The Functional Approach: Literal / Direct Translation

The Functional Approach: Literal / Direct TranslationTheory and Practice of Translation Unit 4

Literal translation, ordirect translation, is the rendering of text from one language to another "word-for-word" (Latin: "verbum pro verbo") with or without conveying thesenseof the original.

In translation studies, "literal translation" denotes technical translation of scientific, technical, technological or legal texts. Intranslation theory, another term for "literal translation" is "metaphrase"; and forphrasal("sense") translation "paraphrase."

Bad PracticesWhen considered a bad practice of conveying word by word (lexemetolexeme, ormorphemetolexeme) translation of non-technical type literaltranslationshas the meaning of mistranslatingidioms,for example, or in the context of translating ananalytic languageto asynthetic language, it renders even the grammarunintelligible.

Poetry to ProseLiteral translation can also denote a translation that represents the precise meaning of the original text but does not attempt to convey its style, beauty, or poetry. There is, however, a great deal of difference between a literal translation of a poetic work and a prose translation. A literal translation of poetry may be in prose rather than verse, but also be error free.Charles Singleton's translation ofThe Divine Comedy(1975) is regarded as a prose translation.

Interpretation

The concept ofliteral translationmay be viewed as anoxymoron(contradiction in terms), given thatliteraldenotes something existing without interpretation, whereas atranslation, by its very nature, is an interpretation (an interpretation of the meaning of words from one language into another).

The term "literal translation" often appeared in the titles of 19th-centuryEnglishtranslations of classical, Bible and other texts.

Literal translations ("cribs," "ponies", or "trots") are sometimes prepared for a writer who is translating a work written in a language he does not know. For example,Robert Pinskyis reported to have used a literal translation in preparing his translation ofDante'sInferno(1994), as he does not know Italian. Similarly,Richard Pevearworked from literal translations provided by his wife,Larissa Volokhonsky, in their translations of several Russian novels

Literal Translation

"Literal" translation implies that it is probably full of errors, since the translator has made no effort to convey, for example, correct idioms or shades of meaning, but it might be also useful in seeing how words are used to convey a meaning in the source language.

Literal (Mis)TranslationA literalEnglish translationof theGermanword "Kindergarten" would be "children garden," but in English the expression refers to the school year between pre-school and first grade. Literal translations in which individual components within words or compounds are translated to create new lexical items in the target language (a process also known as loan translation) are calledcalques (see Unit 5), e.g.beer garden from German Biergarten.

As a bad practiceLiteral translation of theItaliansentence "So che questo non va bene" ("I know that this is not good"), produces "Know(I) that this not goes(it) well," which has Englishwordsand Italiangrammar.

Example

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Further Reading / Consultative Bibliography

Trivia: Did you know that

Glossolalia, often understood among Protestant Christians as speaking in tongues, is the fluid vocalizing of speech-like syllables that lack any readily comprehended meaning, in some cases as part of religious practice. Some consider it as a part of a sacred language.

Trivia: Definition

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