Translation Difficulties Arising from the Structure of the Arabic Language

Yıl 2020, Cilt: 19 Sayı: 1, 63 - 84, 30.06.2020

Abdullah Hacıbekiroğlu

https://doi.org/10.14395/hititilahiyat.637402

Cited By: 2

Öz

Abstract

Translation is a way in which societies
throughout human history have resorted for scientific, cultural, literary and
diplomatic reasons. The interaction between societies and languages is
effectively achieved through the transfer of wealth belonging to one society or
language to another. Translation action has its own rules and methods, but also
has some difficulties. In this study, the difficulties encountered within the
framework of more translation experience were addressed.

One of the structural challenges we address in the study is the
difficulty of reading. As is known, the use of harekes in the Arabic
language is almost nonexistent except for some texts. This makes it difficult
to read consonants and creates a barrier to correct meaning and correct
translation. Grammatical difficulties also lead to translation difficulties.
Even those with a good level of grammatical knowledge may face grammatical
difficulties. The transfer of Arabic I’rab rules from the theoretical to the
practical level and the abundant textual experience will help overcome the
difficulties. These difficulties were explained with sample sentences and texts
and suggestions were presented for the translation of these sentences.
Equivalent statements have been attempted to be found. Differences between the
source language and the target language, such as language structure, culture
and style, restrict equivalent translation possibilities. Despite all these
differences between languages and cultures, equivalent translation
possibilities have been tried to be shown. Because of the unique structure of
the languages, the translator himself or the cultural differences between the
two languages, there may be some difficulties in the translation process. The
translator must be extremely familiar with the characteristics of both
languages. In this way, he will overcome these problems that arise during
translation.

Summary

Today, translation activity should be considered as a social, cultural,
economic and historical reality. In the historical process, translation
activity has always existed depending on many factors. The translation method
used over time has changed according to the characteristics of the period.
Societies’ life styles and life perceptions are different from each other, and
culture differs from one society to another. Intercultural communication is
provided through translation. Translation is an indispensable bridge between
societies, cultures and languages. Each culture must be fed from different
sources and communicate with different cultures to enrich its language, thought
and art.

Literary texts are important elements that establish links between
different cultures and societies. There are literary works that reflect the
characteristics of every society in many ways, including cultural, scientific,
moral and social. Societies promote these entities through translation. It is
also able to recognize the cultures of other societies in this way. This is how
communication and connection between cultures and societies are provided.

Translation is one of the important methods used in language teaching.
One of the main aims of foreign language teaching is to enable students to have
the ability to transfer the expression patterns in their mother tongue and
target language from one language to another. Various texts are used in the
translation activities and foreign language teaching process for students to
acquire this ability. In the translation of these texts, grammatical, semantic,
cultural etc. a number of differences and challenges may be faced. In our
research, we classified these difficulties under various headings and presented
some suggestions.

One of the structural difficulties in the Arabic language that we
discussed in the study is the difficulty of reading. The simplest and quickest
way to overcome this is to use symbols called harekes. But the use of
harekes in the Arabic line is almost nonexistent except for some texts. Even
those who know the language at intermediate or advanced levels face the
challenge of reading. The way to avoid this situation is to put harekes on
letters that are worried about being misread. It will also play a key role for
proper reading and comprehension of the dominance of the patterns of nouns and
verbs and the rules of Arabic I’rab.

Because languages have cultural elements within them, there are cultural
differences between languages. For example, when translating metaphors, idioms
and proverbs, there should be an equivalent in the target language, taking into
consideration the meaning rather than literal.

Grammatical difficulties also lead to translation difficulties. Even
those with a good level of grammatical knowledge may face grammatical
difficulties. The transfer of the Arabic I’rab rules from the theoretical to
the practical level and the abundant textual experience will help overcome
these challenges.

Translation first of all requires expertise in the field of translation.
In addition to field expertise, a good knowledge of the source language's
expression styles and culture provides a clear and understandable translation.
Instability may occur during the translation process. Appropriate strategies
must be determined to minimize translation losses and to make accurate
decisions.

In this study, rather than
issues such as translation theories and the detailed history of translation,
the difficulties encountered in personal translation experience are
demonstrated through sample sentences and texts. When necessary, suggestions
and proposals were presented and the place where each challenge in terms of
translation science was stated. In addition, although there are differences
between languages and cultures, the possibility of translation has been pointed
out, and it has been stated that appropriate equivalence can also be found in
many cases.

The translation difficulties
mentioned in the research often arise from differences between the source
language and the target language. Each language has its own unique structure.
Cultural differences between languages are also a case to be considered in translation.
Texts containing cultural elements need to be conveyed comprehensively in the
target language with appropriate equivalence. The existence of a very
meaningful and affluent vocabulary of the Arabic language requires
consideration of both the phenomenon of polysemy and the use of classical and
modern dictionaries. This attention will ensure a clear, lean and fluid
translation of statements. During the translation process, it is possible to
always face translation difficulties caused by many different reasons. In order
to minimize the losses and difficulties that can be experienced in translation,
attention should be paid to the specific structures and cultural elements of
the languages.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Arabic Language, Turkish, Translation, Equivalence, Collocation

Arap Dilinin Yapısından Kaynaklanan Çeviri Zorlukları

Öz

Çeviri, insanlık tarihi boyunca toplumların
bilimsel, kültürel, edebî, diplomatik vs. nedenlerle başvurduğu bir yoldur.
Toplumlar ve diller arasındaki etkileşim, bir topluma veya dile ait zenginliğin
diğerine aktarılması kanalıyla etkin bir şekilde sağlanmıştır. Çeviri eyleminin
kendine has kural ve yöntemleri olmakla beraber birtakım zorlukları da vardır.
Bu çalışmada daha çok çeviri deneyimi çerçevesinde karşılaşılan zorluklar ele
alınmıştır.

Çalışmada ele alınan yapısal zorlukların başında okuma zorluğu gelmektedir.
Bilindiği gibi Arap Dilinde hareke kullanımı bazı metinler dışında hemen hemen
yok gibidir. Bu durum sessiz harflerin okunmasını zorlaştırmakta, doğru anlam
ve doğru çevirinin önünde bir engel oluşturmaktadır. Dilbilgisi kaynaklı
zorluklar da çeviri zorluklarına sebebiyet vermektedir. İyi düzeyde gramer
bilgisine sahip olanlar bile dilbilgisi kaynaklı zorluklarla
karşılaşabilmektedir. Arapça i’râb kurallarının teorik düzeyden pratik düzeye
aktarılması ve bol metin deneyimi zorlukların aşılmasına yardımcı olacaktır. Bu zorluklar
örnek cümle ve metinlerle izah edilmiş, söz konusu cümlelerin tercümeleriyle
ilgili öneriler sunulmuştur. Eşdeğer ifadeler bulunmaya çalışılmıştır. Kaynak dil ile hedef dil arasındaki dil yapısı, kültür,
üslup vs. gibi farklılıklar eşdeğer çeviri imkânlarını kısıtlamaktadır. Diller
ve kültürler arasındaki tüm bu farklılıklara rağmen eşdeğer çeviri imkânları
gösterilmeye çalışılmıştır. Dillerin kendine özgü yapısından, çevirmenin bizzat
kendisinden yahut iki dilin sahip olduğu kültürel farklılıklardan dolayı çeviri
işleminde birtakım zorluklar yaşanabilir. Çevirmen her iki dilin de
özelliklerine son derece hâkim olmalıdır. Böylece çeviri esnasında ortaya çıkan
bu sorunların üstesinden gelecektir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Arap Dili, Türkçe, Çeviri, Eşdeğerlik, Eşdizim

Kaynakça

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