in the target
language. However, this strategy risks a rise in the exotic character of the cultural specific
items and therefore, may promote alienation of the target language readership of the
original text. a noteworthy point underlined by this problem is that something absolutely
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identical might, in effect, be absolutely different in its collective reception.

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2) Orthographic adaptation
This strategy involves transcription and transliteration. It applies to languages that have
almost the same alphabetical systems; for instance Latin languages (e.g. in translation from
English into Russian, “Kemidov” becomes “Keindov”)
3) Linguistic (non-cultural) Translation
In many cases, the translator opts for a denotatively close reference to the original, but
increases its comprehensibility by coming up with a target language item which can be
recognized as belonging to the cultural system of the source text. He does this by
capitalizing on pre-established translations within the inter-textual corpus of the target
language or drawing on linguistic transparency. Units of frequency and currencies provide
good examples. This category also covers things because which are foreign to the receiving
culture but still comprehensible because analogous or even homogenous to the native ones.
Vinay and Dalbernet in their cultural theory of translation, believe that there could be
different translation procedures for rendering a word from source language to target
language (Munday, 2001).
1) Borrowing
2) Calque (loan shift)
3) Literal Translation
4) Transposition (Shift)
5) Modulation
6) Equivalence
7) Adaptation
In Mona Baker’s (1998) theory, seven different procedures could be seen for translation of
culture-bound elements which are summarized as translation by:
1) A more general word (Subordinate)

2) A more natural/less expressive word
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3) Cultural substitution
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4) Using a loan word or a loan word plus explanation

5) Paraphrase using unrelated words
6) Omission
7) Illustration
In Newmark’s (1988) theory there are 17 strategies for translation of culture-specific items:
1) Borrowing (Transference): transliteration
2) Naturalization: adaptation of source language into target language punctuation and
morphology
3) Cultural equivalent: a target language approximate culture word replaces the source
language cultural word
4) Functional equivalent: the use of a cultural free word
5) Descriptive equivalent: Expanding the core meaning of source language word via
description
6) Synonymy: which is appropriate only where literal translation is impossible
7) Through translation, calque or loan translation
8) Shift/translation: a translation procedure via a change
9) Modulation: translation involving a change of perspective viewpoint and category of
thought
10)Recognized translation: use of official or generally accepted translation of any
institutional term
11)Translation label: a temporary translation usually of a new institutional term
12)Compensation: when loss of meaning, sound-effect, etc. is made up for in another
part
13)Componential analysis: expanding a lexical unit into basic components of one to two
or three translations
14)Reduction and expansion: narrowing down the meaning of a phrase into fewer
words or vice versa.
15)Paraphrase: expansion via amplification or explanation of meaning of a segment of
the text
16)Couplets: combining two or more the above-mentioned procedure when dealing
with a single problem.
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17)Note, additions, Glosses: adding cultural, technical, or linguistic information of the

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mentioned translation strategies for rendering cultural specific items.

The differences between an SL and a TL and the variation in their cultures make the process
of translating a real challenge. Among the problematic factors involved in translation such
as form, meaning, style, proverbs, idioms, etc., the present paper is going to concentrate
mainly on the procedures of translating culture specific concepts in general and on the
strategies of rendering allusions in particular. Translating culture-specific concepts in
general and allusions in particular seem to be one of the most challenging tasks to be
performed by a translator; in other words, allusions are potential problems of the
translation process due to the fact that allusions have particular connotations and
implications in the source language and the foreign culture, but not necessarily in the target
language and the domestic culture.
Proper names, which are defined by Richards (1985) as “names of a particular person, place
or thing” and are spelled “with a capital letter,” play an essential role in a literary work.
They may refer to the setting, social status and nationality of characters, and really demand
attention when rendered into a foreign language. There are some models for rendering
proper names in translations. One of these models is presented by Hervey and Higgins
(1986) who believe that there exist two strategies for translating proper names. They point
out: “either the name can be taken over unchanged from the source text to the target text,
or it can be adopted to conform to the phonic/graphic conventions of the target language.
Regarding to the translation of proper names, Newmark (1988) asserts that, “normally,
people’s first and sure names are transferred, thus preserving nationality and assuming
that their names have no connotations in the text.”
The procedure of transference cannot be asserted to be effective where connotations and

implied meanings are significant. Indeed, there are some names in the Persian poet Sa’di’s
work “Gulestan”, which bear connotations and require a specific strategy for being
translated. Newmark’s solution of the mentioned problem is as follows: “first translate the
word that underlines the source language proper name into the target language, and then
naturalize the translated word back into a new source language proper name.” However,
there is a shortcoming in the strategy in question. As it seems it is only useful for personal
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proper names, since as Newmark (1988), ignoring the right of not educated readers to
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enjoy a translated text, states, it can be utilized merely “when the character’s name is not
yet current amongst an educated target language readership.” Leppihalme (1997: 79)
proposes another set of strategies for translating the proper name allusions:
a. Retention of the name: 1) using the name as such, 2) using the name, adding some
guidance, 3) using the name, adding a detailed explanation, for instance, a footnote.
b. Replacement of the name by another: 1) replacing the name by another source
language name, 2) replacing the name by a target language name.
c. Omission of the name
d. Omitting the name, but transferring the sense by other means, for instance by a
common noun.
e. Omitting the name and the allusion together.
There are some procedures and strategies for rendering culture specific concepts and
allusions respectively. Greedler (2000: 3) mentions some procedures of translating culture
specific concepts:
1. Making up a new word.

2. Explaining the meaning of the source language expression in lieu of translating it.
3. Preserving the source language term intact.
4. Opting for a word in the target language which seems similar to or has the same
“relevance” as the source language term.
Defining culture-bound terms as the terms which “refer to concepts, institutions and
personnel which are specific to the source language culture”, Harvey (2000: 2-6) puts
forward the following four major techniques for translating cultural bound terms:
1. Functional Equivalence: It means using a referent in the target language culture

whose function is similar to that of the source language referent. As Harvey (2000:
2) writes, authors are divided over the merits of this technique: Weston (1991: 23)
describes it as “the ideal method of translation,” while Sarcevic (1985: 131) asserts
that it is “misleading and should be avoided.”
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2. Formal Equivalence or “linguistic equivalence”: it means a “word-for-word”

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translation.
3. Transcription or “borrowing” (i.e. reproducing or, where necessary, transliterating
the original term): It stands at the far end of source language oriented strategies. If
the term is formally transparent or is explained in the context, it may be used alone.
In other cases, particularly where no knowledge of the source language by the
reader is presumed, transcription is accompanied by an explanation or a translator’s
note.
4. Descriptive or self-explanatory translation: It uses generic terms (not cultural bound
terms) to convey the meaning. It is appropriate in a wide variety of contexts where
formal equivalence is considered insufficiently clear. In a text aimed at a specialized
reader, it can be helpful to add the original source language term to avoid ambiguity.
The following are the different translation procedures that Newmark (1988) proposes:
1. Transference: it is the process of transferring a source language word to a target
language text. It includes transliteration and is the same as what Harvey (2000:5)
named “transcription.”
2. Naturalization: it adapts the source language word first to the normal pronunciation,
then to the normal morphology of the target language.
3. Cultural equivalent: it means replacing a cultural word in the source language with a
target language one. However, “they are not accurate”
4. Functional equivalent: it requires the use of a culture-neutral word.
5. Descriptive equivalent: in this procedure the meaning of the cultural bound terms is
explained in several words.
6. Componential analysis: it means “comparing a source language word with a target
language word which has a similar meaning but is not an obvious one-to-one equivalent,
by demonstrating first their common and then their differing sense components.”
7. Synonymy: it is a “near target language equivalent.” Here economy trumps accuracy.
8. Through-translation: it is the literal translation of common collocations, names of
organizations and components of compounds. It can also be called: calque or loan
translation.
9. Shifts or transpositions: it involves a change in the grammar from source language to
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target language, for instance, change from singular to plural, the change required when
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a specific source language structure does not exist in the target language, change of a
source language verb to a target language word, change of a source language noun
group to a target language noun and so forth.
10. Modulation: it occurs when the translator reproduces the message of the original text in
the target language text in conformity with the current norms of the target language,
since the source language and the target language may appear dissimilar in terms of
perspective.
11. Recognized translation: it occurs when the translator “normally uses the official or the
generally accepted translation of any institutional term.
12. Compensation: it occurs when loss of meaning in one part of a sentence is compensated
in another part.
13. Paraphrase: in this procedure the meaning of the cultural bound terms is explained.
Here the explanation is much more detailed than that of descriptive equivalent.
14. Couplets: it occurs when the translator combines two different procedures.
15. Notes: notes are additional information in a translation.
Notes can appear in the form of “footnotes”. Although some stylists consider a translation
sprinkled with footnotes terrible with regard to appearance, nonetheless, their use can
assist the target text readers to make better judgments of the source text contents. Nida
(1964) advocates the use of footnotes to fulfill at least the two following functions: to
provide supplementary information, and to call attention to the original’s discrepancies. A
really troublesome area in the field of translation appears to be the occurrence of allusions,
which seem to be culture-specific portions of a source language. All kinds of allusions,
especially cultural and historical allusions, bestow a specific density on the original
language and need to be explicated in the translation to bring forth the richness of the
source language text for the target language audience. However, there are three kinds of
ideology in the field of translation; foreignizing (source language oriented) and
domesticating (target language oriented), and neutralizing.
C. Translators’ Ideology in Translating Text

There are three translator’s ideology in translating text; Foreignizing, Domesticating, and
Neutralizing.
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1. Foreignizing
According to Venuti, foreignizing is “an ethnodeviant pressure on those (cultural) values to

register the linguistic and cultural difference of the foreign text, sending the reader abroad”.
It designates the type of translation in which a receptor text deliberately breaks target
conventions by retaining something of the foreignness of the original. This strategy is an
effort to keep the source language words foreign for the target reader. Munday says that
foreignizing is applied to make the readers of receptor language feel that the translator is
“visible” and they will tell “they are reading a translation”. That statement means the
translation that looks like a translation is a translation that contains form and element of
source language. It is clear that foreignizing is the strategy that is oriented on source
language.
By using foreignizing strategy, a translator will use the equivalence concept of Nida’s
“Formal Correspondence”; Larson’s “Form-Based Translation”; and Newmark’s “Semantic
Translation” which are the equal concepts. Formal correspondence is basically oriented on
source language which is produced as much as possible of form and content of the original
message. Form-based translation is a notion which is focused on rendering the form of
source language than the meaning. Semantic translation is the method which is preferred
the accuracy of the meaning. For example:
The boy reached out for his father. “Dad!”. Bocah itu menjangkau ayahnya. “Dad!”.
Their eyes locked for one terrifying Mereka bertatapan selama satu detik yang
second. mengerikan.
(Dan Brown, The Lost Symbol, translated by Ingrid Dwijani, p.26)
It can be seen that the translator attempts to keep cultural atmosphere of source language
that is American – English culture. The word “Dad” which is borrowed makes the readers
fell that the conversation is in USA. Such translator choice shows that he applies
foreignizing strategy.
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2. Domesticating
According to Venuti, domesticating is “an ethnocentric reduction of the foreign text to

target-language cultural values, bring the author back home”. Domesticating refers to the
translation strategy in which a transparent and fluent style is adopted in order to minimize
the strangeness of the foreign text for receptor language readers. This strategy that has the
Indonesian cultural equivalent as “lokalisasi” means making the text recognizable and
familiar and thus bringing the foreign culture closer to that of the readers. It is concerned
on acceptable result translation.
As the concept of transparency by Hoed, the translation must be seen original

(transparent), do not read like translation and become part of the text that are acceptable
and in accordance with receptor language. Therefore, to produce a good translation,
translators are required to create a translation that does not look like a translation
(invisible), as if the translation is like the author’s original essay. However, he also says that
the accuracy of message in translation must be preserved although the principle of
transparency is employed. Sumardiono states that there are some reasons that make a
translator chooses domesticating strategy, they are:
1) The acceptability reason. It produces understandable translation for readers;

2) The politeness reason. To make euphemism translation of source language word
which is taboo, it is required domesticating;
3) The political reason. Ideology and political that a translator believes influences the
result of translation.
The first and second reason are based on the purpose of translator, while, the last is based
on the translator’s attitude toward source and receptor culture. By using domesticating, a
translator will choose the notion of Nida “Dynamic Equivalence” that is based upon the
principle of equivalent effect which is equal to Larson’s Meaning – Based Translation which
is concerned in conveying the sense, not form that is same with Newmark’s Communicative
Translation that is attempted to produce the easy understanding for the readers. For
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example:
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Kill two birds with one stone Sambil menyelam minum air
It can be seen that the translator wanted to produce an acceptable translation for the target
readers. He translated the English “Metaphor” – kill two birds with one stone, by changing
the metaphor into Indonesian metaphor “sambil menyelam minum air”. The word “visible”
means that the presence of translator by showing the foreign identity of the source text.
Another example:
In our notion the object of a Menurut gagasan kita sasaran Dalam gagasan kita,
university education is to dari suatu pendidikan tujuan pendidikan tinggi
train intellectual men for the universitas adalah untuk adalah untuk melatih
pursuits of an intellectual melatih laki-laki intelektual manusia intelektual demi
life. untuk pengejaran suatu mengejar kehidupan
kehidupan intelektual. intelektual.
It can be seen that, the first target language is oriented to the source language, because the
translation is faithful to the source language as it uses the style and word-order of source
language. It indicates that the first target language is translated by using foreignizing
strategy. The second target language is oriented to the target language as it is focused on
the acceptability by showing the natural translation for readers. Therefore, it can be said
that it is translated by using domesticating strategy.
3. Neutralizing
Neutralizing is the new strategy to overcome the dispute between foreignizing and
domesticating strategy that are debated by scholars. He Sanning states that:
“Neutralizing can help promote cultural exchange through translation because, in

order to achieve the same effect, the translator should try his/her best to transfer
the cultural message from source language to receptor language while retaining
readability and acceptability of the translation. It is referred to the act and process
that the translator constantly modulates his/her own awareness of what he/she will
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translate, satisfy all the needs that the readers meets and tries to approach
correlative equivalent between the ST and the TT.”
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Neutralizing is the strategy that has sense of balance and emphasizes the source language
and the target language to show the foreign nuance and local taste. It is not only focused on
accuracy, but also acceptability, for example “kuda lumping” is rendered into “kuda lumping
– the Indonesian traditional art in which the players act like horse and do the magic
attraction”. It can be seen that we can preserve the cultural word “kuda lumping” in the
translation and at the same time ensuring acceptability and readability for the target
readers by explaining the word after the “hyphen mark”.
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Summary
1. Newmark (1988) defines cultures as the way of life and its manifestations that are
peculiar to a community that uses a particular language as its means of expression.
Newmark states, cultural words can be categorized into five kinds. Those categories
are as following: Ecology, Material Culture, Social Culture, Organizations (customs,
activities, procedures, concepts), and Gestures and habits.
2. Newmark (1988) argues that untranslatability happens if a meaning of word cannot
be rendered literally and precisely to another word. There are two types of
untranslatability based on the cause:
a. Linguistic untranslatability. This untranslatability occurs when an ambiguity
which is strange in the source language text is a functionally relevant feature.
b. Cultural untranslatability. The reason of this untranslatability is a culture which
has characterization itself which can not be found in other cultures.
3. Javier Franco Aixela (1996, 54) notes, “cultural asymmetry between two linguistic
communities is necessarily reflected in the discourses of their members, with the
potential opacity and inaccessibility this may involve in the target culture system”.
He then presents several strategies for translating culture specific items which serve
the function of conversation: Repetition, Orthographic adaptation, Linguistic (non-
cultural) Translation.
4. In Newmark’s (1988) theory there are 17 strategies for translation of culture-
specific items: Borrowing (Transference), Naturalization, Cultural equivalent,
Functional equivalent, Descriptive equivalent, Synonymy, Through translation,
calque or loan translation, Shift/translation, Modulation, Recognized translation,
Translation label, Compensation, Componential analysis, Reduction and expansion,
Paraphrase, Couplets, Note (additions, Glosses)
5. There are three translator’s ideology in translating text; Foreignizing, Domesticating,
and Neutralizing.
6. According to Venuti, foreignizing is “an ethnodeviant pressure on those (cultural)
values to register the linguistic and cultural difference of the foreign text, sending
the reader abroad”. Munday says that foreignizing is applied to make the readers of
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receptor language feel that the translator is “visible” and they will tell “they are
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reading a translation”.
7. According to Venuti, domesticating is “an ethnocentric reduction of the foreign text
to target-language cultural values, bring the author back home”. This strategy that
has the Indonesian cultural equivalent as “lokalisasi” means making the text
recognizable and familiar and thus bringing the foreign culture closer to that of the
readers.
8. Neutralizing is the strategy that has sense of balance and emphasizes the source
language and the target language to show the foreign nuance and local taste. It is not
only focused on accuracy, but also acceptability, for example “kuda lumping” is
rendered into “kuda lumping – the Indonesian traditional art in which the players act
like horse and do the magic attraction”.
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Chapter Six: Computer Assistance Translation Tools (CATT)
Chapter Six
Computer Assisted Translation Tools
In the previous chapter, we have learned about how to translate cultural specific terms based
on the translation ideology that we have (foreignizing, domesticating, or neutralizing). In this
chapter, we will explore the use of computer as a tool for assisting translation process. We will
compare the translation products of Google, Yandex, SDL, and Bing to see what translation
techniques they use.
A. Computer-Assisted Translation
Computer-Assisted Translation is a term used to describe computer techniques to facilitate
the process of translation. The system relies on automatic translation which is corrected by
human translators in the process of post editing. The system is based on a direct word to
word transfer. Currently, there are three basic types of CAT (Computer Assisted
Translation) tools to assist human translation work;
1) Machine Translation
Machine Translation (MT) is an action of fully automatic text translation. The translation is
carried out entirely by the computer with no help of human translators. Even though MT is
not a proper part of CAT, the systems are sometime used in CAT to provide rough
suggestions of translation. Human translator is then responsible for carrying out the post-
editing.
It simply writes a text into a program, selects a target language, and clicks “Translate”. MT
tools are computer programs linked to databases full of translations created by human
translators. Generally, contemporary machine translation alone can supply 90% accuracy at
best unless used in the context of tightly controlled language applications such as material
safety data sheets. The greater the breadth of the vocabulary and the complexity of style
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and grammar, the less suitable MT becomes. In this case of most business contexts, machine
translation is not suitable unless followed by careful human editing.
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2) Terminology Management
It refers to databases that hold preferred terms specific to an enterprise. Essentially, a
terminology database is an intel-ligent glossary of a company’s preferred translations of
specified terms in multiple languages. Typically, such a database can be used both in
authoring original texts in one or more languages, and in customizing translation memory
and machine translation implementations.
3) Translation Memory
Translation Memory (TM) is a database of previously carried out translations. TM contains
only high-quality translations which can be reused in future. The reuse of translations by
means of Translation Memory is the most widely recognized and appreciated feature of
CAT. It reflects the natural work process of a translator before the era of computerization,
when instead of using databases, translators took notes of phrases and sentences to use
them later in their work. Apart from cost saving (once translated sentence does not need to
be translated again), Translation Memories grant the consistency of translation, which in
some cases is essential.
It is perhaps the most utilized of all CAT tools at present. It is also referred to as machine-
assisted human translation (MAHT) because, in all its various forms, it is a desktop tool
used by professional translators. As the name implies, these applications “memorize”
previously translated material, such that in subsequent translations they “suggest”
translations of text strings (phrases, sentences, or even entire paragraphs) in the target
language to the translator. Translation memory when used appropriately supplies several
benefits. It increases speed, accuracy and consistency among multiple linguists, streamlines
the efforts of a translation team, and best of all, it saves money.
CAT software is essentially a set of tools used to manipulate a database of language

information. It is the input of information in the form of translated words, phrases,
sentences and even complete paragraphs in the source and target languages that
constitutes this database. Potential benefits include:
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a. Repetitive or similar texts need be translated only once

b. Once glossaries have been entered in the system, future translations will always be
consistent.
c. Greater speed of draft translation, thereby allowing more time for quality control.
d. A computer can work on draft translation at any time of the day, thus a 10,000 word
translation that would take a human translator a week to produce could be done overnight
ready for editing the next morning. (Speeds of up to 10,000 words per hour have been
claimed).
e. Better quality control since text already entered in the software will not need to be re-
checked.
CAT software is now available from a number of manufactures including IBM, PC

Translator, Power Translator Professional and the Language Assistant series. CAT software
is still expensive and requires a fairly powerful computer if it is to work satisfactorily. It is
not something that you can use from day 1 since it needs a considerable amount of data
input before it will start to produce anything like a usable translation. Try it when you first
install it and you will get some hilarious results. However, the more information you can
add the faster and better it works.
However, machine translation is becoming commonplace. For example, Google Translate is

often used to try to get the gist of a paragraph of text in a language someone cannot read.
How does this work? Google Translate, like other “statistical” machine translation (SMT)
system is essentially a tool for massive sophisticated plagiarism. SMT systems do not
understand what they are translating. They simply look up words in a huge database of
sentences and their human translations. That database has been previously processed to
guess at how humans have typically translated various words and how that translation
depends on the immediate co-text, that is, a word or two on either side of the word in
question. Then the guesses as to the translations of various words in the sentences are put
together in the hope the resulting sequence of words will make sense to a human, even
though the computer understands neither the source language nor the target language. The
only human translators that might be replaced by computers are those who translate
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mechanically without trying to fully understand what they are translating or who lack a full
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command of the target language.

B. Machine Translation
Modern machine translation services such as Google Translate and Microsoft’s Bing
Translator have made significant strides toward allowing users to read content in other
languages. These systems, built on decades of contributions from academic and commercial
research, focus largely on this use case, aiming to maximize human understandability of MT
output. For example, if an English speaking user wants to read an article posted on a
Chinese language news site, a machine translation may contain the following lines:
UK GMT at 10:11 on March 20, a rare solar eclipse spectacle will come to Europe.
This is the 1954 total solar eclipse once again usher in mainland Norway.
The next solar eclipse occurs recent times and the country was March 9, 2016 Sumatra;
This translation is quite useful for casual readers, allowing them to glean key information
from the article such as the event (a solar eclipse), location (mainland Norway), and time
(10:11 on March 20). However, the grammatical errors and likely mistranslations
throughout the text would prevent this article from being published as-is in English;
readers would be unable to trust the information as they would be relying on their ability to
guess what information is missing or mistranslated. If this article were to be published in
English, it would require professional human translation. In fact, the ever-increasing need
for highly accurate translations of complex content has led to the development of a vibrant
professional translation industry. Global businesses, government organizations, and other
projects employing translators spent an estimated $37.19 billion worldwide on translation
services in 2014 (DePalma et al., 2014).
As the demand for human quality translation increases, the idea of leveraging machine
translation to improve the speed of human translation grows increasingly attractive. While
MT is unable to directly produce publishable translations, recent work in academia and
industry has shown significant success with the task of post-editing, having bilingual
translators correct MT output rather than translate from scratch. When used with human
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post-editing, machine translation plays a fundamentally different role than in the

traditional assimiliation use case. As human translators must edit MT output to produce
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human quality translations, the quality of MT is directly tied to editing difficulty rather than
understandability. Minor disfluencies must be corrected even if they would not impair
comprehension, while mistranslations can be resolved by retranslating words in the source
sentence.
Machine translation (MT) is automated translation or “translation carried out by a

computer”, as defined in the Oxford English dictionary. It is a process, sometimes referred
to as Natural Language Processing which uses a bilingual data set and other language assets
to build language and phrase models used to translate text. As computational activities
become more mainstream and the internet opens up the wider multilingual and global
community, research and development in Machine Translation continues to grow at a rapid
rate. A few different types of Machine Translation are available in the market today, the
most widely use being Statistical Machine Translation (SMT), Rule-Based Machine
Translation (RBMT), and Hybrid Systems, which combine RBMT and SMT.
In any translation, whether human or automated, the meaning of a text in the source
(original) language must be fully transferred to its equivalent meaning in the target
language’s translation. While on the surface this seems straightforward, it is often far more
complex. Translation is never a mere word-for-word substitution. A human translator must
interpret and analyze all of the elements within the text and understand how each word
may influence the context of the text. This requires extensive expertise in grammar, syntax
(sentence structure), semantics (meanings), etc., in the source and target languages, as well
as expertise in the domain.
Human and Machine Translation each have their share of challenges. For example, no two
individual translators will produce identical translations of the same text in the same
language pair, and it may take several rounds of revisions to meet the client’s requirements.
Automated translations find difficulties in interpreting contextual and cultural elements of a
text and quality is dependent on the type of system and how it is trained, however it is
extremely effective for particular content types and use cases, e.g. automotive, mechanical,
User Generated Content (USG), repetitive texts, structured language and many more. While
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Machine Translation faces some challenges, if implemented correctly MT users can achieve
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benefits from economies of scale when translating in domains suited to Machine
Translation.
Referring to the lexical problems of automatic translation, these are, indeed, very
considerable in extent if not in complexity. Taking into account variations in the meaning of
words, the rapid evolution of scientific and technical vocabulary, slang and local speech, the
number of words per language may be so high as to challenge the skill of electronic memory
constructors.
In recent concise dictionaries the vocabulary of the English language comprises some
60,000 word entries: this number may run four times as high if each meaning of each
polysemantic word is entered separately. So that a dictionary in which every form of every
word would constitute a separate entry might well number over half a million words in a
modern inflected language. We are thus faced immediately with the problem of lexical
content. This is closely followed by questions of classification (should there be one
dictionary only, or several, according to subject?), and of order of classification
(alphabetical, logical, conceptual, or numerical according to the increasing or decreasing
number of characters in a word, etc.?). Finally come the specific problems of translation—
multiple meaning, idiom; and—sooner or later—the problem of style, or styles, of the
choice of words for reasons peculiar to the author.
A solution to any one of these problems involves a choice, or a series of choices, inevitably
limiting possibilities in other directions ; all the more so, in that lexical problems, even more
than those of morphology, are closely bound up with the technological aspects of computer
construction. Memory capacity, rapidity of access, these are important considerations in the
choice of solutions.
Even if we set aside for the moment, for practical reasons, the objections of those who
maintain that the choice of the right word by the translator is a matter of taste, of personal
judgment, and that the machine will never be able to exercise such judgment, we can still
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not affirm at the present time that an ideal solution has so far been found to the lexical
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problems of mechanical translation. But the empirical method of partial solutions has been
applied with increasing success. It has enabled research to continue while technicians
pursue the study of recording processes, thanks to which it will eventually be possible,
where required, both to store a very great number of words and to have very rapid access
to them. The first question to be raised was how to classify words in an electronic
dictionary in such a way as to ensure as rapid a look-up as possible. Words being
represented by a binary numerical code, several alternative methods of classification have
been tried: arrangement in order of decreasing frequency, alphabetically by sections, etc.
In order to find out which one was best, we compared the features, price and performance
of each. The API’s chosen were; Bing, Google, SDL and Yandex.
Features Comparison
API Number of source Number of target Total number of
languages languages from translation pair
English
Bing 45 44 2025
Google 64 90 2016
SDL 43 42 48
Yandex 44 43 1892
To test the performance of each tool we created a paragraph of text that would be
deliberately difficult to translate. The paragraph included several compound words, the
idiom ‘once in a blue moon’, a word with no exact equivalent in the target language
(fundraising) and a word that has multiple meanings (rose). For this test we asked the tools
to translate from English into Spanish. We then investigated how each API performed.
The test paragraph

Our ‘Help The Children’ fundraising run will take take place this Saturday afternoon at 3
p.m. Thanks to our celebrity runner, we have a once in a blue moon opportunity to really
raise awareness for the charity. If you would like to take part, the deadline for signup is
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5 p.m today. Thanks to everyone who rose to the challenge of organising this years
event.
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The Results
Bing
Bing had no problems at all with the compound words test. As with all the tools we
tested it translated the idiom ‘once in a blue moon’ literally. Bing did the best of all of the
four tools with it’s translation of the missing word ‘fundraising’ offering the most clear
alternative. It’s translation of the multiple meaning word ‘rose’ was correct, though the
sentence itself was wrong. Despite the error in the last sentence, Bing’s translation was
by a narrow margin the most understandable of the four tools tested.
Google
Google preformed the least well of the four tools on the test for compound words,
because it’s translation of ‘Signup’ although understandable was not as good as the
other three. Like all the tools the idiom ‘once in a blue moon’ was translated literally.
The translation of the missing word ‘fundraising’ was good and there were no problems
with the multiple meaning word ‘rose’.
Yandex
Yandex scored full marks on the compound word test, and like all of the tools translated
the idiom ‘once in a blue moon’ literally. It performed the worst of the four with the
translation of ‘fundraising’ though the translation offered was just about
understandable. Yandex had no problems with the multiple meaning word ‘rose’. Like
SDL it also seemed to have a problem dealing with quotation marks, changing single
quotation marks into double but not closing them. We tested several sentences to check
this error and found it to be a common one. Sometimes double quotes were used and
not shut, at other times a combination of single and double quotes were used.
SDL
SDL translated all of the compound words in our paragraph correctly. It translated the
idiom ‘once in a blue moon’ literally like all the tools we tested. SDL offered a good
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alternative for the missing word ‘fundraising’, and translated the multiple meaning
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word ‘rose’ with no problems, though in both cases the sentences themselves were
wrong. As mentioned above SDL also seems to have a problem in dealing with quotation
marks.
As there was no clear winner in the performance test, we looked at the results from the
price/features comparison to make our choice. We ruled out SDL right away because they
had nowhere near the number of language pairs that the other three had. Bing was the
leader when it came to number of language pairs, however both Google and Yandex were
not far behind, so for us it came down to price. We ruled Google out here as they were the
most expensive in every category. With Bing and Yandex left the choice becomes simple. If
you’re going to use less than ten million characters a month Go with Yandex as they are
slightly cheaper. If you need to translate more than ten million words a month then Bing
becomes the best choice.
All of the tools did pretty badly on the test, though to be fair it was a difficult test. Automatic
translation by computers is notoriously prone to pitfalls and that was certainly the case
here. The translations were barely understandable in this case, especially if you’re not used
to machine translations, and the idiom was particularly confusing. After reading each
translation several times we were unable to pick a clear winner. Some translated certain
sentences better than others. The most understandable, when it comes to the meaning of
the whole thing (which is stated in the first line), is Bing, while Yandex was the only tool to
give a correct translation of the last sentence. Ultimately, we see all the tools as performing
at around the same level.
Google, Bing Yandex, and SDL have different translation products. Following are the
samples of translation product by, Google, Bing Yandex, and SDL. Can you tell the
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Google’s translation product: https://translate.google.com
There was once upon a time a poor widow Ada sekali setiap waktu janda miskin yang
who had an only son named Jack, and a cow hanya memiliki satu anak laki-laki bernama
named Milky-white. And all they had to live Jack, dan seekor sapi bernama Milky-white.
on was the milk the cow gave every morning Dan semua mereka harus hidup adalah susu
which they carried to the market and sold. But yang diberikan sapi setiap pagi yang mereka
one morning Milky-white gave no milk and bawa ke pasar dan dijual. Tapi suatu pagi
they didn’t know what to do. Milky-putih tidak memberi susu dan mereka
“What shall we do, what shall we do?” said the tidak tahu harus berbuat apa.
widow, wringing her hands. “Apa yang harus kita lakukan, apa yang harus
kita lakukan?” Kata sang janda meremas
“Cheer up, mother, I’ll go and get work tangannya.
somewhere,” said Jack.
“Bergembiralah, ibu, saya akan pergi dan
bekerja di suatu tempat,” kata Mendongkrak.
From the table, it can be seen that Google Translate produces literal translation. Sometimes,
it cannot differentiate a proper name; “Jack” is translated as “Mendrongkrak”, yet “Jack” is a
name of person in this text.
Bing’s translation product: https://www.bing.com/translator
There was once upon a time a poor widow Sana adalah sekali upon a time seorang janda
who had an only son named Jack, and a cow miskin yang memiliki hanya anak bernama
named Milky-white. And all they had to live Jack, dan sapi bernama Sakti-putih. Dan
on was the milk the cow gave every morning semua mereka harus hidup adalah susu sapi
which they carried to the market and sold. But memberikan setiap pagi yang mereka dibawa
one morning Milky-white gave no milk and ke pasar dan dijual. Tapi suatu pagi Milky-
they didn’t know what to do. putih memberikan tidak ada susu dan mereka
tidak tahu apa yang harus dilakukan.
“What shall we do, what shall we do?” said the
kami perbuat?” kata janda meremas-remas
“Bergembiralah, ibu, aku akan pergi dan
mendapatkan pekerjaan di suatu tempat,” kata
Jack.
From the table above, it can be seen that there are some words that Bing cannot translate;
“upon a time”. Sometimes, Bing can translate proper name “Jack”, but sometimes it cannot
translate it well; “Milky-White” as “Sakti-Putih”, yet “Milky-white” is a name of Jack’s cow.
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Bing also cannot differentiate the use of “we” as “kami” or “kita” in Indonesian language.
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Yandex’s translation product: https://translate.yandex.com
There was once upon a time a poor widow Ada sekali waktu seorang janda miskin yang
who had an only son named Jack, and a cow memiliki hanya anak laki-laki bernama Jack,
named Milky-white. And all they had to live dan sapi bernama Bima-putih. Dan semua
on was the milk the cow gave every morning mereka harus hidup adalah susu sapi memberi
which they carried to the market and sold. But setiap pagi yang mereka dibawa ke pasar dan
one morning Milky-white gave no milk and dijual. Tapi suatu pagi susu putih tidak
they didn’t know what to do. memberikan susu dan mereka tidak tahu apa
yang harus dilakukan.
kita lakukan?” kata janda, meremas-remas
“Bergembiralah, ibu, aku akan pergi dan
mendapatkan pekerjaan di suatu tempat,” kata
Jack.
From the table above, it can be seen that Yandex sometimes cannot differentiate a proper
name; “Milky-White” is translated as “Bima-Putih” and “susu putih”, yet “Milky-White”
should not be translated literally because it is a name of a cow.
SDL’s translation product: https://www.freetranslation.com
There was once upon a time a poor widow Ada pada suatu ketika, seorang janda miskin
who had an only son named Jack, and a cow yang satu-satunya anak bernama Jack, dan
named Milky-white. And all they had to live lembu bernama Bima Sakti putih. Dan semua
on was the milk the cow gave every morning mereka untuk hidup pada adalah memerah
which they carried to the market and sold. But susu memberikan setiap pagi hari yang mereka
one morning Milky-white gave no milk and dibawa ke pasar dan dijual. Tetapi satu Bima
they didn’t know what to do. Sakti pagi putih tidak memberikan susu dan
mereka tidak tahu apa yang harus dilakukan.
widow, wringing her hands. “Apa yang akan kita lakukan, apa yang akan
kita lakukan?” kata janda kalau tangannya.
“Cheer up, mother, I’ll go and get work
somewhere,” said Jack. “Menyemarakkan, ibu, saya akan pergi dan
bekerja di suatu tempat,” kata Jack.
From the table above, it can be seen that SDL translates “Milky-white” as “Bima Sakti putih”.
SDL matches the name “Milky-White” to the context of astronomy, yet “Milky-white” is a
proper name that should not be translated literally or adapted to other contexts.
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Summary
1. Computer-Assisted Translation is a term used to describe computer techniques to
facilitate the process of translation.
2. There are three basic types of CAT (Computer Assisted Translation) tools to assist
human translation work;
a. Machine Translation (MT) is an action of fully automatic text translation
b. Terminology Management refers to databases that hold preferred terms
specific to an enterprise.
c. Translation Memory (TM) is a database of previously carried out
translations.
3. Modern machine translation services such as Google Translate and Microsoft’s Bing
Translator have made significant strides toward allowing users to read content in
other languages.
4. In any translation, whether human or automated, the meaning of a text in the source
(original) language must be fully transferred to its equivalent meaning in the target
language’s translation.
5. Translation is never a mere word-for-word substitution. A human translator must
interpret and analyze all of the elements within the text and understand how each
word may influence the context of the text.
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Chapter Seven: Translation Quality Assessment
Chapter Seven
Translation Quality Assessment (TQA)
Learning Objectives:
In the previous chapter, we have explored some translation tools that can assess us in
translating text. In this chapter, we will learn about how to check the quality of a translation
product in the aspect of accuracy, acceptability, and readability proposed by Nababan.
How to check our translation quality? First, we need to get a proofreader or editor. The
editor will check for typographical mistakes for us (i.e. spelling, accentuation, capitalization,
and so on). Then, a proofreader will check the exactness of the translation in the document.
More than that, we can also consider using quality analysis software which can be used for
conforming to the quality of translation. However, machine quality check won’t be as exact
as human editors.
Quality assessment is performed by randomly selecting one or more passages of the

translation, adding up errors of various kinds, and expressing the result as a numerical or
alphabetic score or a descriptive ranking. For example; more than x minor mistranslations
in a 400 word passage may make it ‘unacceptable’. The rankings are devised in such a way
that the result is interpretable in operational terms. For example A (or 90%, or superior)
may mean ‘deliverable without further revisions’; B may mean ‘deliverable with just a few
minor revisions’; C ‘requires major revision work’; and D ‘undeliverable; needs
retranslation’. The rankings have obvious financial implications; in the case of contracted
work, an in-house reviser will have to spend more time on a ‘C’ text than on a ‘B’ text; if a
staff translator often does ‘C’ work that again is going to call for many hours of work by a
highly paid reviser.
As more and more texts by a translator or work unit are assessed, a running score can be
calculated that will reflect trends in the quality of work produced. In the very simplest
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approach, where each translation subjected to assessment is rated either acceptable or

unacceptable, if four out of five assessed texts are acceptable, the translator; or work unit
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has a score of 80%. Later, if 18 out of 20 have been found acceptable, the score rises to
90%.It may be desirable to give more than one score to a text – perhaps a score for the
quality of the translation itself, a score for deadline-meeting, and a score for physical
presentation. That way, one can see that a certain translator produces superior translations
but sometimes does not meet deadlines and often submits work with poor physical
presentation. Therefore, in this chapter we will explore the ways of analyzing translation
quality.
A. Aspects of Translation Quality

Based on the research done by Mangatur Nababan, Ardiana Nuraeni, and Sumardiono in
2012, they proposed a model of translation quality instrument (TQA) for English into
Indonesia translation. He found that the model of TQA produced assesses the quality of
translation holistically, the model is applicable for assessing the quality of translation
within the contexts of translation research and teaching and of professional settings, the
model opens opportunities for raters to assess various units of translation, ranging from
micro to macro levels, and the effectiveness of the Model in assessing quality of translation
depends solely on the ability of the assessors or raters in applying it in various settings.
Prior to its application, those engaged in every translation quality assessment should read
and understand all relevant information and procedures of how it should be employed.
Larson (1984: 3) stated that translation is change of form. The form of source language
changes to be another form in the target language. A text translated can not be taken as a
good translation before going to translation quality assessment. The translation quality can
be assessed by using certain scales (Sofyan, 2013). There are some differences in analyzing
translation quality due to the understanding and expectation of translation theory (Drugan,
2013). According to Nababan, a high quality translation should have three aspects;
accuracy, acceptability, and readability. To assess the translation quality of a text, Nababan
and friends proposed a model of translation quality instruments: Each instrument has three
scales from 1 to 3. The better the quality, the higher the score will be given.
1. Accuracy
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The accuracy of a text refers to whether the source text and the target text is in
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corresponding or not. Corresponding here means the same message is contained in both
text (source and target text). A text is called as a translation product when it has the
same message with the translation product. Following is the accuracy rating instrument
proposed by Nababan (2013):
Accuracy Rating Instrument

Kategori
Skor Parameter Kualitatif
Terjemahan
Akurat 3 Makna kata, istilah teknis, frasa, klausa, kalimat atau teks bahasa
sumber dialihkan secara akurat ke dalam bahasa sasaran; sama
sekali tidak terjadi distorsi makna.
Kurang 2 Sebagian besar makna kata, istilah teknis, frasa, klausa, kalimat
Akurat atau teks bahasa sumber sudah dialihkan secara akurat ke dalam
bahasa sasaran. Namun, masih terdapat distorsi makna atau
terjemahan makna ganda (taksa) atau ada makna yang
dihilangkan, yang mengganggu keutuhan pesan.
Tidak Akurat 1 Makna kata, istilah teknis, frasa, klausa, kalimat atau teks bahasa
sumber dialihkan secara tidak akurat ke dalam bahasa sasaran
atau dihilangkan (deteled).
2. Acceptability
The acceptability of a text refers to whether the translation product has been conveyed
with good grammatical structures of the target language or not. Even though the
message of a text is accurate, the target readers will have difficulty to read the
translation product if the grammatical structures used are not suitable to the target
language. For example; “how are you John?” talked by a grandchild to his grandfather
will not appropriate to be translate into Indonesia as “Apa kabar John?” because it’s not
polite to call your grandfather without honorifics, so “Apa kabar Kakek?” will be better.
Then, according to Nababan (2012) one parameter of acceptability is whether a

translation has been conveyed by using appropriate grammatical structures of the
target language. The other example is a translation of research abstract will be banned
by target readers if it is translated by using slang, and another example is the translation
of literary works (novel, subtitle, and poem) will not be acceptable if translated by using
formal language. Following is the acceptability rating instrument proposed by Nababan
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(2013):
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Acceptability Rating Instrument
Kategori
Terjemahan
Berterima 3 Terjemahan terasa alamiah; istilah teknis yang digunakan lazim
digunakan dan akrab bagi pembaca; frasa, klausa dan kalimat
yang digunakan sudah sesuai dengan kaidah-kaidah bahasa
Indonesia.
Kurang 2 Pada umumnya terjemahan sudah terasa alamiah; namun ada
Berterima sedikit masalah pada penggunaan istilah teknis atau terjadi
sedikit kesalahan gramatikal.
Tidak 1 Terjemahan tidak alamiah atau terasa seperti karya terjemahan;
berterima istilah teknis yang digunakan tidak lazim digunakan dan tidak
akrab bagi pembaca; frasa, klausa, dan kalimat yang digunakan
tidak sesuai dengan kaidah-kaidah bahasa Indonesia.
3. Readability
A translator needs to understand the concept of readability of the source text and the
target text. Larson (1984) stated that readability text is aimed to know the scale of
readability of a text due to whether the text is easy to be understood by the target
reader or not. A high readability text is easier to be understood because a low
readability text is difficult to read.
The readability consists of diction, sentence construction, paragraph organization, and
grammatical elements, size of type, punctuation, spelling, spaces between lines, and size
of margin. The readability test is done by asking a reader to read the text loudly. In the
same time, the rater assess where the reader feels confused. If he stops reading and
reread the sentence, then the rater should note that there is a problem in readability.
Sometimes the reader stops and wonders what happen to the sentences. Following is
the readability rating instrument proposed by Nababan (2013):
Readability Rating Instrument
Kategori
Terjemahan
Tingkat 3 Kata, istilah teknis, frasa, klausa, kalimat atau teks terjemahan
Keterbacaan dapat dipahami dengan mudah oleh pembaca.
Tinggi
Tingkat 2 Pada umumnya terjemahan dapat dipahami oleh pembaca;
Keterbacaan namun ada bagian tertentu yang harus dibaca lebih dari satu kali
Sedang untuk memahami terjemahan.
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Tingkat 1 Terjemahan sulit dipahami oleh pembaca.

Keterbacaan
Page
Rendah
B. Assessing Translation Quality by Using Nababan’s Model
Based on the accuracy, acceptability and the readability instrument tables above, we try to
assess the translation quality of the text below.
No. Bahasa Sumber Bahasa Sasaran Skor

Keakuratan Keberterimaan Keterbacaan
Hampir 100% manusia
Almost 100% of
setengah baya
1 middle-aged people 3 3 3
memerlukan kaca
need eyeglasses.
mata.
The eye has been
referred to as “the Mata dikatakan sebagai
most important “bagian ukuran
2 square inch of the permukaan tubuh yang 2 2 2
body surface” paling penting”
(Havener 1979, (Hanever, 1979, h.1)
1979, p.1)
Dengan demikian,
Therefore, changes perubahan harus
must be made to dilakukan dengan
improve lighting in menambah
3 1 3 3
homes, offices, pencahayaan di rumah,
restaurants, and perkantoran, restoran
geriatric centres. dan pusat geriatric
(panti wreda).
Jumlah 6 8 8
Skor Rata-rata = 6/3 8/3 8/3
Jumlah/banyak data =2 = 2/67 = 2.67
It can be seen that every sentence is scored on the aspect of accuracy, acceptability, and
readability instrument before. In data number one, “Almost 100% of middle-aged people
need eyeglasses” is translated as “hampir 1000% manusia setengah baya memerlukan kaca
mata”. In this example, we only use 3 data (3 sentences). Someone who assesses the
accuracy aspect scores 3 for the accuracy of this sentence. Someone who assesses the
acceptability aspect scores 3 for the acceptability of this sentence, and someone who assess
the readability scores 3 for the readability of this sentence. The second sentence gets 2 for
accuracy, 2 for acceptability, and 2 for readability. The third sentence gets 1 for accuracy, 3
for acceptability, and 3 for readability.
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Therefore, the total accuracy score for the whole text (sentence 1 – 3) is 6, the total
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acceptability score for the whole text is 8, and the total readability score for the whole text
is 8. Then, to see the translation quality of the whole text (sentence 1-3), we should divide
the total score with the number of sentences (3 sentences). In this example, the average
score for accuracy aspect is 6/3 = 2, the average score for acceptability aspect is 8/3 = 2.67,
and the average score for readability is 8/3 = 2.67.
To present the data in a graphic, we may count the percentage of data in every aspect. For
example, in the aspect of accuracy, data number 1 is accurate (the score is 3), data number
2 is less accurate (the score is 2), and data number 3 is inaccurate (the score is 1). To see
the percentage of accurate data, we can count by dividing the number of accurate data with
the number of overall data, and times 100. For example;
In the table above, there is 1 accurate, then we divide 1 with the number of overall data
which is 3, after that times 100. 1/3 * 100 = 33.3%. Therefore, the percentage of accurate
data is 33.3% . The percentage of less accurate data is 1/3*100 = 33.3%, and the percentage
of inaccurate data is 1/3*100 = 33.3%. In Ms. Word, you can click Insert-chart-pie. The
graphic can be seen as follow:
The accuracy of the text
Accurate
33.3% 33.3%
Less Accurate
33.3%
Inaccurate
C. Assessing Translation Quality by Using Back Translation

A back translation is where you take a document which has been translated into another
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language and translate it back into the original language and compare the two. For example;
you might have a letter in English which you give to a translator A to translate into
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Indonesian. You then give that translated Indonesian letter to another translator, translator
B and ask them to translate it back into English which would be the back translation. You
might conclude that if the original English to Indonesian translation was “accurate” then the
two versions of the English document you now have would be identical – it seems logical
but unfortunately that is an unsafe assumption for the following reasons:
a. Language translation is an art not a science which means that individual translators
will use slightly different words to find the essence and nuance of the meaning the
author is trying to convey.
b. Even the original translation from English to Indonesian is 100% accurate, if the
second translation from Indonesian back to English is not so accurate then the
resulting English document could be very different from the original. To check the
accuracy of the Italian to English translation you’d need to back translate that as
well. As you can see, this is very quickly degenerates into an infinite regression
which gets you no nearer to your goal.
Therefore, some people think that using a back translation to see the accuracy of a
translation is not an effective strategy. For instance, in translating the simple sentence,
usually inexperienced translator translates the text without considering the context of the
text (instant translation). The instant translation often produces sentences whose meaning
different with the intention of the source text author. For examples:
David loves his wife, and me too. 1. David mencintai isterinya, dan saya
juga.
2. David mencintai isterinya, David
juga mencintai saya.
3. David mencintai isterinya, saya juga
mencintai istri saya.
4. David mencintai isterinya, saya juga
mencintai isteri David.
5. David mencintai isteri orang lain
(misalnya isteri Peter), saya juga
mencintai isteri Peter.
6. David mencintai isteri Peter, David
juga mencintai saya.
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As it can be seen in the table above, a translator who considers about the context of the text
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will have different opinion in translating the simple sentence. If we want to have the “back-
translation” to check the quality of the translation product above, then we can ask
translators to retranslate the 5 sentences above into English. For example:
1. David mencintai isterinya, dan saya 1. David loves his wife, and me too.
juga. David loves his wife, so do I.
2. David mencintai isterinya, David juga 2. David loves his wife, and David (also)
mencintai saya. loves me.
3. David mencintai isterinya, saya juga David loves his wife, and David loves
mencintai istri saya. me too.
4. David mencintai isterinya, saya juga 3. David loves his wife, and I (also) love
mencintai isteri David. mine.
5. David mencintai isteri orang lain David loves his wife, I love mine too.
(misalnya isteri Peter), saya juga 4. David loves his wife, and I also love
mencintai isteri Peter. David’s wife.
6. David mencintai isteri Peter, David David loves his wife, and I love
juga mencintai saya. David’s wife too.
David loves his wife, so do I.
5. David loves Peter’s wife, and I also
love Peter’s wife.
David loves Peter’s wife, so do I.
6. David loves Peter’s wife, David also
loves me.
David loves Peter’s wife, he loves me
too.
In the table above, we can see that the back translation of the 5 Indonesian sentences above
has various translation products based on different contexts.
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Summary
1. According to Nababan, a high quality translation should have three aspects;
accuracy, acceptability, and readability.
2. The accuracy of a text refers to whether the source text and the target text is in
corresponding or not. Corresponding here means the same message is contained in
both texts (source and target text).
3. The acceptability of a text refers to whether the translation product has been
conveyed with good grammatical structures of the target language or not. Even
though the message of a text is accurate, the target readers will have difficulty to
read the translation product if the grammatical structures used are not suitable to
the target language. Then, according to Nababan (2012) one parameter of
acceptability is whether a translation has been conveyed by using appropriate
grammatical structures of the target language.
4. Larson (1984) stated that readability text is aimed to know the scale of readability of
a text due to whether the text is easy to be understood by the target reader or not. A
high readability text is easier to be understood because a low readability text is
difficult to read. The readability consists of diction, sentence construction, paragraph
organization, and grammatical elements, size of type, punctuation, spelling, spaces
between lines, and size of margin.
5. A back translation is where you take a document which has been translated into
another language and translate it back into the original language and compare the
two texts.
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Chapter Eight: Running a Translation Service
Chapter Eight
Running a Translation Service
In the previous chapter, we have learned about how to check the quality of a translation by
using the rating instruments proposed by Nababan. In this chapter, we will run a translation
agency service. After learning the theory of running a translation service, you are required to
conduct your own translation service agency. We will learn about how to handle clients,
advertising our translation agency service, and how to manage the agency.
A. Strategies to be a Freelance Translator

Why is it good to be a translator? Who are the best translators? How to become one of
them? These are most general questions that most people will ask in the first meeting of
their translation class.
For those who are not translators, translation is primarily a text, but for those who are, it is
primarily an activity. The translators should go through long process to produce a good
translation for readers. All good translators have excellent language skills, writing skills,
and technical skills. They are also patient, good at IT and networking with clients,
colleagues, or specialist.
One thing to be clear is that translators are not interpreters. Translator graduates are
expected to be able to translate from two foreign languages into their mother tongue with
good language skills. Of course, we can’t assume by being graduated from translation field,
someone will be able to specialize very early in a particular field of translation. Moreover,
good translators should be proficient in all communication techniques and media, including
word processing, publishing software, search engines, computer-aided translation (CAT)
tools, website design tools, and many more. They also need to be familiar with different
computer platforms, marketing, product design and communication.
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The following strategies can be recommended to anyone starting out as a freelance

translator:
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1. Contact as many translation agencies or companies as possible and say you are available
for work.
2. Leave your CV on professional translation Web sites and portals and translators’ or
translation exchanges.
3. Set up your own translation service website.
4. Use all the classic marketing techniques (telephone calls, mailing lists, etc.);
5. Contact professional organizations and translation companies or agencies in the domain
areas that you want to specialize in and say you are ready to subcontract for them;
Anyone can become a translator. There is no formal academic qualification required to

work as a translator, but advertisements for translators tend to ask for graduates with
professional qualifications and three years of experience in this field. To gain a recognized
professional qualification, you must meet certain criteria. Once you have completed your
basic education and have done a course of study to become a translator, you will need to
gain experience. The most common dilemma for newbie in translation business is “How do I
gain experience if I don’t accept translations or do I accept translations to get experience?”.
There are two kinds of translators; translator who translate books for publication
(including non-fiction works) and translators who translate text for commercial, technical,
or legal purpose. As a translator, you can not choose what to translate. You should be ready
to translate any kind of text asked. To have an experience in translating text, you can find
your guardian angel.
The term “Guardian Angel” means that someone who can help you to get the experience of
being a translator. The Institute of Translation and Interpreting can put you in touch with
an established translator working in the same language as yourself who will take a friendly
interest in you. The guardian angel will provide practical, advice of his experience on
telephone or in person. You might sit in a freelance translator’s office for an afternoon and
observe his approach to his work. A guardian angel can not employ you or find you work
directly, but he should be able to help to acquire ideas of what the work entails. He can also
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tell you skills that you will need to be a successful translator.

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Then, there are six skills you need to be a good translator. Those are:
1) Information technology (including keyboarding skills, software knowledge, and
operating computer),
2) Communication (including giving and processing feedback, questioning, listening,
summarizing, observing, and checking for understanding),
3) Presentation (including clarify of expression, informing, and establishing rapport),
4) Linguistics (including writing, editing, proof-reading, and subject knowledge),
5) Project management (including coordination, leadership, and administration), and
6) Decision making (including consulting, making judgments, evaluating, establishing
facts, analyzing, and reflecting).
In his book, Brown (1995) mentions some requirements for becoming a translator:
1) You have completed your education to university level by attaining your basic degree in
modern languages or linguistics.
2) You have spent a period in the country where the language of your choice is spoken.
3) You may have completed a postgraduate course in translation studies.
4) You have got a job as a trainee or junior translator with a company.
Now, if you ask yourself “Am I suitable to be a translator?”, then the answer will be “try and
see how you feel about it”.
To be a translator, you need experience, and how to gain experience without working with
it? Brown gave advice for those new in translation field that before someone considers
working as a freelance, he should be well-advised to gain at least a couple of years’
experience as a staff translator.
Moreover, if you work with a large company you will have the opportunity of gaining
experience and acquiring expertise in that particular company’s industry. You will have
access to experts in the relevant fields and probably a specialist in library.
If you are fortunate, you will be involved in all stages of documentation from translation,
proof reading and checking through to desk top publishing. Besides, if you work for a
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translation company, you will be exposed to a broader range of subjects. Working as a staff
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translator should provide a structured approach to the work and there should be a
standard routine for processing the work according to the task in hand.
In his book, Brown (1995) explained that working as freelance expectations are as follows:
1) The ability to work more than 24 hours a day.
2) No desire for holidays or weekends off.
3) The ability to drop whatever you’re doing at the moment to fit in a panic job that just has
to be completed by this afternoon.
4) The ability to survive without payment for long periods.
Following are several professional associations for translators and interpreters around the
world. However, the profession is still largely unregulated, many translators are not
necessary certified. Nevertheless, certification is an additional credential all translators
should seriously consider.
In Canada, the Canadian Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters Council (CTTIC) is

recognized as the national body representing professional translators, interpreters and
terminologists. Provincial organizers are responsible for the certification process. A
“Certified Translators”, “Certified Court Interpreter” or a “Certified Conference Interpreter”
is a professional who has passed the Canadian Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters
Council (CTTIC) exam.
In the United States, the largest translator and interpreter association is the American
Translators Association (ATA) (www.atanet.org). ATA has certified translators for over 30
years since 1973. The National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators
(NAJIT) (www.najit.org) provides information about certification of judiciary translators
and interpreters.
B. Translation Agency Service

After you read about some strategies to be a freelance translator, in this part you will learn
130
and practice to start your own translation agency. To start a translation agency, you need to
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know job descriptions of every member, for example:

Mini Translation Agency Service
No Description Responsibility
1 Designing the brochure, create advertisement Alex, Andre, Andika,
video and subtitles. Siti, Safira
2 Spreading the brochure, uploading the Ibnu, Arif, Sukma, Danu,
advertisement video to online social media. Akmal
3 Meeting the clients, contacting the clients, Sofia, Lucy, Joko, Budi,
receiving the translation cost Novi
4 Translating the projects Deliana, Irham, Anita,
Harri, Angel
5 Proofreaders Nur, Sherly, Jonathan,
Roy, Edi
6 Evaluating Board Alex, Ibnu, Sofia,
Deliana, Nur
PBI TRANSLATION SERVICE SAMPLE

Jl. Williem Iskandar Medan Telp: 0821xxxxxxxx email: pbi@gmail.com
Hanya boleh diisi oleh petugas
No. Order/order number : 01

Penerjemah/translator : Irham dan Harri
Proofreader : Nur dan Sherly
A. Data pribadi/client details

Nama klien/client name : Haikal
Nomor KTP/ID number :
Alamat/address :
Handphone :
Institusi/institution :
Jenis layanan/services :
a. Penerjemahan dari bahasa Indonesia ke dalam bahasa Inggris
b. Penerjemahan dari bahasa Inggris ke dalam bahasa Indonesia
B. Dokumen/Document
a. Hardcopy
b. Softcopy
C. Deadline :
D. Pernyataan/Declaration :
Dengan ini saya menerima ketentuan-ketentuan yang berlaku pada
Mini Translation Agency Service
Tanda tangan petugas Tanda tangan client

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(…………………..) (…………………..)
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Translation Agency Brochure sample:
Jasa menerjemahkan teks dari

Translation
bahasa:
Agency Inggris – Indonesia
Menerima Jasa Indonesia – Inggris
Terjemahan
Indonesia – Inggris
Bagus! Cepat! Murah!
Inggris - Indonesia Sulthan: 08xx-xxxx-xxxx
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Summary
1. For those who are not translators, translation is primarily a text, but for those who
are, it is primarily an activity. The translators should go through long process to
produce a good translation for readers. All good translators have excellent language
skills, writing skills, and technical skills. They are also patient, good at IT and
networking with clients, colleagues, or specialist.
2. Anyone can become a translator. There is no formal academic qualification required
to work as a translator, but advertisements for translators tend to ask for graduates
with professional qualifications and three years of experience in this field.
3. There are two kinds of translators; translator who translate books for publication
(including non-fiction works) and translators who translate text for commercial,
technical, or legal purpose.
4. In his book, Brown (1995) mentions some requirements for becoming a translator:
1) You have completed your education to university level by attaining your basic
degree in modern languages or linguistics.
2) You have spent a period in the country where the language of your choice is
spoken.
3) You may have completed a postgraduate course in translation studies.
4) You have got a job as a trainee or junior translator with a company.
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Chapter Nine: Conducting Researches in Translation Field
Chapter Nine
Conducting Researches in Translation Field
In this chapter, we will discuss about how to participate in a workshop, how to conduct a
research in translation field, and submit our article to international journals. Moreover, we
will learn to use a useful reference manager (Mendeley) for writing a research effectively.
A. Research in Translation Field

To participate in a workshop of translation field, we need to find the information from the
website online. For example, we get some information from this website;
https://iqsaweb.wordpress.com. From this website, we can read the information below:
Call for Papers: International Conference and Workshop “The Translation of the Qur’an
in Indonesia”
International Conference and Workshop
“The Translation of the Qur’an in Indonesia”
Organized by
Albert-Ludwigs-Universitat Freiburg, Department of Islamic Studies, and Sunan Kalijaga State
Islamic University, Graduate School
Yogyakarta, July 30-31, 2018
Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country, has brought forth an ever-
growing number of Qur’an translations during the colonial period and after the nation’s
independence in 1945. The formation of Bahasa Indonesia during the colonial period, its
nomination as official language of the Indonesian Republic and its use as a standard medium
of literacy after independence have been instrumental to that development. Even the
Indonesian government has been active in the production of Qur’an translations. However, the
translation of the Qur’an in Indonesia is not restricted to works in Bahasa Indonesia. The
country is home to a great number of local languages and a variety of regional customs, a fact
that is reflected in the substantial number of Qur’an translations into those languages.
Despite the importance and – at times – highly contested nature of this genre of religious
literature, it has received comparatively little scholarly attention. This conference invites
scholars, researchers, and advanced students in Islamic studies, social studies, literature or
translation studies to contribute to the study of Qur’an translations both into Bahasa
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Indonesia and into local Indonesian languages. The event aims to elucidate and discuss,
among other issues, the role of specific translations, the intentions of their authors, their social
relevance, the linguistic dimension of transferring Arabic content into a local target language,
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and the emergence of conflicts focusing on the translation of the Qur’an.

Please submit your abstracts (approx. 1000 words) by February 28, 2018 to Professor Moch.
Nur Ichwan (moch.ichwan@uin-suka.ac.id) and Johanna Pink (johanna.pink@orient.uni-
freiburg.de). The abstracts should be submitted in English as a PDF file. The working language
of the conference will be English.
You will be notified of the acceptance of your paper by March 31, 2018, at the latest. You will
then be required to submit a draft of your paper by July 15, 2018. Your travel costs and
accommodation during the conference will be fully funded.
All accepted papers will be considered for inclusion in an edited volume on the translation of
the Qur’an in Indonesia that will be submitted to an international publisher.
After reading the information above, we should realize that we should submit an abstract
(approx. 1000 words) by February 28, 2018 to Professor Moch. Nur Ichwan and Johanna
Pink in the form of PDF file, and it should be written in English. Following is the sample of
abstract that has been sent to the email address above:

ABSTRACT
people in understanding the message of the Holy Qur’an and also to preserve the existence of the
Angkola language itself. This language is widely used in the daily life and cultural tradition of
Angkola Bataknese people in South Tapanuli of North Sumatra. However, it is very important to
maintain the message of the Holy Qur’an and prevent the translation shift that could happen in
case of mixing with the culture of Angkola people. This study aims to see the most dominant
translation techniques, the translators’ ideology, and the quality of Angkola translation of the
Holy Qur’an. The methodology of this research is descriptive qualitative which is an embedded-
case study and oriented to translation product (Toury, 1995). The Translation techniques
proposed by Molina and Albir (2002, p.509-511) are used to analyze the data. The data of this
study are words, phrases, and clauses in the 96 verses of Al-Waqi’ah surah in Arabic and its
translation in Angkola language translated by the translator team in the Faculty of Ushuluddin
and Islamic Studies, The State Islamic University of North Sumatra in 2016 published by
Puslitbag Lektur dan Khazanah Keagamaan Ministry of Religion Affairs Jakarta. After analyzing
the data, it can be seen that 1) the most dominant translation techniques used by the translators
are literal (word by word translation) and amplification techniques (giving additional
information in footnote or body note). 2) The translators have foreignization ideology. Even
though the translators translate the Holy Qur’an into Angkola language in order to get the local
135
people access to the message of the Holy Qur’an, the translators do not introduce the cultural
items of the Angkola language in the translation product. In attempting to produce the easy
understanding translation for the target readers (Bataknese Angkola people) the translators used
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a lot of amplification techniques and literal technique to optimally express the message of the
Holy Qur’an without adding cultural items of Angkola language. The translators are being
attempt to keep the cultural atmosphere of the source language (Arabic) to fully transferred the
message of the Holy Qur’an and prevent the translation shift. 3) The translation of surah Al-
Waqi’ah in Angkola language has good quality in the aspect of accuracy, acceptability, and
readability. Overall, it can be concluded that the translation of the Holy Qur’an especially surah
Al-Waqi’ah is accurate, acceptable, and readable for the target readers (Angkola people) to read
and understand because the translators have foreignization ideology which maintain the
originality of the source text without making additional changes to adapt the translation to the
culture of Angkola people.
After submitting the abstract above, we wait for the abstract acceptance notification that will be
sent to our email. The abstract acceptance notification will be like this:
Dear Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren,
Thank you very much for having submitted an abstract and applied for participation in the
conference “The translation of the Qur’an in Indonesia”!
I’m happy to inform you that, after careful consideration of the more than 70 proposals we have
received, the selection committee has selected your paper for inclusion in the conference.
The conference will take place on July 30 and 31 for two full days (9 am to 5.30 pm). We will
offer accommodation to all participants from July 29 to August 1. If you do not need
accommodation for part or all of that period, please let us know as soon as possible.
Should your schedule change and prevent you from being able to participate again, please let us
know right away so we can make other arrangements.
We will cover the costs of your trip to and from the conference. It would be easiest for us if you
could book your own travel arrangements and we reimbursed you during the conference. Should
this pose financial difficulties to you, however, please do not feel embarrassed to let us know, we
will find a solution.
We would like to ask you to send us a draft version of your paper by July 15.
Please find attached a preliminary program. It is still subject to change but will give you a first
idea of the scope of the conference and the range of participants.
We look forward to meeting you at the conference!

136
On behalf of the organizing committee,

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Johanna Pink
B. International Journals
In this part, you will learn submission guidelines for international journals of translation.
1. TARGET (https://benjamins.com/#catalog/journals/target/main)
Target promotes the scholarly study of translational phenomena from any part of the world
and welcomes submissions of an interdisciplinary nature. The journal’s focus is on research
on the theory, history, culture and sociology of translation and on the description and
pedagogy that underpin and interact with these foci. We welcome contributions with a
theoretical, empirical, or applied focus. We especially welcome papers on topics at the
cutting edge of the discipline, as well as shorter positioning statements which may
encourage discussion by contributors to the “Forum” section of the journal. The purpose of
the review section is to introduce and discuss the most important publications in the field
and to reflect its evolution.
On Target’s new multilingual website we publish translations of articles and reviews into
multiple languages which are linked to the original article, bringing into practice the
137
journal’s core topic and honoring multilingualism. If you are interested in translating a
(review) article from a previous Target issue, please contact our Multilingual Website
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Editor at marinettic cardiff.ac.uk. Authors wishing to submit articles for publication in

Target are requested to do so through the journal’s online submission and manuscript
tracking site. Please consult the guidelines and the Short Guide to EM for Authors before
you submit your paper. If you are not able to submit online, or for any other editorial
correspondence, please contact the editors by e-mail: dirk.delabastita unamur.be or
sandra.halverson hib.no.
Special issues
Proposals for special issues will be considered once a year. All proposals should be
submitted by the cut-off date of May 1st three years prior to the year in which guest editors
wish to publish their issue. The first available slot for a special issue is in volume 32 (2020)
(deadline for proposals 1st May 2017). Submissions should comprise full contact details, a
title, and a Call for Papers and/or a Table of Contents, as well as a production schedule.
Please send proposals directly via email to both Editors (dirk.delabastita unamur.be and
sandra.halverson hib.no), who will communicate their decision by June 1st.
Special issues currently under preparation:

vol. 29 (2017): Stefan Baumgarten, Yan Ying, and Jordi Cornellà-Detrell (eds), Translation,
Domination and Hegemony
vol. 30 (2018): none [Forum discussion planned]
vol. 31 (2019): Robert Valdeón (ed.), Language, Translation and Empire in the Americas
vol. 32 (2020): first available slot
General Guide
In principle Target observes text conventions outlined in The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th
edition (hereafter CMS). For all editorial problems not specifically addressed below, please
refer to CMS.
Submission
Authors wishing to submit articles for publication in Target are requested to do so through
the journal’s online submission and manuscript tracking site. Please consult the Short Guide
138
to EM for Authors before you submit your paper. As all manuscripts are double-blind peer-
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reviewed, please ensure that all identifying markings in the text and in the document
properties are removed from one of the electronic versions. If works cited in the
manuscript are identifiable as your own, please mark them as NN in the citation and in the
list of references.
Format
a. Article length may vary but is preferably between 6,000 and 8,000 words (footnotes,
references and appendices included).
b. Please use Word. If you use any special characters, tables or figures, please supply a PDF
file as well. Please number all pages consecutively.
c. Please use font size Times New Roman 12 point and double line spacing throughout,
quotations, notes and references included. Please define margins so as to obtain a text
area of 13 x 22 cm (or 5 x 8.6 inches).
d. Begin the References on a new page.
e. Notes should be kept to a minimum. Note indicators in the text should appear at the end
of sentences or phrases, and follow the respective punctuation marks.
f. Contributions should be consistent in their use of language and spelling; for instance,
articles should be in British English or American English throughout.
g. Please use a reader-friendly style! Manuscripts submitted to Target must be written in
clear, concise and grammatical English. If not written by a native speaker, it is advisable
to have the paper checked by a native speaker.
h. Illustrations and tables
Tables and figures should be numbered consecutively using Arabic numerals, provided with
appropriate captions, and be referred to in the main text in this manner: “in Table 2…” (and
never like this: “in the following table…”). Figure captions should be placed below the
figure, while table captions should be placed above the relevant table.
Quotations
Editorial interventions in quotations (indications such as sic, or interpolated comments)
need to be signaled by the use of square brackets. Ellipsis points used to indicate a deleted
passage in a quotation, too, need to be bracketed (CMS par. 13.56). Quotations in the main
139
text should be given in double quotation marks with the appropriate reference to the
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source. Following CMS (par. 6.9–11), periods and commas should precede closing quotation
marks. If the quotation does not include closing punctuation and is followed by the in-text
reference, then the closing punctuation follows the in-text reference (CMS par. 15.25).
Quotations longer than 3 lines should be indented, without quotation marks and with the
appropriate reference to the source. They should be set off from the main text by a line of
space above and below.
i. Lists
Lists should not be indented. If numbered, please number as follows:
1. ..................... or a. .......................
2. ..................... or b. .......................
Lists that run on with the main text can be numbered in parentheses: (1).............., (2).............,
etc.
j. Examples and glosses
Examples should be numbered with Arabic numerals in parentheses: (1), (2), (3), etc.
Examples in languages other than English should be in italics with an approximate
translation. Between the original and the translation, glosses should be added. This
interlinear gloss gets no punctuation and no highlighting.
k. Fonts
Use italics for foreign language, highlighting and emphasis. Bold should be used only for
highlighting within italics and for headings. Please refrain from the use of small caps, FULL
CAPS (except for focal stress and acronyms) and underlining (except for highlighting within
examples, as an alternative to boldface). For terms or expressions (e.g., ‘context of
situation’), please use single quotes. For glosses of citation forms use double quotes.
l. Sections and headings
Articles should be reasonably divided into sections and, if necessary, into sub-sections;
these have to be numbered, beginning with 1 (not 0). Numbering should be in Arabic
numerals; no italics; no dot after the last number, except for level-one headings.
Do not go beyond three levels. Please mark the headings as follows: level one (bold), level
two (roman), level three (italic).
m. Inclusive numbers
Target prefers the foolproof system of giving the full form of numbers everywhere (CMS,
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par. 9.61). In other words, inclusive page numbers and years should not be abbreviated:
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e.g., 210-212 (rather than 210-2), the war of 1914-1918 (rather than 1914-18). This also
applies to references.
n. Appendixes
Appendixes should follow the References section.
o. References
It is essential that the references be formatted to the specifications given in these
guidelines.
References in the text:

Target uses the Author–Date reference system. A comma is used between the date and the
page number. References should be as precise as possible, giving page references where
necessary; for example (Clahsen 1991, 252) or: as in Brown et al. (1991, 252). All
references in the text should appear in the references section. For repeated consecutive
references to the same source, and where no confusion is possible, it suffices to provide the
page reference between brackets; for example (252).
References section:
References should be listed first alphabetically and then chronologically, in ascending
order. Subdivisions (e.g., Primary sources; Other references) may exceptionally be
envisaged in certain cases, but in principle a single list is preferred.
The section should include all (and only!) references that are actually mentioned in the text.
A note on capitalization in titles:

For titles in English, Target uses headline-style capitalization (CMS, par. 8.157). In titles and
subtitles, capitalize the first and last words, and all other major words (nouns, pronouns,
verbs, adjectives, adverbs, some conjunctions). Do not capitalize articles; prepositions
(unless used adverbially or adjectivally, or as part of a Latin expression used adverbially or
adjectivally); the conjunctions ‘and,’ ‘but,’ ‘for,’ ‘or’ and ‘nor’; ‘to’ as part of an infinitive; ‘as’
in any grammatical function; parts of proper names that would be lower case in normal
text. For more details and examples, consult CMS. For titles in any other languages, as well
141
as for English translations of titles given in square brackets, Target follows CMS in using
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sentence-style capitalization: capitalization as in normal prose, i.e., the first word in the
title, the subtitle, and any proper names or other words normally given initial capitals in the
language in question. When giving publisher place information, give only the first place
name if two or more are available, e.g., Amsterdam: John Benjamins (CMS par. 14.35).
Examples of references:
Monograph
Butler, Judith. 2006. Gender Trouble. 3rd ed. London: Routledge.
O’Hagan, Minako, and Carmen Mangiron. 2013. Game Localization: Translating for the
Global Digital Entertainment Industry. Benjamins Translation Library 106. Amsterdam:
John Benjamins.
Edited volume
Spear, Norman E., and Ralph R. Miller, eds. 1981. Information Processing in Animals:
Memory Mechanisms. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Scholarly edition
James, Henry. 1962-1964. The Complete Tales of Henry James. Edited by Leon Edel. 12 vols.
London: Rupert Hart-Davis.
Special issue of journal

Pym, Anthony, ed. 2000. The Return to Ethics. Special issue of The Translator 7 (2).
Manchester: St Jerome.
Translated work
Mitchell, David. 2010. De niet verhoorde gebeden van Jacob de Zoet [orig. The Thousand
Autumns of Jacob de Zoet]. Translated by Harm Damsma, and Niek Miedema. S.l.: Nieuw
Amsterdam Uitgevers.
Shakespeare, William. 1947. Henri V. Translated by M.J. Lavelle. Collection bilingue des
Classiques étrangers. Paris: Montaigne.
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Article in book
Adams, Clare A., and Anthony Dickinson. 1981. “Actions and Habits: Variation in Associative
Representation during Instrumental Learning.” In Information Processing in Animals:
Memory Mechanisms, ed. by Norman E. Spear, and Ralph R. Miller, 143–186. Hillsdale, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum.
Article in journal
Bassnett, Susan. 2012. “Translation Studies at Cross-roads.” In The Known Unknowns of
Translation Studies, ed. by Elke Brems, Reine Meylaerts, and Luc van Doorslaer, special
issue of Target 24 (1): 15–25.
Claes, Jeroen, and Luis A. Ortiz López. 2011. “Restricciones pragmáticas y sociales en la
expresión de futuridad en el español de Puerto Rico [Pragmatic and social restrictions in
the expression of the future in Puerto Rican Spanish].” Spanish in Context 8: 50–72.
Rayson, Paul, Geoffrey N. Leech, and Mary Hodges. 1997. “Social Differentiation in the Use of
English Vocabulary: Some Analyses of the Conversational Component of the British National
Corpus.” International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 2 (1): 120–132.
Article in online journal

Taplin, Oliver. 2001. “The Experience of an Academic in the Rehearsal Room.” Didaskalia 5
(1). http://www.didaskalia.net/issues/vol5no1/taplin.html#FN1Rtn.
Internet site
European Observatory for Plurilingualism. Accessed April 22, 2013.
http://www.observatoireplurilinguisme.eu/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1
Various unpublished sources

Marinetti, Cristina. 2007. Beyond the Playtext: The Relationship between Text and
Performance in the Translation of Il servitore di due padroni. PhD diss. University of
143
Warwick.
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Quinn, Gavin. 2009. Personal interview. August 5, 2009.

2. Translation and Interpreting Studies
(https://beta.benjamins.com/#catalog/journals/tis/main)
Translation and Interpreting Studies (TIS) is a peer-reviewed journal designed to

disseminate knowledge and research relevant to all areas of language mediation. TIS seeks
to address broad, common concerns among scholars working in various areas of
Translation and Interpreting Studies, while encouraging sound empirical research that
could serve as a bridge between academics and practitioners.
The journal is also dedicated to facilitating communication among those who may be
working on related subjects in other fields, from Comparative Literature to Information
Science. Finally, TIS is a forum for the dissemination in English translation of relevant
scholarly research originally published in languages other than English. TIS is the official
journal of the American Translation and Interpreting Studies Association (ATISA).
Submission Guidelines
144
Three types of submissions will be considered for publication in TIS:

1) Scholarly articles
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2) Translation scholarship in translation

3) Review essays
All submissions should be in English.
Article Submissions
a. Submissions should be between 5000 and 6500 words, exclusive of bibliography. Please
contact the editor concerning submissions that do not fit within these word limits.
b. All submissions should conform to the journal style sheet. See below.
c. Submissions can be delivered electronically as a Word file attachment (to: bbaer
kent.edu) or as a hard copy. Hard copies can be sent to: Brian James Baer, TIS, 109
Satterfield Hall, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242.
d. Receipt of submissions will be confirmed via email.
e. The review process will take from 2-3 months. If a disagreement among the reviewers
requires that the submission be sent out to a third reviewer, the author will be notified
of any delay.
Translation Scholarship in Translation

a. Translations of scholarly works into English should be submitted with a copy of the
source text, a short introduction (100-500 words) by the translator, explaining the
importance of the source author’s work to Translation and Interpreting Studies, as well
as permission to publish;
b. Submissions should be between 5000 and 6500 words, exclusive of bibliography. Please
contact the editor concerning submissions that do not fit within these words limits;
c. All submissions of this kind should conform to the journal style sheet. See below.
Review Essays
a. Review essays should consider three or more scholarly works in a single field or in
related fields of Translation and Interpreting Studies and situate them within a
disciplinary context;
b. The length of review essays should be between 1000 and 3000 words;
c. All review essays should conform to the journal style sheet.
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Formatting Guidelines
For the benefit of production efficiency, the publisher and the editor ask you to follow the
following submission guidelines strictly. Papers that do not follow these guidelines will be
returned to the author. Contributions should be consistent in their use of language and
spelling. If you are not a native speaker of the language in which you have written your
contribution, it is advised to have your text checked by a native speaker. When submitting
the final manuscript to the journal, please include: a one-paragraph abstract, approximately
five keywords, a short professional biography of the author, and a current mailing address.
Hard copy and electronic files

a. Hard copy: Please make sure you provide hard copy that is identical to the material on
disk. In case of any mismatch between the hard copy and the file, the typesetters regard
the hard copy as the conclusive document. During the production process the hard copy
is very helpful to the typesetter when faced with problems in the files, such as
conversion errors, distorted tables, lost graphs, etc.
b. Files: Please take care that you supply all the files, text as well as graphic files, used in
the creation of the manuscript, and be sure to submit the final version of the manuscript.
And please delete any personal comments so that these will not mistakenly be typeset
and check that all files are readable.
c. File naming conventions: When naming your file please use the following convention:
use the first three characters of the first author’s last name; if that name is Johnson, the
file should be named JOH.DOC, JOH.WP5, etc. Do not use the three character extension
for things other than the identification of the file type (not JOH.ART, JOH.REV). Figures
can be named as follows JOH1.EPS, JOH2.TIF, JOH3.XLS, etc. Please write the file names
down on the corresponding hard copy.
d. Software: Word (PC/Mac) is preferred. If you intend to use other word processing
software, please contact the editors first.
e. Graphic files: Please supply figures as Encapsulated Postscript (EPS) or Tagged Image
File Format (TIFF) conversion in addition to the original creation files. For graphics that
are not available in digital format, such as photographs, spectrographs, etc., please
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provide sharp and clear prints (not photocopies) in black & white.
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Lay-out
In order to facilitate smooth production it is important that you follow the journal’s
style for consistency. In this respect we advise you to make use of our electronic styles in
addition to these guidelines. Do not add running heads, implement full justification or
hyphen-ation, or the exact margin settings as used by Benjamins in printing. It is sufficient
to characterize elements such as examples, quotations, tables, headings etc. in the
formatting in a clear and consistent way, so that they can be identified and formatted in the
style of the journal. Formatting that should be supplied by you is the formatting of
references (see below) and font enhancements (such as italics, bold, caps, small caps, etc.)
in the text.
Whatever formatting or style conventions are employed, please be consistent.

a. Tables and figures: All tables, trees and figures must fit within the following page size (if
necessary, after – limited – reduction) and should still be legible at this size:
12 cm (4.73”) x 20 cm (7.87”).
b. Suggested font setting for tables: Times Roman 10 pts (absolute minimum: 8 pts).
Tables and figures should be numbered consecutively, provided with appropriate
captions and should be referred to in the main text in this manner, e.g., “in table 2”, but
never like this “in the following table: “. Please indicate the preferred position of the
table or figure in the text.
c. Running heads: Please do not include running heads with your article. However, in case
of a long title please suggest a short one for the running head (max. 55 characters) on
the cover sheet of your contribution.
d. Emphasis and foreign words: Use italics for foreign language, highlighting and emphasis.
Bold should be used only for highlighting within italics and for headings. Please refrain
from the use of FULL CAPS (except for focal stress and abbreviations) and underlining
(except for highlighting within examples, as an alternative for boldface), unless this is a
strict convention in your field of research. For terms or expressions (e.g., ‘context of
situation’) please use single quotes. For glosses of citation forms, use double quotes.
e. Transliteration: Please transliterate into English any examples from languages that use a
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non-Latin script, using the appropriate transliteration system (ISO or LOC).

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f. Symbols and special characters: In case you have no access to certain characters, we
advise you to use a clear convention to mark these characters. You can use our font table
(Appendix A) or any other regular table to list the correspondences between your
symbols and the required ones. If you use any phonetic characters, please mark these by
the use of a character style if possible. This will enable us to retrieve those characters in
your document.
g. Chapters and headings: Chapters or articles should be reasonably divided into sections
and, if necessary, into sub-sections. If you cannot use the electronic styles, please mark
the headings as follows:
Level 1 = bold italics, 1 line space before, section number flush left. Text immediately below.
Level 2 = italics, 1 line space before, section number flush left. Text immediately below.
Level 3ff = italics, 1 line space before, section number flush left. Heading ends with a full
stop, with the text following on the same line.
h. Numbering should be in arabic numerals; no italics; no dot after the last number, except
for level 1 headings.
i. Quotations: In the main text quotations should be given in double quotation marks.
Quotations longer than 3 lines should be indented left and right, without quotations
marks and with the appropriate reference to the source. They should be set off from the
main text by a line of space above and below.
j. Listings: Should not be indented. If numbered, please number as follows:
1. ..................... or a. .......................
2. ..................... or b. .......................
Listings that run on with the main text can be numbered in parentheses:
(1).............., (2)............., etc.
Examples and glosses
Examples should be numbered with Arabic numerals (1,2,3, etc.) in parentheses.
Examples in languages other than the language in which your contribution is written should
be in italics with an approximate translation. Between the original and the translation,
glosses can be added. This interlinear gloss gets no punctuation and no highlighting. For the
148
abbreviations in the interlinear gloss, CAPS or small caps can be used, which will be
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converted to small caps by our typesetters in final formatting.

Please note that lines 1 and 2 are lined up through the use of spaces: it is essential that the
number of elements in lines 1 and 2 match. If two words in the example correspond to one
word in the gloss use a full stop to glue the two together (2a). Morphemes are seperated by
hyphens (1, 2b).
Every next level in the example gets one indent/tab.
For full details see the Leipzig Glossing Rules.
Notes
k. Notes should be kept to a minimum. Note indicators in the text should appear at the end
of sentences and follow punctuation marks.
References
It is essential that the references are formatted to the specifications given in these
guidelines, as these cannot be formatted automatically. This book series uses the ‘Author-
Date’ style as described in The Chicago Manual of Style (16th ed.).
l. References in the text: These should be as precise as possible, giving page references
where necessary; for example (Clahsen 1991, 252) or: as in Brown et al. (1991, 252). All
references in the text should appear in the references section.
m. References section: References should be listed first alphabetically and then
chronologically. The section should include all (and only!) references that are actually
mentioned in the text.
A note on capitalization in titles. For titles in English, CMS uses headline-style capitalization.
In titles and subtitles, capitalize the first and last words, and all other major words (nouns,
pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, some conjunctions). Do not capitalize articles;
prepositions (unless used adverbially or adjectivally, or as part of a Latin expression used
adverbially or adjectivally); the conjunctions and, but, for, or, nor; to as part of an infinitive;
as in any grammatical function; parts of proper names that would be lower case in normal
text; the second part of a species name.
For more details and examples, consult the Chicago Manual of Style. For any other
149
languages, and English translations of titles given in square brackets, CMS uses sentence-
Page
style capitalization: capitalization as in normal prose, i.e., the first word in the title, the
subtitle, and any proper names or other words normally given initial capitals in the
language in question.
Examples
Book:
Görlach, Manfred. 2003. English Words Abroad. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Spear, Norman E., and Ralph R. Miller (eds). 1981. Information Processing in Animals:
Memory Mechanisms. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Article (in book):
Adams, Clare A., and Anthony Dickinson. 1981. “Actions and Habits: Variation in Associative
Representation during Instrumental Learning.” In Information Processing in Animals:
Memory Mechanisms, ed. by Norman E. Spear, and Ralph R. Miller, 143–186. Hillsdale, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum.
Article (in journal):
Claes, Jeroen, and Luis A. Ortiz López. 2011. “Restricciones pragmáticas y sociales en la
expresión de futuridad en el español de Puerto Rico [Pragmatic and social restrictions in
the expression of the future in Puerto Rican Spanish].” Spanish in Context 8: 50–72.
Rayson, Paul, Geoffrey N. Leech, and Mary Hodges. 1997. “Social Differentiation in the Use of
English Vocabulary: Some Analyses of the Conversational Component of the British National
Corpus.” International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 2 (1): 120–132.
Additional Style Guidance

Please use in-text citations, numbered endnotes, and works cited.
a. Please do not justify the right margin of your manuscript or the electronic version on
disk. Leave a ragged right margin.
b. Please double space everything, including quotations and footnotes.
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c. Please use American spellings and punctuation, including o spellings in -ize, -or,
etc. punctuation that includes a comma before and or or in a series of 3 items (e.g.
Page
lexis, morphology, and syntax), commas to set off any preceding dependent clause of
a complex sentence or to divide a compound sentence double quotes to enclose a
quotation and single quotes to indicate a quote within a quote; end quotes after
punctuation (i.e., “to be done.”) comma after i.e. and e.g. do not punctuate lists
d. Section headers, if used, should simply be phrases with no numbers. Please restrict
headers to three or four per essay. They may be italicized.
Proofing procedure
The first author of a contribution will receive a PDF of first proofs of the article for
correction via email and will be requested to return the corrections to the journal editor
within 7 days of receipt. Acrobat Reader can be downloaded for free from www.adobe.com
which will enable you to read and print the file. Please limit corrections to the essential. It is
at the publisher’s discretion not to implement substantial textual changes or to charge the
author. If it is absolutely necessary to change larger chunks of text (i.e. more than just a few
words), please submit the corrections separately (in Word).
Please contact the journal editor if you cannot handle proofs for your article in electronic
format (i.e., receive the proofs as a PDF-attachment at your email address, print them out,
and return your corrections marked on the paper printout).
C. Reference Manager (Mendeley)

When you write a paper, you may be have a difficulty in writing good reference, now you
can feel at ease because you will learn how to use Mendeley. Mendeley is a free reference
manager. It functions to help you writing good reference for you paper.
1. What is Mendeley?
Revolutionizing the way you do research, for individual researchers, teams and groups.
Mendeley is a free reference manager and an academic social network. Manage your
research, showcase your work, connect and collaborate with over five million researchers
worldwide.
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Showcase the impact of your work
Showcase your publications to millions of researchers worldwide, and measure your article
performance with a range of authoritative metrics, including downloads and citations.
Follow colleagues and peers to view their research output and grow your network.
Share and collaborate

Share reading lists, references and full-text articles with your network, publicly or privately.
Create groups to tackle research assignments, share feedback and write papers with your
collaborators. Keep all your research in one place
Search and sort all of your references, documents and notes in one place. Store your
research securely and access it easily across all your devices. Read and annotate on the go.
Use Mendeley online or offline to access your documents on the move. Highlight, annotate
and add sticky notes to capture your thoughts in context.
Citation and bibliographies

Generate your citations and bibliography as you write, in the style of your choice - with just
a few clicks. Compatible with Microsoft Word, LibreOffice and BibTeX. Mendeley has mobile
apps for iPad, iPhone and Android, so you can access your Mendeley library, read and
annotate your PDFs, and keep everything in sync wherever you are, across all your devices.
2. How to use Mendeley?

a. Visit Mendeley by typing Mendeley on Google.
b. Click create free account.
c. Click create Mendeley account. You will see this interface:
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d. Fill the information asked.

e. Type your E-mail address, First name, Last name, and Password, click continue.
f. Next type your institution name, field of study, and academic status, and complete
the registration.
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Summary
1. Target promotes the scholarly study of translational phenomena from any part of
the world and welcomes submissions of an interdisciplinary nature.
2. Translation and Interpreting Studies (TIS) is a peer-reviewed journal designed to
disseminate knowledge and research relevant to all areas of language mediation.
3. Mendeley is a free reference manager and an academic social network. Manage your
research, showcase your work, connect and collaborate with over five million
researchers worldwide.
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Chapter Ten: Professional Translators Communities
Chapter Ten
Professional Translators Communities
We have learned about how to translate a sentence, a paragraph, how to use and analyze
translation techniques. We also have learned about how to solve some problems in translating
text, we use computer software to translate comics, subtitles, and we also have conducted
translation agency services. In this chapter, we will be become a member of international and
national professional organizations of translators.
A. How to be a Professional Translator?
Professional translation is very complex and takes more than a person knowing how to
speak the language. It takes years of practice and understanding of the language. A
professional translator must be able to understand, assimilate and reproduce the
information and meaning of the translation and do it all naturally. Here’s a quick look at
what it takes to become a professional translator.
To become a translator you have to at least know two languages. Most of your professional
translators translate no more than four languages. Any more languages than four and it will
start to take time away from practicing and mastering the languages. A college degree is
essential but not necessarily a degree in a particular language is needed. It’s beneficial to
have qualifications or experience in a different field and even more beneficial when you
follow it up with postgraduate linguistic training. When choosing your language
combinations think about also learning the cultures and the customs of the countries as
well. You can do this by traveling abroad and immersing yourself in the language and
culture. Most universities will give credits toward your degree for a semester abroad.
There’s no substitute for first-hand experience.
Besides classroom education, linguistic training and studying abroad you’re going to need
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some tools and resources for your language and document translations. First and foremost
you’ll need a computer with internet connection. And, if you’re traveling abroad you might
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want to purchase an internet card so you always have the option of going online. You’ll also
need to purchase word processing software, a telephone, answering machine and fax
machine. Other resources include dictionaries, translation memory software and CAT tools.
CAT refers to computer aided translations tools. These tools can be quite expensive but will
be worth the investment in the long run.
Once you’ve completed your education and have purchased your start-up equipment it’s
time to find that professional translation job. When creating your resume remember to
include a brief description of your education and any degrees you received and the different
fields of those degrees. Also include your qualifications and the languages from which you
translate also known as your source language. In some countries adding a photo to your
resume is the norm. It’s also important to include the equipment and software you use to
produce your translations and how you communicate your daily work via email or fax.
To find a translation job start hitting up your network of friends, college career centers and
search online. There are forums and groups online for translators. You can also research a
localization company. A lot of localization companies hire freelance translators to work all
over the world. It takes years of practice to master two to four languages and become a
professional translator, but if you like to travel then this may be the job for you. Just stay in
school, get some linguistic training, travel abroad and practice, practice, practice.
B. Steps to be a Professional Translator or Interpreter
Here are some steps you can do to be a professional translator or interpreter:
1) Get the right education and qualifications. Get a degree or a combination of degrees
in translation/interpretation studies, foreign languages, linguistics, comparative
literature, or intercultural communication and all the qualifications and training
necessary.
2) Get Certified
The first thing to know how to become a translator is to get some sort of
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accreditation or certification. Having credentials provides documentation that you

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have the skills required to translate or interpret professionally. Many universities

offer advanced degrees and professional certifications in translation, and we have a
separate post dedicated to the subject: Top 10 U.S. Translation Schools. Want to be a
translator? The American Translator’s Association offers certification programs for
translators. Want to be a judicial or medical interpreter?
Organizations such as the National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and

Translators and the International Medical Interpreters Association offer
certifications as well. Finally, check to see if your state offers accreditation programs
for translators / interpreters. Being certified through one of these organizations is
also helpful because you will be listed on their website directories, where potential
clients requiring your services can find you. Overall, certification may not be
required to be a successful translator or interpreter, but if you’re starting out in this
industry, it is the best place to start.
3) Get Tested
Another resume builder is to take language proficiency tests such as the Defense
Language Proficiency Test (DLPT) or other language proficiency tests to show
potential clients that you are indeed fluent in your specific language.
4) Gain experience.
This involves interning with an office or an organization or simply freelancing. For
tips, see How to succeed as a freelance translator.
All of us have had to start out doing internships or working entry-level jobs in order
to climb the ladder, and the language industry is no exception. If you’re enrolled at or
live near a college, take classes in translation / interpreting and look for
opportunities to perform translation or interpreting work on campus for various
departments. It is crucial to get experience where you can show samples of your
work to potential clients and get recommendations.
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5) Join a local or national professional translation/interpretation society. Such

Page
organizations exist all over the world and serve as a means of providing proper
certification as well as professional development opportunities. After getting
credentials and some experience, it’s time to market yourself to law firms, police
stations, hospitals, government agencies, and language agencies that may need
translators or interpreters in your area.
Most translators / interpreters work for clients on a contract basis, not as full time
employees. A great way to market your services is to start a website or blog and join
the active community of online language professionals. Also, make sure you have
your resume and rates ready! The best indicator that an aspiring translator or
interpreter is not a professional is when they have no idea what their rates should
be! If you don’t know what rates to charge, call other interpreters and translators
and find out what theirs are.
6) Choose an area of activity. Different careers require different things. If you do not
want to freelance, you will need to get signed with an agency, a translation office,
publishing house, a large business or an organization, such as the UN or EU.
7) Choose an area of specialization. Many translators only translate and many

interpreters only interpret. Each field further more has specialized sub-fields:
technical translation, certified translation, film translation, literary translation,
simultaneous interpreting, court interpreting, medical interpreting, etc. Go with
what you're good at. If you have a degree in physics and German for instance, you
may want to specialize in translating German scientific texts, etc.
8) Get people to know you and get to know people. You need people to know your
name in connection with the business you work in. Begin with your friends and
family, tell them you are in the business and have them recommend you to other
people. Also, get some advertisement if you can afford it.
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9) Be quick, effective, and efficient. To succeed, you need to work fast, yet provide high
quality services. To be able to convey the message correctly and efficiently,
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translators need to master the source and target languages. A good professional
translator will be able to translate the business documents to its native language or
equivalent. They will also need to be familiar with the topic or field being translated
so as to translate more accurately.
10)Be professional. Always be professional to your clients and co-workers. You do not
want to gain a bad reputation. Never accept jobs you are not qualified for or accept
too many jobs at the same time and always keep your deadlines.
11)Work hard. Just like in any other business, you have to work really hard to succeed.
To become really successful, you might (and probably will) have to work nights,
weekends and holidays.
12) Practice. When you're not working on a contract or at a conference, exercise your
translation and/or interpretation skills for fun by rendering things like news
broadcasts, news articles, short stories, etc. As you progress as a translator /
interpreter, there are other areas to consider as well. What specialized industry or
industries can you translate or interpret for? Do you keep up with industry terms
and trends? Are you computer savvy and knowledgeable regarding translation
memory software? Can you provide simultaneous as well as consecutive
interpreting? If you have had success as a translator, maybe you could consider
diversifying and becoming a certified court or medical interpreter. Translators need
to have the capacity and always ready to adapt to any changes in the fast-moving
technological world.
They should also be well-versed with modern communication tools such as instant
messenger and computers. The last thing that professional translators should think
about is to stop learning. To survive in the fierce translation business, professional
translators and agencies need to be more professional than in other profession. As
consumers can now use Internet to locate any translation agencies in any countries
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easily, professionalism in the translation industry is not a choice anymore. It has

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become a necessity in order to survive in this fierce market.

13) Maintain your languages. Human language is a very fluid and constantly evolving
entity. Travel to the countries/regions where your languages are spoken, watch films
and soap operas, befriend native speakers, read comic strips, newspapers, and
novels etc. Interpreters in particular have to be conscious of a language's dialects
and different registers of speech.
14) Be ethical. This is the most important code of conduct that a translator must have.
Translators often come across confidential information such as business plan,
marketing strategy or a new invention. They should never use this information to
harm the client. By being honest and loyal, translators can build trust with their
clients and thus help establish their careers and future. The translators should never
accept translation work beyond their capacity. By over promise and under-deliver, it
will only ruin their careers in the translation industry.
C. Professional Organizations for Translators
There are three professional organizations for translators in the United Kingdom, Two of
them the Institute of Linguist and the Institute of Translation and Interpreting, award
recognised professional qualifications after careful assessment or examination.
1) The Institute of Linguists
The Institute of Linguists (IoL) was founded in 1910 to serve the interests of all
professional linguist. It is the largest professional body for linguists in the United Kingdom
and has extensive links abroad. The IoL is fairly academic in some respects but has recently
become more business-orientated. It went through major changes in its structure in the
middle of the 1980s. The IoL has a number of distinct aims:
a. To promote the learning and use of modern languages.

b. To improve the status of all linguists in all occupations.
c. To establish and maintain the highest standards of professional work.
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d. To serve the interests of all linguists.

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The IoL provides language qualifications of recognized standing. Membership benefits
include regional societies and specialist divisions, a journal called “The Linguist” and an
extensive library. Members have the opportunity to join any of the Institute’s Divisions
which cater for specialist interests. These divisions are the Education Division, the Industry
and Commerce Division, the Translating Division and the Interpreting Division. The
Divisions offer programs of interest to newcomers to the professions and to established
linguists. With its network of contact groups, the Translating Division is the largest body for
translators in the UK. Members may also join the Institute’s Regional Societies in most parts
or the UK, including Scotland and Northern Ireland, and a number of countries abroad. They
offer a varied program of relevance to linguists everywhere.
The Institute has much to offer to undergraduates on language degree course and recent
language graduates. Joining the Institute as a student member or Affiliate provides
membership of a highly professional body including linguists working not only as
translators and interpreters but in marketing, insurance, international banking, travel and
tourism, the Civil Service or the EU. There are five grades of individual membership, three
of which are denoted by letters after the member’s name. These are: Fellow (FIL), Member
(MIL), Associate (AIL), Affiliate and Registered Student. Only the first three denote any
academic achievement. The use of Affiliate in advertising is not permitted since, to the
uninitiated, it may give the impression that the user has achieved a level of linguistic
standing. Commercial companies, teaching and other institutions and professional bodies
may apply for corporate membership.
Like most professional bodies, the IoL has a Code of Professional Conduct and its members
are subject to the disciplinary procedures of the Institute. Fortunately, they are hardly ever
needed as cases of genuine grievance are rare. The Institute provides a range of public
examinations and also conducts examinations for the Home Office Departments, the
Ministry of Defence and other specialist users. The Institute’s public examinations are
qualifications of practical and vocational linguistic skills. Examinations are available in over
70 languages.
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The Institute’s Final Diploma is recognized by the Civil Service as equivalent to an honors
degree in modern languages. Membership of the IoL (MIL) is widely accepted as degree
qualification for teachers. Institute qualifications and memberships are recognized
internationally. The IoL now publishes a comprehensive Directory and List of Members. The
Diploma in Translation is a professional qualification intended for working translators and
for those who, having reached a high level of linguistic competence, wish to embark on a
career in professional translation. It is available to candidates with a level of linguistic
competence at least equivalent to a good Honors degree in languages.
Successful candidates are entitled to use the designation ‘Dip Trans’. On provision of
evidence of oral competence, they are also eligible to apply for full membership of the
Institute. The Diploma tests the ability of candidates to translate to a professional standard,
together with their awareness of the professional task of the translator. The passages set
for translation will be of the standard of difficulty that translator would expect to meet in
their daily work. They will not however be of an over – technical or specialized nature.
Candidates are emphatically advised that full professional competence is normally achieved
only by translators working into their mother tongue or language of habitual use. English is
usually either the source or the target language for this Diploma. Other language
combinations are coming on stream.
2) The Institute of Translation and Interpreting
The ITI as it is more popularly known is a relatively new institute and was founded in 1986.
This was in response to an overwhelming demand from everyone concerned with the
quality of translating and interpreting in industry, commerce, literature, science, research,
law and administration. The ITI’s main aim is to promote the highest standards in a
profession where the specialist is fast replacing the general linguist. It serves as a forum for
all those who understand the importance of translation and interpreting to the economy,
especially with the advent of the single European market.
The ITI is involved in translator and interpreting training at universities and colleges, and
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runs its own program of in-career training sessions. It offers guidance to those who wish to
enter the profession, as well as advice to those who provide translations, and to potential
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employers and clients. It keeps in close contact with the producers of equipment, software,
databanks and dictionaries. The ITI is the primary source of information to government,
industry, the media and the general public in all matters relating to translation and
interpreting.
It has been elected by the Federation Internationale des Traducteurs (FIT) as one of the two
UK voting members, and maintains close contacts with sister organizations worldwide. A
member of ITI is at present on the Council and Executive Bureau of FIT, to make sure that
the UK plays an influential part in its activities.
The ITI does not act as an agency, but provides names of suitable linguists and translation
agencies in response to enquiries. It offers a consultancy service to help assess language
requirements, and an arbitration service in the event of complaints. It also has a
professional standards body to consider any alleged breaches of professional ethics by its
members. The ITI has around 2000 members.
Those who are suitable qualified and have satisfied the Admissions Committee as to their
professional competence and experience are listed in the ITI Directory. Such members are
entitled to use the designation MITI. AITIs (Associates) are members who require
additional formal work experience and are listed in a separate section of the directory.
Fellows (FITI), students, subscribers and corporate members make up the remaining
membership.
Corporate membership is open to higher education establishments, professional and

research associations, translation companies, publishers, industrial and commercial bodies,
government departments and non-governmental organizations and others concerned with
the quality of translation and interpreting. A set of terms and conditions governing the way
you work, and your relationship with a client is very much advisable. The ITI has produced
such a document which can provide a very useful guide when formulating your own term of
business. The ITI also has produced a Code of Conduct that has been approved by the Office
of Fair Trading. The Institute publishes an annually updated, comprehensive Directory of
qualified members.
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This directory is available to all users of translating and interpreting services. Members are
listed under language and subject headings, with their address, telephone, electronic
communications and equipment details. The ITI Bulletin appears bi-monthly and contains
feature articles and regular contributions from professionals all over the world. It also acts
as a channel for informative, practical communication between members and provides
details of forthcoming events.
In addition to these regular publications, the ITI publishes a range of leaflets and pamphlets
on various topics that are available for the guidance of translators and interpreters whether
they be new to the profession or well established. Details are available from the Secretariat.
As a professional association, one that assesses the quality of its members, maintains
a list of its members with suitable language skills and technical expertise, and can hold its
members to account in the event of complaints, the ITI has taken steps to establish itself as
a body whose members can certify translations. To ensure that certified translations are
accurate and of good quality:
a. An MITI or FITI may certify a translation; if the translation has been produced by him
self, it is desirable to have it checked by a second MITI, FITI or corporate member. In
other words, every certified translation should be verified wherever possible.
b. An AITI, MITI, or FITI may produce a translation for certification, subject to the ITI’s
code of ethics (mother tongue rule, within the person’s own subject field, etc)
c. The certificate should be on the certifier’s headed paper, identify the translator and be
firmly attached to a photocopy of the original translation by stitching and sealing with
the ITI certification seal. The certifier should sign initial each page of each attachment.
In the common law system that exists in England, there is no status as “sworn translator”
that exists in civil law countries. Even so, translations need to be “sworn” or certified for
various purposes. Certifying or swearing has no bearing on the quality of the translation but
serves to identify the translator and his qualifications so that he is accountable. When a
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translator is sworn before a solicitor, the solicitor does not verify the quality of the
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translation but merely satisfies himself as to the translator’s identity. Certification does,
however, lend weight to a translation. If, for example, a document is willfully mistranslated
or carelessly translated, the translator could be held charged with contempt of court,
perjury or negligence.
D. Translator Networks
The network of good translators is still relatively small, but it is vibrant and important. We
have already seen how successful a collaborative translation can be, and more and more
translators are choosing to work together to create the best possible books. It’s good
practice to encourage networks, and everyone benefits. The Translators’ Association, a
subsidiary of the Society of Authors (www.societyofauthors.org) is a good place to start
making new contacts, and the British Centre for Literary Translation also runs an online
discussion board (www.literarytranslation.com). Below are some of national translators’
and interpreters’ associations:
1. Indonesian
Himpunan Penerjemah Indonesia (Association of Indonesian Translators)
2. Australia
Australian Translators’ Association
3. United States of America
American Translators’ Association (ATA)
4. Canada
Council of Translators and Interpreters of Canada (CTIC)
5. China
The Translators’ Association of China
6. Japan
Japan Society of Translators (Nihon Honyakuka Kyokai)
National Translation Institute of Science and Technology (NATIST)
7. Korea (Republic of South)
Korean Society of Translators
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8. Germany (Democratic Republic)

Vereinigung der Sprachmittler der DDR beim VDJ
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9. Germany (Federal Republic)

Bundesverband der Dolmetscher und Ubersetzer
10. Hong Kong
Hong Kong Translation Society
11. India
Indian Scientific Translators’ Association (ISTA)
Below are some communities of translation field, please find the information about these
communities:
1. Proz.com
2. Bahtera
3. Himpunan Penerjemah Indonesia
E. Translators Online Communities

1. Global Translation Community Coursera
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The Global Translator Community (GTC) is a community of volunteers and partner

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organizations working to make great educational content accessible across geographic and
linguistic boundaries. GTC participants work together to translate top courses on Coursera
into their native languages. Coursera itself provides universal access to the world’s best
education, partnering with top universities and organizations to offer courses online. First
and foremost, by translating top courses you are helping millions of learners who may
otherwise struggle to understand courses taught outside their native language. But
translating is also much more than a means to an end. By joining the GTC, you’ll become a
member of a tight-knit community of committed individuals and organizations. You’ll also
be given access to a private translator’s portal, invited to occasional special events and will
have the opportunity to be recognized for your contributions — both on the Coursera
website and through special translator certificates.
How to join?
To become a Coursera translator, begin by filling out this form. We’ll ask you some basic
questions about your background and reasons for translating. Upon submission of the form,
expect to hear back from us within 5-7 days with detailed instructions about how to get
started. We’ll also welcome you into a private translator’s portal where you can interact
with fellow GTC participants and with the Coursera team. Following are some steps to join
GTC:
a. Visit https://www.coursera.org/about/translate.
b. On the webpage, click join the GTC.
c. Click create an account.
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d. Click log in with facebook or enter your email address and password.
2. Komunitas Terjemahan Google

Komunitas Terjemahan is online translation community that helps Google Translate to
improve its translation quality. Following are some steps to access Komunitas Terjemahan:
a. Go to http://www.google.com
b. Type: Komunitas Terejemahan Google.
c. Click Mulai
d. Type your email address and the password.
e. You will see this webpage:
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As you can see, there are some choices; menerjemahkan and memvalidasi. When you
click menerjemahkan you will translate some words given from Google Translate after
that click kirim. It’s also one kind of translation training for you if you want to improve
your translation skill.
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When you click memvalidasi, you will see this webpage:

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You will be given some choices to decide which one is the right translation. After you make
your decision, click kirim.
3. ProZ.com
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ProZ.com is home to the world's largest translator network. Professional translators use the
site to collaborate on terms translation, translation dictionaries, translator training and
more, and to get discounts on translation tools (such as SDL Trados). Translation contests
and events for translators are also held. To be a member of ProZ.com, you can click create
an account and fill in the application.
ProZ.com's mission is to provide tools and opportunities that translators, translation

companies, and others in the language industry can use to:
a. network,
b. expand their businesses,
c. improve their work,
d. Experience added enjoyment in their professional endeavors.
Services
Serving the world's largest community of translators, ProZ.com delivers a comprehensive
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network of essential services, resources and experiences that enhance the lives of its
members.
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ProZ.com enables language professionals to:
a. Outsource and accept translation and interpreting assignments
b. Collaborate on terms with proprietary KudoZTM software
c. Evaluate clients with the member-built Blue BoardTM
d. Meet face-face at local conferences and ProZ.com PowwowsTM
e. Train and be trained in industry-specific skills
f. Do much more
ProZ.com also owns and operates TM-Town, a platform with a unique new technology to
match clients to professional translators with experience translating the specific subject
matter the client needs translated.
4. WP-Translation
WP-Translations is a community that aims to be a bridge between developers and
translators. It’s dedicated entirely to translate WordPress, it’s themes, plugins and
documentations. WP-Translations focus on the community spirit of open-source
philosophy, believing we can accomplish more together than we can separately. For that
matter we partner with a great tool called Transifex. With Transifex we can have several
open-source projects to be translated by a huge community of enthusiasts simultaneously
around the globe.
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As the WordPress founder said: “20% percent of the web uses WordPress!” I want to add
we can do better! So the WP-Translations Community welcomes you all with open arms to
join our efforts toward a more collaborative WordPress globalization. WP-Translations is a
collaborative enterprise based on the region of Bordeaux, France with partners all over the
world. Read here a letter from our founder François-Xavier Bénard, (aka Fx Bénard | FxB),
our main coordinator to stay in synch with Transifex.
Developers & WP-Translations

WP-Translations is the place where Developers can find volunteers translators to make
their projects available in several languages for FREE. We currently support open-source
Free/Freemium plugins and themes for WordPress. To handle our Translation Community
we rely on Transifex. The simplest, easiest and most effective worldwide localization
platform around. Using Transifex will boost your support to translations with almost no
work to be done on your side.
How does it work?

173
a. Register for FREE at Transifex.

b. Create your project.
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c. Add a resource.
d. Master files can be automatically synchronized from GitHub or any URL from your
server.
e. Assign your project to the WP-Translations organization over Transifex.
f. Translators translate directly from their browser or from their own local files.
g. Translations are ready.
h. Using the .TX client from Transifex pull the translations and add them to your
languages folder.
Translators & WP-Translations
WP-Translations is the place where you will find a number of WordPress amazing
Plugins and Themes to make them available in your home language. In exchange you will
receive credit for your work and will certainly make part of the WP community history in
your country. To handle our Translation Community we’re using Transifex. The simplest,
easiest and most effective worldwide localization platform around. Free and fun to use, yet
powerful and reliable. Using Transifex will give you all the necessary tools in one unique
place to translate, communicate, as a team member.
Home Translators & WP-Translations

WP-Translations is the place where you will find a number of WordPress amazing
Plugins and Themes to make them available in your home language. In exchange you will
receive credit for your work and will certainly make part of the WP community history in
your country. To handle our Translation Community we’re using Transifex. The simplest,
easiest and most effective worldwide localization platform around. Free and fun to use, yet
powerful and reliable. Using Transifex will give you all the necessary tools in one unique
place to translate, communicate, as a team member.
How does it work?

a. Register for FREE at Transifex.
b. Join our community by joining a translation team.
c. With all the Transifex tools, quietly and easily translate the project of your choice
174
d. Translation is ready.
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e. Using the web client from Transifex download it and add it to your project
languages folder.
f. That’s it, your WordPress plugin or theme is 100% i18n ready, nothing more.
g. At the same time the author of the project gets notified that your translation file is
ready.
How to register?
a. Click register in the menu of the webpage.
b. Fill in the account info.
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Summary
1. Here are some steps you can do to be a professional translator or interpreter:
a. Get the right education and qualifications
b. Get Certified
c. Get Tested
d. Gain experience.
e. Join a local or national professional translation/interpretation society
f. Choose an area of activity.
g. Choose an area of specialization.
h. Get people to know you and get to know people.
i. Be quick, effective, and efficient.
j. Be professional
k. Work hard.
l. Practice.
m. Maintain your languages.
n. Be ethical.
2. The Institute of Linguists (IoL) was founded in 1910 to serve the interests of all
professional linguist. It is the largest professional body for linguists in the United
Kingdom and has extensive links abroad.
3. The Institute of Translation and Interpreting is more popularly known is a relatively
new institute and was founded in 1986. The ITI’s main aim is to promote the highest
standards in a profession where the specialist is fast replacing the general linguist.
4. The Global Translator Community (GTC) is a community of volunteers and partner
organizations working to make great educational content accessible across
geographic and linguistic boundaries. GTC participants work together to translate
top courses on Coursera into their native languages.
5. ProZ.com is home to the world's largest translator network. Serving the world's
largest community of translators, ProZ.com delivers a comprehensive network of
essential services, resources and experiences that enhance the lives of its members.
6. WP-Translations is a community that aims to be a bridge between developers and
176
translators. It’s dedicated entirely to translate WordPress, it’s themes, plugins and
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documentations.
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Brown, G.S. (1995). A Practical Guide for Translators. UK: Frankfurt Lodge.
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Walton Street, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Drugan, J. (2013). Quality in Professional Translation: Assessment and Improvement. India:

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Translation Theory and Practice

Dr. Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren,

This book is compiled for students of English Department to help them

The book consists of the introduction to translation theory, translation

Islamic University of North Sumatra and Faculty of Cultural Studies in University of

Moreover, my gratitude and thanks are due to my beloved family, fellow

Dr. Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren, M. Hum.

Translators have to prove to themselves as to others that they are in

When we hear the word “translator” we sometimes misinterpret it as “interpreter”, yet

anything that sounds unnatural in English?

know how I should face my parent’s face.

Subtitles: The first version

Subtitles: The second version

Newmark also believes that translation is a craft/art in replacing the written

Source Text Target Text 1 Target Text 2

From the examples above, following the Newmark’s definition of translation, a

2. Catford (1965): Translation is “The replacement of textual material in one language

Source Text Target Text 1 Target Text 2

linguistics theories, and socio-linguistics theories.

Source Text Target Text

The socio-linguistics theories of translation are dealing with functions in the

4. Mildred L. Larson (1984): “Translation is basically a change of form. Translation is

Source Text Target Text

He is cold hearted. Dia tidak punya hati.

B. Translation Process and Product

using Google Translate:

Source Text Target Text (Google Translate)

2. Revising the translation product

Source Text Target Text (Revised by translator)

Before revision After being revised

Before revision After being revised

Before revision After being revised

Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

Jika dia meninggalkan bebek sendiri Jika dia meninggalkan Si bebek

Jagung. memakan jagung.

Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

Target Text (Revised by translator) Target Text (Revised by

C. The Experts of Translation Fields

Translation indeed is a unique and careful process of thinking to produce high

1. Amparo Hurtado Albir

linguistic amplification, linguistic compression, literal translation, modulation,

particularization, reduction, substitution, transposition, variation.

Afterwards, he was a lecture in Romance Studies at the University of Surrey, before

Douglas Robinson is an American academic scholar, translator, and fiction-writer who is

1. Newmark considers a translation activity as a rendering activity which relates to

To produce a good translation product, translators should have a good understanding of

Online Whats App Group Discussion

Source Text: We have some tables in my house. (Preposition)

Exercise 2: Translating a paragraph (an abstract)

Farida Repelita Waty Kembaren, M.Hum.

Key words: Translation Techniques, Ideology, Quality, Al-Waqi’ah, Angkola

A. Differentiating Translation Strategy, Method, and Technique

According to Newmark. Translation strategies are:

Based on Macquarie Dictionary (1982), a method is a way of doing something, especially

a. Word for word translation: Word-for-word translation is the preservation of

1) They affect the result of the translation