JAIS

論文

Proper Names in the Media:
Problems for Translators/Interpreters and L2 Learners
HANAOKA Osamu(Tokyo Metropolitan College of Aeronautical Engineering)This paper seeks to identify the nature of problems that proper names pose fortranslators/interpreters and L2 learners. First, I examine some grammatical traits of proper
names as they appear in the media. Then, drawing in particular on Hirsch (1987, 1993) and theresults of a small survey, I discuss the problems of proper names from a schema-theoretical
viewpoint. Specifically, the discussion includes two types of knowledge regarding proper names,
the nature of schemata associated with names, and the range of names that translators/
interpreters and L2 learners need to deal with. Finally, I distinguish the types of strategies thatare relevant to both translators/interpreters and L2 learners and those that uniquely concern
translators/interpreters.

1. Introduction
Proper names, which can be discussed in the framework of cultural literacy, pose uniquedifficulties in the comprehension of culture-specific texts, whether written or spoken. The
lack of appropriate schemata for the referent of a name deprives the reader or listener ofpresupposed extratextual clues to the text. At the phonetic level, unfamiliar names can beproblematic to interpreters, who have to store the names in their short-term memory andrecode them in a target language. The knowledge of proper names represents an important
aspect of cultural literacy in the sense that names often serve as signposts of a specific culture.
Mizuno (BS interpreters group 1998) discusses the importance of cultural literacy in broadcast
interpreting, stating that cultural literacy presents the greatest challenge for broadcast
interpreters.

Fostering cross-cultural awareness has also been regarded as increasingly

important in teaching English in Japan. However, traditional English classes in Japan have

HANAOKA Osamu, “Proper Names in the Media: Problems for Translators/Interpreters and L2
Learners.” I n t e r p r e t a t i o n S t u d i e s , N o . 2 , D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 2 , p a g e s 2 8 - 4 2 .
(c) 2002 by the Japan Association for Interpretation Studies

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not paid much attention to proper names. At the junior and senior high school levels,
culture-specific names are carefully glossed so that they will not present any problems in thecomprehension of the text. Vocabulary quizzes also tend to exclude proper names. Therefore,
proper names are rarely the focus of the learner's attention. Only at the university level are
students increasingly exposed to unsimplified texts in which culture-specific proper names
figure more prominently.
The issue of proper names and cultural literacy may concern advanced learners of English
and professional translators/interpreters to a greater degree as they deal with unsimplified,culture-specific materials such as news reports. Biber, Johansson, Leech, Conrad, & Finegan(1999: 15) point out that "since newspaper articles are intended to provide current
information about important people and events, they commonly use proper nouns referring
to known people, places, or institutions".
The nature of the problems experienced by translators/interpreters and L2 learners may
be different, however. This paper attempts to identify some problems that are common toboth translators/interpreters and L2 learners, and others that are specific to translators andinterpreters. First, I examine some grammatical traits of proper names as they are used in the
media. Second, from a schema-theoretic perspective, I discuss implications of Hirsch (1987,
1993) and the results of a small survey. Specifically, the discussion includes two types ofknowledge regarding proper names, the nature of schemata required to deal with names,
and the range of names that the professional translator/interpreter and the learner need toknow.

Finally, I classify the general types of strategies that are relevant to thetranslator/interpreter and the learner.
Specific interpreter training techniques such as shadowing and sight translation havebeen increasingly explored in the classroom. While the nature of the problems facing thetranslator/ interpreter and the learner may differ significantly, the way in which the issue of
cultural literacy is handled by translators/interpreters may also provide useful hints for
improving the learner's cultural competence.
2. Grammatical traits of proper names
2. 1 Proper nouns and proper names
A proper noun is a single word whereas a proper name can be either a single word or
more than one word (Quirk, Greenbaum, Leech, and Svartvik 1985: 288). Since this paper
deals with the problems presented by the names of people, places, organizations, etc., which
are in many cases composed of more than one word, the term proper name will be usedthroughout the paper. Another reason for using this term is that names often occur in theform of verbs and adjectives as I will illustrate in Section 2. 4.
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2. 2 Proper names behaving like common nouns
Proper names generally lack number contrast, article contrast, and modification.
However, there are occasions when they take on the characteristics of common nouns (Quirk
et al. 1985: 288-291), as in the following examples:(a) number contrast.
(1) Christopher had derided the idea of safe havens, telling French Foreign Minister
Alain Juppe, "Wouldn't we be creating six Dienbienphus? (Newsweek, May 31, 1993)
The plural form of the proper name Dienbienphu here means situations like Dienbienphu. The
metaphorical use of a name as in this instance presupposes that the listener can call up
relevant associations (see also Example (4) ).
(b)

article contrast(2) An America responsible for removing Saddam would be an America expected tobear some responsibility for the post-Saddam shape of Iraq; a task whose dimension(and popularity with the American public) would make Haiti look like a picnic.
(Newsweek, October 17, 1994)

The use of a determiner with restrictive modification occurs when a particular aspect of thereferent of the name is described (Quirk et al. 1985: 290).
(c) modification(3) As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the administration of Bush "41," General
Powell was an avatar of restraint, cooling off policymakers who believed that armed
intervention could be cheap or easy. Moderates have been counting on Powell to rein in
Bush "43's" hard-chargers, too. (Newsweek, March 6, 2002)
Here, the reader needs to use his or her world knowledge to figure out what the modifying
numbers 41 and 43 stand for.
(4)

Suppose Ross Perot won 75 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. And

suppose some latter-day Jefferson Davis, intent upon splitting up the country, won another75 seats. (Newsweek, November 8, 1993)
In this passage, the reader is expected to recall the relevant property of Jefferson Davis.
2. 3 Common nouns behaving like proper names

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Sometimes common nouns are capitalized and take on unique denotation. In that case,they can be classified as proper nouns or proper names. Quirk, Greenbaum, Leech, andSvartvik (1972: 164) state that "the difference between an ordinary common noun and acommon noun turned name is that the unique reference of the name has been
institutionalized, as is made overt in writing by initial capital letter". Let us look at two
examples:(5) Hopes for peace in northern Ireland are higher than at any time since "the Troubles"
broke out in 1969, but the IRA's Aug. 31 ceasefire is only one half of the equation.
(Newsweek, September 19, 1994)
The use of quotation marks here signals the idea of 'what is called', and therefore indicatesthat the name, which refers to the political disorder and violence in Northern Ireland, has not
yet been fully institutionalized. The following instance demonstrates a similar phenomenon,
but the knowledge of the name is shared by members of a much smaller discourse
community:(6) The last news is that if the road is built, it will take the form of a tunnel under Barnes
and the exit will be in Rocks Lane. This exit arrives just before 'the Tree' and therefore thearea will still be erased. (a music magazine)
In this instance, the knowledge of 'the Tree' is shared only by the readers of the fan clubmagazine. It is assumed that the readers know that 'the Tree' refers to the tree into which themusician in question crashed and was killed. Thus, the difficulty in dealing with proper
names concerns not only to what degree a name is institutionalized, but also for what kind of
discourse community it is institutionalized. In other words, the learner/translator is likely toexperience difficulty if s/he is not familiar with the community in which the name isuniquely used.
A distinct problem may arise in listening when a name consists of common nouns andadjectives. In such cases, in the absence of any orthographical cues (i.e. the capitalized letterof each of the constituent words) the listener may ascribe a common-word interpretation to
the name. For instance, 'The Damned' (the name of a rock band) may be misinterpreted as'the damned' if the listener is not familiar with the name. Likewise, to the viewer who missed
the preceding part of the program, the following exchange may be difficult to understand:(7)
KING: So a House Party couldn't succeed today?

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LINKLETTER: I don't think so. And don't forget, my House Party was about one-tenthstars, and the rest was in the audience. Nobody does that. I just walk out in the audienceand make up a show. (Larry King Live, July 26, 2002)
This example also demonstrates the importance of context in the recognition of a proper
name. The guest's response here provides a clue, but it is made clear earlier in the programthat House Party is the name of a TV show.
2. 4 Proper names used as adjectives and verbs.
If we assume that the major difficulty which proper names cause the learner has to dowith the background knowledge associated with the names, then it is necessary to include in
our consideration the adjectives and verbs derived from proper names as in the following
examples:(8) The caution, however, has a difficult time standing up against the Faustian power ofthe new drubs. (Newsweek, February 7, 1994)(9) If he ends up being Carterized - rendered politically impotent - he has mostly himself
to blame. (Newsweek, August 22, 1994)
Carter and McCarthy (1995) point out that morphological creativity is commonly observed
not only in journalism but also in everyday talk. The above examples show that this is also
true with proper names. A name can generate a new form functioning as a different part ofspeech, but such an improvised form may be short-lived and is often used for one specificoccasion as in Example (9). The following example involves the coinage of a new name:(10) "She's,uh, she's, uh, she's Polynesian. Well, half Polynesian. And, uh, half American.
She's Amnesian." (The film, Dave)This is a result of a play on words and the nonce form is not likely to be used in any othersituation. However, some coined words like Reaganomics take root and find their way into
dictionaries.
2. 5 Proper names in acronyms and initialisms
Some proper names appear in the form of acronyms and initialisms. Both acronyms (e.g.
TOEFL for The Test of English as a Foreign Language) and initialisms (e.g. CDC for The Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention) are formed from the initial letters of a group of words in a32name, but the latter are not pronounced as words. Abbreviated names may add extra
difficulty for the reader/listener if they represent more than one referent (e.g. FRB for both
The Federal Reserve Board and The Federal Reserve Bank).
3. A schematic view of the knowledge of proper names
In the previous section, I discussed some grammatical properties of proper names.
However, the unique difficulty that culture-specific names cause the reader or listener arises
not so much from the forms they take as from the lack of real world knowledge associatedwith the names. This requires a schematic view of the knowledge of proper names. The now
widely accepted interactive model holds that the comprehension of a text requires bothbottom-up and top-down processing simultaneously (Carrell & Eisterhold 1988, Nassaji
2002). Bottom-up processing is often characterized as data-driven or text driven, while
top-down processing as conceptually driven or reader-driven (Rumelhart 1980, Omaggio
1986, Carrell & Eisterhold 1988, Barnett 1989). A distinction is often made between formal
schemata, which include the knowledge of rhetorical and discourse structures of different
types of texts, and content schemata, which concern the knowledge of the world. The
knowledge of a proper name here is regarded as one type of content schema which consistsof a network of associations.
Schema theory posits that no text carries meaning in itself but only provides direction forreaders/listeners so that they can make sense of it based on their schemata (Omaggio 1986,
Carrell & Eisterhold 1988). The reader is viewed as an active participant and all of his or her
knowledge and previous experience play a major role in the comprehension of the text
(Barnett 1989: 33). When processing language, the reader/listener must "actively select themost appropriate schemata for making sense of the incoming words" (Hirsch 1987: 53). In thecontext of teaching English as a foreign language, this means, as Ovando and Collier (1985:
138) suggest, that the teacher needs to be aware of the differences in cultural schemata of thestudents and those presupposed by the text. For translators and interpreters, this means
bridging the gap in cultural schemata for the target readers or audiences.
Thus the relevant knowledge we bring to bear on the task of understanding a text isessential. However, the lack of schemata for proper names may cause additional difficulties
in comprehending spoken messages. In a written text, the reader at least has orthographicalclues to a proper name because the initial letter of each word in the name is capitalized.
However, in spoken discourse there are no such cues and therefore the listener may even failto recognize it as a name. In such cases, the listener may mishear it as some common word(s)s/he knows (cf. Section 2.3). Under real-time pressure, this may be costly in terms ofprocessing effort even if the listener realizes his or her mistake seconds later. The problem is33

even more complicated for interpreters, who have to recode the name in the target language.
Even when simple transliteration is required, a lack of schemata may affect their capacity toretain the name in their short-term memory (Rumelhart 1980). In the absence oforthographical clues such as spelling, they may also run the risk of mispronouncing thename (Quini 1993), or worse, fail to realize that there is a set conventional translation for thename in the target language.
3. 1 Two types of knowledge regarding proper names
I would like to draw upon Bachman and Palmer's (1996) model of language use inpointing out two aspects of knowledge that need to be examined. In this model, theyrecognize topical knowledge as an essential component of language use. If we have sufficient
factual knowledge regarding the topic of a text, it facilitates top-down processing of the text.
In other words, we need to possess some degree of factual knowledge about the referent of aname when it is the topic of the text. Another component deemed essential in this model issociolinguistic knowledge. Bachman (1990) specifically includes in this domain theknowledge of cultural references and the figurative use of language. The reader/listenerneeds this type of knowledge to make sense of allusions to culture-specific names.
To illustrate, let us compare the following pair of sentences with a similar pragmatic
meaning. The first sentence includes the common noun hermit, whereas the second sentence
replaces it with the name Greta Garbo:(11)(a) Jacqueline Kennedy was like a hermit.
(b) Jacqueline Kennedy was like Greta Garbo.

Allerton (1987) points out that "whereas common nouns seem to have a lexical meaning orsense, through which we can identify previously unfamiliar specimens, proper nouns serve
principally to label or identify individuals". Thus The Random House Unabridged Dictionary,
Second Edition, defines the word hermit as "any person living in seclusion; recluse", whileproviding the following information for the name Greta Garbo: "1905-90, U. S. film actress,born in Sweden". This description does not help listeners or readers to make sense of thesentence. What they need to know is the type of information included in the following
description:a US film actress, born in Sweden, who suddenly stopped making films in 1941 when she
was still extremely popular, and became a RECLUSE (=someone who lives on their own
and does not want to see other people). She was known for her beauty and for saying 'I
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want to be alone'. Her films include Queen Christina (1933), Anna Karenina (1935), andCamille (1936). (Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture, Second Edition)
This information helps the reader make necessary connections to make sense of the allusion
in Sentence (b). However, this type of real world knowledge is usually not included inlanguage dictionaries. Some dictionaries enter adjectives derived from proper names but not
the names themselves (Urdang 1996). This situation can cause learners/translators greatinconvenience and frustration. The problem derives from the fact that they are not exposed
to culture-specific proper names first-hand. Therefore, they have no schemata associatedwith the names.
3. 2 The nature of an essential schema
The question which arises here is: How can one possibly acquire extensive schemata on
culture specific names. Brumfit (1984: 29) explains the extensive nature of our associations asfollows:
There is no limit to the possible range of extensions, associations and therefore meanings
that may develop for any lexical item, because, as human beings, we possess the capacity
to form associative ties between concepts, and to persuade each other of the value of such
associations, so that they become conventionalized for particular groups.
Hirsch (1987: 127), however, makes some interesting observations. He states that "the natureof this world as it exists in the minds of literate adults is typically elementary andincomplete", noting that the associations they share are "extensive but limited". For instancehe points out that "literate people know who Falstaff is, that he is fat, likes to eat and drink,
but they can't reliably name the Shakespeare plays in which he appears" and that about
canaries they share "just a few associations such as yellow, sing, kept in cages, but not muchmore". Hirsch (1987: 143) also states that "only a few hundred pages of information standbetween the literate and the illiterate". This raises an interesting question: Can we learn theinformation just like we learn new meanings of a word?
Another factor we need to consider is the speed of calling up necessary associations.
Hirsch (1987: 59) notes that "the primary associations must be available to us in milliseconds".
If we learn culture-specifc names with their primary traits and associations, will that
information be retrieved quickly enough to be of practical use in communication? Thus, aschema dictates both declarative knowledge and procedural skills. It may be useful here to
use the 'maturity' metaphor to describe a schema. If the learner has learned relevant35information but cannot deploy it quickly enough, then the learner's schema may be describedas 'in the embryonic stage' or 'not in the operational stage'.
3. 3 The range of names that the learner and the translator/interpreter need to know
In terms of what a literate person needs to know, Hirsch (1987: 143) states:
Each of us shares an immense amount of information with small circles of intimates andcospecialists, and the smaller the circle, the greater the amount shared. But what we sharewith the very large circle of literate persons throughout the nation cannot be huge.
On this assumption, Hirsch (1993) compiled a dictionary titled The Dictionary of Cultural
Literacy, Second Edition. Critically, however, the dictionary does not enter names and eventsin the fields of sports and entertainment because they are not of lasting significance. This
calls into question the adequacy of using the dictionary as the yardstick for the judgment ofwhat names the learner/translator needs to know (Mizuno/BS interpreters group 1998).
Learners at any proficiency level talk about sports and entertainment. It is obvious thatnames in these fields abound in the media.
However, the dictionary may potentially serve as more than just a reference book. We
may, for instance, consider the possibility of memorizing the information provided in the
dictionary. Hirsch (1987: 130), in fact, states that "school can play a central role in conveying
shared information". However, one might ask: Can the learner bear the monotony of such atask?; What about the quality of the learner's schemata thus developed? There may well be aqualitative difference between such schemata and the native speakers' schemata developed
as a result of first-hand exposure to the referents. For instance, in Example (11), the use of arecluse for Greta Garbo may sacrifice some subtle meaning. The name Greta Garbo carries
with it further, albeit less significant, information as to what type of recluse she was.
Even more fundamental questions may be asked: Is the learner only interested in
American culture? If the learner is interested in another culture as well, does this mean thats/he has to memorize about twice as many items? Generally, the names we encounter may
be classified into the following groups (cf. Mizuno/BS interpreters group 1998):
Group 1: Names known in limited discourse communities
e.g. Teenage Dream (the name of a song), Woodridge Road, Mr. so and soGroup 2: Names known within the culture of one nation
e.g. Mister Rogers, Capitol Hill, Geritol
Group 3: Names known across culturese.g. the Earth, Beethoven, Australia
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Names in Group 1 are known within small groups of people or intimate circles. They
need to be addressed only when we anticipate reading/listening to materials related to them.
Names in Group 3 are not likely to cause much difficulty because we already know muchabout them. The names that are probably the most problematic are those in Group 2. They
are not part of our prior experience and therefore we do not possess any schemata associatedwith them (Carrell & Eisterhold 1983, Carrell 1988). However, the names are familiar tonative speakers and they occur abundantly in conversations and in the media. It should be
noted here that the boundaries between the three groups are not clear-cut, and the status of
any name can fluctuate with time.
In terms of the range of names that translators/interpreters and L2 learners need to know,
learners may target the discourse communities and cultures they are interested in. On theother hand, translators/interpreters do not have this choice. They must be ready for all thenames they encounter. This, however, does not mean that they need to know all kinds ofculture-specific names. Strategies to deal with unfamiliar names may be even more
important (See Section 5).
4. The results of a preliminary survey
The results of a small survey (1994, unpublished study) asking 14 native speakers ofEnglish about 24 proper names demonstrated the culture-specific nature of proper names.
The names in the questionnaire were chosen from my data consisting of proper names
actually encountered in the media. The participants included 5 British and 5 Americans who
had lived in their respective countries most of their lives. The four other respondents had
lived in more than one country for an extended period of time. Of the 24 items in thequestionnaire, there were 5 names that all the British participants knew. However, four of the
5 Americans knew none of the names.
Of the 24 items in the questionnaire, there were 13 names that all the Americans knew.
Interestingly, however, Hirsch's (1993) dictionary enters only two of them. Similarly, of 6
items that four of the Americans knew, only two names are listed in the dictionary. Hirsch
states that any item must have lasting significance. Hirsch (1993: x) "arbitrarily chose amemory span of fifteen years" as the basis for that judgment. However, the names not foundin the dictionary actually occur in the media, however ephemeral they may be. The results ofthe survey supports Mizuno's (BS interpreters group 1998) observation that cultural
knowledge required for broadcast interpreters is diverse and far more extensive than those
items covered in Hirsch (1993). A question also arises as to whether a distinction is necessary
between cultural literacy and cultural knowledge as we deal with proper names in the
media.
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5. Strategies relevant to translators/interpreters and language learners
Pragmatic, extralinguistic knowledge involving proper names is a formidable issue forboth translators/interpreters and learners. The results of the survey just mentioned suggestthat translators/interpreters who deal with more than one culture may indeed need to know
more than native speakers. In this respect, they are in a different position from learners who
may need to pursue only knowledge in the areas they are interested in.
It is beyond the scope of this paper to examine specific strategies to deal with unfamiliarnames. However, I would like to suggest that we need to distinguish two types of strategies:
decoding strategies and encoding strategies.
5. 1 Decoding strategies
The decoding strategies refer to both recognizing a proper name and gaining knowledge
about the referent. They may be further classified into proactive (preemptive) and reactive
strategies. Proactive strategies are possible if one can anticipate the topic of the text inadvance. For instance, based on the topic, one can research the names that one may
encounter. Conference interpreters are usually informed of the topic of the conference inadvance and therefore need to do research on that topic. This usually includes names of people,
organizations, etc.
Reactive strategies are employed when one has actually encountered an unfamiliar name.
They include, for example, guessing from the context and the use of dictionaries and theInternet. For learners of English, reactive strategies may be more important than proactive
strategies. On the other hand, in the case of simultaneous interpreting, the resources may beconsiderably limited because of time constraints.
5. 2 Encoding strategies
Encoding strategies uniquely concern translators/interpreters, whose work it is totransfer messages into a target language. When dealing with proper names, the generalprinciples of effectiveness and efficiency proposed by Hatim and Mason (1990, for a brief
discussion, see Hanaoka 2000) need to be observed. Hatim (2001: 103-104) states:
Within Relevance Theory, whether to opt for translation or transliteration is a matter tobe settled in the light of processing factors such as 'cost and benefit' associated with theprinciple of 'relevance': Is it rewarding for the reader to learn that a particular namecarries given connotations?
Specifically, at least the following three factors need to be considered.
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(1) The culture-specificity of the name
Translators/Interpreters need to decide how familiar the name may be to thereader/listener. Their assessment of the readers/listeners' knowledge state may be a crucial
factor in their choice of translation strategies. In the classification of names suggested in
Section 3. 3, names in Group 2 are the most problematic. It may at times be difficult to decide
how much cultural knowledge the target audience may already possess. The name C-SPAN
in the following excerpt illustrates the point:(12)
MARGARET WARNER: As I sit in my office trying to -- watching it on C-SPAN, it's hardto understand what's in a lot of these amendments, and I particularly wanted to knowwhether the president's proposals, the ones that he made yesterday, for instance creating
this new task force, doubling the penalties for wire fraud and mail fraud, have thosepassed?
SEN. TOM DASCHLE: They have passed. That's correct. They passed this afternoon.
They were part of the so-called Leahy Amendment. The Leahy Amendment has about sevenor eight provisions, and the president's proposals included three of those sevenprovisions. So we passed those. We passed the Leahy Amendment, which sets up a new
securities fraud law that now allows the Justice Department and the SEC to clearly define
what is right and what is wrong with regard to securities law and not have to use themail fraud laws that we've had in years past. So this will also clarify just how theenforcement mechanism can be used in the future. (The PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,
July 10, 2002)
The knowledge of the name C-SPAN is presupposed in the discourse, but it is questionable
whether the average Japanese viewer is familiar with the name. With technological advancessuch as the advent of communication satellites, however, it is possible that some names thatwere virtually unknown a year ago may be quite common now.
(2) Topical knowledge/figurative knowledge
I suggested in Section 3.1 that the knowledge of names involves two types of knowledge,
i.e. topical and figurative knowledge. Strategies for an unfamiliar name that requires topicalknowledge include addition or explication of extratextual factual information. For instance,
in Example (3), Bush "41" was rendered in the Japanese edition as Chichioya no George Bush.
On the other hand, the figurative use of a name as in Examples (1) and (4) may require theexplicitation of the figurative meaning (for a discussion of metaphor translation, see Hanaoka
2001).
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(3) Relationship to macro/micro-structure
If the referent of a name is the topic of a discourse and thus is part of the macro-structureof the discourse, then the name should be deemed essential. For instance, the Leahy
Amendment in the above excerpt is the topic of the discourse and therefore an important
lexical item.

Compared with the Leahy Amendment , C-SPAN occurs lower in the text

structure and therefore can be regarded as less essential and therefore may be more
susceptible to simplification strategies.
6. Concluding remarks
This

paper

has

addressed

theproblems

thatproper

names

pose

for

translators/interpreters and L2 learners. First, the examination of proper names as they
appear in the media demonstrates their grammatical flexibility and morphological creativity.
Secondly, from a schematic viewpoint, I argued that we need to address two types ofknowledge regarding proper names, i.e. topical knowledge and figurative knowledge. While
the former refers to factual knowledge which provides the reader with contextual clues, thelatter helps the reader access the appropriate associative meaning of a particular use of aname. I also pointed out that the schemata need to be 'mature' so that the relevant
associations can be retrieved quickly enough to meet the demands of real-timecommunication. With regard to the range of names that translators/interpreters and L2
learners need to know, learners can target the discourse communities and cultures according
to their interests. However, translators/interpreters do not have this choice. They must be
ready for all the names that they encounter in any text. The results of a small survey confirm
the culture-specificity of proper names and suggest that the cultural knowledge required fortranslators/interpreters is diverse and far more extensive than those items covered in Hirsch(1993).
I also classified the general types of strategies that are relevant to translators/interpretersand L2 learners. While both translators/interpreters and L2 learners need to address
decoding strategies, encoding strategies uniquely concern translators/interpreters, who needto encode names in a target language. I pointed out three specific factors involved in
encoding strategies: the culture-specificity of a name, the figurative/non-figurative use, andthe relationship of the name to the macro/ micro-structure of the text. There are some
important pedagogical implications for L2 learners. For instance, proactive strategies such as
doing research on an anticipated theme are typically used by interpreters. These are effective
strategies that L2 learners can use to build their vocabularies including the knowledge ofproper names. They may also learn from the reactive strategies that translators/interpreters
employ upon encountering unfamiliar names. Although encoding strategies do not concern
40

L2 learners directly, the underlying principles may also have important implications for thecomprehension strategies of L2 learners. Thus, future research should explore thepedagogical applications for L2 learners of both the decoding and encoding strategies usedby interpreters and translators.

著者紹介：花岡修（HANAOKA Osamu）

東京都立航空工業高等専門学校助教授。英語教育の観点から通訳、翻訳を研究している。E-mail: <hanaoka@k8.dion.ne.jp>

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