Collocation Translation Errors From Arabic Into English: A Case Study of Naguib Mahfouz’s Novel “Awlad Haratina”

Abstract

The purpose of this analysis is to understand the notion of translation errors while translating collocations from Arabic into English. The translation errors are found in the Arabic novel “Awlad Haratina” which is written by Naguib Mahfouz. The problem of translating collocations and the reasons behind those problems are studied based on Baker’s model of collocational errors which are the engrossing effect of source text (ST) patterning, misinterpreting the meaning of ST collocations, the tension between accuracy and naturalness, cultural-specific collocation and marked collocation in the source text. descriptive qualitative method is used as the method of this study. 71 errors are examined accordingly to find out the reason behind committing translation errors while translating collocation. The study reveals that the tension between accuracy and naturalness, cultural-specific collocation are the main reasons behind committing errors. As a result, the study finds that translators should pay more attention to the notion of collocation before the process of translation.

The Use of English Collocations in Written Translation – A Case of University English-Majored Students

“…From this example, collocation can be seen as crucial for language learners. Therefore, the use of improper collocations may affect the validity of translation (Jabbari & Kavoosi, 2017;Obeidat & Sepora, 2019). Depending on the sense, collocations are applied properly.…”

“…Nonetheless, although many students are aware of the importance of collocations in translation, they do not use collocations in their translations frequently and sometimes they also make some errors (Obeidat & Sepora, 2019). Furthermore, collocations appear to be a challenging issue for second-language learners even for those who achieve a higher state of proficiency (Arnaud & Savignon, 1997;Barfield, 2009).…”

The Translation of Religious Words and Expressions in Naguib Mahfouz’s <i>Sugar Street</i>: Domesticating or Foreignizing Strategy

“…She attributes this failure on the part of translators to "the linguistic and cultural gaps between the source language and the target one" [14]. Obeidat and Mahadi has studied collocation translation errors in the translation of Naguib Mahfouz's Awlad Haratina [13]. They object to the exclusive use of the substitution strategy in rendering collocations.…”

“…As they put it, "[t]he discussion reveals that collocation should not be translated by only substituting words from ST into TT." [13]. They go on to argue that" "the tension between naturalness and accuracy and the cultural-specific collocations in the ST play the vital role in committing translation errors in translating collocations from Arabic into English" [13].…”

“…[13]. They go on to argue that" "the tension between naturalness and accuracy and the cultural-specific collocations in the ST play the vital role in committing translation errors in translating collocations from Arabic into English" [13].…”