NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS ENGLISH NGUYEN NGOC ANH THU COMMON ERRORS IN VIETNAMESE - ENGLISH Hanoi, April 2023 NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS ENGLISH NGUYEN NGOC ANH THU COMMON ERRORS IN VIETNAMESE - ENGLISH TRANSLATION MADE BY THIRD-YEAR ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITY Supervisor: Dr. Dinh Thi Kim Chung Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966 — Business English 61C ACKNOWLEDGEMENT During the process of writing this graduation thesis, I have encountered difficulties with expression and lexical problems. However, I was able to overcome these challenges thanks to the guidance, support, inspiration of my supervisor, family, and friends. First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude toward my beloved supervisor, Dr.
Dinh Thi Kim Chung, who has provided me with several useful tips, comments and other valuable materials. I would not have been able to finish this significant paper without her supportive instruction. Secondly, I want to extend my special thanks to my friends for their suggestions and encouragement when I was conducting this research because they are willing to answer my questions and give me relevant data to finish my thesis. Last but not least, my sincere gratitude goes to my beloved family who always support me and create favorable circumstances so that I could complete this graduation thesis.
Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966- Business English 61C EXECUTIVE SUMMARY During a 3-month internship at the Faculty of Foreign Languages at National Economics University, the researcher recognized that third-year students at the Faculty had some problems during the translation process while they were attending translation courses at the university. Therefore, the study motivated by the aforementioned factor thoroughly examines typical errors made by third-year English major students when translating their assignments from Vietnamese to English. Additionally, it clarifies the factors contributing to the errors and offers guidance for the upcoming students on how to solve the problem. The study was conducted by modifying the document analysis method, which included observing and analyzing 32 Vietnamese — English documents made by 10 senior students with a major in English at National Economics University.
After that, 4 students were interviewed with 10 questions to investigate the causes resulting in errors appeared in their translations and their suggestions to enhance the situation. Findings from the document analysis reveal that Linguistic Errors were the most frequently made by research participants, followed by Translation Errors, while Comprehension Errors were completely absent from the evaluated works. This can be attributed to a number of factors, most notably their lack of language proficiency, background knowledge, the complexion of the SL, and an unfocused demeanor during the translation process. These conclusions form the basis for recommendations for three distinct problems, including Linguistic errors, Translation Errors, and Comprehension Errors.
Generally speaking, language proficiency and the foundation of a relevant discipline of translation should both be improved by students. In addition, it is advised that the novice adopt a wide range of translation techniques and avoid outside distractions in order to fully concentrate on their work. ii Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966 — Business English 61C LIST OF TABLE Table 3.1: Total errors of Morphological group in 32 translations .-- -- 27 11 Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966- Business English 61C LIST OF FIGURES Figure 3.1: Common errors found in 32 Vietnamese - English translations of 10 senior students with a major in English at National Economics University .2: Total errors made by each stuei.3: Total errors of Linguistic group made by each student.4: The total errors of Grammatical group in 32 translations .5:The total errors of Syntactic group in 32 translations and the number of subtypes with more than | TTOT-.6: The number of Linguistic Errors in 32 transÌation.7: Errors found in 32 provided transÌÏafIOTS.8: The total errors of Translation group made by each studen(.9: The total errors of Translation group in 32 transÌafIons.-- --- -- 36 iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS SL : Source Language ST : Source Text STD : Student T : Translation TL : Target Language TT : Target Text Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966- Business English 61C TABLE OF CONTENTS .- Án TH TH HH HT HH HT HH ng rệt il IiR/9)00. 11 LIST OF FIGURES 11101018.
iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS. vi CHAPTEP I: INTRODUCTION .- Gà HH HH ng HH He 1 1. Rationale of the sfudy.-- G- G c1 111g ng TH HH HH 1 I9) 106i 12. Design of the research.
1S 1 11 1t T1 1 ng TH TH ng HH 3 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.Q SH HH ray 5 "Mr 8n. Definition Of †FQ'SÌGfÏOH. Gv tk ng kg nhiệt 5 2. Error analysis in transÌÏafÏ01n.
- -- c1 1n HH HH ng triệt 8 2. Definition of €TFOTS it trANSTATION. Significance Of CYTOTS ANALYSIS. Classification Of translation ©FTOT.
cácv vn rry 10 2. Common errors in Vietnamese - English translation. The causes of translation €TFOTS. 5 HH ng nhiệt 21 3.-- kh HH HH TT HT nh TH HT HH Tnhh 21 3.
Previous studies in Viet NGIHH. - cv tk ng key 22 CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS. Common errors in the Vietnamese - English translation made by third-year students majoring in Business English. Findings from document ANALYSIS.
Sky 24 Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966 — Business English 61C 3. Findings from In-dept Interviews. cv Sikeikeirtseersseeeeeree 38 Khi. 40 CHAPTER 4: RECOMMENDA TIONS.
Recommendations for Linguistic EFTFOTS. Recommendations for Comprehension Errors. Recommendations for Translation Errors. 45 REFERENCES APPENDIX 1 APPENDIX 2 APPENDIX 3 Vii Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966 — Business English 61C CHAPTEP I: INTRODUCTION The background information for the study is provided in this chapter, along with the purpose, goals, research questions, the scope of the project, research methodologies used, and study structure.
Rationale of the study In the contemporary world, no one can dispute the importance of English in today’s culture because it is not only a global language but many countries also use it as their second language. Moreover, English is essential to the growth of individuals and the social development. It can be viewed as a universal language that all people can utilize for a wide range of activities, including education, news, businesses, diplomacy, careers, and so on. In addition, foreign organizations are looking for employees who are excellent in English.
As a result, learning English can help people to find more employment prospects in the future. Indeed, English translation has emerged as a useful instrument that paves the path for individuals, organizations, and even businesses to succeed on a worldwide level. There is a need for English language learners in Viet Nam to gain professional translation skills in order to fulfill the increased need for international cultural exchange and absorption into the global economy. On the other hand, translation skills are challenging for Vietnamese learners to do in an excellent level, especially Vietnamese-English translation skills because of many factors.
Therefore, it is unavoidable that language learners often make errors during the translation process. Especially, undergraduate students with limited experience and training, translating in practical situations can be very challenging. During the translation process, there will be errors that can easily found, however, there are also errors that are more challenging to identify. The problems may come from different elements and they have not been thoroughly examined by translation experts or those with extensive training.
Furthermore, the research on errors in translation has been done a lot by researchers in Viet Nam and throughout the world, however, there has not been many research examining the typical translation mistakes of third-year students majoring in English, particularly those from Vietnamese to English. Therefore, this topic should be investigated, analyzed in order to provide more information for learners to avoid this issue and steadily advance their translation skills. For all the reasons above, the researcher decided to explore “Common errors in Vietnamese-English translation made by third-year English major students at Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966- Business English 61C National Economics University” aiming at exposing the most typical errors made by senior students in the Faculty of Foreign Languages in their Vietnamese — English translated version of translation assignments during translation courses at National Economics University. The study will also significantly improve the quality of translation produced and provide some helpful suggestions to correct mistakes that were made throughout the translation process.
Objective of the study The research aims at: e Finding out common mistakes in translating Vietnamese into English of senior English major students at National Economics University. e Identifying the causes of those errors e Providing the students with some recommendations to solve the common errors and to enhance the translation quality. e Providing readers with applicable implications to avoid typical errors in the Vietnamese - English translation process. Research questions The study is carried out to answer these following questions: e What are the common errors made by third-year English major students at National Economics University? e What are the causes of those errors? e What can be possible solutions to improve translation skills? 1.
Scope of the study The research concentrates on senior students majoring in English at National Economics University with their common Vietnamese - English translation errors during the translation courses. The study will be conducted with a view to examining the main mistakes and recommending some potential remedies to improve the translation skills. Research methods The study will be developed using three basic methodologies, consisting of observing and analyzing Vietnamese — English translated documents provided by third-year students, and creating an interview with students in order to harvest data about the attitudes, feelings and standpoints of pupils. Participants A group of 10 people who are third-year students attending translation courses | and 2 at the Faculty of Foreign Languages of National Economics University was Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966 — Business English 61C involved in the study.
Overall, they majored in Business English and took part in translation courses at university for nearly 5 months. Data collection The initial methodology of this research is document analysis of a source of 32 Vietnamese - English translated versions of various topics such as economy, society, education, world news, etc made by 10 students. These translations were finished during the translation courses at university. Another research method is in-depth interviews with 4 students among 10 students who had produced translated articles mentioned above.
Document analysis There were 32 translated versions of different articles provided by 10 students which were needed for clear analysis. These documents were analyzed, and then if there were any issues with comprehending the nuances of words or phrases, or the meaning of the SL documents, the researcher might need support from the experts or experienced people in translating. Finally, data on these translations were provided in order to identify and categorize a number of frequent errors made by translation students. Interview The researcher decided to design the interview questions for 4 students in order to increase credibility.
The author wanted to find out more about the errors that student frequently made during Vietnamese — English translation process, the causes of those errors, and the personal suggestions of students to tackle the problem. Data analysis First of all, 32 Vietnamese - English translations of different types of articles collected from participants were examined to identify errors, and then categorized into groups following the types of errors listed in the Literature Review of the research. Moreover, recordings of the interview with 4 students were transcribed and examined to gather relevant information that might respond to the three research questions. Design of the research The research includes 4 main chapters: Chapter 1: Introduction, which presents rationale, objective, three main research questions, scope, methodology, and design of the research.
Chapter 2: Literature review, which presents the theoretical background Nguyễn Ngọc Anh Thư — 11194966- Business English 61C information.