The Role of Linguistic Factor in Translation

Category: Translation          Written by: Daqeeq          Date: 02 Sep 2021

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The Role of Linguistic Factor in Translation

Languages are mirrors into various countries, cultures, and groups – and translation is the link that connects these disparate things by allowing them to understand one another.

In a nutshell, translation allows us to study and connect with many groups of people and their worldviews. But it’s also much more than that.

The act of translating words and writings from one language to another is as ancient as written languages and literature. However, as a field of research, it is still in its infancy.

But what exactly is it?

Translation is the process of conveying or communicating the meaning of a text from one language to another. This is done in order to communicate the original tone and intent of communication in the target language while remaining sensitive to cultural and geographical variances between the source and target languages. As a result, the act of translating includes both interpretation and replication processes.

Contextualization for more engaging content

Words in one language may not always have a direct equivalent in another language. However, with a little context, a “fork” may be interpreted as an eating tool rather than, say, a hair-combing instrument.

Linguistics, or the scientific study of language, arose from the necessity to assist the translation process by injecting much-needed context into given circumstances, ensuring that translated words are endowed with meaning and equivalency (same meaning conveyed by a different expression).

In other words, a linguistic approach to translation is used to try to figure out “what” the language truly means. But how do you do it? Language contains specific characteristics, such as meaning, reference, truth, verification, speaking actions, logical necessity, and so on. Linguists use these traits to try to comprehend the text’s “what” and “how.”

Structure liberates us… Translating

Grammar, words, syntax, and so on are all components of structural linguistics. When functional linguistics is combined with a more contextual approach, it is capable of entering and enabling both ‘word to word’ (literal) and ‘sense to sense’ (free) translation. By that, the sense to sense’ translation is thought to have the same meaning as the words in the source text.

Because the translator is required to preserve linguistic equivalence between the source and target texts, there is a deeper grasp of grammar, convention, idioms, and so on that takes into consideration the text’s social, political, economic, and cultural context.

A whole new level of comprehension

Languages employ specific sets of signs and symbols known as ‘signifiers’ to express certain meanings or concepts. The concept or notion provided by these ‘signifiers’ is said to as ‘signified.’ The ‘signified’ for a specific ‘signifier’ may differ from culture to culture and society to society.

Take, for example, the signifier ‘yellow.’ In America, the symbol would be cowardice — “yellow-bellied” is a popular phrase used to describe someone who is frightened. Yellow, on the other hand, represents boldness in Japanese culture and pleasure in Indian culture.

It is the professional translators’ responsibility to grasp the message that the author of the original text wishes to communicate and to recreate this feeling in the target language.

Therefore, if you are looking for professional translators to translate your work in the target language as well as in the source language, do not hesitate to contact us via Daqeeq.co. Daqeeq is the most rapid professional translation service. Thanks to a community of qualified translators that delivers Fast, High-Quality Expert Translation service 24 \7.