Institutional Translation Research Articles

Frihet under ansvar? Bibelöversättning som institutionell praktik

In this paper, I discuss the relationship between structure and agency in institutional translation. My case is a Swedish retranslation of the biblical texts commenced in 1972. Against the background of the directives issued to the translators, and through a case study of how three Old Testament texts were translated by the team, I argue that the team members bypassed certain aspects of the directives. This, however, was not primarily because they exercised their individual agency, but because they collectively related their work to the abstract institution of biblical studies, which can be conceived of as a belief system which structured the interpretation and translation of the biblical texts. The case is hereby discussed to critically assess the relationship between agency and structure, and to suggest a non-binary way of understanding the relationship between the two.

Iron Cage for Indigenous Entrepreneurs? Understanding the Movement and Impact of External Ideas on Indigenous Entrepreneurship in Ecuador

AbstractThis study examines the dynamics of how ideas about entrepreneurship are transmitted from Public Organizations (POs) and Non-Public Organizations (NPOs) to Indigenous entrepreneurs, using a case study in Ecuador based on 29 interviews and field observations. Employing the concept of Institutional Translation, a three-stage translation process model was developed, encompassing the conveyance of ideas about entrepreneurship from POs and NPOs, the response by Indigenous entrepreneurs, and the evaluation of translation outcomes. This process occurs within a high institutional distance context, reflecting significant cultural and social disparities between these actors, complicating the translation process. The findings indicate that POs and NPOs do not differentiate Indigenous entrepreneurs from others and fail to consider essential cultural components, such as traditional knowledge, when conveying ideas about entrepreneurship. Conversely, Indigenous entrepreneurs exhibit diverse levels of adoption and rejection of these ideas, highlighting their agency and resilience in protecting and continuing to use their traditional knowledge in their entrepreneurial activities despite external pressures. This research makes three contributions: it advances the field of Indigenous entrepreneurship by theorizing the complex process of transferring ideas about entrepreneurship from external actors to Indigenous entrepreneurs; it enhances business ethics discourse on the critical role of cultural differences by examining the ethical challenges arising from the interaction; and it addresses overlooked aspects within Institutional Translation by exploring a high institutional distance context where cultural disparities complicate the translation process.

FRAILTY REDUCTION VIA IMPLEMENTATION OF EXERCISE, NUTRITION AND DEPRESCRIBING (FRIEND) TRIAL: NOVEL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ASIA-PACIFIC FRAILTY GUIDELINES IN AGED CARE

INTRODUCTION Virtually all adults in aged care are frail, contributing to falls, cognitive decline, hospitalisation, and mortality. polypharmacy, malnutrition, sedentariness, and sarcopenia are risk factors amenable to intervention. Asia-Pacific Frailty treatment guidelines recommend anabolic exercise, medication and dietary optimisation. However, no study has evaluated this best practice intervention in aged care. AIM: Evaluate institutional translation of best-practice frailty treatment in aged care residents. METHODS The Frailty Reduction via Implementation of Exercise, Nutritional support and Deprescribing (FRIEND) trial (ANZCTR#:ACTRN12622000926730p) is a 6-month translational trial evaluating resident outcomes, staff/caregiver knowledge and institutional translation in a Townsville aged care facility. Residents received high-intensity resistance and balance training, medication and nutrition optimisation co-implemented by investigators (AEP, geriatrician, pharmacist, nutritionist) and facility staff. Staff and caregivers completed comprehensive education modules and training. We report resident outcomes for Phase-one (6 months exercise with staggered implementation of medication/nutritional arms) in preparation for full implementation (Phase-two). RESULTS 29 residents (21 female, age:88.6±6.3yrs) were recruited. At baseline, residents were frail (FRAIL-NH;6.3±2.4/14), cognitively-impaired (MoCA;13.8±6.8/30), had low physical function/capacity (SPPB;4.9±3.1/12, 6MWT;222.2±104.4m) and numerous prescribed medications (15.5±5.9). Two residents died & one withdrew before intervention, and nine residents declined exercise intervention. Exercising residents’ adherence was 73.4±18.3% (28±7/38 sessions), with non-significant baseline differences compared to decliners (p>0.05). FRAIL-NH worsened significantly across the entire sample (0.93±1.87,p=.019), however this progression was attenuated in exercisers (0.71±1.83,p=0.35). Furthermore, clinically meaningful improvements in frailty (Fried phenotype;-0.73±1.09,p=.022), Leg press (median{IQR}:40.9%{26.5%)) and knee extension strength (median{IQR):61.9%(259%),p<0.001), 6MWD (35.4±45.8m,p=0.022;30m-MCID), Physical Function (SPPB;1.9±2.3,p=0.007;1-point MCID), and cognition (MoCA;1.31±3.4,p=.131;1.22-point MCID) were observed in exercisers. Only 1 minor exercise-related adverse event occurred. CONCLUSION Six months of AEP-led high-intensity exercise with preliminary, staggered implementation of medication and nutrition optimisation in aged care improved frailty and risk factors in residents. Phase-two results following 6-months of full, concurrent implementation of exercise, medication and nutrition arms are anticipated May, 2024.

Institutional translation in Oman: An investigation of social, technical, and organisational factors

Translation outside the context of Language Service Providers (LSPs) represents a sizeable share of the translation market. However, this facet of the activity remains less visible and less open to monitoring. This study investigates translation as a situated practice in the context of Oman within institutions where the translation activity does not represent a primary purpose. Adopting a quantitative approach, the study employed an online survey to investigate indicators of the institutionalization of translation, such as resourcing, working conditions, distribution of work, interaction, workflows, and quality management policies. The findings show that translation activities within institutions in Oman are thriving. However, the study revealed that translation practices are subject to considerable variation and that, despite notable exceptions, translation is frequently affected by challenges related to inadequate staffing, resources, and quality assurance procedures. These practices are mainly ad hoc, providing little evidence that translation needs are treated as an integral part of the institution’s functioning. These findings align with observations in other contexts and underscore the need to recognise the significant role translation plays in the functioning of the institution and the need to effectively integrate translation activities within their institutional environments to enhance quality standards in this often-overlooked segment of the translation industry. More generally, the findings confirm the necessity for Translation Studies to appreciate the significance of institutional translation as a facet of translation as a situated activity.

Legal and institutional translator competence: developments and training implications

ABSTRACT As in other areas of translation practice and translator education, technological advances are having a considerable impact on working processes and training in legal and institutional translation. This trend has contributed to research on translator competence gaining new significance and urgency with a view to adapting curricula and training approaches to the latest professional developments in the field. This introduction to a special issue of The Interpreter and Translator Trainer on competence in legal and institutional translation reviews selected contributions that examine the integral components of legal and institutional translator competence, propose strategies to help trainees develop this competence, or analyse the impact of machine translation use and specialised training on translator competence and performance in today’s increasingly automated environments. The link between professional practice, research and the classroom is reflected in the questions posed and the enlightening responses provided in the form of valuable empirical data, examples and ideas for trainers and trainees. These insights also illustrate the relevance of a diversity of perspectives and research methods, and support a renewed sense of awareness of the critical value of specialised training itself in legal and institutional translation.

Revisiting translator competence in the age of artificial intelligence: the case of legal and institutional translation

ABSTRACT Multi-componential models of translation competence are widely used in translator training as a yardstick for curricular and syllabus design. These models must be adapted to reflect professional trends, such as the impact of artificial intelligence, and machine translation in particular, on working methods. This paper describes the process of adapting a pioneering model of legal translation competence to the broader scope of institutional translation in light of recent trends, as verified by triangulating information from multiple interviews, analyses of translation volumes and job descriptors and other professional inputs. The resulting revised descriptor was validated through a survey of 474 translation professionals from 24 international organisations of diverse sizes and domain specialisations. The suitability of the descriptor was corroborated across the board, but variations were found in perceptions of the relevance of sub-competences to ensure translation quality. Profiles with a stronger specialisation in legal translation or more experience in institutional translation showed higher awareness of the relevance of all the sub-competences, especially the core language, strategic and thematic competences, and even more so for translating texts of a legal or administrative nature. The implications of these findings for training purposes in particular are discussed.

The impact of specialised translator training and professional experience on legal translation quality assurance: an empirical study of revision performance

ABSTRACT The relevance of translation and law degrees as pathways to professional legal translation is the subject of persistent debate, but there is limited research on the relationship between legal translators’ backgrounds and competence levels in practice. This study compares the revision performance of several groups of institutional translators (44 in total) according to their academic backgrounds (legal translation specialisation, translation degrees with no legal specialisation, law degrees or other degrees) and legal translation experience (more or less than three years). The scores of justified, missing and over-corrections, among other indicators, corroborate the crucial impact of legal translation specialisation and subject-matter knowledge in ensuring legal translation quality, while experience can serve to partially fill certain training deficits. Qualified translators with a legal specialisation stood out as the most efficient revisers, followed by law graduates, translation graduates without a legal specialisation and other translators. A subsequent holistic assessment of the revised target text yielded results globally in line with the revision scores, as well as mixed perceptions of the target text as potential machine output. The findings support the added value of legal translator training, and are of relevance for translator recruitment and workflow management. They also challenge the rationale behind ISO 20771:2020 qualification requirements.

Internationalization and institutional translation at UFSC: building a university identity in the english language

Este artigo relata o processo de construção da identidade internacional da Universidade Federalde Santa Catarina (UFSC), a partir do trabalho de Tradução Institucional realizado pelo Serviço deTradução da Secretaria de Relações Institucionais (SINTER). Apresentamos as ações realizadasentre 2016 e 2022 que contribuíram para ampliar e uniformizar a comunicação institucional emlíngua inglesa e dar maior visibilidade à instituição no cenário global. Dentre elas, destacam-se: atradução de websites institucionais; a disponibilização de um glossário português-inglês, contendotermos relevantes da estrutura acadêmica e administrativa da UFSC; e a elaboração de um guia deredação em língua inglesa. Essas e outras ações complementares buscaram aproximação com acomunidade universitária, unindo-se aos esforços do processo de internacionalização transversalem curso na UFSC.

The interface between specialized translation and institutional translation: A selection of candidate terms validated by Aeronautical Meteorology corpora

The interface between specialized translation and institutional translation: A selection of candidate terms validated by Aeronautical Meteorology corpora

Quoting Chinese Political Discourse through Translation: An Analysis of Xi Jinping’s Climate Change Discourse in English-language News Media

Climate change is a heated topic that attracts media and political attention. Previous research has analyzed political discourse using different approaches from various perspectives. However, few studies have investigated the recontextualization of Chinese political discourses in the mass media via translation. This study analyzes how President Xi Jinping’s discourses on climate change are translated and represented in the Chinese, British and American media. It draws on political discourse analysis and the narrative theory conception of quoting, including direct, indirect and mixed quotations. The study analyzes a selection of Xi’s translated quotations through manual coding and examines Chinese and English news outlets’ speech representation. The quotations are interpreted in their socio-political contexts and in relation to aspects such as journalistic conventions. The findings show that these factors contribute to the narrative shifts observed between institutional translation and news translation. The study provides insights into cross-cultural communication and the role of translation in shaping public opinion on important global issues such as climate change.

Institutional translators’ mediation of CPC Work Reports diachronically through personal pronouns: a corpus-based discourse analysis approach

ABSTRACT Drawing on a corpus-based discourse analysis approach, this paper presents a diachronic-cum-contrastive study of institutional translators’ mediation of Chinese political discourse through personal pronouns and their collocations with modal verbs, with a view to identifying how interpersonal relations and power distance are diachronically mediated between the author and the readers when recontextualized. The corpus comprises six Work Reports of the Communist Party of China and their corresponding English translations from the 1990s to the 2010s. Textual analysis reveals that there has been a diachronically shifting trend across the six TTs towards constructing a closer and more symmetrical relationship with the target readers vis-à-vis the STs by manipulating personal pronouns. Moreover, the prevalent collocational patterns of ‘we’ with modal verbs tend to shift from encoding obligation in the earlier TTs to emphasizing inclination in more recent TTs. Further critical analysis of the metadiscourse of China’s institutional translation of political discourse suggests that such shifts over time have been motivated by a major ideological evolution in the Chinese political context and the changing target readership. Our findings suggest that a corpus-based diachronic perspective on translation may unveil subtle, patterned variations in minor linguistic signs that provide important clues to broader contextual transformations.

Defining national translation capacity: a comprehensive framework for analyzing translation at country level

ABSTRACT Employing relevant concepts from studies on National Language Capacity (NLC), State-sponsored Translation Program (STP) and institutional translation, this paper proposes a comprehensive framework of National Translation Capacity (NTC) for the analysis of translation activities at the country level, and discusses its notion, its sub-components and how the sub-components interact with each other. NTC refers to the overall capacity of all relevant actors (both individuals and institutions) of a country in developing infrastructure for translation activities, providing translation services, and promoting translation undertakings. It consists of four interrelated and mutually reinforcing sub-capacities: translation management, translation services, translation dissemination and translation development. The proposed framework on NTC has the following implications: it can broaden the interdisciplinary scope of translation studies and be used to explore how a country's translation capacity contributes to its cultural power and economic power. It also offers a better understanding of the important value of country-specific translation activities and capacities in protecting and promoting national, regional and global linguistic and cultural diversity.

Book Covers and State Translation Programs: A Multimodal Approach to Book Covers in the Panda Books Series

In the era of globalization, institutional translation has become increasingly important. The Panda Books Series (PBS) is an exemplar of institutional translation that translates and disseminates Chinese literature to other parts of the world. The present study provides a multimodal analysis of the book covers in the PBS in terms of their visual meanings and intersemiotic relations. Analysis of 129 front covers and 64 back covers reveals that a positive and non-threatening image of China is constructed by characterizing China as a gender-equal, peaceful, and rural country, while a modern and approachable image of Chinese writers is created to highlight the authorship. The verbal and visual modes that are present on the covers often repeat the same information to reinforce positive images of China and Chinese writers, which is instrumental in realizing the goal of the PBS. It is argued that the agency of subjects at different levels, that is, the political ideology of the state, the governmental institutions involved, and translators and editors, all combine to shape the book cover designs of the PBS. This study contributes to research on institutional translation, especially state translation program, from a multimodal perspective.

Leveling the playing field: exploring how community embeddedness shapes institutional translation in youth sport

ABSTRACT Research question Institutional change in sport is supported by the adoption of new models. An institutional translation perspective suggests that as local organizations adopt models from the field, they edit and ‘fill in’ these frameworks, sometimes in different ways. This translation process is relatively underexplored in sport management. In this study, we looked at how community embeddedness shapes institutional translation in sport, focusing on the role of a linking organization that connects local organizations to the broader field. Research methods We used a qualitative approach centered on the Aspen Institute’s Project Play initiative in the U.S., aimed at promoting participation and access, aligned with a youth development logic in sport. Results and findings We found that local organizations translated the Project Play model to their communities, and a linking organization facilitated this process by helping local groups identify and interpret the approach, secure resources, and convene local stakeholders. We traced differences across communities in what was implemented to aspects of the local context and approach, and we mapped similarities to connections between communities. Implications This study contributes to the literature on institutional dynamics in sport by broadening understanding of translation. Our findings around community embeddedness and the role of a linking organization in shaping local organizations’ approaches to a new model of youth sport demonstrate how a translation perspective can account for agency and constraint, and global and local dynamics.

Rethinking Public Religion in Korea: The Role of Religions in the Era of Climate Crisis

This paper attempts to explore the public dimension of religion in Korea. First, it examines the Western and East Asian contexts on the concept of ’public’, noting that the gap in notions of public is large between East Asian and Western traditions. The following section discusses Habermas’ ‘institutional translation proviso’ in relation to the notion ‘public’. The institutional translation proviso serves as the basis for further discussion on rethinking the public role of religion in Korea in the era of climate crisis. We argue that ‘secular’ translations of religious convictions can help religious citizens and communities engage in public discourses on ecological challenges. We then consider major limitations of Habermas’ understanding of religion. In the following section, we move on to discuss Albert Schweitzer and process theology in order to demonstrate how religious languages can be reinterpreted on the basis of modern experiences of ecological challenges. We then consider Buddhist alternatives for overcoming the climate crisis. The final section introduces José Casanova’s account of public religions and discusses its implication for envisioning the public role of religious organizations in ecological efforts. Reviewing the contributions made by religious organizations to the Korean society, we suggest that ‘ecological publicness’ of religion can be obtained.

Could research help revisers?

ABSTRACT Revision by a second translator plays a major role in quality control in institutional settings such as the European Commission and the United Nations. Different institutional translation services take different approaches to revision, and their approach changes over time. There are policy differences and there are differences among revisers in revision technique. Is there a best way to approach the task, a way which is as fast as possible while achieving adequate quality? Or does it depend on differing institutional requirements and budgets, different conceptions of quality, differences in staff size, and differences in the way individuals process language? If there is no best way of revising, are there ways that do not work well? Surveys of research on revision by a second translator have led to findings which, while interesting, are mostly not of a kind that, if pursued, could provide managers and revisers with a scientific basis for adopting a revision policy or recommending a revision technique. Given a certain concept of Applied Translation Studies, it should be possible, with cooperation and funding from the big translating institutions, for teams of researchers and practitioners to test hypotheses about which of a pair of techniques or policies is best.

Terminological hybridity in institutional legal translation

Abstract The analysis of domain-specific terminology is essential for characterizing specialized discourses, and emerges as a useful means of measuring the thematic hybridity of law and legal translation in particular. This paper accordingly presents a large-scale mapping of terminological and phraseological features in a multi-genre corpus that was built as part of the LETRINT project on institutional legal translation. The corpus-driven analysis focuses on the density of legal terminology and phraseology, on the one hand, and that of terminology of other specialized domains, on the other, in nine genres that are considered representative of three central legal functions (law-making, compliance monitoring and adjudication) in three international settings (the European Union, the United Nations and the World Trade Organization). The comparative examination of density scores provides empirical evidence of the common core features of the selected genres, and reveals variations based on institutional thematic focus, primary legal function and genre specificities. These insights nuance our understanding of international legal discourses and domain specialization in institutional translation.

Eurolect – Übersetzung in Bewegung. Diachrone Variation der Übersetzung des Passivs in institutionellen Rechtstexten

This study scrutinizes interlingual Eurolect from the perspective of the use of passive structures in the English language versions of EU institutional-legal texts while monitoring their variations in translation in the Slovak language versions. For the purpose of observing the diachronic variations in institutional translation, specific English-Slovak parallel corpora were compiled. The translational analysis draws on a text-based and corpus-driven approach while incorporating a mixed-method as a fusion of both qualitative and quantitative research in order to provide the most relevant outcome. To enable the quantitative analysis of the corpora to be accomplished precisely and time-efficiently, we employed the Sketch Engine Corpus Query Tool. The research findings reveal an increasing tendency in the use of passives in EU translation when comparing post-accession and contemporary subcorpora, suggesting a shift in English-Slovak translation practice despite institutional recommendations.

Translating to hegemonize

Abstract Among the diverse varieties of translation, one is institutional translation, i.e., a type of translation done either in or for a particular institution. In contemporary Iran after the victory of the Islamic Revolution of 1979, a large number of social, religious, political, cultural, and artistic works have been translated from Persian into a long array of other languages within such a framework. The implementation of such trans-national projects has involved hundreds of translators/ interpreters, allocation of billions of dollars, and making use of a wide network of international publishers and distributors. Numerous motives could be enumerated for such undertakings; however, the effects of such endeavors appear not to have been addressed in Translation Studies as yet. This research aims at pinpointing the mechanisms of such institutions, in particular relying on concepts such as ideology, hegemony and translational discourse-propagating network to contribute to evaluation of such a phenomenon. To this end, 11 Iranian post-revolutionary institutions with translational agendas were identified, demonstrated to have been following double objectives across the world; ideological identity-based discourse to propagate Islamic revolutionary Shia inclinations as well as to support consolidate the hegemony of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

God is Green: The Catholic Church's Re-Imagination of Environmental Norms

AbstractInternational discussions regarding the environment have too narrowly focused on contributions by secular actors. The Catholic Church, recognized for its influential role in the democratization processes of the 1990s, also has a long-standing position regarding climate change, yet remains understudied. How can the Church contribute to the international community's debates regarding the environment and climate change? Using the framework of constructivism and Jurgen Habermas' concept of institutional translation, I argue that the Church is a norm entrepreneur that promotes a foreign policy of human/integral ecology. The most recent articulation of this foreign policy is Pope Francis' encyclical Laudato Si’, which was referenced by the Holy See at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in 2021. The Church's participation at COP26 was the latest animation and application of the Church's foreign policy; I examine the Church's efforts to change the narrative on the environment toward a shared, global responsibility.