Applying Internalised Source-culture Knowledge to Solve Cultural Translation Problems. A Quasi-experimental Study on the Translator's Acquisition of Cultural Competence

Abstract

Abstract In this article, the ability to efficiently apply internalised source-culture knowledge when solving cultural translation problems is analysed at different stages of acquisition of the translator's cultural competence by means of a cross-sectional, quasi-experimental study. Thirty-eight BA students from the first through fourth year studying Translation and Interpreting at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, as well as ten professional translators participated in this investigation. The subjects’ knowledge of German culture and their knowledge of a selection of cultural translation problems in a text were measured prior to its translation. The translation strategies employed by the subjects to solve these problems were recorded and classified using PACTE's (2017b) sequences of actions. The quality of the subjects' solutions to the cultural translation problems of the text was assessed with PACTE's (2017a) acceptability index. These data were combined to compute the source-culture knowledge application index. Results show that the students in all cohorts preferred to utilise information-seeking strategies even when they possessed cultural knowledge about a specific cultural translation problem, while the professional translators in this study were able to apply their internalised source-culture knowledge. The solutions proposed by both the translation students and the professional translators were of a higher quality when internalised source-culture knowledge was applied.