Arriving at equivalence: Making a case for comparable general reference corpora in translation studies
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Gill Philip
Abstract
When multilingual corpora are used in translation studies, it is usually assumed that they are either translated (parallel) or comparable, or both; and that their size and text composition are analogous. As general reference corpora become more widely available, it is inevitable that these too should be used to compare and contrast SL norms, thus extending the definition of comparability to include text collections whose size and content may vary considerably, and which are nevertheless considered representative of their languages. This paper addresses the contribution of comparable reference corpora to the identification of translation equivalence. Focusing in particular on native-speaker norms, it demonstrates how the effect of creative and idiosyncratic language can be identified and reproduced by the translator.
Abstract
When multilingual corpora are used in translation studies, it is usually assumed that they are either translated (parallel) or comparable, or both; and that their size and text composition are analogous. As general reference corpora become more widely available, it is inevitable that these too should be used to compare and contrast SL norms, thus extending the definition of comparability to include text collections whose size and content may vary considerably, and which are nevertheless considered representative of their languages. This paper addresses the contribution of comparable reference corpora to the identification of translation equivalence. Focusing in particular on native-speaker norms, it demonstrates how the effect of creative and idiosyncratic language can be identified and reproduced by the translator.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of editors and contributors vii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
- Using corpora and retrieval software as a source of materials for the translation classroom 9
- Safeguarding the lexicogrammatical environment: Translating semantic prosody 29
- Are translations longer than source texts?: A corpus-based study of explicitation 47
- Arriving at equivalence: Making a case for comparable general reference corpora in translation studies 59
- Virtual corpora as documentation resources: Translating travel insurance documents (English-Spanish) 75
- Developing documentation skills to build do-it-yourself corpora in the specialised translation course 109
- Evaluating the process and not just the product when using corpora in translator education 129
- Subject index 151
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- List of editors and contributors vii
- Foreword ix
- Introduction 1
- Using corpora and retrieval software as a source of materials for the translation classroom 9
- Safeguarding the lexicogrammatical environment: Translating semantic prosody 29
- Are translations longer than source texts?: A corpus-based study of explicitation 47
- Arriving at equivalence: Making a case for comparable general reference corpora in translation studies 59
- Virtual corpora as documentation resources: Translating travel insurance documents (English-Spanish) 75
- Developing documentation skills to build do-it-yourself corpora in the specialised translation course 109
- Evaluating the process and not just the product when using corpora in translator education 129
- Subject index 151
