Abstract
EU texts are produced by way of multilingual negotiation in a supranational multicultural discourse community, where there is no linguistically neutral ground and where the internationalisation of concepts and ideas is a sine qua non. As a result, they are idiosyncratic texts, reflecting specific textual features. Their translation in the current 23 official EU languages is equally idiosyncratic and challenging, to say the least, especially since it is shaped under the EU’s overwhelming cultural and linguistic diversity, the constraints of its policy of multilingualism, and the subsequent policy of linguistic equality which states that all languages are equal, or ‘equally authentic’ (Wagner, Bech, Martinez 2002, 7), and that translations are not really translations but language versions. In other words, in the framework of EU translation, the terms source text (ST) and target text (TT) cease to exist, while the prima facie illusory notion of ‘equivalence’ seems to resurface—though altered in nature—and dominate the translation practice. It thus goes without saying that in the case of EU texts and their translation a tailor-made theoretical framework is required where many classic concepts of Translation Studies (TS), such as ST, TT and equivalence need to be re-evaluated and redefined, and at the same time functionalist approaches and the postmodernist concepts of intertextuality, hybridity and in-betweenness need to come to the fore. The proposed translation theory for EU texts flaunts the feature inherent in their production, it is—just like them—hybrid.
Highlights
In the past 60 years, translation has come a long way; in the past 30 years and after decades of neglect and repression, it has started to rise to the status that it deserves
Since European Union (EU) institutions are responsible for deciding on a wide range of policies and for lawmaking, they necessarily produce a significant volume of language work and they naturally employ a huge number of translators and interpreters
In light of the above, the question that this paper attempts to answer is whether this radical change in perspective that has occurred in translation theory is compatible with EU texts, which are clearly LSP texts, but with added idiosyncrasies
Summary
In the past 60 years, translation has come a long way; in the past 30 years and after decades of neglect and repression, it has started to rise to the status that it deserves. Through the Visiting Translator Scheme (VTS) in particular, Commission staff translators can spend a few weeks at universities around the EU giving classes on translation, the work of the DGT and languages in the EU Institutions, while interacting with academics and students in a valuable cross-fertilisation process Within that framework, another laudable initiative undertaken by the Commission’s DGT is the European Master’s in Translation (EMT) network of universities which seeks to help raise the standard of translator training in the EU and foster cooperation and exchanges between academic institutions offering translation courses. The EMT’s aim is to facilitate the training of highly qualified translators and equip students with the necessary skills in order to compete successfully for jobs on the translation market, including the EU institutions (European Commission 2010b) It is of significant value, primarily because it brings together academia and the largest translation service in the world in a common effort ‘to enhance the status of the translation profession in the European Union’ (European Commission 2010b). It is safe to assume that the EU institutions and their policy of multilingualism have contributed significantly to the visibility of the translation profession and the breathtaking development that the discipline of TS has achieved over the past years
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