Understanding Shifting Paradigms of Translation Studies in 21st Century

Abstract

The study primarily aims at exploring the emerging trends and tendencies; and shifting paradigms in the field of translation studies in the twenty-first century. It also attempts to interpret the emergent tendencies in the field with reference to the present-day technological world. To investigate this shift, it analyzed the literature published on the phenomenon of translation between 2001 and 2022 in the Web of Science (Core Collection). It employs the software tools VOSviewer, Biblioshiny, ScientoPy, and MS Excel, this study seeks to visualize and analyze the data to gain insights into the dominant trends and themes related to translation and its role in cultural dialogue, politics, manipulation, mutual understanding, identity, cultural harmony, representation, discourse, ideology, cultural communication, language, and linguistic. The study after a comprehensive and systematic exploration of massive data found that the phenomenon of translation has undergone a profound metamorphosis, transcending the boundaries of traditional cultural paradigms to embrace the nascent realm of emerging technological paradigms. This paradigm shift has been propelled by groundbreaking advancements in machine translation, neural networks, natural language processing (NLP), and machine learning, heralding a seismic revolution within the translation industry. The fusion of technology and translation has not only redefined the very fabric of translation methodologies but has also exerted a transformative influence on the indispensable skills demanded from experts and scholars.