Translation

dictionaries (both monolingual and bilingual ones and technical dictionary)
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and relying on my intuition.  
Secondly with the “technology-assisted” method, that is to say by using all 
the technologies I have at my disposal, first of them the different kinds of 
online (and time saving) dictionaries
5
 and technical dictionaries, software 
for querying corpora
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 and the web, useful for its double function: as a global 
corpus and as an infinite source for my searches. 
I produced the whole “simple” translation and after that, taking as starting 
point the first translation, I translated again the ST with technology.  
Since the “experiment” has been carried out by and on a single person (me), 
I acted in this way (not producing both translations simultaneously) in order 
to not influence the “simple” translation with the “technological” one.   
The ST of my translation is the technical annual report of ABB. 
ABB, formerly Asea Brown Boveri, is a multinational corporation 
headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, operating mainly in the power and 
automation technology areas. ABB is one of the largest engineering 
companies as well as one of the largest conglomerate companies in the 
world. ABB has operations in around 100 countries, with approximately 
115,000 employees (2008).  
                                                 
4
 - Monolingual dictionary: Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary; 
   - Bilingual dictionaries: Il Nuovo Dizionario Hazon Garzanti, il Mc Graw Hill Zanichelli;  
5
 http://www.ldoceonline.com (monolingual dictionary), http:// www.hoepli.it, 
http://www.wordreference.com (bilingual dictionaries), http://www.thefreedictionary.com 
(monolingual dictionary, also for acronyms and idioms);  
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 AntConc, version 3.1.3 
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2. Theories... 
1 –  Introduction 
In dealing with specialized translation, it is necessary to explain first what 
specialized languages are. It is not so easy because there is no well-defined 
terminology referring to this concept.  
Specialized languages, also called special languages or jargons, are the 
natural languages used by a community of subject specialists in a particular 
field of knowledge (Cortellazzo 1994). It involves technical terms and 
specialized vocabulary, different use of syntax, grammar and sentence 
structure.  
 
1.2 – Text types 
The different type of language used in writing a text determines the genre
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to which the text itself belongs. According to K. Reiss (1976), text types 
are: 
- informative: the language dimension used to transmit the information is 
logical or referential; the content or ‘topic’ is the main focus of the 
communication; 
- expressive: the author uses the aesthetic dimension of language; the author 
is foregrounded as well as the form of the message; 
- operative: the aim is to appeal or to persuade the reader or ‘receiver’ to act 
in a certain way
2
. 
Furthermore, Reiss suggests specific translation methods based on the 
mentioned text types. These methods can be described as follows: 
                                                 
1
 Genre (or text type): a category to which, in a given culture, a given text is seen to belong 
to and within which it is seen to share a type of communicative purpose with other texts. 
2
 There is another text type, the audiomedial type (texts, such as films and written or spoken 
advertisements which supplement the other three functions with visual images, music etc.) 
but it will not be the object of this essay. Between these poles lies a wide spectrum of 
hybrid types (e.g. a biography might be somewhere between the informative and expressive 
types) 
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- the TT of an informative text should transmit the full referential or 
conceptual content of the ST. The translation should be in ‘plain prose’, 
without redundancy and with the use of explanation when required; 
- the TT of an expressive text should transmit the aesthetic and artistic form 
of the ST. The translation should use the ‘identifying’ method, with the 
translator adopting the standpoint of the ST author; 
- the TT of an operative text should produce the desired response in the TT 
receiver. The translation should employ the ‘adaptive’ method, creating an 
equivalent effect among TT readers
3
. 
The source text which is the starting point of my translation effort is an 
informative/operative text as it contains expressions and sentences
4
 which 
attempt to make the reader trust ABB and choose the company for future 
business. 
Specialized texts, whatever they may be, have some features in common 
that should be analyzed (Scarpa 2001).  
 
1.2.1 – Textuality 
Specialized texts have particular textual features: these are the components 
that characterize a text as a semantic and pragmatic unit. Normally, we can 
recognize a text as a sentence or as a group of sentences because we can see 
a clear relationship of ideas unfolding. Textuality is given by cohesion and 
coherence and the elements which contribute to its realization are lexical 
and syntactic.  
The following are two definitions of cohesion: “The pattern of relations 
between structures and lexical items which combine together to form a text. 
                                                 
3
 There are, of course, occasions, as Reiss allows, when the function of the TT may differ 
from that of the ST. An example she gives is Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels. Originally written 
as satirical novel to attack the government of the day (so, it was an operative text), it is 
nowadays normally translated and read as an entertaining novel (expressive text).  
4
 such as: ABB plays an instrumental role…; ABB technology is also pioneering in…; ABB, 
as a technological and market leader (…) is very well positioned to… 
 4
Pronouns like she, conjunctions like but, and linking adverbs like therefore 
have a particular role in cohesion” (LSGSWE 2002:455).  
“The concept of cohesion is a semantic one; it refers to relations of meaning 
that exist within the text and that define it as a text. Cohesion occurs where 
the interpretation of some element in the discourse is dependent on the 
interpretation of another. The one presupposes the other, in the sense that it 
cannot be effectively decoded except by recourse to it” (Halliday and 
Hasan, 1976). 
Unlike cohesion, coherence is not a textual intrinsic quality but it is 
produced by the author, in collaboration with the receiver’s knowledge, in 
the logical link between the sentences in a given context of interpretation.  
Syntactic cohesive (and lexicogrammatical) devices are anaphora
5
, 
cataphora
6
, substitution
7
, ellipsis
8
 and conjunction
9
.  
In specialized texts, anaphora and cataphora are avoided in order not to 
create confusion and ambiguity. On the other hand, conjunctions are 
frequently used.  
 
1.2.2 – Nominalization and text structure 
Nominalization, or nominal style, is a process that entails turning a verb into 
a nominal group, called noun phrase, which includes a head noun, 
                                                 
5
 Anaphora is the coreference of one expression with its antecedent. The antecedent 
provides the information necessary for the expression’s interpretation (i.e. I read a book. It 
was very interesting) 
6
 Cataphora is the coreference of one expression with another expression which follows it. 
The following expression provides the information necessary for interpretation of the 
preceding one. 
7
 Substitution involves an item being replaced by another item (i.e. I like movies and And I 
do. In this case, the expression And I do substitutes the expressions like movies.) 
8
 Ellipsis involves the omission of an item. In other words, in ellipsis, an item is replaced by 
nothing (i.e. Have you been studying? Yes, I have, ellipted item: been studying.) 
9
 Conjunction involves the use of formal markers to relate sentences, clause and paragraphs 
to each other. Conjunction can be additive (and, or, also…), adversative (but, instead, 
however…), causal (so, consequently, it follows that…), temporal (next, then, after that, in 
conclusion…) and continuative (now, of course, well, anyway…). 
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morphologically related to the corresponding verb, qualified by adjectives 
or adverbs. 
Nominalization allows the author of the text to avoid subordinate clauses or 
sentences and, consequently, reduces ambiguity in the text. 
Related to nominalization is the simplification of the paragraph’s structure, 
in terms of clarity of expression, linear syntax and transparency. This 
enables the receiver to focus his/her attention on the data and information in 
the text. 
The structure of a specialized text is generally linear with very short and 
simple sentences, made up by a main clause, rarely followed by a secondary 
one. In these rare cases, –ing forms, past participles or infinitive verbs are 
used to indicate different relations among the sentence (i.e. causal or 
conditional relation
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).  
 
1.2.3 – Passive and impersonal forms 
Another feature of specialized texts is the wide use of passive and 
impersonal forms and this is due to the need to focus on the discussed 
process or situation and not on who writes. This result is achieved by 
depersonalizing verbs, in other words, using the impersonal or passive 
forms. For this reason, any reference to the author of the text is made in the 
third person singular (i.e. the author…).  
When the actor is explicitly mentioned, it has a semantic value, which 
means that the process, the experiment, the research etc. has been carried 
out by that particular subject. Furthermore, some parts of the texts, as 
inanimate subjects, are often used with verbs that imply animate subjects 
(i.e. figure 3 compares…, this chapter explains…).  
The different use of active and passive form fulfils different functions. The 
passive form is used to describe a standard, and generally accepted, 
                                                 
10
 For example, expressions like based on or assuming that… 
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procedure or to talk about research and experiments carried out by someone 
else.  
The active form is used to describe the author’s point of view or analysis 
when it contrasts with the opinion of other scholars.  
 
1.2.4 – Verb tenses 
Specialized languages differ from the common language for a particular and 
narrower use of verb tenses. 
The tenses mostly used are simple present and simple past. 
In some cases, e.g. the description of equipment, the present tense is used if 
the equipment is still at work but the past tense is used if it is not.  
At the same time, the past tense is used, for example, to refer to the way in 
which data have been collected or to refer to previous research and studies. 
Present tense is used if the author is explaining a picture or is talking about 
an on-going experiment.  
Generally speaking, present is used to refer to statements of universal truth, 
accepted theories and theorems, scientific rules and technical descriptions 
and analysis.  
Another syntactic aspect, typical of specialized languages, is the use of the 
imperative mood and the use of the imperative pattern let us + infinitive 
(without to) in direct instructions or in order to make concepts and theories 
clear
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. 
 
1.2.5 – Modality 
In specialized languages, even the semantic category of modality, that is to 
say the position of the author towards what has been written (possibility, 
probability, necessity…), is used in a particular way (Scarpa 2001). 
                                                 
11
 For example: assume the electron is..., or let us take the direction… 
 7 
Using one of the different modal verbs
12
 instead of another is the result of a 
choice made by the author because each of these verbs corresponds to a 
different level of certainty. Sometimes, in specialized texts, the level of 
certainty expressed by modals may differ from that expressed in general 
language texts. 
For example, in an instruction manual, a shift in meaning of should and may 
can occur. If in general language, these modals express suggestion, advice, 
in indirect instructions they can have the meaning and the value of must, 
indicating an obligation without any chance of choice.  
At the same time, it has been argued that sometimes can and may do not 
imply deontic
13
 or epistemic
14
 modality as usual, but they are used with the 
meaning of tend to
15
.  
 
1.2.6 – Lexis and terminology 
Although it is no longer thought that specialized languages and common 
language are two different linguistic systems and that the only difference 
between them is lexis, the component creating a serious problem for 
translators is still lexis itself. It is continually “updated” in response to the 
more and more specific technical needs. For this reason, the translator 
should bring him(her)self up to date at the same rate of specialized 
vocabulary.  
As Cortellazzo (1994) suggests, it is the lexis that helps the translators to 
distinguish a specialized language from another and from the common 
language.   
In dealing with specialized languages, Trimble (1985) proposes a useful 
distinction between “technical” lexis and “sub technical” lexis. The first 
                                                 
12
 Can, will, should and may 
13
 Deontic modality is modality that connotes the speaker’s degree of requirement of, desire 
for or commitment to the realization of the proposition expressed by his/her utterance. 
14
 Epistemic modality is a modality that connotes how much certainty or evidence a speaker 
has for the proposition expressed by his/her utterance. 
15
 For example: The process may be carried out indiscriminately by…or by… 
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includes highly specialized terms belonging to the specific subject while the 
latter comprises words and expressions from the common language which 
have a different semantic meaning when used in a specialized text
16
. 
Specialized terms have uniqueness in semantic reference. Since they have a 
specific referent, homonymy, synonymy and polysemy should be avoided. 
When it is the case, the technical term should be repeated or it can be 
referred to with a univocal expression
17
 or with a hyperonym.    
 
2 – Specialized translation 
The field of translation is split up into two categories: literary translation 
and specialized translation. The latter is the translation of documents and 
texts written in specialized languages. 
As regards translated texts, literary texts are less than 1%, institutional texts 
account for 30%, technical texts (such as economic or legal documents, 
medical essays, etc.) make up 50%. The remaining 19% are general texts 
such as newspaper articles (Scarpa 2001).  
 
2.1 – The first step 
As Jakobson (1966) says, poetry is untranslatable, by definition. This 
statement is not true referring to specialized translation except for the 
following two cases: when the ST has been written in a bad way (with 
grammar mistakes, inadequate terminology, random style, etc) or when the 
ST has some typical features of a poetical text (ambiguity, redundancy, 
puns, etc.).  
                                                 
16
 For example base. In the common language, it means “the lowest part of sth, especially 
the part of surface on which it rests or stands” (Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary). In 
the specialized language of chemistry it means “any chemical species, ionic or molecular, 
capable of accepting or receiving a proton (hydrogen ion) from another substance (…)” 
(McGraw-Hill, technical and specific dictionary) 
17
 For example, instead of repeating pharyngitis the expression this kind of inflammation 
could be used. 
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To solve this kind of problem, the translator can rewrite the whole ST. In 
terms of time, this operation is often much cheaper than the attempt to 
understand and translate the texts in a better way. This approach, implying 
rewriting the ST, is an extreme case.  
The first step, then, for a specialized translation, is to establish what kind of 
text the ST is
18
. Concerning this, in 1970, Hans J. Vermeer introduced the 
Greek word skopos
19
 to refer to the purpose of translation. Skopos theory 
focuses above all on the purpose of the translation, which determines the 
translation methods and strategies that are to be employed in order to 
produce a functionally adequate result
20
. In Skopos theory, knowing the 
reason for translating a ST and the function of the TT is crucial for the 
translator
21
.  
 
2.2 – The second step 
In the second step, the translator prepares him(her)self to the translation by 
carefully reading the ST in order to understand its meaning and its skopos, 
to identify equivalent and translation problems and to make the strategic 
decisions
22
.  
In dealing with specialized languages, the reading of the texts should 
include three phases: a general reading, to define the skopos and the genre 
the text belongs to; a thorough reading, to identify the information and the 
contents that should be transmitted in the TL; a translation oriented analysis 
aimed at finding and solving the problems.  
                                                 
18
 See section 1.2 above 
19
 ‘Aim’ or ‘purpose’ 
20
 This result is the TT which Vermeer calls translatum. 
21
 But it should be taken into account that the ST’s function sometimes does not correspond 
to the TT’s function. It could be the case, for example, of a political speech delivered by 
Napoleon (which had political purpose) and translated in the 21
st
 century for historical 
purposes  
22
 Strategic decisions are the first set of reasoned decisions taken by the translator before 
starting the translation in detail.  
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