NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITYFACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGESENGLISH FOR BUSINESS DEPARTMEN
DAO THI HAI YEN
A STUDY ON THE TRANSLATION OF VIETNAMESE CULINARYTERMINOLOGY INTO ENGLISH IN VNEXPRESS NEWS
Trang 2NATIONAL ECONOMICS UNIVERSITYFACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGESENGLISH FOR BUSINESS DEPARTMENT
DAO THI HAI YEN
A STUDY ON THE TRANSLATION OF VIETNAMESE CULINARYTERMINOLOGY INTO ENGLISH IN VNEXPRESS NEWS
Dr Dinh Thi Kim Chung
Trang 3Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
numerous helpful study resources.
I also want to thank the National Economics University for providing me witha truly desirable learning environment and full of intriguing things School givesme the chance to exploit a variety of free information resources available in the
library, which not only aided in the completion of this study but also expanded myknowledge.
I would like to thank my friends for supporting me by responding to myquestions whenever I needed and sending me useful informational materials for
my study.
I was also fortunate to be exposed not only to good culinary articles but alsoto many cultural documents in the online magazine VnExpress news, which is freefor anybody to read, and some useful information from this publication has
substantially helped this research.
Finally, I send love and best regards to my parents, who raised me up, and
always help me out unconditionally.
Trang 4Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Eating is not only a biological activity to maintain life but also a culturalfeature associated with a community as habits and customs In Vietnamese culture,eating and drinking is considered as an art, which has a close relationship with the
lifestyle and national traditions expressed in Vietnamese tools and eating culture.
The culinary through each period speaks to the life and people of that period andof the land where it was born However, identifying food in the translation process,especially the Vietnamese culinary terminologies targeted by this study, canchallenge the translator in many aspects, especially with some localized recipenames Just like cooking, culinary translation has both a creative and a technicalside From a technical perspective, if translators are translating packaginginstructions for a certain product, any inconsistencies in terminology can lead toconfusion An example of the creative side of culinary translation is that culinarytexts are often flowery and poetic They need to engage the reader as if the flavorsof an entire culture and not just a particular terminology were conveyed in thetranslation A good glossary translation requires proper translation strategies anda necessary understanding of cultural and culinary topics This study wasconducted to find the nature of culinary terminology and how to translateVietnamese terms in English articles, thereby giving some suggestions and advicefor translators and readers to improve the translation and understanding ofculinary terms.
Researching and translating culinary terms from Vietnamese into English is avaluable and essential task for several reasons Firstly, Vietnamese cuisine isknown for its unique flavors and ingredients, making it increasingly populararound the world As a result, a growing number of culinary enthusiasts and foodlovers are seeking to explore Vietnamese cuisine and incorporate it into their owncooking Therefore, having accurate and comprehensive translations ofVietnamese culinary terms into English is crucial for promoting and sharing
Vietnamese cuisine with a broader audience.
Translating culinary terms from Vietnamese into English also helps create abetter understanding of the ingredients and flavors used in Vietnamese food Thetranslation of culinary terms provides a deeper insight into the history and culturebehind Vietnamese cuisine, and helps people appreciate the significance of certaindishes, ingredients, and cooking techniques Moreover, clear and accurate
ii
Trang 5Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
translations can help eliminate any confusion between different Vietnamesedishes, as well as highlight the similarities and differences between Vietnameseand other cuisines.
In addition to promoting cultural exchange, researching and translatingculinary terms from Vietnamese into English can also facilitate business and traderelations between Vietnam and English-speaking countries For example, thetranslation of Vietnamese culinary terms can help food import and exportcompanies navigate the complex regulatory requirements in different countries andpromote the export of Vietnamese food products.
In conclusion, researching and translating culinary terms from Vietnameseinto English is an essential task that contributes to promoting Vietnamese cuisine,facilitating cultural exchange, and enhancing business relations By providingaccurate translations of Vietnamese culinary terms, people can better understandthe ingredients, flavors, and techniques used in Vietnamese cuisine, and appreciate
the rich cultural history of this country.
Culinary terms from 50 original Vietnamese articles and 50 translated Englisharticles respectively were analyzed and classified based on proven strategies,discussed in the theoretical framework (chapter 2) The results are then graphedshowing many interesting discoveries about the nature of terms in culinary articlesand the appropriate usage trends of translators when applying different strategiesfor different cuisine terminologies Data analysis also shows that each termtranslation method requires different characteristics and features corresponding toeach type of term This can assist readers and translators in identification foodnames and describing food, a variety of suggestions are offered Moreover, I hopethat the study can help readers understand about Vietnamese culinary and be adocument contributing to connect different cultures around the world Finally, bymaking use of the findings of this study, avoiding the errors and limits of the study,and following the recommendations, future researchers might enhance theirresearch in the future.
1H
Trang 6Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Trang 7Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTT - 5 HH TH TH HH HH nh nh nghệ 1EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 0111 Ả ilLIST OF ABBREVIA TIONS HH HH HH HH nh nh ivIV.) )00/9)02090)/00 11171775 VI9) 42.115 ViiLIST OF V00 ViliCHAPTER I INTRODUCTION nghe 11.1 Rationale of the Study - - - 1 1v vn HH TH ng kg rệt 11.2 Purposes of the research - 5 LH HH HH HH ng ng kg 31.3 Scope of the research 0.0.0.0 ồ.ồ Ốẻẻ 4
1.4 Research Questions cccccesscceseesseeesseceseeceeeceaeceeaeceeeceaeessaeeesaeseneeeeaees 4I2) 00000 0 201 4T.S.T Research procedures 186 n eeằe 41.5.2 Data collection LHHSÍTHIHL€HHE HH nh ng nh ng nh nrệt 5
1.6 Design of researCH: Ác HH TH HH TH HH ket 51.7 Summary of chapter Ì, 5 s11 HH ng ng 6CHAPTER IT THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK ằ.ccecceie 72.1 Theory of tramslation 1 72.1.1 Definition of ÍfdIISÏfÄOHH Đà G1 1v vx HH TH nhện 72.1.2 Importance Of translation Đà SH HH key 82.1.3 Terminology translation Strategies Án Shin rrirrirrey 92.2 Terminology and Vietnamese culinary terminology 132.2.1 Definition of ÍẰ€TFIHIHỌOBV., n nHHHkHHHHHHnH ngư, 132.2.2 Characteristics of terminology and culinary ferrminology 142.2.3 Types of common Vietnamese culinary terIminoÌ0By -+- 162.3 General information about VnExpress neWs che 172.4 Summary of chapter Ï Ï - ccc cecceseceeeeeceeaeeeeeceeeeeeaeseaeeseeeeeeaeeeees 18CHAPTER III FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION - 2-2257 203.1 Application of culinary terminology in translation . 20
Trang 8Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
3.1.1 Frequency of culinary terminologies used in Vietnamese arficles 203.1.2 Types of culinary terminologies in analyzed articÌes - ««- 213.2 Translation strategies applied to translate English culinary terminologiesinto Vietnamese ccccccccccccessscccesscccessseccesssccesseeccesseeceesseeeessseceeseeeenseeeeees 223.3 Terminology translation strategies applied in translating different typesOf culinary terminologies .cceccccccecccesccsseeseeesetsseesseeseceseeseeesecusecsseceeeeeeeeeeees 25B.B.T Literal technique nan ốố.ốố.ố.ốằ.Ắ 263.3.2 BOVTOWING occ ccccccccccccccceeteceeesneeeenneeeeeseeeeneeeeensaeeeseaaeesseaeeeseaaeseneseessssgeesseaaeees 273.3.3 Componential analysis Strategy cành HH hệt 283.3.4 NdfHTÏHZ(1ÍÄOHH HH HH nh HH HH Hi Hệ 29Bi3B.5 /./,/ /08n8n.Ầ 303.3.6 Cultural equivalent 00 n6 aad 311S n8 nh 4 323.4 Summary of chapter IÍÏ - 5 G111 9 1 9 ng ng Hư 33
CHAPTER IV RECOMMENDA TIONS Úc che 344.1 Recommendation for culinary translation strafegies . 344.1.1 Applying suitable strategies Sàn nhe 344.1.2 Applying suitable COHÍ€XÉS SG nghệ 354.2 Recommendation for the pre-translation preparafion - - 364.2.1 Accumulating knowledge - Ác nh HH ng rệt 364.2.2 Overcoming cultural diƒƒÏCHỈH€S - ccccckxsrhirirerirrsrrsrrrrrrree 374.3 Summary of chapter [V - - sgk rh 380 9) 0) 00/)190)0 395.1 Summary of the SẦUY - 5G c5 213321113 111 5118111811111 1EE1xEexxee 395.2 Limitation of the SUd]y - - Ác HH TH TH TH ng HH key 395.3 Recommendation for further study s5 5 2+5 *++sssseesssesesxrs 40
vi
Trang 9Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 3 1 Frequency of culinary terminology in Vietnamese articles 20
Figure 3 2 Types of culinary terminologies in analyzed articles by percentage 21
Figure 3 3 Culinary terminology translation strategies applied by translators 22Figure 3.4 Literal technique applied to translate seven types of culinaryI98110019I03212 20012577 Ầ 26Figure 3.5 Borrowing applied to translate seven types of culinary terminologies.
Figure 3.6 Componential analysis strategy applied to translate seven types of
Culinary terMinOlOgies + xv vn nh ngư 28
Figure 3.7 Naturalization translation method applied to translate seven types ofCulinary ferIInỌOB1S - -. + ceeceeeeseeeseceseseeeeseeeaeeseeeseens 29
Figure 3.8 Neutralization applied to translate seven types of culinarytErMINO]OGICS 2 eeeecccesccesecescecencecseeesaeceeeceeecseeesaeeeeaeseneeeeneeneaees 30Figure 3.9 Cultural equivalent applied to translate seven types of culinarytETMINO]OGIES 0 "n 31Figure 3.10 Deletion by paraphrasing applied to translate seven types of culinary
TETMINOLOBIES oe eee eee ees ees e 32
Vil
Trang 10Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
LIST OF TABLES
Table 3 1 Seven terminology translation strategies applied to translate differenttypes of culinary terminỌOgØ1€S -«- «5s £+s£+s+ssseeseree 25
vill
Trang 11Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Rationale of the study
Cuisine culture is a natural culture formed in life For many ethnic groups andcountries, food is not only a material culture but also a spiritual culture Throughculinary, one can understand the cultural features that show human dignity, thecultural level of the nation with the morals, rules, and customs in the way of eating.
Culinary is always an interesting topic when it comes to beautiful Vietnam.Vietnamese culinary is not only dishes and recipes, but this is a natural culture
formed in life They are known for their characteristics such as: sociability,
diversity, low fat; rich in flavor with a smooth combination of many differentingredients and spices to help increase the taste and attractiveness of each dish.
Vietnam is an agricultural country belonging to the hot, tropical monsoon
region In addition, the territory of Vietnam is divided into three distinct regions:
North, Central and South, along with 54 ethnic groups It is the characteristics ofgeography, culture, ethnicity, and climate that determine the specificcharacteristics of the culinary of each region - region Every region has a typicaltaste That contributes to the richness and diversity of Vietnamese culinary.Vietnamese culinary the foods and beverages of Vietnam Meals feature a
combination of five fundamental tastes: sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and spicy Thedistinctive nature of each dish reflects one or more elements (nutrients, colors, etcetera), which are also based around a five-pronged philosophy Along with thedevelopment history of the Vietnamese nation for thousands of years, culinaryculture has been crystallized in many aspects of social life Each region has its own
imprint, its own identity in the general identity of the Vietnamese nation People
in Northern, Central and Southern of Vietnam have very specific ways ofexpressing, processing, and presenting dishes according to climates and culturalregions Each region has a typical representative, the North has delicious Hanoidishes, the Central region has Hue culinary with a sophisticated royal style, theSouth has Saigon with the harmony of many styles processing Through the namesof the dishes, we partly understand the culture and activities of the Vietnamesepeople, hidden deep in them are the life philosophies that the Vietnamese send inthat name The society is developing more and more, the interference betweencultures is closer, we don't have to go to America, France to enjoy the taste of
Trang 12Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Hamburger, or KFC - the famous fast food of the West and the world On thecontrary, it is not necessary to be in Vietnam to know the bowl of beef noodlesoup, chicken noodle soup, but you can sit in Cali - USA, you still know howVietnamese pho is With such a development trend, the names of dishes also needto be translated into another, more popular, more global language The need to
translate the names of Vietnamese dishes into English is huge, not only to meet
social needs in food services, but also a way to convey a part of culture tointernational friends Eating is not only eating, but also understanding how to enjoyVietnamese food, enjoy Vietnamese cooking methods, and the historical andcultural imprints of Vietnamese people In the process of translating Vietnamesedishes, there are many names that have almost lost all their cultural meanings, forexample: “bánh phụ thể” is translated into English as “wedding cake” that makesthe people who do not know imagine about the multi-layered cake is usually cutby the bride and groom at the wedding reception, not the cake made of glutinousrice flour, green beans, diameter with deep implications from a story The specificstudy of such cases in the culinary word class will help us point out theinadequacies when translating Vietnamese culinary words into English.
Previously, the number of studies on translating culinary terminologies wasnot much and focused more on culture; there was no work that really studied thewords used in Vietnamese culinary Therefore, I hope that this study on translation
of Vietnamese-English culinary terms can be a document that contributes tobuilding bridges for communication between countries Moreover, this document
serves as a manual for translators who want to learn about culinary terms or havedifficulty in translating relevant content Understanding the content or structure ofculinary words helps people have a more comprehensive view of the class ofVietnamese culinary terminologies.
The research data is analyzed from the food category in VnExpress online
magazine VnExpress online magazine is one of the magazines that possessinteresting and exceptional characteristics to serve up the human thinking process,
which is specially made for Vietnamese people by providing them translatedarticles from English ones VnExpress is the largest online newspaper site inVietnam, publishing an average of 500 stories per day, and 95% of them are writtenby multi-purpose journalists using the newsroom's multi-platform editing tools.
According to a recent statistic, this online newspaper has attracted more than 40
Trang 13Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
million regular readers, more than 10 billion views and 5 million comments As ofFebruary 2022, VnExpress has 129.6 million visits in February 2022 Each reader
spends an average of 5 minutes 44 seconds on a visit VnExpress newspaper has
an English version of VnExpress International - the location of the most widely
read Vietnamese news website in English The food category on VnExpress is aregular investment column with a dense posting frequency It helps to provide ahuge knowledge base related to food and is the source text of not only the hostnewspaper but other websites as translation material.
To sum up, the above are the reasons that motivate me to choose the topic,which is “A study on the translation of Vietnamese culinary terminology intoEnglish in VnExpress news” With this research, I would like to contribute tounderstanding the class of culinary vocabulary in Vietnamese and the commonlyused ways to translate it into English.
1.2 Purposes of the research
The research is conducted to discover culinary terminologies in Vietnameseand how to translate them into English To achieve the above research purpose, thethesis will focus on solving the following main tasks:
- Build a theoretical basis for the study of culinary words in Vietnamese food
- Learn how to translate culinary words from Vietnamese into English.
According to the findings, the thesis "A study on the translation of Vietnameseculinary terminology into English in VnExpress news" hopes to contribute to thestudy of cuisine terms in Vietnamese more deeply besides optimal propensities andsuitable strategies to translate different types of Vietnamese culinary terminology.In the current integration trend, promoting culture, including culinary, is a
necessary job; therefore, translating culinary words into English so that foreigners
Trang 14Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
can understand and feel the culture of Vietnam Moreover, recommendations andsuggestions from this study also help students and translators to understand theterminological translation process and improve the quality of their works.
1.3 Scope of the researchResearch subjects:
- English and Vietnamese culinary terminologies.
- 50 translated English articles and their Vietnamese sources.
The time of collecting and analyzing articles: From 2019 to 2023
Research place: The food column on VnExpress news and other onlinetranslated articles which are created from VnExpress source.
2 How are the terminology terms used in Vietnamese culinarytranslated into Vietnamese in the food articles?
3 What should be done to improve the Vietnamese translation ofEnglish culinary terms?
1.5 Methodology
1.5.1 Research procedures
Firstly, the researcher chose a general topic with an appropriate scope andadequate data and samples The research is suitable for the researcher's capabilityand purposes.
Second, the researcher accomplished the research's proposal, an outline, andtheoretical framework for the research.
Trang 15Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Thirdly, details and information were acquired by reviewing and contrastinga source of 50 randomly selected Vietnamese articles with their 50 Englishtranslations on the online website: VnExpress news Only if there is adequateinformation is the analysis strategy carried out.
Finally, analyzed data and numbers are used for designing tables and figures,
writing the thesis and recommendations.
1.5.2 Data collection instrument
Normally, a variety of methodologies, including interpreter method, data andcomparative analysis, qualitative and quantitative methods, are employed toanalyze the research However, qualitative analysis is the approach that is bothmost efficient and appropriate for the research Firstly, data is gathered from arange of culinary articles from both Vietnamese sources and English translatedarticles on VnExpress news The writer then analyzes the information gathered todetermine the most appropriate strategies for translating it To answer the researchquestions, data derived from the publications are described and analyzed Inaddition, this study made use of previous authors and researchers’ works in thefields of translation and culinary terminology for its data collection, theoretical
framework, evaluation of findings, and analysis The writer also asks the
supervisor to collect and supplement the lacunas in the graduation paper.
Chapter 2: Theoretical Framework demonstrates the theoretical framework,as well as a description, summary, and evaluation of existing publications in theresearch area It shows fundamental knowledge, issues, and concepts, whichfocuses on the definitions, strategies, procedures, and equivalence of translation ingeneral and ESP translation to contribute to investigation and analysis.
Trang 16Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Chapter 3: Data analysis, findings, and discussions presents an analysis ofcollected data and information specifically to find answers to the researchquestions and accomplish purposes of the research.
Chapter 4: Recommendations offers some suggestions for improving theprocess of translating culinary terms It is also suggested to conduct more study on
a few potential ideas.
The conclusion summaries and outlines the study's limitations as well asrecommendations for further research.
1.7 Summary of chapter I
The chapter I of “A study on translating culinary terminology from Vietnameseinto English in VnExpress news” provides an introduction to the topic and outlinesthe research methodology The study aims to investigate the content of many termsappearing in the VnExpress news when translating Vietnamese culinary terms intoEnglish, and to identify effective translation strategies for different types of
culinary terms The chapter also discusses the importance of culinary translationfor promoting Vietnamese cuisine in the global context and highlights thecomplexity of Vietnamese culinary terminology due to its diverse culturalinfluences Finally, the chapter presents the rationale, objectives, scope, researchquestions, and the research methods that will be used in the study.
Trang 17Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
CHAPTER II THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
This chapter is a collection of many reliable and prestigious studies,research, and knowledge of authors, which are related to translation and culinaryterminology At the end of this chapter, the VnExpress news is introduced as avaluable source of materials to carry out this research.
2.1 Theory of translation
2.1.1 Definition of translation
According to Wikipedia, translation is defined as the communication of atext’s meaning and the subsequent creation of an equivalent text, often knownas a "translation," that conveys the same message in a different language Thelanguage to be translated is called the source language (SL), whereas thelanguage to be translated into or arrived at is called the target language (TL); thefinal output is sometimes called the "target text."
In a similar but more succinct way, “translation is the comprehension of themeaning of a text and the subsequent production of an equivalent text, likewisecalled a “translation” that communicates the same message in anotherlanguage”, S Warwal wrote in 2015 He also clarified that the source text is theone being translated, the target text is frequently referred to as the result of thetranslation process, and the target language is the one being translated into.
Amira Osman (2017) wrote in her article: “Translation is a mental activity
in which a meaning of given linguistic discourse is rendered from one language
to another.” She thought it involves converting linguistic concepts from onelanguage into their equivalents in the other language while the act of translatinginvolves transferring text's content from its original language into a new one
(Foster, 1958).
The great creation of written languages has allowed humans to disseminateand preserve ideas over greater distances and for longer periods of time, and thepower of translation has made this possible worldwide Based on their ownexpertise and experience, researchers in the field of translation have developeda number of meanings of the term The meaning of translation as derived fromthese views is apparent.
According to J C Catford (1978), translation is an operation that isperformed on languages, a substituting process from a text in one language into
Trang 18Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
a text in another language The theory of translation is strongly related to thetheory of language, or a general linguistic theory.
Translation, according to Larson (1998), is essentially a transition from onestate to another; more specifically, the form of the source language is replacedby the form of the target language by semantic structures The act of translatingalso implies transferring the meaning of the source language into the targetlanguage For this reason, a text in the source language is first analyzed to
determine its meaning, and then the lexicon and grammatical structure are used
to reconstruct the same meaning that is appropriate for the target language andits cultural context.
Translation is viewed as a phenomenon having significant effects on dailylife that is both a process and a result, according to B Hatim & J Munday(2004) Because the translator converts the original or source material into thetarget text in another language, it is a process The concrete translation resultcreated by the translator is the focus of the second sense In addition, the authorsnoted that machine translation is now a process and product that uses computingpower and computerized linguistic analysis to study meanings and determineappropriate forms in other languages This means that machine translation is no
longer the domain of human translators.
These definitions of translation are not exhaustive, but they do representsome typical qualities and characteristics of translation To sum up, basing onthe definition of J C Catford, translation is the process of precisely and suitablyconverting the source text to the target text.
2.1.2 Importance of translation
Languages are one of the most powerful abilities that humans have, butpeople are incapable of learning all the languages on the planet, and masteringa language takes time As a result, translation is essential for retaining anddisseminating ideas and information, which makes global integration easier andquicker Studies conducted by several scholars have underlined the importanceof translation.
According to G Belmar (2017), translation has dignified languages longsubjugated throughout history, and it has played an essential role in merging
marginal communities together A literary language is developed by translation,
and new paths for other viewpoints are always made accurate since plurality
Trang 19Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
cannot be founded on anything else.
This study summarizes the importance of translation as a requirement ofclear and effective communication among languages and cultures in themulticultural and multilingual world using the points made by R Morel (2019).The use of translation benefits everyone since enterprises that operate only inEnglish might suffer Furthermore, people prefer to communicate in their nativetongues since they respond more effectively, consequently, translation promotesthe global economy and helps individuals interact more effectively Thepropagation of new ideas and information, as well as the expansion ofknowledge, need the use of translation as a medium.
As asserted by M Cabral (2020), translation plays a crucial role inproviding information globally, fostering relationships, and disseminating ideas.A linguistic barrier exists because not all nations speak the same language, andtranslation would break that barrier and fuel the global economy There is moreto translation than merely translating words from one language to another Byallowing individuals to engage with cultural phenomena that would otherwisebe too far and strange to understand via one's own cultural lens, translationfosters cross-cultural understanding.
2.1.3 Terminology translation strategies
Terminology plays a crucial role in the realization of contexts andspecialized texts In the form of words, phrases, and technical terms,terminology helps readers to comprehend the main message of the documentfrom both the original language and the target language Terminology is the
primary building component for every translation, according to The Star, atranslation service It's the words, phrases, and technical terms that are used to
define terms and construct sentences Since the beginning of translation as aprofession, technical translators have created word lists for translationpurposes.".
When using a direct translation technique, the translator strives to producea target text that, in terms of meaning, style, and structure, is closest to the sourcetext This method is frequently applied when writing technical or scientific textssince it's crucial to keep as much of the original meaning as possible Somestrategies commonly used in direct translation include: Borrowing (1), Calque
or loan translation (2), Literal translation (3).
While using an oblique translation technique, the translator adopts a more
Trang 20Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
imaginative approach and creates a target text that, while not always a directequivalent, conveys the same meaning as the source text This strategy is
commonly employed for literary or commercial writings when keeping theoriginal style is more essential than retaining the exact message Among the
techniques frequently employed in oblique translation are:
Some strategies commonly used in oblique translation include:
Transposition (1), Modulation (2), Reformulation or equivalence (3),
Adaptation or cultural substitution (4).
M Baker (1992) provides a list of eight techniques that have been employed
by experts in the field to deal with challenging situations that arise during
translation tasks The following are some of them: (1) translation by a more
general word (this is one of the most common strategies to deal with many typesof nonequivalence); (2) translation by a more neutral/ less expressive word; (3)translation by cultural substitution; (4) translation using a loan word or loanword plus explanation; (5) translation by paraphrase using a related word; (6)translation by paraphrase using unrelated words; (7) translation by omission;and (8) translation by illustration.
Newmark (1988) deals with translation strategies that observed that anincreasing number of terminologies have been translated into Vietnameselanguage to represent concepts, definitions, and emerging technologies Basedon the terminology translation approaches suggested by Newmark, this studyhas opted to adopt seven specific strategies for culinary terms analysis.
+ Literal translation: Literal translation is one of the English translationstrategies that are used quite a lot in translation This translation strategy isessentially the replacement of words and structures in the source text with wordsand equivalent structures in the target language The grammatical structures ofthe source text are translated into the closest equivalents in the target text Thetranslator does not need to make changes during the translation process.
Target language Source languageCa phé den Black coffee
Ba khia SesarmidBông súng Water lily
Muỗi Salt
10
Trang 21Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
+ Borrowing method: A translation technique, involves incorporating thesame words or phrases from the source text in the target text Typically, thesewords or phrases are loan words, which may represent culture-specific items ormodern concepts Even so, readers can easily comprehend them without
requiring additional details If there is a semantic gap in the target language that
needs to be bridged (such as a new technique or unfamiliar concept), using loanwords for translation is the easiest approach As an illustration, in English,people commonly use terms like "banh mi" and "pho" without actuallytranslating them.
+ Componential analysis strategy: Componential analysis examines a
word's meaning by dissecting it into smaller, more manageable "component
parts." This type of research may be useful in the translation process to selectthe most precise and near lexical equivalents.
Source language Target language
Lau mắm Fish-paste hotpot
Cá kho tộ Braised Fish in Clay PotXÔI cua Crab sticky rice
Bún bò Huế Hue-Style Beef Vermicelli Soup
Nem ran Fried Spring Rolls
+ Naturalization: is a technique of translating target cultural ideas containedin the source text by encoding them in their original target language forms It isa process of taming designed to lessen the unfamiliarity of the foreign text to theintended consumer For examples:
Source language Target languageBanh chung Chung cake
Sôcôla Chocolate
+ Neutralization: Neutralization is a translation strategy used to balance orreduce the impact of cultural or linguistic biases in a text In culinary terms, thiscould involve translating a dish name or ingredient in a way that is more familiaror appropriate to the target culture By using this technique, translators can
explain the idea from the SL as an explanation; they can also make a
generalization (from a specific concept to a general one) or a particularization
11
Trang 22Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
in opposite Here are some examples of neutralization translation strategies inculinary translation:
Nom bò khô Green papaya salad with beef Jerky
Bánh gôi Banh goi (crispy pork and quail egg
Bánh tôm Banh tom (deep fried prawn and sweet potatofritter)
Bun cha que tre Bun cha que tre (vermicelli with grilled pork)
+ Cultural Translation: This strategy involves translating the term in a waythat reflects the culture of the target language This is a relatively precisetranslation strategy in which a cultural word in the SL is translated as a culturalword in the SL This approach can be useful in situations where the originalculinary term is culturally specific to the source language.
Source language Target languageChe Sweet Soup
Ca kho tộ Braised tunaBánh xèo Crispy crepes
Goi Salad
Thit kho Braised pork
+ Deletion or Omission: The deletion of a portion or the entirety of the SL
text, and the TL text's other portions do not communicate the meaning Thedeletion of a portion or the entirety of the SL text, and the TL text's otherportions do not communicate the meaning.
ST: “Người nấu phải lựa ca con tươi, để phân thịt thơm, béo ngọt, it tanh.”
TL: “The fish must be fresh.”
Culinary translation, like gastronomy, is a combination of art and science.A simple word-by-word translation of a text's content is insufficient since somegastronomy texts are lyrical and flowery while others are very technical The
12
Trang 23Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
nuances of both languages must be understood and translated by a culinarytranslator.
According to Antonella Racca, co-founder of Crisol Translation Servicesand a culinary translator with over 10 years of experience: “Just like cooking,gastronomy translation has both a creative and a technical side Some texts will showone of those sides more than the other If you’re translating the package instructionsof a certain product, any lack of terminological consistency can end up in chaos Imean, it can significantly affect the behaviors of whoever uses the product.”
It is not enough to simply translate the meaning of individual words fromone language to another; some gastronomy documents are flowery andromantic, while others are very technical The intricacies of both languages mustbe understood and translated by a culinary translator.
One example of the creative side of culinary translation is the requirementfor gastronomy writings to pique the reader's interest in order to convey theflavor of an entire culture (and not simply of a specific dish) For this, thetranslator must be able to recognize and communicate what makes the culinaryculture they are representing unique.
In general, each nation, each different language type has different optionsto move words The thinking and culture of the nation has a great influence onthe translation, the choice of factors and properties of things to Comparisonbetween English and Vietnamese, English belongs to the type of transforming
language, the word is made up of an element (original element) and
subordinates, while Vietnamese is a single type of language (words that are themain structure is grafting of elements) The characteristic of national cultureclearly revealed in the category of realization and language pictures of the
world Therefore, when moving Vietnamese text into English text or vice versa
there will also be many not equivalent elements, partly due to the differentculture - an East (discreet, deep, tend to be introverted), a Western (open, tendto extrovert), partly due to two different types of languages, different ways ofidentifying Therefore, in the process of shifting from one language to another,the equivalent has almost no existence.
2.2 Terminology and Vietnamese culinary terminology2.2.1 Definition of terminology
Each researcher studying terminology has their own definition of it, and this
13
Trang 24Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
section will discuss those definitions of terminology.
According to Wikipedia, terminology is a systematic study of the "labeling
or designating of concepts" specific to one or more subject disciplines or realms
of human activity Terminology (also known as terminology science) is ageneral term for a collection of specialized words or meanings related to acertain area, as well as the study of such terms and their application Terms arewords, and compound words or multi-word phrases have specific meanings incertain circumstances It accomplishes this by doing research and analysis on
terminology in context with the goal of recording and promoting consistent
Terminology, according to Cabré (1999), is inextricably linked to thedistinct topic domains Terminology is not an aim in itself, nor canterminological activity comprise just compiling a sequence of concepts withtheir following labels Subject specialists, general and applied terminologistscollaborate to create and standardize ideas and terminology for each specializedsubject.
P Faber and C.I.L Rodriguez (2012), terminology or specialized languagesignifies more than a technical or a particular case of general language.Currently, society places a premium on science and technology, and the mannerin which specialized knowledge concepts are recognized, produced, explained,and translated has elevated terminology or the generation of specializedknowledge concepts to a level of importance.
In line with the Cambridge dictionary, terminology is defined as "specialterms or expressions used in reference to a certain subject or activity," and thisdefinition is recognized in this study.
2.2.2 Characteristics of terminology and culinary terminology
According to C Harp (2009), terminology might be in the realm ofpharmaceuticals, components, modes of administration, lab tests, units ofmeasure, species, etc., and is intended to model some element of a specific
domain There were 11 terminology traits mentioned:
(1) Unique identifiers: A terminology does not represent two distinct
(2) Stable identifiers: A given terminology's identification is permanent.
14
Trang 25Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Regardless of its status, the identifier should be connected and never be re-usedto stand for another terminology.
(3) Dumb identifiers: An identifier is meaningless.
(4) Concept orientation: A terminology expresses a notion, and that conceptis only represented once as an active term in the terminology.
(5) Coverage: A vocabulary should adequately encompass the model'sdomain.
(6) The controlled terminology should be controlled: A phrase has aconcentration and is committed to that focus.
(7) Consistent term structure: The lexical components that make up a wordshould have a consistent structure or be ordered in the same way from term to
(8) Terminology has a lifecycle: They change when new terminologies are
developed, existing ones are split apart, superseded, or rendered unnecessary.
(9) Terminology is a part of a well-defined area of ontology: A terminologydefines a totally specific topic; the word is composed of numerous components.
(10) Interoperability: A terminology is related to a standard integrable
available terminology.
(11) Extensibility: Consumers can prolong terminology to link a period untilit is complemented by the source or indefinitely if the word is restricted to theconsumer, because terminology cannot fulfill all the consumer's requests.
Characteristics of culinary terminology:
Culinary terminologies must serve the main qualities of terminologyestablished in the preceding section of this research Culinary terminology, onthe other hand, distinguishes itself from other fields' terminologies byspecialization and domains It is a fact that culinary terms have a very highindigenous culture, it is associated with the formation of the country thatdevelops that dish Sometimes, the way we order a dish is the result of a longstory behind it Each dish represents the cultural quintessence of a country, theindividual culture is very high and should be respected The terms are also verydiverse and there are alternatives in naming because inherently a dish can havedifferent names, according to the multi-ethnic multilingualism of the
15
Trang 26Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Vietnamese people Culinary terms have a high level of art in it, that is whytranslators always have to understand the culture before they want to create themost complete and accurate translation.
2.2.3 Types of common Vietnamese culinary terminology
Vietnam is a country with a very diverse culinary culture with many standing traditional dishes Therefore, the number of English words translated
long-from the names of Vietnamese dishes is very large.
Compared to Western countries using English, Vietnam is said to have amuch richer and more diverse cuisine Therefore, it is certainly not easy totranslate the names of Vietnamese dishes into English Even many foreignerstry to use Vietnamese names for traditional Vietnamese dishes (e.g., banh chung,
pho ) There are many foreigners who have looked closely at Vietnamesedishes, then used their native English vocabulary to find the most accurate
This study has divided 6 groups of culinary terminologies: Food, Drink,Ingredients, Cooking utensils, Cooking techniques and Flavor description Thedivision of culinary words into six groups is a useful way to analyze andcategorize words related to cooking and cuisine Each of these groups representsa broad category of culinary terms that can help us in understanding anddescribing different aspects of cooking and food.
- Food: This group includes culinary words related to different types offood, such as meat, vegetables, fruits, grains, and dairy products It also includeswords related to specific dishes, such as soups, stews, curries, and salads.
- Drink: This group includes culinary words related to different types ofbeverages, such as water, coffee, tea, wine, beer, and cocktails.
- Ingredients: This group includes culinary words related to the differenttypes of ingredients that are used in cooking, such as herbs, spices, oils, sugar,flour, and salt.
- Cooking utensils: This group includes culinary words related to thedifferent types of equipment and utensils that are used in cooking, such as pots,pans, knives, spoons, and spatulas.
- Cooking techniques: This group includes culinary words related todifferent methods and techniques of cooking, such as baking, roasting, frying,
sautéing, and grilling.
16
Trang 27Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
- Flavor description: This group includes culinary words related to thedifferent tastes and flavors of food, such as sweet, sour, savory, bitter, andumami.
For a more general and detailed view about these types of culinary terms,you can refer to the Appendix 2 section which shows some of the most relevantexamples collected from many food translation sites at the end of the study.
2.3 General information about VnExpress news
This study will use credible translated Vietnamese articles as well as theirEnglish original articles from the VnExpress news in the food category atvnexpress.net Readers spent an average of 80 thousand hours per monthlistening to podcasts in 2022, a 350% increase from the initial stage VnExpressretains the position of Vietnamese citizen news page in English for most readersto comprehend the world in Vietnam Cuisine is one of around 100 differentcategories on VnExpress news This category comprises favored and investednews points, with a huge number of articles updated on a daily basis.
VnExpress news is a newspaper that was established in accordance with theadvancement of science and technology, particularly information technology,and has successfully carried out its stated objectives Due to this positiveperspective, VnExpress news has the following 4 advantages:
Firstly, the newspaper consistently adheres to a plan, a developmentstrategy, and a quality assurance emphasis, which has allowed it to preserve itsstanding as one of the few Vietnamese electronic newspapers with a sizablereadership.
Secondly, the reporters have fully utilized the strengths of approaches,
resulting in extremely rapid, hot, and good news updates.
Thirdly, in recent years VnExpress.net has a lot of innovation from the
interface, organization to artistic decoration, helping readers look up
information easier.
Fourth, the content of VnExpress.net is constantly growing and veryencouraging Previously, the newspaper mainly focused on the information,which is merely news, analytical and commenting into the thematic Forexample, in 2009, Vietnam's economy had a decline Due to the influence of theworld economy, the Party and the Government launched a huge program to
17
Trang 28Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
maintain growth, repel inflation, and ensure social security.
VnExpress is a non-profit channel that promotes curiosity and enthusiasmin learning about the world within the Vietnamese population It also encourages
a more active reading culture in Vietnam Most of the information published isenthusiastic and active by Vietnamese journalists This information channel isalso updated with international information, which is a bridge for Vietnameseand foreigners to use English In fact, the news site also has an English versionthat has been mentioned earlier in this study This is a reasonable and extremely
useful investment for international readers who want to better understand the
country and people of Vietnam However, as the item of cuisine of a strong
national culture, the number of articles written in Vietnamese and translated into
English is significant This newspaper is one of the Vietnamese people's nationalinformation channels.
The goal of the magazine is to provide Vietnamese readers with fresh,accurate, and varied information through translation and authoring articles withan average word count of 1000 words The VnExpress news online magazine isa powerful, trustworthy, and excellent source of resources, especially theculinary ones, making it the ideal place to research the problem of translating
English culinary terminology into Vietnamese.
2.4 Summary of chapter II
Chapter II of the study on translating culinary terms from Vietnamese into
English covers two main areas: the theory of translation and terminology and
Vietnamese culinary terminology related to food and cooking.
The chapter begins by discussing the definition of translation and theimportance of translation that helps to foster understanding, build relationships,and promote international cooperation translators and translation services arecrucial for facilitating communication, promoting understanding, andsupporting social, cultural, economic, and political interactions on a globalscale.
The second half of the chapter focuses on terminology specific toVietnamese food and cooking It provides a comprehensive list of terms with
their English translations, including names of common dishes, ingredients,
cooking techniques, cooking utensils, and flavor description The chapter alsoincludes notes on the cultural context and usage of each term, highlighting the
18
Trang 29Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
importance of understanding cultural differences when translating culinary
Overall, this chapter provides a useful theoretical framework forunderstanding the translation of culinary terms and a scientific basis fortranslators to conduct research in the next chapters of the study.
19
Trang 30Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
CHAPTER III FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
In this chapter, the results of the study will be demonstrated through chartsand tables and are obtained from examining and organizing the data gathered fromthe data analysis.
3.1 Application of culinary terminology in translation
3.1.1 Frequency of culinary terminologies used in Vietnamese articles.
The proportion of culinary terminology
= Terminology
Figure 3 1 Frequency of culinary terminology in Vietnamese articles
After the process of analyzing and collecting the culinary terminology from50 Vietnamese articles and their English-translated articles in the VnExpresswebsite, there are a total of 626 culinary terminologies which are allocated into six
main types of culinary terminology and translated by terminology translation
strategies The pie chart shows the number of culinary terminologies inVietnamese standard articles The pie chart presented in the study shows thenumber of culinary terminologies used in Vietnamese standard articles, with anaverage of 13 terms per article The terminologies can be single terms or compoundterms, for study purposes, culinary terminologies are separated into distinct words.Additionally, a Vietnamese standard article has an average length of 659 words,with approximately 1.97% culinary terminologies.
These culinary terminologies play an important role in the apprehension of thecontent of the English culinary texts and documents In both English and Vietnam-translated articles, readers can understand the process of operation, activities, andthe state and development of the culinary industry with the assistance of mentionedterms As a result, the percentage of terminologies and non-terminologies in
20
Trang 31Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
English articles above indicates the nature of frequency of culinary terminologiesin a standard article, which is 1.97%.
However, in case of a relatively large number of terms with repetition andoccurrence, including monosyllabic words and ignoring the error, the result wouldchange with about 3652 terms in a total of 50 articles and their frequency can beup to 73 words per article unit This discovery can assist translators and readers in
identifying the approximate quantity of terminologies in culinary articles.3.1.2 Types of culinary terminologies in analyzed articles.
Cooking utensils
@ Cooking techniques
@ Flavor description
Types of culinary terminlogy
Figure 3 2 Types of culinary terminologies in analyzed articles bypercentage.
The pie chart shows the percentage of culinary terminologies in 50 Englisharticles divided into six categories The number of ingredients and foodterminologies make up the highest proportion of total culinary terminologies, with34,7% and 34.3% respectively This suggests that translators face a large numberof culinary terminologies in Vietnamese culinary articles in the VnExpress news.In the content of cuisine articles, it is not strange to encounter these two types ofterminology If the name of the dish is the defining factor of the article, then theingredients are the important ancillary content because the authors often mentionhow to make the dish in their article In particular, they tend to provide detailsabout the various components that are added to the dish, such as vegetables, meat,and spices This is especially true when discussing Vietnamese cuisine, which is
21
Trang 32Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
renowned for its wide array of spices and ingredients As a result, the number ofwords related to materials accounts for quite a lot of the term capacity listed above.
Food terms also make up a large number of 34.3% culinary terms Theseinclude contents related to the names of daily dishes, noodle soup with porridge,regional specialties and others such as cake, porridge Statistically, the largevolume of repeated monosyllabic terms also made it difficult to draw preciseconclusions for this study.
Besides, there are 626 food and drink related terms, of which 432 are foodrelated terms (ingredients and dishes) (69%), 23 phrases related to beverages
(3.7%) and 167 phrases counted for 27,3% that are not food and drink (includingutensils, cooking methods and food descriptions).
The remaining terms, although not taking up too much, are the elements that
make up a complete "cake" Therefore, we believe that studying all the abovegroups of terms will contribute to students of the translation sector when they havedifficulty in finding ways to translate related culinary terms.
3.2 Translation strategies applied to translate English culinaryterminologies into Vietnamese
DeletionCultural equivalentComponential analysis
BorrowingLiteral translation
0.0% 5.0% 100% 15.0% 200% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0%
Literal translation @ Borrowing Naturalisation Neutralisation
Componential analysis # Cultural equivalent Deletion
Figure 3 3 Culinary terminology translation strategies applied by translators
(1) Literal translation: This is the most commonly used strategy, with 266 of626 culinary terminologies, accounting for 42.5%, of which the grammaticalstructures of the original text are translated into the closest equivalent structures in
22
Trang 33Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Most of the results of word classification in this group are single words
consisting of root words The staple food and beverage terms "bread, rice, and
soup", a large number of terms for the ingredients "cabbages, butter, garlic, andpeas, vegies" and the way the cooking techniques such as tinned, grilled, roastedand so on This is the most popular strategy possibly because it works best whenapplied to exact word and translation equivalents of popular food phrases Thebasic dishes, fruits, ingredients, drinks and recipes in Vietnamese all have English
equivalents For example, "mi”, “bún”, “phở”, “hu tiéu" are translated as "noodle",
“cao”, “cơm” to “rice”, “bánh” to “cake” Besides single words, we still come
across simple compound word translations like “chudi chin” into “ripe bananas"
or “trang cut” into “quail eggs” With this translation, readers may neither havetrouble reading and visualizing phrases about culinary terms nor resort to more
complex strategies.
(2) Neutralization: this approach is the second common method for theculinary terminology translation, with 154 phrases out of 626 terms (24.6%).Neutralization is adding some description to clarify meaning for the target textreader, “therefore it is neutralizing or generalizing words in the original text”Newmark (1988) The truth is that the translations are often longer than the
originals It can be seen more clearly in the example of translating “mdm me chua
ngọt" into "sweet and sour tamarind sauce" or "cháy toi" into “roasted withgarlic".
(3) Componential analysis: is the third most commonly used translationstrategy, with 91 out of 626 terminologies found in the VnExpress news Some
terminologies translated by word-for-word technique make it difficult for readers
to comprehend their meanings Therefore, translators use this method to
familiarize readers with these terminologies For instance, “ốc Jen” can betranslated into “wool snails”, “lau mắm” into “fish-paste hotpot’, “thịt đông” into
“jellied meat”.
(4) Cultural equivalent: 6.7% (with 42 in 626 terms) of culinary terminologiesare translated by cultural equivalent strategy This is an approximation in which acultural word in the original text is translated into a cultural word in the target text.For example, the word "bdnh xéo" in Vietnamese can be translated into “crepecake” in English Both “bdnh xéo” and “crepe cake” are very thin, flat cakes,usually made from flour, eggs, milk and butter However, “bánh xéo” in
23
Trang 34Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Vietnamese is crisper and firmer and has a different cooking method with soft andfluffy Western “crepe cake” Other examples can be mentioned such as the word
"goi" in Vietnamese is translated into “salad” in English.
(5) Borrowing: this strategy accounts for 6.7% with the same data as theprevious method in all translation ones applied for translating culinaryterminology This translation strategy can be used for most dish names for tworeasons First, these names have been used several times by the native people, so
the translator may no longer have trouble coming across these terms such as "pho",
"banh mi", "banh cuon", "hu tiu" The second reason is that these terms can alsobe difficult to identify the way to call or even the ingredients that used to makethem up are difficult to find anywhere Some examples can be mentioned as “bakhia" (the raw material for the famous fish dish in the Southwest region ofVietnam) translated into "ba khia" in English; or like "sui din" (a word used torefer to a type of cake originating from China made with glutinous rice flour, mungbean paste or black sesame) into "sui din" in English.
(6) Naturalization: this strategy is the least popular one in the total of appliedways for translation of culinary terminology, only accounting for 2.6% with 16 in626 terminologies Some culinary terminologies translated by one of seven abovestrategies cause confusion for readers, so translators use this method to provide acomprehensive understanding of terminologies for readers and avoid
- "bánh cuốn" (rolled rice pancakes) could be translated as "rice rolls".
- "cd kho” (caramelized fish) could be translated as "caramel fish".- "cha gio" (fried spring rolls) could be translated as "spring rolls".
24
Trang 35Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
3.3 Terminology translation strategies applied in translating differenttypes of culinary terminologies.
Table 3 1 Seven terminology translation strategies applied to translatedifferent types of culinary terminologies.
Ingredients | Utensils | Techniques | Flavor Total
15 terms which is the lowest number of total terminologies The number ofterminologies translated by Neutralization is quite high, with 154 cases in total.The figures for Componential analysis, Cultural equivalent, Borrowing,Naturalization (in descending order) are between range of 16 to 91 terms.According to the table, all proportions in rows of Literal technique, Neutralizationand Componential analysis is under 78.6% and over 0.6% The percentages in rowsof Borrowing translation have remarkable division that from 21.4% to 78.6%.
To understand the information in the table above, we should pay attention toeach type of translation method first For Literal technique, most terms related toingredients are translated by this method with a figure of 45.1% Meanwhile,
Borrowing and Componential analysis and Neutralization are mostly used to
translate the names of dishes For other translation strategies such as Deletion and
25
Trang 36Đào Thi Hải Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Naturalization, the volume of translated words does not fluctuate much in the rangeof 1-8 terminologies per category.
3.3.1 Literal technique
LITERAL TECHNIQUEFood Drink
literal technique with 45.1% For many simple words in the category of food
ingredients, using the Literal technique can help the translator save time and ensurethe correctness of the translation The table also shows that the group of wordsindicating the cooking techniques and flavor description accounts for 18.0% and
21.1%, respectively, also often use this translation strategy The peculiarity is that
the terms referring to the names of food and drinks do not often use these terms asonly 4.1% for food and 3.4% for beverage terms.
Here are some examples of the occurrence of literal strategy in translating
culinary terms in the VnExpress article: “cá linh” — “spirit fish”, “cá chốt” —
“naked catfish”, “cháy xém — scorched”, “đôi đũa — chopsticks”.
26
Trang 37Đào Thi Hai Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
Figure 3 5 Borrowing applied to translate seven types of culinaryterminologies.
Overall, the use of this method to translate culinary terminologies of six typesis quite evenly The chart describes that dish name terms account for 78.6% of thetotal volume of culinary terms in VnExpress The remaining 21.4% are terms thatrefer to ingredients for cooking The reason for this difference is because most ofthe terms referring to the name of a dish are often translated into how to order thatdish in English, both for convenience and in case the word is too difficult totranslate.
It is not strange when catching terms from Vietnamese to be transferred toEnglish when translating cuisine and it is probably only food that is the mostpopular field in this case For examples:
Source language Target language
Banh t6m Banh tom (deep fried prawn and sweet potato fritter)Banh trang Banh trang (rice paper)
Bánh trang nướng Banh trang nuong (grilled rice paper)Bánh trôi Banh troi (floating rice cake)
Bun cha que tre Bun cha que tre (vermicelli with grilled pork)
27
Trang 38Đào Thi Hai Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
3.3.3 Componenfial analysis strategy
m 2.2% B 5.5%
E 2.2%
# 20.9%
8 68.1%
mfood mDrink Mlngredients Cooking utensils #Cooking techniques Flavor description
Figure 3 6 Componential analysis strategy applied to translate seven typesof culinary terminologies
Overall, the application of transposition method in translating terms of threecategories is quite evenly The largest number of culinary terminologies using thismethod, accounting for over 68.1% For example, “canh măng” 1s translated into
“bamboo shoot soup” or “bánh mi bò lá lốt" is translated into “beef loaves bread”.
The translation of cooking techniques is the less common, making up nearly 3.6%.For instance, “ché lam đôi” is converted into “split into two” The percentage of
culinary terms ingredients is 20.9%, and flavor description is 9.1% ranking second,third after food terms For example, “khô mực” into “dry squid” or “béo thom” into“fragrant fat” For the translation of drinking (smallest group) “sâm bí dao” istranslated as “ginger ale”.
28
Trang 39Đào Thi Hai Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
3.3.4 Naturalization
mFood #Drink #lingredients Cooking utensils #Cookingtechniques Flavor description
Figure 3 7 Naturalization translation method applied to translate seventypes of culinary terminologies.
With 43.8% and 37.5% respectively, food and ingredients are still on top ofthe list The truth is that the naturalization method involves finding an equivalentterm or phrase in the target language that accurately expresses the same conceptthat the original term conveys in the source language This method can beparticularly useful in translating Vietnamese culinary terms into English, as many
of these terms may not have direct translations.
For example, is the term “bdnh pudding” Pudding is a type of dessert thatoriginated in France The name pudding is believed to be derived from the French
boudin, which is derived from the Latin “botellus”, meaning "small sausage",
referring to the wrapped meats used in desserts in medieval Europe Whentranslating from Vietnamese into English, the translator has kept the word puddingto describe the meaning of the word in the target text that the reader canunderstand Overall, the naturalization method can be a useful tool in translatingVietnamese culinary terms into English It allows for accurate conveyance of theintended meaning and flavor of the original term, while also creating a moreaccessible and understandable translation for English-speaking audiences.
29
Trang 40Đào Thi Hai Yến - 11195872 - Business English 61C
3.3.5 Neutralization
mFood Drink Mlngredients Cooking utensils Cooking techniques Flavor description
Figure 3 8 Neutralization applied to translate seven types of culinaryterminologies.
Neutralization translation method is a translation approach that involvestranslating words or phrases from one language to another without adding orsubtracting culturally specific elements In the context of translating Vietnameseculinary terms into English, it means using English words that are closeequivalents of the original Vietnamese terms, while keeping the original flavor ofthe dish intact.
For example, "pho bo" is a popular Vietnamese noodle soup made with beef
broth In neutralization translation, it can be translated as "beef noodle soup".
However, if we were to use a more literal translation, it would be "cow noodle,"which would be confusing and not convey the intended flavor of the dish.
Another example is "bánh mi thit ngudi", a Vietnamese sandwich made withcold cuts and pickled vegetables In neutralization translation, it can be translatedas "cold cut sandwich" This translation conveys the main ingredients of the dishwithout adding culturally specific elements that may not be familiar to the English-speaking audience.
Overall, neutralization translation is an effective method for translatingVietnamese culinary terms into English as it allows the original flavor and essence
30