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Translating Nature Terminology
Author: Wojciech Kasprzak
Date Of Publication: Apr 2011
Isbn13: 978-1-4438-2850-5
Isbn: 1-4438-2850-5
Translating Nature Terminology hopes to fill a vacuum in the market, combining practical advice for translators with aspects of linguistics and natural sciences. It is a response to the growing popularity of bilingual (Polish-English) publications on nature in Poland, which, however, abound in mistranslated nature terminology. Using cognitivism-based analysis, it traces the vagaries of categorisation of the natural world within one language as well as interlingually, with a view to helping translators find suitable equivalents of concepts and terms representing them. Translators can learn, for instance, when overspecification, underspecification or domestication are justified and when they become a translation error, what to do with the names of cultivars, or in what context one should render turzycowisko as “tall sedge swamp” and where as “sedge fen.” The book also demonstrates that terminological correctness is not only a must for informative texts but it is often indispensable to ensure the coherence of literary works. It pays particular attention to the penetration of folk terms into specialist texts and vice versa. The reliability of dictionaries, both general and specialist, is called into question and keeping in touch with up-to-date professional sources is recommended instead. All the above claims are thoroughly researched and amply exemplified.
Wojciech Kasprzak has taught at the Institute of English Studies, Warsaw University, Poland, since 1996. He holds a PhD in Translation Studies. Since 1995 he has been involved in the Polish nature conservation movement. His most important published works are translations into English, such as The Biebrza National Park and Through Swamps and Forests—the Rospuda Valley.
“The author shows very vividly how the divergent approaches of different disciplines may result in terminological variance, which can in turn influence the world we live in (for example, affecting the decision to preserve—or not—certain habitats). The author stresses some striking terminological disparities between Polish and English and points out the limited usefulness of bilingual dictionaries. The book abounds in interesting conclusions concerning translations of LSP (Language for Specific Purposes) texts, the translator’s competence and translation quality assessment.”
—Krzysztof Hejwowski, Professor of Translation Studies, The Institute of Applied Linguistics, University of Warsaw, Poland “The book . . . addresses target readers and future translators who are in the position to help promote the author’s desired communication and integration between cultures. With the help of the analysis and translation suggestions and solutions presented, they may learn a great deal—not only how to translate works dealing with the natural world, but also how to approach translation per se. Its very uniqueness is also recommendation itself.” —Aniela Korzeniowska, Assistant Professor of Translation Studies, The Institute of English Studies, University of Warsaw, Poland
Price Uk Gbp: 39.99
Price Us Usd: 59.99
Sample pdf (including Table of Contents)
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