Arabic, a Semitic language, presents unique difficulties when translating into or from English. Standardizing written Arabic calls for a focus on Modern Standard Arabic (MSA), distinct from regional dialects and classical Arabic.
Translation hurdles can be divided into linguistic and cultural categories, encompassing lexicon, syntax, morphology, rhetorical distinctions, textual disparities, and pragmatic aspects.
English to Arabic translation encounters a few specific challenges:
Arabic Dialect Variations.
When translating Arabic to English and vice versa, it is essential to recognize that the different dialects must be taken into consideration during the translation process. Classical Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic, and what are known as local dialects are the three primary dialects spoken in the Arabic language. Furthermore, there are eight major categories under the subject of Local Dialects.
Arabic is a complicated language.
As the world’s fifth most spoken language, the richness and complexities of the Arabic language never fail to perplex untrained translators. When particular phrases and terminologies in specialized sectors such as technology and science spring to mind, English and French are the most prevalent languages; as a result, it isn’t easy to discover or create similar terms while doing Arabic translations.
Another challenge for new translators is capitalization, used in English and many other languages for particular names and at the beginning of phrases. However, there are no capital letters in Arabic. This can make it difficult for translators to grasp the context and meaning.
Gender Identification.
The link of gender to context is a significant distinction between the Arabic and English languages. English uses non-gender specific phrases like “it,”; however, Arabic will always identify gender with any object.
For example, if the document contains the word “it” in English, the Arabic translation must determine if the context is male or female. If the gender of the object is uncertain, the translator will refer to it as “them.” This implies that the translator must exercise extreme caution throughout the English to Arabic translation to convey the right gender connection appropriately.
Arabic is a poetic and metaphorical language.
Arabic has numerous figures of speech, sayings, and literary elements, such as metaphors and similes. As a result, while doing Arabic translation, using a word-for-word or literal translation technique would fail to express the emotion of the source text.
A direct translation of a dynamic language, like Arabic, would result in incorrect vocabulary being used to present an inaccurate translation of the meaning of the text. Because Arabic speakers typically utilize long phrases, translating such long sentences is difficult for a rookie translator who is already perplexed by all of the text’s literary methods and figurative language aspects.
The answer to these problems: Transcreation
Simply said, transcreation is the process of integrating translation with the act of creation and appropriating a text to make it culturally recognizable to the intended audience.
When translating, transcreation is frequently used with:
- Idioms
- Taglines
- General Branding Content
- Humour
- Country-Specific Phrases Wordplay
At TranslationsInLondon, our expert team is adept at transcreation, ensuring that no challenging words or idioms go unnoticed in your translations. As your London-based translation partner, we stand ready to assist you. Contact us today to unlock the power of accurate and culturally resonant translations.