1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ****** LƯƠNG THỊ NGÂN A STUDY ON VIETNAMESE – ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF CONSTRUCTION TEXTS Nghiên cứu việc dịch Việt – Anh các tài liệu trong chuyên ngành xây dựng M. Minor Programme Thesis Field: English Linguistics Code: 60 22 15 Hanoi - 2011 Hanoi - 2011 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 2 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ****** LƯƠNG THỊ NGÂN A STUDY ON VIETNAMESE – ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF CONSTRUCTION TEXTS Nghiên cứu việc dịch Việt – Anh các tài liệu trong chuyên ngành xây dựng M. Minor Programme Thesis Field: English Linguistics Code: 60 22 15 Supervisor : Assoc. Lê Hùng Tiến Hanoi - 2011 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 6 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS SL: Source language TL: Target language ST: Source text TT: Target text CT: Construction texts NP: Noun phrase VP: Verb phrase LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration………………………………………………………………………………….ii i List of abbreviations………………………………………………………………………….iv Table of contents …………………………………………………………………………….v PART ONE – INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………………1 1.
Aims of the study………………………………………………………………………. Scope of the study ………………………………………………………………………. Methods of the study……………………………………………………………………. Design of the study …………………………………………………………………….2 PART TWO – DEVELOPMENT…………………………………………………………….3 CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND …………………………………………3 I.
Definition of translation…………………………………………………………. Technical translation and construction texts……………………………………………14 I. Definition of technical translation…………………………………………14 I. Technical translation methods…………………………………………….
Construction texts………………………………………………………………15 CHAPTER II: AN INVESTIGATION INTO VIETNAMESE – ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF CONSTRUCTION TEXTS…………………………………………17 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Translation of construction texts………………………. Translation of lexical items ……………………………………………………………17 II. Word meaning and word form…………………………………………………….
Translation of syntactic structures ……………………………………………………. Lengthy and complex sentences……………………………………………………21 II. Wrong sentence structures…………………………………………………………. The use of passive structures……………………………………………………….
The use of verb phrases and noun phrases………………………………………. Problems in translation of construction texts…………………………………………24 II. Problems related to translation of lexical items………………………………. Problems related to translation of syntactic structures…………………………25 II.The major causes of the problems …………………………………………………….
Badly written source language texts…………………………………………. Insufficient language proficiency…………………………………………. Insufficient specialized knowledge………………………………………. Lack of translation skills…………………………………………………….
Suggested for solutions to the problems………………………………………………30 II. Deal with problems related to lexical items……………………………………30 II. Deal with problems related to syntactic structures…………………………….31 PART THREE: CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………35 The implications for translation of construction texts…………………………………….35 Limitations of the study…………………………………………………….36 Suggestions for further research……………………………………………………………37 REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………….38 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 9 PART ONE - INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale In a globalized world, translation has played an indispensable role in facilitating international exchanges and cooperation in various fields, one of the most important of which is construction.
The construction industry has been crossing geographical boundaries for serving clients globally. In Vietnam construction is one of the key industries in the country‘s industrialization and modernization process since the beginning of the 20 th century. The next following years may see the development in many fields of construction: house, road, bridge and so on. In the open economy with many foreign investment projects and international co- operations, translation of construction texts, therefore, has become an urgent need to exchange information and update modern constructional technology from developed countries.
Being a co-assistance of a translation agency, I am fully aware that the translation of texts in construction is a difficult job. It requires the translators to continuously improve basic knowledge in construction field as well as skill in dealing with situations relating to lexical terms and syntactic structures… That is the reason why I have decided to carry out a study on Vietnamese-English translation of texts in construction for my MA minor thesis with the hope that the study can provide a general view and give useful suggestions to translation of construction texts. Aims of the study The study is aimed at - Investigating fundamental aspects in translation of construction texts. - Identifying the problems relating to translation of construction texts.
- Finding out major causes of the problems and suggestions for solution to the problems in translation. Scope of the study As the translation of texts in construction belong to technical translation, it has it own characteristics. The translators, therefore, has to try his/her best to fulfill his/her job. Within the scope of this study, a study on the translation of construction texts is very exclusive to talk about.
However, due to the limitation of time, my minor thesis only deals with some aspects, LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 10 problems, major causes of problems and solution to the problems in translation of texts in construction. Methods of the study In order to achieve the goal of the study, the main method is quantitative data analysis. Firstly, the study goes through a number of materials on translation to build up a theoretical background for the paper. Then, as it was stated in the aims and scope of the study the writing bases on clarifying and analyzing construction texts.
Therefore, to accomplish the thesis, a flexible combination of methods is employed, which embraces reference to publications, analysis of collected data, and description of results. Design of the study The study consists of three main parts: Part one is the Introduction which includes: rationale, significance of the study, scope, aims, and design of the study. Part two is the Development with two chapters: Chapter 1 is theoretical background; it gives general information about translation theory, technical translation, and construction texts. Chapter 2 is the study; the main part of the study.
It deals with an investigation into Vietnamese – English translation of construction texts. In this chapter, some aspects and problems in translation of construction texts are discussed. Then, major causes of problems and suggestion for solution of the problems are analyzed and given. Part three is the Conclusion.
This part points out some limitations of the study and presents implications for translation of texts in construction and suggestions for further research. LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 11 PART TWO - DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND I. Definition Translation has been approached from a scientific point of view by linguists through times and thus has been defined variously. Different linguists have put the definition of translation in various ways, among which the followings stand out.
We start with a definition quoted from the Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics. ―Translation is the replacement of a text in one language (Source language –SL) by an equivalent text in another language (Target language – TL)‖ and it is then followed by other linguists, (Catford, 1965). ―Translation is the expression in another language (or target language) of what has been expressed in another, source language, preserving semantic and stylistic equivalences‖ (Larson, 1984). These definitions, in spite of slight differences in the expressions, there are still common features which can be realized as the notion of movement between languages, content and the responsibility to find equivalents that preserve the attributes or characteristic features of the original text.
It is a notion of equivalence, which will be taken into consideration in the next part. Translation methods Translation methods are ways of translating for the widest range of texts or text categories. They provide a framework of principles, restricted rules and hints for translating texts and criticizing translations, a background for problem-solving. Translation methodology is considered the utmost importance and the guideline in translation job.
The central problem of translating has always been whether to translate literally or freely. The argument has been going on and on for a very long time. Some writers favoured some LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 12 kinds of free translation: the spirit not the letter, the sense not the words, the message rather than the form, the matter not the manner. Larson (1984) divides translation into two main kinds: literal and idiomatic.
According to the author, literal translation is form-based while idiomatic translation is meaning-based. For some purposes, it is desirable to reproduce the linguistic features of the source text, as for example, in a linguistic study of that language. Literal translation sounds like nonsense and has very little communicative value. If two languages are related, the literal translation can often be understood, since the general grammatical form may be similar.
But if they are not related, the literal choice of grammatical form and lexical items makes the translation sound foreign. In contrast to literal translation, idiomatic translation uses natural forms of receptor language, both in the grammatical constructions and in the choice of the lexical items. A truly idiomatic translation does not sound like a translation. It sounds as if it was written originally in the receptor language.
Therefore, it is recommended that a good translator should try to translate idiomatically. However, translations are often a mixture of a literal transfer of the grammatical units along with some idiomatic translation of the meaning of the text. Newmark (1988) suggests 8 translation methods divided into two main groups called semantic translation and communicative translation. Newmark put these methods in the form of a flattened V diagram: SL emphasis TL emphasis Word-for-word translation Adaptation Literal translation Free translation Faithful translation Idiomatic translation Semantic translation Communicative translation I.
Word for word translation LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 13 Word for word translation is interlinear translation in which words are translated by their most common meanings, out of context. The SL word order is preserved. Literal translation In literal translation method, lexical words are again translated singly, out of context. The SL grammatical constructions are converted to their nearest equivalent.
Faithful translation A faithful translation attempts to reproduce precise contextual meaning within the constraints of TL grammatical structures. It transfers cultural words and preserves the grammatical and lexical abnormality I. Semantic translation Semantic translation is somehow similar to faithful translation. However it takes more account of the aesthetic value of SL text.
It is more flexible, less dogmatic than faithful translation. Semantic translation admits the creative exception and makes some small concessions to the readership I. Communicative translation Communicative translation attempts to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both language and content are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the readership. Idiomatic translation This method reproduces the message of the original but tends to distort nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms.
Free translation LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 14 This reproduces the matter without the manner, or the content without the form of the original. Usually it is a paraphrase much longer than the original. Adaptation translation Adaptation translation is the freest form of translation mainly used for plays and poetry: themes, characters, plots preserved, SL culture converted to TL culture and text is rewritten. Translation procedures Definition of Translation procedures: Translation procedures are methods applied by translators when they formulate equivalence for the purpose of transferring elements of meaning from the source text (ST) to the target text (TT) (cited by Delisle) More than one procedure can be seen in one translation, and some translations may result from a cluster of procedures that is difficult to discern.
There is some disagreement amongst translation scholars about translation procedures. This disagreement is not only terminological but also conceptual. There is even a lack of consensus as to what name to give to call the categories, different labels are used (procedures, techniques, strategies) and sometimes they are confused with other concepts. Furthermore, different classifications have been proposed and the terms often overlap.
The following are the different translation procedures that Newmark (1988b) proposes: Transference: it is the process of transferring an SL word to a TL text. It includes transliteration and is the same as what Harvey (2000:5) named "transcription." Naturalization: it adapts the SL word first to the normal pronunciation, then to the normal morphology of the TL. (Newmark, 1988b:82) LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com 15 Cultural equivalent: it means replacing a cultural word in the SL with a TL one. however, "they are not accurate" (Newmark, 1988b:83) Functional equivalent: it requires the use of a culture-neutral word.