An investigation into translation criterion and strategies——based on the English translation of ‘物证 (Wu Zheng)’
| Author | Meng Li,Zhang Luping |
| DOI | 10.1177/1365712716674803 |
| Published date | 01 January 2017 |
| Date | 01 January 2017 |
The International Journal of
Evidence & Proof
An investigation into
2017, Vol. 21(1-2) 5–13
ª The Author(s) 2016
translation criterion and
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strategies——based on the
DOI: 10.1177/1365712716674803
journals.sagepub.com/home/epj
English translation of ‘物证
(Wu Zheng)’
Meng Li
Fudan University, China
Zhang Luping
China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing, China
Abstract
Through analysis of Deborah Cao’s ‘translation proficiency’, the criteria and strategies for
translating legal terms are proposed and then applied in translating the legal term ‘物证(Wu
Zheng)’, having reference to law dictionaries and common usage in America, the UK, Hong
Kong and Taiwan.
Keywords
physical evidence, translation of legal terms, translation proficiency, translation criterion,
translation strategy
Words are the building blocks of language. As we all know, one distinctive feature of legal language is
the complex and unique legal vocabulary. As a result, the translation of legal terms is the main difficulty
when translating legal documents.
Nowadays, most studies of legal translation deal for the most part with the translation of legal
terms. The reason is that the quality of translating legal terms is the key to the quality of legal
translation. Professor Zhang Falian pointed out in 2009 that translating every legal word well is, in
practice, the key to improving the quality of legal translation. However, translating legal terms is not
an easy job. On the one hand, translating legal terminology requires linguistic equivalence and legal
equivalence. On the other hand, in practice, many legal terms in one language have no linguistic or
Corresponding authors:
Meng Li, Fudan university, 2005, Songhu Rd, Yangpu, Shanghai, China.
Email: 16210270062@fudan.edu.cn
Zhang Luping, Key Laboratory of Evidence Science (China University of Political Science and Law), Ministry of Education, School
of Foreign Languages, China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing, China.
Email: fadawgy@163.com
6
The International Journal of Evidence & Proof 21(1-2)
legal equivalent in another language, because of the cultural difference between the subject language
(SL) and target language (TL), particularly the difference in legal culture. These difficulties mean that
legal translators not only need to have a thorough knowledge of the legal systems in both the SL and the
TL and proficiency in both languages, but also need to know how to use translation strategies flexibly. In
reality, these onerous requirements are seldom realised. In practice, incorrect translation and ambiguous
translation remain the two biggest stumbling blocks in legal translation work in China. In short, due to
the demand of practice, it is vital to look for appropriate translation criteria and strategies.
The paper starts with an investigation into ‘translation proficiency’, as described by Deborah Cao,
and identifies suitable translation criteria and strategies. Next, having reference to law dictionaries and
common usage in American, UK, Hong Kong and Taiwan, the identified criteria and strategies for
translating legal terms are then applied to translating the legal term ‘物证’ (Wu Zheng).
Deborah Cao’s ‘translation proficiency’ and its implication for
legal translation
According to Deborah Cao’s theory, ‘translation proficiency’ is defined as the ability to mobilise
translation competence to perform translation tasks in context for intercultural and interlingual commu-
nication purposes. Moreover, ‘legal translation proficiency’ refers to the ability to mobilise translation
competence to perform legal translation tasks in the legal setting for intercultural and interlingual
communication purposes.
Translation proficiency is described as being comprised of three sets of variables, interacting with one
another in the context of situation (Cao, 1997): (1) translational language competence; (2) translational
knowledge structures; and (3) translational strategic competence (see Figure 1).
Translational language
Translational
competence
knowledge
Translational strategic
competence
Context of situation
Translational strategic competence is used to describe the integrated mental ability inherent in the
translation task when a translator carries out an operation on a text and employs language and knowl-
edge competence for communicative purposes in translation (Cao, 1997).
Translational language competence
Organisational competence
Pragmatic competence
Grammatical
Textual
Illocutionary
Sociolinguistic
Li and Luping
7
Translational language competence is the ability to utilise, relate and mediate the SL and TL linguistic
variables in the total communicative act of translating to achieve communicative goals (see Figure 2)
(Cao, 1997).
Translational knowledge structure
General knowledge
Specialist knowledge
Literary knowledge
Within the present model, translational knowledge structures are defined as the knowledge that is
essential to achieve interlingual and intercultural communication in translation. Translational knowledge
structures include general, specialist and literary knowledge (see Figure 3). General knowledge refers to
knowledge about the world. It includes knowledge about ecology, material culture, social organisation
and other areas of both the SL and TL communities. Specialist knowledge is the subject knowledge that
includes technical knowledge in a specialist field such as medicine, law, economics and science and
technology. In legal translation, legal knowledge is the knowledge of propositions of law in a narrow
sense and the knowledge of legal culture in a broad sense, including legal systems, legal order, legal
institutions, history and practices and practitioners. Literary knowledge includes knowledge in such areas
as the Bible, stage, film, lyric, poetic and literary works, cultural history and literary studies (Cao, 1997).
In...
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