A REVISION OF THE METHODS AND PROCEDURES OF TRANSLATION IN THE MARITIME INDUSTRY AT THORASEN VINAMA CO , LTD

MINISTRY OF FINANCE ACADEMY OF FINANCE Student: Hoàng Ngọc Đại Group: CQ56/51.01 GRADUATION THESIS Topic: A REVISION OF THE METHODS AND PROCEDURES OF TRANSLATION IN THE MARITIME INDUSTRY AT THORASEN VINAMA CO., LTD Major: English for Finance and Accounting Student code: 1872202010005 Supervisor : Bui Thi Tuyet Mai (Ms.) Hanoi – 2022 MINISTRY OF FINANCE Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis ACADEMY OF FINANCE Student: Hoàng Ngọc Đại Group: CQ56/51.01 GRADUATION THESIS Topic: A REVISION OF THE METHODS AND PROCEDURES OF TRANSLATION IN THE MARITIME INDUSTRY AT THORASEN VINAMA CO., LTD Major: English for Finance and Accounting Student code: 1872202010005 Supervisor : Bui Thi Tuyet Mai (Ms.) Hanoi – 2022 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis DECLARATION I, Hoang Ngoc Dai, hereby declare that this thesis was written by myself, that the research presented in it is my own, and that this work has not been submitted to any other degree of qualification Ha Noi, May 2022 Student Hoàng Ngọc Đại Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis ABSTRACT This study investigated the factual state of working capital management efficiency at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd from the viewpoint of a fourth-year student of the Faculty of Foreign Language, Academy of Finance The paper focuses on finding out the deficiencies in the company's translation department and more importantly suggesting the main methods to improve the efficiency of translating in the company In achieving these goals, the graduation paper surveys the current situation of translation and assesses whether it is effective or not using different methods From the received results, the study argues the most practical implications for Thorasen-Vinama Ltd to improve the efficiency of the translation process of the company in the upcoming future Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deep gratitude to all those who have given me the possibility to complete this graduation thesis In preparing this graduation thesis, I have had generous help and advice from my adviser, colleagues, family, and friends I would like to express my great thanks to all of them First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Ms Bui Thi Tuyet Mai, lecturer at the Academy of Finance, who has given immense help and constant guidance with many careful instructions and comments and valuable advice to me whenever I need Without her support, I am not able to have a complete thesis Second, I wish to show my sincere thanks to all my teachers at the Academy of Finance, who have provided me with a great education throughout my years of study Moreover, I have furthermore to thank the staff of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd for their valuable support during the internship period Without their help, it would be impossible for me to finish this work Last but not least, I would like to send my loving thanks to my family whose love and care in both spirit and health encouraged me to complete the thesis Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis LISTS OF ABBREVIATIONS ST: Source Text TT: Target Text SL: Source Language TL: Target Language CBT: culture-bound term SLT: Spoken Language Translation ESP: English for Specific Purpose EAP: English for Academic Purpose EBE: English for Business Economics EOP: English for Occupational Purpose ESBP: English for Specific Business Purpose ESS English for Social Study Academy of Finance EST: English for Science and Technology Graduation Thesis LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES List Concept, focusing point, and functions of maritime logistics Suffix and prefix-based single terminology in the form of nouns Single terminologies in the form of verbs Maritime Logistics Acronyms Eponyms in maritime logistics Chart 1: General hierarchy of THORESEN - VINAMA CO., LTD Chart 2: Assessment of the translation quality of documents at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd Chart 3: Criteria used to assess translation quality Chart 4: Level of each criterion assessed Page 23 25 25 26 26 27 32 33 33 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis TABLE OF CONTENT Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis INTRODUCTION RATIONALE OF THE STUDY In the maritime industry, translation plays an essential role to maintain the smooth running of a business No business can run successfully without mutual understanding between companies because it is considered the bridge beyond the borders of an enterprise Companies that have paid a lot of attention to translation and use them efficiently gain a lot of benefits to generate much more working efficiency internally, thereby lowering costs, and improving their performance This affects the fluidity and smoothness of communication between enterprises and adversely affects the whole working process Therefore, to get rid of miscommunication and errors, businesses should ask themselves “How to improve the efficiency of translation” This is not a simple question, but a hard question that enterprises aren't solving immediately They should have appropriate, proper, and reasonable methods that can draw different ways to improve the efficiency of the translation process simultaneously focusing on the quality of the translation results to be on time and keep clear communication To be aware of the importance of translating and be inspired by the necessity of an effective translation process during my intern time at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd, as well as based on the knowledge and practical experiences I got during the internship, I’m going to choose the topic: “A REVISION OF THE METHODS AND PROCEDURES OF TRANSLATION IN THE MARITIME INDUSTRY AT THORESEN VINAMA CO., LTD” as my graduate thesis title AIM OF THE STUDY - To provide the knowledge and information on translation activities at ThorasenVinama Ltd - To understand the situation of translation activities at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd - To identify and assess the causes of the deficiencies of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd ‘s translation department - To suggest main methods to improve and strengthen the efficiency of translation during work METHODS OF THE STUDY Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis Based on knowledge at the academy, books, and self-accumulation and to achieve these above objectives, several methods of studying the thesis are used as follows: - Figure collection: from websites of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd, books, the internet, and internal information of the corporation - Translation assessment methods – Document evaluation, judgment, and conclusion - Method of analyzing, summarizing, and synthesizing materials and books from the theoretical background SCOPE OF THE STUDY The study is performed at Logistics Department at Thorasen-Vinama TVA Hai Phong branch, ROOM 432, Thanh Dat Building, No Le Thanh Tong Street, Ngo Quyen District, Hai Phong, Vietnam The study is based on the data provided by the Logistics Department of the company and the object is the translation of legal documents and emails at the company ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY Besides the Contents, Introduction, Conclusion, and References, the thesis consists of chapters Chapter 1: This chapter provides a general overview of translation theory and the importance of improving the quality of translation • Chapter 2: The main part of the thesis It gives an overview of the translating process of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd and uses different methods to assess it • Chapter 3: This chapter gives the directions for the future development of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd and provides some practical resolutions to enhance the efficiency of translating in this company • 10 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis goods" or "send improper quantities." In emails, slang like "box" could be mistranslated as "hộp" when it should be "container." • Culture: A nation's/language community is used to express cultural items, cultural ideals, cultural conceptions, and other aspects of that nation/community Different nations' cultures have little in common and differ greatly in many ways Different cultures naturally express themselves in different languages As a result, one of the most challenging yet typical issues for translators is dealing with cultural terminology and avoiding cultural shock in translation B A deeper look at the problems a At the word level Untranslatable words: In maritime documents, sometimes, there are some difficult words that translators cannot convey accurately due to having any good suggestions from reputable English dictionaries such as Oxford and Cambridge is not suitable for the translating contexts This problem occurs when translators lack diverse vocabulary in this field • Non - equivalence between the meaning of the word in the dictionary and the context: The discrepancy between a word's dictionary meaning and its meaning after reading context can be a significant issue for translators The ability to interpret and adapt the translation to the context is the first basic translation skill Only in some instances is word-for-word translation accurate Overuse of word-by-word translation will result in "a translation art disaster." • b At phrase level • Word by word translation: New or inexperienced translators frequently make the mistake of translating word for word Because of this issue, the translated version is unnatural, illogical, or wrong Some English words may have distinct meanings when used alone, but when joined in a phrase, the meaning changes dramatically Translating a phrase is difficult since it must not only be appropriate for the context, but it must also sound natural and adhere to the target language's style Difficulty in translating relative clauses Because of its convoluted meaning and structure, the relative clause in English is one of the most difficult elements to translate The issue is that translators are unsure how to explain the relative sentence or how to break it down into smaller chunks to translate In maritime documents, it's difficult to translate a sentence while keeping the original meaning and structure of the relative clause c At the sentence level 42 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis Difficult terminology: English documents occasionally use unusual terminology Because there isn't always a matching alternative in Vietnamese, conveying the meaning of terminology is more difficult than proverbs and idioms Furthermore, translators must not only maintain the term as short as the original but also translate all meanings associated with it As a result, difficult-to-translate terminology is one of the most problematic issues, particularly when translating documents • Using too much pronoun “it” in the sentence: When source materials lack subjects, translators may struggle to explain the meaning of the sentence and how to add an appropriate subject to complete the sentence In other circumstances, translators continue to translate paragraphs without a subject, resulting in a choppy and odd interpretation Pronouns are utilized in both Vietnamese and English not just to avoid repeating nouns, but also to communicate the writer's various attitudes and feelings The pronoun "it" is frequently used to substitute the subject in compulsory English management documentation In Vietnamese, however, the pronoun "it" signifies "nó." Vietnamese people rarely use the pronoun "it" in written documents since it expresses informality and sounds like spoken language A sentence with too many pronouns "it" will confuse translators The sentences will sound odd if they continue to translate the pronoun "it" into Vietnamese As a result, overuse of the pronoun "it" in a single sentence causes trouble for translators • Spelling mistakes: This is a common issue that all translators should avoid Making spelling mistakes in the translated version might hurt the credibility of the company in the eyes of the customers, particularly in logistics emails that contain a lot of proper and unusual names for locations and shipment • 2.2.2.4 Strengths and weaknesses of translation at THORASEN-VINAMA Ltd A Strengths of translation of the documents One of the most prominent strengths of translating documents at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd is the source documents Typically, the ST is in Vietnamese and the translator must translate it into English One of the most recognizable characteristics of documents is that the terms and sentences are normally straightforward to understand, so the translators have no problem translating them into the TT Furthermore, the structure of the source documents is comprehensive As a result, this makes it easier for translators to understand and avoid misinterpretations among pieces of the documents Likewise, before the source documents are sent to the 43 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis translators, they are reviewed carefully to guarantee that there are no grammatical errors Thus, thanks to the clear source documents, the translators can find it easy to produce a quality translation Another strength that should be mentioned is the experience of translators at THORASEN-VINAMA Ltd As far as I know, many translators have been working for THORASEN-VINAMA Ltd for about 4-5 years, so they are knowledgeable about the format as well as content in the documents at the company Through the time working in this field, they become more skillful in translating these documents, which helps to improve the translation quality of the company The more they work, the more experienced they are In terms of specialist knowledge, they always set time to improve their understanding of maritime terminology Their knowledge has been improved significantly since they started working at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd Therefore, the translation quality has also been improved They put their heart into their work and like to create the best translation as they know the importance of these documents to the company and partners This is also why the staff in the company acknowledged the ability as well as the responsibility of the translators Last but not least, a reasonable deadline and amount of work in a certain amount of time are benefits when translating documents at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd The manager of the Logistics Department usually instructs the translator to submit the final translation of all documents for 1-2 hours Typically, these source documents are required to be translated at the same time for the company to send to its customers and partners Each document includes one or two pages, so the time allowed (1-2 hours) is a reasonable amount of time for the translators to complete Likewise, the number of documents needed translated at the same time is not overwhelming During these 1-2 hours, the translators can interpret, translate and revise the documents Consequently, the final translation can be expected to be of the highest quality Thus, it can be considered an advantage for the translator B Weaknesses with the translation of documents Excluding those strengths noted above, the translators at the Logistics Department of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd also encounter some problems while translating documents One of the most significant ones is that both translators not specialize in the maritime field Their major mostly consists of linguistics, mainly English, so they have had to learn more about the maritime field since their employment at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd Occasionally when coming across new terminology in the maritime field, they can encounter difficulties in translating them into the TT accurately Despite their experiences in translation, it is a common occurrence in the maritime field Furthermore, there are just some terminology or idiomatic expression that cant is translated into English fully and vice versa 44 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis Sometimes, a synonym is the best that they can This is also true with other complex phrases and structures Again, they remark that the importance and quality of translated documents focus on the bare meaning of the information than the fluidity of the documents 45 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis CHAPTER 3: SOLUTIONS TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF TRANSLATION IN THORASENVINAMA Ltd 3.1 Solutions for translator 3.1.1 Solutions for linguistic problems when translating documents Improving the translators’ knowledge of the field As the translators in Logistics Department not specialize in the maritime field, they need to improve their understanding of this specialized area It is encouraged to better their vocabulary related to the area Once their vocabulary is expanded, they can understand which word is the most fitting to select during the translation process Similarly, studying specialized terminology in the maritime field is also highly advised in that aspect, it can help the translators to translate the documents in the most accurate and easily digested way to our partners Hence, despite the lack of specialization in the maritime field, the translators can improve their familiarity with the field to create the most coherent and precise translation Organizing translation programs To create the best translation of documents, the translators are required to understand the appropriate wording as well as the structure used in a particular situation Translation apps and programs should be integrated into their translation progress to maximize efficiency Via these apps and programs, the translators can simultaneously understand more about the correct wording, and sentence structure and increase their efficiency which is the most suitable in each situation They can also be taught essential translation skills including good writing skills, precisely transferring style, tone, and cultural elements from one language to another, and paying attention to detail The translators will have more opportunities to improve their skills if the organization can set up these translation programs, resulting in higher-quality translations Finding a reliable source of equivalent idioms, proverbs, and sayings Translating idioms, proverbs, and sayings from the source language is one of the most difficult tasks for any translator Finding credible books or sources to translate those proverbs, idioms, and sayings is crucial Although the mandatory management documents only contain English sayings, several sources for idioms and proverbs 46 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis translation are nonetheless recommended in this section because translators frequently meet idioms and proverbs when translating documents The Oxford Dictionary of Idioms is a dictionary of over 1000 common idioms in English for English learners The idioms are explained in depth in the dictionary, along with notes on their origins This book can help you improve your English vocabulary More translation practicing When it comes to translation, the saying "practice makes perfect" is always true The more documents that are translated, the more progress is made It is strongly advised that translators use as much of their free time as possible to learn new jargon and practice translation They should try to think of analogous words or phrases in the target language whenever they read an item in the newspaper or on the Internet Furthermore, a constant practice not only boosts their confidence in translating but also helps them avoid making costly mistakes during the process Translation is a demanding career that needs significant effort, perseverance, and a deep interest in languages and studies Conveying the meaning naturally and accurately despite linguistic obstacles The most important thing for any translator to remember is that all translation versions should be communicated in a natural, correct, and suitable manner Sometimes translation texts are unavoidably beyond their abilities and understanding As a result, the final target language version's accuracy cannot be guaranteed The following are some tips to assist translators in overcoming common linguistic challenges and producing the best possible translation To begin, create a glossary of nautical and logistics terminology (in both Vietnamese and English) or keep a small notebook on hand to jot down difficult words and phrases This will save translators time and effort while revising and will make them more productive anytime they are asked to translate any papers The second option is to avoid literal translation and instead strive to express the phrase's core meaning 3.1.2 Solutions for non-linguistic problems when translating documents Carefully editing and checking Carelessness reduces the professionalism of a translator’s work After you've finished translating, you should double-check the translated version It's a good idea to get the assistance of other more experienced translators to double-check the final translation for linguistic, spelling, and grammatical errors A standard Vietnamese reader will be a good choice to examine whether the translation follows Vietnamese-style texts in English – Vietnamese versions The average reader also 47 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis provides useful input and remarks on the style of interpretation and translation As a result, receiving assistance from other translators will greatly aid novice translators in their professional path until they have gained sufficient experience and skills For any subject that the translator is unsure about, it is strongly recommended that they confer with other competent translators One of the best ways to reduce all possible complications before submitting the final translated documents is to hire more experienced translators to examine for accuracy, coherence, and unity of the translating version Being careful with online resources With the rapid development of the Internet, translators now have access to a wide range of reference sources such as online dictionaries, chat rooms, and forums where they can seek advice and help However, not all Internet sources and translation forum ideas are trustworthy and dependable As a result, translators should take caution when using this assistance and examine the suggestions before implementing them in their final translation When there are multiple solutions to a single question, it is highly recommended that translators choose the best and most applicable version For complex and complicated - organized sentences, the translator should use Google translate wisely Working hard, translating well, and never giving up Translation is a complex job that requires a great deal of effort, practice, and perseverance When starting their careers as amateur translators, they will find it difficult There are no foolproof guidelines or suggestions for avoiding and resolving all translation issues As a result, translators will get significant experience each day and from each page of translating and will be able to provide the best translation in a short amount of time The most effective remedies to any translation challenges are to remain cool, work hard, and your best to discover the most accurate version of the original language 3.2 Thorasen-Vinama Ltd future plans During 29 years of operation and development, Thorasen-Vinama Ltd has now created an expert image within the eyes of partners, customers, and partners alike within the next following years, Thorasen-Vinama Ltd continues to create this professional image to skyrocket its success level of the corporate to assist the corporate to succeed in this target, one of the foremost crucial factors is the high translation quality of documents which may attract the eye not only of the company’s customers and partners but also of the community In the future, Thorasen-Vinama Ltd will focus more on the interpretation quality of documents, increasing the amount of accuracy, naturalness, clarity, and consistency between the ST and also the TT per Mr Giang– The Manager of Thorasen-Vinama TVA Hai 48 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis Phong branch, although the standard of translated documents during the past few years has been improved significantly compared therewith within the beginning years of operation, all the staff in Logistics Department, especially the translators don't seem to be allowed to be subjective They still should pay more attention to those documents in the maximum amount possible and take a look at their best to bring these documents closer to the community, besides the company’s customers and partners With the goals of developing the link with domestic and overseas partners; building a world name for Thorasen-Vinama Ltd within the industry and contributing to the event and success of its customer through high-quality services, Thorasen-Vinama Ltd always pays attention to every stage of every shipment and cargo, including the stage of translating documents, which transfer nearly the full information of the legal documents and emails to the company’s partners, customers Thus, the standard of the ultimate translation is believed to play an important role in the company’s success Overall, the most orientation and objective of translation of documents is to extend the amount of translation quality and make the translated documents become more understandable and attract more attention from future clients, which is predicted to contribute to the full success of the corporate normally 49 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis CONCLUSIONS It is indisputable that translating has gotten more and more widespread in the globalization era, when English has almost dominated the linguistic system all over the world, based on general information about translating Vietnam emphasizes the necessity of translating Vietnamese to English and vice versa in the growth and integration of both emerging and developed countries as part of this global process In recent years, Thorasen-Vinama Ltd, as one of Vietnam's leading logistics companies with a large international customer base, has focused on improving the translation quality of documents, which are responsible for conveying all information in the ST to the company's customers, partners, and the entire community Although most managers and employees in the organization praise the translation quality of these documents, there are still some flaws and restrictions in the translation process that must be addressed I conducted research on the translation of maritime and legal documents at the Logistics Department of Thorasen-Vinama Ltd, based on the current situation in the company and university knowledge, in which I present and analyze the current situation of translation quality, as well as the strengths and problems of translating documents at the company As a result, I propose some options for Thorasen-Vinama Ltd to improve translation efficiency Some elements of the process are not thorough, the solutions supplied are merely suggestive, and mistakes are unavoidable due to a lack of time and expertise in the translation and the maritime industries I am looking forward to receiving helpful feedback and suggestions from my adviser to improve my writing Finally, I'd want to express my gratitude to Ms Bui Thi Tuyet Mai, as well as the managers and personnel at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd, for assisting me throughout my internship and thesis completion 50 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis REFERENCES • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • TRANSLATION PRACTICE COURSEBOOK FROM CONCEPTS TO PRACTICE – Pham Thi Lan Phuong and Bui Tuyet Mai Wikipedia Oxford Dictionary Newmark, Peter Approaches to Translation [M] Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1981 Newmark, Peter A Textbook of Translation [M] London: Prentice-Hall International (U.K) Ltd, 1988 A study on Vietnamese-English translation Routledge Ho, V M (2002) Training the translator John Benjamin’s Publishing Co Kussmaul, P (1995) Second language research methods Oxford: Oxford University Press Su, L V (2003) To be a good translator Razmjou, L (2003) A linguistic theory of translation Catford, J (1965/2000) Frédéric, H (2014) Translation as a communication process Larson, M L (1984) Meaning-based translation: A guide to cross-language equivalence Douglas Robinson (2003) Becoming a Translator: An Introduction to the Theory and Practice of Translation Dudley-Evans, Tony (1998) Developments in English for Specific Purposes: A multi-disciplinary approach Cambridge University Press Dudley-Evans, Tony (1997) Developments in English for Specific Purposes: A multi-disciplinary approach Cambridge University Press Mackay, R., & Mountford, A (Eds.) (1978) English for Specific Purposes: A case study approach London: Longman Valeontis K & e Mantzari (2006), The Linguistic of Terminology: Principles and Methods of Term Formation, 1st Athens International Conference on Translation and Interpretation Song D K (2012) Maritime logistics: A complete guide to effective shipping and port management Kogan Page Limited 51 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis APPENDIX Question 1: In general, how you assess the translation quality of documents at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd? (on a scale from to 5) Question 2: In your opinion, which criteria can be used to assess the translation quality of these documents? Question 3: At which level you assess these criteria for the translation quality of documents at the company? (on a scale from to 5) Question 4: Do you have any suggestions or recommendations to increase the quality of translating documents at Thorasen-Vinama Ltd? Participants in the survey are expected to respond to this question in a variety of ways 52 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis 53 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis 54 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis 55 Academy of Finance Graduation Thesis CRITIC’S JUDGEMENT Critic: Student: Hoang Ngoc Dai Group: 51.01 Intake: CQ.56 Topic: “A REVISION OF THE METHODS AND PROCEDURES OF TRANSLATION IN THE MARITIME INDUSTRY AT THORASEN - VINAMA CO., LTD” Mark: • - In number: • - In word: Critic 56 ... provide the knowledge and information on translation activities at ThorasenVinama Ltd - To understand the situation of translation activities at Thorasen- Vinama Ltd - To identify and assess the causes... translation, Faithful translation, Semantic translation, Free translation Idiomatic translation, and communicative translation This classification is determined by the source and destination languages A. .. create a complete translation that can convey the right content of the documents Finally, the final editing is what the translators put in the list of factors affecting the translation quality of