Rationale
In a globalized world, translation has played an indispensable role in facilitating international exchanges and cooperation in various fields, one of the most important of which is construction The construction industry has been crossing geographical boundaries for serving clients globally In Vietnam construction is one of the key industries in the country‘s industrialization and modernization process since the beginning of the 20 th century The next following years may see the development in many fields of construction: house, road, bridge and so on In the open economy with many foreign investment projects and international co- operations, translation of construction texts, therefore, has become an urgent need to exchange information and update modern constructional technology from developed countries
Being a co-assistance of a translation agency, I am fully aware that the translation of texts in construction is a difficult job It requires the translators to continuously improve basic knowledge in construction field as well as skill in dealing with situations relating to lexical terms and syntactic structures…
That is the reason why I have decided to carry out a study on Vietnamese-English translation of texts in construction for my MA minor thesis with the hope that the study can provide a general view and give useful suggestions to translation of construction texts.
Aims of the study
The study is aimed at
- Investigating fundamental aspects in translation of construction texts
- Identifying the problems relating to translation of construction texts
- Finding out major causes of the problems and suggestions for solution to the problems in translation.
Scope of the study
As the translation of texts in construction belong to technical translation, it has it own characteristics The translators, therefore, has to try his/her best to fulfill his/her job Within the scope of this study, a study on the translation of construction texts is very exclusive to talk about However, due to the limitation of time, my minor thesis only deals with some aspects, problems, major causes of problems and solution to the problems in translation of texts in construction.
Methods of the study
In order to achieve the goal of the study, the main method is quantitative data analysis Firstly, the study goes through a number of materials on translation to build up a theoretical background for the paper
Then, as it was stated in the aims and scope of the study the writing bases on clarifying and analyzing construction texts Therefore, to accomplish the thesis, a flexible combination of methods is employed, which embraces reference to publications, analysis of collected data, and description of results.
Design of the study
The study consists of three main parts:
Part one is the Introduction which includes: rationale, significance of the study, scope, aims, and design of the study
Part two is the Development with two chapters:
Chapter 1 is theoretical background; it gives general information about translation theory, technical translation, and construction texts
Chapter 2 is the study; the main part of the study It deals with an investigation into Vietnamese – English translation of construction texts In this chapter, some aspects and problems in translation of construction texts are discussed Then, major causes of problems and suggestion for solution of the problems are analyzed and given
Part three is the Conclusion This part points out some limitations of the study and presents implications for translation of texts in construction and suggestions for further research.
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
Translation theory
Translation has been approached from a scientific point of view by linguists through times and thus has been defined variously Different linguists have put the definition of translation in various ways, among which the followings stand out
We start with a definition quoted from the Encyclopedia of Language and Linguistics
―Translation is the replacement of a text in one language (Source language –SL) by an equivalent text in another language (Target language – TL)‖ and it is then followed by other linguists, (Catford, 1965)
―Translation is the expression in another language (or target language) of what has been expressed in another, source language, preserving semantic and stylistic equivalences‖
These definitions, in spite of slight differences in the expressions, there are still common features which can be realized as the notion of movement between languages, content and the responsibility to find equivalents that preserve the attributes or characteristic features of the original text It is a notion of equivalence, which will be taken into consideration in the next part
Translation methods are ways of translating for the widest range of texts or text categories
They provide a framework of principles, restricted rules and hints for translating texts and criticizing translations, a background for problem-solving
Translation methodology is considered the utmost importance and the guideline in translation job The central problem of translating has always been whether to translate literally or freely
The argument has been going on and on for a very long time Some writers favoured some kinds of free translation: the spirit not the letter, the sense not the words, the message rather than the form, the matter not the manner
Larson (1984) divides translation into two main kinds: literal and idiomatic According to the author, literal translation is form-based while idiomatic translation is meaning-based For some purposes, it is desirable to reproduce the linguistic features of the source text, as for example, in a linguistic study of that language Literal translation sounds like nonsense and has very little communicative value If two languages are related, the literal translation can often be understood, since the general grammatical form may be similar But if they are not related, the literal choice of grammatical form and lexical items makes the translation sound foreign
In contrast to literal translation, idiomatic translation uses natural forms of receptor language, both in the grammatical constructions and in the choice of the lexical items A truly idiomatic translation does not sound like a translation It sounds as if it was written originally in the receptor language Therefore, it is recommended that a good translator should try to translate idiomatically However, translations are often a mixture of a literal transfer of the grammatical units along with some idiomatic translation of the meaning of the text
Newmark (1988) suggests 8 translation methods divided into two main groups called semantic translation and communicative translation Newmark put these methods in the form of a flattened V diagram:
Word-for-word translation Adaptation Literal translation Free translation
Faithful translation Idiomatic translation Semantic translation Communicative translation
Word for word translation is interlinear translation in which words are translated by their most common meanings, out of context The SL word order is preserved
In literal translation method, lexical words are again translated singly, out of context The SL grammatical constructions are converted to their nearest equivalent
A faithful translation attempts to reproduce precise contextual meaning within the constraints of TL grammatical structures It transfers cultural words and preserves the grammatical and lexical abnormality
Semantic translation is somehow similar to faithful translation However it takes more account of the aesthetic value of SL text It is more flexible, less dogmatic than faithful translation
Semantic translation admits the creative exception and makes some small concessions to the readership
Communicative translation attempts to render the exact contextual meaning of the original in such a way that both language and content are readily acceptable and comprehensible to the readership
This method reproduces the message of the original but tends to distort nuances of meaning by preferring colloquialisms and idioms
This reproduces the matter without the manner, or the content without the form of the original
Usually it is a paraphrase much longer than the original
Adaptation translation is the freest form of translation mainly used for plays and poetry: themes, characters, plots preserved, SL culture converted to TL culture and text is rewritten
Definition of Translation procedures: Translation procedures are methods applied by translators when they formulate equivalence for the purpose of transferring elements of meaning from the source text (ST) to the target text (TT) (cited by Delisle)
More than one procedure can be seen in one translation, and some translations may result from a cluster of procedures that is difficult to discern
There is some disagreement amongst translation scholars about translation procedures This disagreement is not only terminological but also conceptual There is even a lack of consensus as to what name to give to call the categories, different labels are used (procedures, techniques, strategies) and sometimes they are confused with other concepts Furthermore, different classifications have been proposed and the terms often overlap
The following are the different translation procedures that Newmark (1988b) proposes:
Transference: it is the process of transferring an SL word to a TL text It includes transliteration and is the same as what Harvey (2000:5) named "transcription."
Naturalization: it adapts the SL word first to the normal pronunciation, then to the normal morphology of the TL (Newmark, 1988b:82)
Cultural equivalent: it means replacing a cultural word in the SL with a TL one however, "they are not accurate" (Newmark, 1988b:83)
Functional equivalent: it requires the use of a culture-neutral word (Newmark,
Descriptive equivalent: in this procedure the meaning of the CBT is explained in several words (Newmark, 1988b:83)
Componential analysis: it means "comparing an SL word with a TL word which has a similar meaning but is not an obvious one-to-one equivalent, by demonstrating first their common and then their differing sense components."
Synonymy: it is a "near TL equivalent." Here economy trumps accuracy
Through-translation: it is the literal translation of common collocations, names of organizations and components of compounds It can also be called: calque or loan translation (Newmark, 1988b:84)
Shifts or transpositions: it involves a change in the grammar from SL to TL, for instance, (i) change from singular to plural, (ii) the change required when a specific SL structure does not exist in the TL, (iii) change of an SL verb to a TL word, change of an SL noun group to a TL noun and so forth (Newmark, 1988b:86)
Modulation: it occurs when the translator reproduces the message of the original text in the TL text in conformity with the current norms of the TL, since the
SL and the TL may appear dissimilar in terms of perspective (Newmark, 1988b:88)
Recognized translation: it occurs when the translator "normally uses the official or the generally accepted translation of any institutional term." (Newmark, 1988b:89)
Compensation: it occurs when loss of meaning in one part of a sentence is compensated in another part (Newmark, 1988b:90)
Paraphrase: in this procedure the meaning of the CBT is explained Here the explanation is much more detailed than that of descriptive equivalent (Newmark,
Couplets: it occurs when the translator combines two different procedures
Notes: notes are additional information in a translation (Newmark, 1988b:91)
Vinay and Darbelnet (1965) first proposed 7 procedures operating on three level of style: lexis, distribution, and message
The procedures were classified as direct or literal translation and oblique translation
Literal translation occurs when there is an exact structural, lexical, even morphological equivalence between two languages According to the authors, this is only possible when the two languages are very close to each other
Oblique translation occurs when word for word translation is impossible
Borrowing refers to words taken directly from another language Generally, borrowings enter a language through translation, and just as with false friends (false cognates) the translator should strive to look for the equivalents in the SL that convey the meaning of the SL more advantageously
Calque is used when a foreign word or phrase is translated and incorporated into another language It is a special type of borrowing, consisting of borrowing an expression from the source language and translating literally each element
Literal translation means the direct transfer of the source text into the target language in a grammatically and idiomatically proper way This technique is used when it is possible to transpose the source language message element by element into the target language and obtain a text that is idiomatic
Transposition replaces words from one grammatical word class with another without changing the meaning of the message For example, a verb is translated with a noun, a noun with an adjective, an adjective with an adverb and so on
Technical translation and construction texts
In terms of nature of SL text, Sofer (1991) classified translation into translation of literary works and translation of scientific and technical matters Technical translation covers scientific and technical matters such as books written on science, techniques like books on computers, instruction manuals on TV, washing machine, etc Technical translation is usually done by the one with significant knowledge of linguistics and background knowledge of the specific technical field
According to Newmark (1981), ―technical translation is one part of specialized translation; institutional translation, the area of politics, commerce, finance, government etc…is the other‖ He adds that ―technical translation is potentially non-cultural and universal because the benefits of technology are not confined to one speech community Worldwide technology is developing rapidly and play an important role in human life Demand for technology transfer is of logical necessity among nations The terms in technical translation, therefore, should be translated
Technical translation is primary distinguished from other forms of translation by terminology, its characteristics, grammatical features (passive, nominalization, third person, empty verb, present tense) and its technical format (technical report)
It is suggested by Newmark (1988) that when approaching a technical text, the translator read it first to understand it, underline difficult words and then to assess its nature, its degree of formality, its intention, the possible cultural and professional differences between the readership and the original one Next, the translator should give the translation the framework of a recognized house-style In addition, the translator has to take into account for everything, every word, every figure, letter, every punctuation mark
Newmark draws attention into two main points in the translation method of technical texts
They are translating the title, and going through the text
Newmark assumes that all titles are either descriptive or allusive A descriptive title succinctly names the subject and states the purpose, while an allusive title is suitable for some imaginative literature and popular journalism, and may have to be changed
The title of the SL article is often two long by English standard and could be omitted Besides, the ―general‖ word is best slightly shifted in translation to application In addition, the title has transparent collocation
He adds that most errors in technical translation are caused be misleading adjective plus noun collocation for standardized terms In non-standardized language, transparent or motivated verb plus object, or subject plus verb collocation can also be misleading
It is recommended by Newmark that the translator should read the text through to get the gist and underline all words and structures that appear to contain problems: new technical terms, unfamiliar apparent transparent words with morphemes, figures and symbols, syntactic ambiguity, verb forms The translator, then, can translate sentence by sentence, making grammatical shifts to form natural language
In technical translation , the translator can be as and free in recasting grammar (cutting up sentence, transposing clause, converting verbs to nouns, etc.) as in any other type of informative or vocative text, provided the original is defective
Lexically, the main characteristic of technical language is its actual richness and its potential infinity The translator has to ensure equivalent level of register Also he/she has to adjust the translated sentence in each technical style
Nowadays due to the dominant role of the global needs for construction, there is a great opportunity for translation of construction texts (CT) The translation of CT is one part of technical translation; therefore, it is distinguished from other forms of translation by its characteristics, its terminology and syntactic features, etc
Construction texts appear in different forms such as construction reports, construction procedures and specifications, constructional contracts, constructional investment project, construction tender documents and so on In term of style, those texts are in neutral style, the highest priority is given to denotational meaning In addition, the language used in the texts is usually precise and brief However, the construction texts are usually written for a special kind of readership, who is specialized in construction Therefore, these documents are typically full of technical terms and special expressions
Generally, there have been always challenges in translating lexical items and syntactic structures in CT The translation of those documents requires a good understanding of the basic principles and the correct use of its lexical items and grammatical structures.
AN INVESTIGATION INTO VIETNAMESE – ENGLISH
Translation of construction texts
Translation is a very complicated process, it is complicated because it involves many aspects that need to be paid attention and clarified by the translator during the translating process
Concerning to translation of technical texts in general and technical construction texts in particular, the documents are written for the experts or the ones specialized in the construction field not for the lay people The translator has to carefully take into considerations every aspect in order to make it successful translation Nonetheless, lexical items and syntactic structures are the two main aspects that should be discussed and analyzed in the translation process
II.1.1 Translation of lexical items
Lexical items are bone of technical texts in general and technical texts in construction in particular They embody the process of knowledge distillation In construction texts, a lot of special expressions like acronyms, abbreviation, figures, symbols, and formulas etc are used
Thus translating lexical items accurately is very important and it becomes the first and foremost aspect that matters the translator
As suggested by Newmark (1988), the central difficulty in construction text translation is the technical terms, the new and difficult terminologies In fact, there have been no translators who are products of courses that provide technical translation training Thus, translating technical terms becomes a challenging matter for a translator of CT
The following examples are highly specialized terms in construction To render them into English is not an easy task at all
Vietnamese English Đầm lèn Compaction Đá dăm lu khô Dry bound macadam Đất gia cố guđrong Tar-stabilized soil Cốt liệu thô Coarse aggregate Mặt đường tấm đan bê-tông đúc sẵn Precast slab concrete pavement Vữa phun Shotcrete Máy đổ bê tông ván khuôn trượt Slip-form paver Khoan thăm dò địa chất Geological drilling Múi cấp phối Grading envelope
Bê tông dự ứng lực Pre-stressed concrete
Bó thép kéo sau Post-tensioned tendon Vôi sống Quicklime
The following extract is another example:
Việc đo cao độ miệng lỗ khoan phải được thực hiện bằng máy thủy bình hoặc máy kinh vĩ
Sai số giữa 2 lần đo không vượt quá 50 L mm, với L là khoảng cách từ mốc cao độ tới lỗ khoan, tính bằng kilômét
Khi công tác khoan được thực hiện trên các phương tiện nổi thì việc xác định cao độ miệng lỗ khoan phải được thực hiện và tính toán theo công thức sau:
Z m – Cao độ miệng lỗ khoan khi bắt đầu hoặc kết thúc khoan
Z n – Cao độ mặt nước ở cùng thời điểm đó (m)
H n – Chiều sâu từ mặt nước đến mặt đất (đáy sông, đáy hồ ) khi bắt đầu khoan hoặc kết thúc khoan (m)
Cao độ lỗ khoan phải được ghi chép đầy đủ vào nhật ký khoan và theo quy trình 22TCN259-
The terms in bold may be new and unfamiliar to a non-construction majored translator He/she may be confused in getting the meaning of these terms in the source texts, and choosing the words in the target language so that the translation is correct may become challenging It takes the translator time and experience to find proper translated version
Measurement of drill hole elevation must be carried out by the level or the theodolite Error span between two measurement times will not be over50 L mm, with L is the distance from the bench mark to drill hole calculated in km
When drilling is carried out by floating means, identification of drill hole elevation must be done and calculated based on the following formula:
Z m = Z n - H n (1) While: Z m - Elevation of drill hole mouth when starting of finishing drilling
Z n - Elevation of water surface at the measurement time (m)
H n - The depth from the water surface to land surface (river bed, lake bed, etc) when starting of finishing drilling (m)
Elevation of drill hole must be fully noted in the drill diary and based on procedure 22TCN259-2000
According to Larson (1984:73) in any languages, there are synonyms which are words very similar in meaning Usually, the translator uses synonyms to avoid repetition and make the texts natural to the English However, these words may not have exact the same usage in sentence and paragraph structures
For example, the word ―giám sát‖ are translated by some synonyms like “to supervise”, “to monitor”, “to watch over”, “to oversee”, and “to look out” The word “thẩm định”/ “đánh giá” can be translated by ―to evaluate”; “to appraise”; “to appreciate”; “to assess”; “to rate”, etc
These words are synonymous in nuclear meaning; however, they are used differently in different contexts The translator should be aware of the minute differences in meaning between words, in order to choose words, which have the right connotation Therefore, choosing the word to translate appropriately also matters the translator As the vocabulary of the source language will not match that of the target language, it will be of great help if the translator refers to synonyms words in case there are no none-word equivalents between the source language and the target language
II.1.1.3 Word meaning and word form
Another characteristic of language pointed out by Larson (1984:7) is that word form and word meaning are different between languages
Because languages combine meaning differently, therefore there will exist many words which do not have an exact one-word equivalent in the target language In fact, a single word needs to be translated by several words in the target language in order to give the same meaning, and vice versa, several words in the source language may be translated by a single word For example, the word ―xây lắp‖ can be translated by the expression ―construction and installation‖, and the expression ―khoan thăm dò địa chất‖ can be translated by ―geological drilling‖, or the expression ―công tác lấy mẫu thí nghiệm‖ is rendered by ―taking test sample‖, etc
It may be possible to translate a word with a phrase, which comprise a word with similar meaning, and a phrase to add further definition For example, the Vietnamese word ―thiết bị khoan thăm dò‖ is translated into English by the phrase ―equipments using for drilling survey‖
It is also stated by Larson (1984:73) that a single lexical item (word) may have several meanings other than the one that usually comes to mind In fact, there will be a primary meaning which is the meaning suggested by the word when it is used alone and secondary meaning- the additional meaning that a word has in context with other words For example, a simple word “là” in Vietnamese may be translated either as “is/are” or “comprise” or
“include”, etc, as in the following example:
- Các dự án đầu tư xây dựng mà Nhà nước có mức góp vốn pháp định từ 30% trở lên là những dự án…
(Constructional investment projects to which Vietnamese State owned enterprises contribute at least thirty percent of the legal capital shall comprise projects….)
II.1.2 Translation of syntactic structures
Another aspect that really confronts the translator of construction texts is translating syntactic features This part will look into some grammatical features, which frequently appear in the source text and its English version It will also discuss the difference between Vietnamese and English in the syntactic structures, which affect the success of translation
II.1.2.1 Lengthy and complex sentences
The technical documents in construction are almost written clearly, however, there are some bad texts with ambiguous syntactic structures In Vietnamese version, the documents sometimes have long and complex sentences For example:
Problems in translation of construction texts
in formal written texts, nouns and noun phrases are used to create formality, clarity, and precision for the texts in English Thus, there is a tendency that the verb phrases are turned into NP when translating from Vietnamese to English For example:
- “Quy chế đấu thầu được ban hành nhằm thống nhất quản lý hoạt động đấu thầu trong cả nước, đảm bảo tính đúng đắn, công bằng, và có tính cạnh tranh trong đấu thầu dự án và từng phần dự án đầu tư về tuyển chọn tư vấn, mua sắm vật tư thiết bị và thi công xây lắp để thực hiện các dự án đầu tư …”
( The Regulations on Tendering are issued with the objective of achieving unified management of tendering activities throughout the country and ensuring correctness, objectivity, and competitiveness in tendering for the whole or part of investment projects with respect to the selection of consultants, the procurement of materials and equipment, or construction and installation for the purpose of implementation of investment projects….)
In the above translation, the Vietnamese verbs in bold: “quản lý”, “tuyển chọn”, “mua sắm”,
“xây lắp” and “thực hiện” are translated in English by the nouns (and noun phrases)
―management”, “selection”, “procurement” “construction and installation” and
II.2 Problems related to translation of a construction texts II.2.1 Problems related to translation of lexical items
As a matter of fact, the translator‘s training has its own deficiencies Whether the translator is a specialist in construction or majored in English, he/she is half-trained Due to the lack of background knowledge in construction field, the translator has difficulties in finding the TL equivalences for SL lexical items, especially the technical terms
The translator often translates inaccurately the technical terms, the highly specialized terms in construction and sometimes, he/she does not know how to translate What are called “ đầm lèn”, “cốt liệu thô”, “vữa phun”, “bê tông dự ứng lực”, “bó thép kéo sau”, etc? Looking into these words, of course, if the translator is not an expert in construction field, he/she might not understand them Thus translating them correctly is difficult Moreover, these terms are usually translated literally by combining the meaning of each word but only by combining the meaning of each word, the terms can not be translated accurately like: “đường không có giải phân cách” (undevided highway), “đường trục” (devived arterial road), “bê tông cốt thép”
(reinforced concrete), “cầu lắp ghép” (segmentally comstructed bridge), etc
This excerpt is another example:
- Các qui định cho việc thiết kế chống động đất, phương pháp thiết kế theo mô hình chống và giằng, thiết kế các cầu bê tông theo phương pháp phân đoạn và cầu bê tông cốt thép lắp ghép cũng được trình bày trong chương này…
Phrases in bold might have caused the translator a headache to find proper translated version for these technical terms With the aim at making readings acceptable and understandable by the English readers, the translator reproduces these terms of identical meaning or only near equivalent The translated version is changed, and a little different from original in terms of style and effect
(In this chapter, provisions for seismic designs, analysis by the trut-and-tie model, and design of segmentally constructed concrete bridges and bridges made from precast concrete elements are included….)
Besides, the use of synonyms is also obstacle to a translator of construction texts The translator often uses a variety of English words which are very similar in meaning to render the Vietnamese words with the hope of avoiding repetition and making the texts natural to the English However, these words do not always have the same meaning and usage in different contexts, or the equivalent target language synonyms have several meaning in the source language Therefore, the use of synonyms in translation sometime makes the translated versions become incorrect or ambiguous to readers
- Ứng lực do tác động kéo xuống với cọc hay cọc khoan do lún của đất khối tiếp giáp với cọc hay cọc khoan phải được xác định theo qui định của phần 10
(Force effects due to the down drag on piles or drilled shafts resulting from settlement on the ground adjacent to the piles or shafts shall be determined in accordance with the provision of section 10.)
The word “determine” and “specify” are synonyms, however without the careful consideration, the translator replace ―determined‖ by ―specified‖ in this case: ―Force effects due to the down drag on piles or drilled shafts resulting from settlement on the ground adjacent to the piles or shafts shall be specified in accordance with the provisions of section 10.” The translation can be inaccurate and the meaning is unclear
II.2.2 Problems related to translation of syntactic structures
Beside lexical items, the syntactic structures are big obstacles for the translator when translating construction texts
In fact, it usually causes headaches to the translator in getting the meaning of long and complex sentence in the source text The translator misunderstands the meaning of these Vietnamese sentences and accordingly, he/she translates them inaccurately
Let us consider the following example:
“ Công tác theo dõi, ghi chép trong khi khoan được chính xác, kíp trưởng và thư ký khoan phải thường xuyên nắm vững độ sâu của đáy mũi khoan, độ sâu của chân ống vách, độ sâu của mặt lõi (hay mẫu) lấy được đồng thời thường xuyên theo dõi đầy đủ các yếu tố phản ánh tình hình địa tầng, tình hình khoan vào từng loại địa tầng như: cảm giác tay khoan, tiếng vọng ởđáy lỗ khoan, mầu sắc và lượng nước rửa, tình hình tự lún hay tự tụt của cột dụng cụ khoan, chiều cao động, tình hình đóng tạ, tốc độ khoan, áp lực lên đáy lỗ khoan v.v…”
This sentence is long and complicated It causes difficulty for translator in analyzing and gathering the meaning in both SL and TL The translated version below is considered a failure of translation as the meaning goes differently from the source text
The major causes of the problems
There are many causes of problems in translating construction texts They may come from different factors subjective or objective such as the quality of SL texts themselves, the translators‘ competence in translation, etc Although the number of causes is great, the major ones are categorized as follows:
II.3.1 Badly written SL texts
There are many causes of the problems in translation of construction texts one of which is the badly written SL texts It is not an exceptional case that there are Vietnamese texts written with wrong or ambiguous expressions and structures In fact, the writer may use incorrect words or unnecessary/repeated words, and omits words, etc He/she may write wrong sentence structures, long and complicated sentences, sentences without subjects, predicates, empty verbs, and successive nominalization, passiveness, etc That makes the readers fail to understand and get the gist of the text They sometime may understand it incorrectly thus translating it inaccurately is an inevitable problem
The translators of construction texts can be divided into two main groups The first group includes experts in construction whose jobs are concerned with construction The second one falls into those who are majored in English
As for the first group of construction translators, they may have long time and experience working with this kind of materials Although they are not specialized in English, they know a large number of constructional terms and their English equivalents However, their insufficient proficiency of English is the root of problems They may use wrong vocabulary and incorrect
Suggested for solutions to the problems
The second group of translators, who are specialized in English, are suffered from this disadvantage They have a quite good English proficiency and have studied linguistics and translation theories Nonetheless, they have problems in interpreting specialized knowledge even though they know the meaning of all separate words This is easy to understand because
CT is a difficult natural scientific and technological branch It is full of technical terminologies, new and difficult terms Even constructional experts find it difficult to understand Vietnamese versions not to mention non-constructional experts who try to get the meaning of the technical terms in those texts and interpret them into English Therefore, translating CT accurately is a big problem for this group of translators
II.3.4 Lack of translation skills
We cannot deny the truth that the translation skills are very important to the success of translation For both groups of translators, the experts in constructions or English specialized translators, without good translation skills, they cannot bring about good translations The translators who lack of translation skills might not know what kind of equivalence should be given the highest priority or what kind of translation techniques or procedures should be applied to attain good translated versions In fact, they may have problems with the word choices and syntactic alterations when translating; therefore, they may produce the translated versions not equivalent with the SL texts
II.4 Suggested solutions to the problems
To solve the problems, the translator has to go from the root of them, it is the causes As mentioned above, there are many causes of the problems The translator who wants to translate a text smoothly and successfully, he/she has to analyze the text carefully and understand what problems he/she is facing with What are the problems? The problems are related to what aspects in translation? The solutions to the problems are varied; however, the followings may be some useful suggestion for solution to the problems
II.4.1 Deal with problems related to lexical items
As mentioned above, the insufficient knowledge of technical terms can lead to the inaccurate and ambiguous translation As a matter of fact, due to the lack of specialized knowledge in construction; the translator finds it difficult to understand technical terms even in the SL, not to choose the correct words or equivalences in the TL To overcome the problems related to lexical items, different methods can be applied to translate successfully However, the first step for any translator is to read the text thoroughly to get the gist, the intention, the formality, the readership… by general reading And close reading comes after to underline new and difficult words For these words, the translator can translate by looking up in the dictionary the meaning, form, and usage However, some words are quite difficult and unable to translate by looking up in the dictionary; they can be rendered by connecting the meaning of words with careful analysis Besides, some words can be interpreted by reference from experts in construction for their empirical experience
In addition, to handle with the problems due to the different in word form and word meaning between Vietnamese and English and the use of synonyms in translation, the translator can accumulate vocabulary knowledge As the possession of good vocabulary can help the translator choose the correct words so that the translation is accurate A wide range of vocabulary studying tasks can achieve this One of a good ways to build up vocabulary knowledge is reading and translating construction materials It can help the translator enrich not only the vocabulary in construction field but also the English lexical competence
Here are some good examples of Vietnamese-English translation of lexical items in construction:
Bàn chấn động Vibrating plate Bảo dưỡng thường xuyên Ordinary maintenance Bêtông nhựa Asphalt concrete Bêtông rỗng Porous concrete Cào xới Scarification Chỉ số dẻo Plasticity index Độ thấm nước Permittivity Đường trục Devided artificial road
Hệ số hấp thụ tiếng ồn Sound absorption coefficient Khe thi công Construction joint
Làm bằng, làm nhẵn Shaping, Finishing Lớp chống bám Sealing coat
Lu bánh cứng Rubber-tyred roller Máy bào đất Planing machine Sai số cao độ Tolerance in level Vật liệu thấm Filter material
II.4.2 Deal with problems related to syntactic structures
Because of poor and wrong SL texts, the translator sometimes fails to interpret long and complex sentences or sentences with incorrect structure like lack of subject or predicate, etc
To deal with these problems the translators need to choose the way thought to be the most appropriate with the final aim of satisfying best the English target reader
For instance, facing such long and complicated sentence like the following example, the translator has to read through it and carefully analyze the meaning Then the best approach to apply for such case is to split this sentence into short ones to clarify it Besides, some changes can be made so that the translated version sounds natural and understandable Nonetheless, it must ensure the fact that the meaning and the intended communicative value is the same
- “Theo đề án, từ nay đến năm 2015, Việt Nam sẽ tập trung thu hút đầu tư, phát triển các đô thị lớn, và đô thị trung bình có vai trò, vị thế là hạt nhân, tăng trưởng chủ đạo cấp quốc gia, cấp vùng, cấp tỉnh…gắn với việc xây dựng vùng kinh tế trọng điểm, các khu kinh tế tổng hợp nhằm tạo ra thế cân bằng trên các vùng lãnh thổ quốc gia, góp phần thúc đẩy sự phát triển của của toàn bộ nền kinh tế đất nước, và cũng dành nguồn lực phù hợp để đầu tư, phát triển các đô thị trung bình và nhỏ trên cơ sở khai thác triệt để các lợi thế, tiềm năng của tất cả các vùng, liên kết hỗ trợ nhau làm cho tất cả các vùng đều phát triển.”
(According to the project, from now on to 2025, Vietnam will focus on attracting the investment in developing large and medium urban areas which are the core key to the development of the nation, regions and provinces together with building important and complex economic zones All these activities are aimed at creating the balance among various regions in the country, contributing to the development of the whole national economy In addition, necessary resources will be spent on investing, developing advantages and potentials of all regions thoroughly, and creating opportunities for these regions to support each other for their all development.)
The translated version seems clearer and easier to understand with the suitable changes The long and complicated sentence is splitted into three smaller ones The verb phrases are added subject to turn into complete sentences So that the meaning of translated version is clearer, however it still keep the original meaning of the SL text
-“Dự báo các chỉ tiêu phát triển đô thị theo Đề án Điều chỉnh Định hướng quy hoạch tổng thể hệ thống đô thị Việt Nam đến năm 2025:
Dân số đô thị cả nước khoảng 46 triệu người, tỷ lệ đô thị hóa đạt 45% Cả nước có khoảng 1.243 đô thị, trong đó có 9 đô thị loại đăc biệt và loại I, 17 đô thị loại II, 50 đô thị loại III, còn lại là đô thị loại IV, V…
Nhu cầu đất xây dựng đô thị khoảng 370.000 ha, bình quân 80m2/người.”
(The estimated urban development index in the Project of adjusting General Plan of Vietnamese urban system until 2025 will follows:
Nationwide urban population is 46 million; urbanization rate reaches 45% ; there are 1243 urban areas, including 9 Special and Rate 1 urban areas, 17 Rate 2 urban areas, 50 Rate 3 urban areas, and Rate 4, Rate 5 urban areas for the rest … in the whole country
There will be a demand for 370 000 ha for urban construction (at the average of 80m2/person)
In the above example, there are a verb phrase and two noun phrases not complete sentences In order for the translated version is understandable by readers and the grammar is correct, changes are made in both SL and TL texts The translator added subject and predicate to those phrases when translating them from Vietnamese to English
The verb phrase: ―Dự báo các chỉ tiêu phát triển đô thị theo Đề án Điều chỉnh Định hướng quy hoạch tổng thể hệ thống đô thị Việt Nam đến năm 2025” and the two noun phrases ―Dân số đô thị cả nước khoảng 46 triệu người” and “Nhu cầu đất xây dựng đô thị khoảng 370.000 ha, bình quân 80m2/người” are translated by complete sentences: ―The estimated urban development index in the Project of adjusting General Plan of Vietnamese urban system until
2025 will follows.”and ―Nationwide urban population is 46 million” and “There will be a demand for 370 000 ha for urban construction (at the average of 80m2/person).”