Measuring Terminology Consistency in Translated Corpora: Implementation of the Herfindahl-Hirshman Index

Angelina Gašpar,Vlasta Kučiš,Sanja Seljan

doi:10.3390/info13020043

Angelina Gašpar, Vlasta Kučiš + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/info13020043

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Abstract

Consistent terminology can positively influence communication, information transfer, and proper understanding. In multilingual written communication processes, challenges are augmented due to translation variants. The main aim of this study was to implement the Herfindahl-Hirshman Index (HHI) for the assessment of translated terminology in parallel corpora for the evaluation of translated terminology. This research was conducted on three types of legal domain subcorpora, dating from different periods: the Croatian-English parallel corpus (1991–2009), Latin-English and Latin-Croatian versions of the Code of Canon Law (1983), and English and Croatian versions of the EU legislation (2013). After the terminology extraction process, validation of term candidates was performed, followed by an evaluation. Terminology consistency was measured using the HHI—a commonly accepted measurement of market concentration. Results show that the HHI can be used for measuring terminology consistency to improve information transfer and message understanding. In translation settings, the process shows the need for quality management solutions.

Highlights

Research in the field of terminology evaluation has been active in recent years, either as a part of integrated projects or independent efforts, due to the relevance of terminology in multilingual surroundings or for information transfer, having the specific weight of carrying the meaning of a text
The results indicate that the Hirshman Index (HHI) can be used for measuring terminology consistency, influencing information transfer, and message understanding
Results of the terminology consistency assessment for the three corpora are presented as follows

Summary

Introduction

Research in the field of terminology evaluation has been active in recent years, either as a part of integrated projects or independent efforts, due to the relevance of terminology in multilingual surroundings or for information transfer, having the specific weight of carrying the meaning of a text. [1] stated that lexical cohesion is achieved by reiteration, repeated use of synonyms and hypernyms and collocations, and that “semantically heavy” words (especially noun phrases, followed by rare verbs) tend to be translated by literal translations in the specific genre of texts. Bloomquist et al (2021) [3] highlighted the need for consistent terminology in the medical domain, which is needed to improve communication with clinicians as choosing the right word or phrase to convey meaning eases readability and understanding, whereas Keloth et al (2020) [4] studied terminological densities. Gottfried (2021) [7] and Pettinicchio and Maroto (2021) [8] researched the use of terminology on disabled persons to regulate medical rehabilitation and assess dimensions of disability

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