Dealing with language transfer may put us into a situation where we have to stay complex with the variations of structure. To be succinct, translation is not only about how to put several words here and there. There is something more than that, which translators consider as ‘equivalence’.
The Concept of Equivalence in Translation
The structure may be deceptive sometimes, especially when someone is not a native user of a particular language that he is dealing with. With this notion, the process is not necessarily about putting things forward that in order just to make a good translation, someone should be originally the product of native speakers. Above it all, sensitivity and comprehension can play the most urgent parts in defining equivalence. Are You Sure of Your Translation Quality?
For linguists, the formulation of the Hallidayan approach can facilitate the certainty of language equivalence. The theory mainly emphasizes the comprehension of formal correspondence, as the foundation of being ‘equivalent’. Well, this might sound rigid. However, this can be a great help for translators to reach accuracy based on consistency.
In defining translation equivalence, the formal correspondence provides a compass that any target language’s category, including unit, class, structure, elements of structure, occupies as nearly as possible the same place as given in the source language’s category. Nevertheless, commutation is often utilized to make the translation product more acceptable, for example, the shift from English’s S-P-A structure to Russian’s A-P-S.
There is another challenge. If we want to create an ‘acceptable’ translation product for the target language’s speakers, consistency is not the only key. In this case, language is acknowledged as a subjective manifestation.
It is not easy to reach a consensus among translators for several specific language features, such as idioms, proverbs, and collocations due to different points of views, generations, and social classes. Some parts that sound idiomatic to someone may not be what it sounds like to some other else. How could this happen?
Because subjectivity is not inherent. A different head may have a different mind. This is the biggest challenge of translation quality, not to mention translation machines and tools.
Multidimensional Quality Metrics (MQM) Framework
Nevertheless, what is so-called ‘truth’ should be proven. Similarly, the translation quality can be deemed accurate or acceptable only if there is a suitable measurement method. Thanks to the development of the Multidimensional Quality Metrics (MQM) framework by the European Union (EU)-funded QTLaunchPad Project, which aims to reduce the global language barriers. MQM provides a flexible framework for defining custom metrics for the assessment of translation quality.
These metrics may be considered within the common inventory of values for data categories and a common structure. MQM supports multiple levels of granularity and provides a way to describe translation-oriented quality assessment systems, exchange information between them, and embed that information in XML or HTML5 documents.
The framework of the tool contains vocabularies for categorizing issues, a scoring mechanism, markups, a set of guidelines for selecting the issues, and a set of informative mappings.
Parameters for Assessing Translation Quality
A high-quality translation should capture the meaning of the original text by appropriately expressing it in the target text with consistent and error-free bases. Another way to measure a good quality translation is by applying four parameters, including the meaning, wording, errors, and consistency. To be more detailed, translators can use the following framework of questions to analyze whether the translation product has met the four criteria:
- Does the translation product capture the meaning of the source text?
- Does the translation product read as it should?
- Does the translation product contain any grammatical or spelling errors?
- Has the translation product properly and consistently handled everything?
To make sure that a translation product achieves a high-quality impact, there are three simple following steps of assessment:
- Assessing the accuracy of meaning, which means translators should solely focus on the meaning. This step of assessment is performed through a systematic comparison of language elements from the source to the target text. Starting this with short chunks of text around seven to ten words at a time may provide more convenience, especially to check the accuracy, rather than checking a large portion of elements at once that may cause distraction since this process is mentally taxing.
- Assessing the accuracy of expressions, which means the association to naturalness, ambiguity-free, and register. The assessor of this aspect is highly recommended to be native speakers or at least accustomed to using the target language on the daily basis, as this assessment requires the sensitivity of language that can only be guaranteed through consistent practice.
- Assessing technical conformity, which means running eyes over layout and page formatting. Editing, such as ensuring no spelling or grammatical errors is also part of this final step.
Steps for Assessing Translation Impact
Overall, translation differs from any kind of mathematical reasoning. It is a science as well as an art at once. One thing is for sure, that language grows through a habitual adjustment. A translator should be equipped with the flexibility of language use instead of theoretical memorization only. Meanwhile, translating is managing the language elements by ensuring that it does not lose its core substances.
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Source:
- Catford, J. C. (1965). A Linguistic Theory of Translation. Great Britain: Hazell Watson and Viney Ltd.
- Qt21.eu
- Resources.unbabel.com
- Pactranz.com
