bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Dyirbal Ergativity and Embedding
Authors: Nedergaard Thomsen Ole
Published: January 2011

The present paper* deals with the important phenomena ergativity and embedding in the aboriginal Australian language Dyirbal.
Embedding and ergativity are intimately connected in the syntax of Dyirbal. This motivates the composite theme of my paper.
Ergativity, Dyirbal, and embedding are intensively discussed in current functionally oriented syntactic typology. However, despite the fact that these topics have been investigated in depth, the final integrative understanding seems to be still awaiting. This is so mainly because the original analyses of the phenomena in question have incurred the most diverse reinterpretations and even misrepresentations in mainstream theoretical discussions. Many theoreticians have either distorted facts and evidence so as to make these "data" fit their theories, or they have made superficial studies in which important details — which could not be accommodated in their theories — have been neglected. Functional Grammar (cf. Dik 1989; Siewierska 1991), though claiming typological adequacy, is nevertheless no better in this regard: without any evidence for the postulated scenario, Dyirbal ergativity is maintained to have developed out of the passive voice of a hypothesized earlier accusative stage of the language. An accusative analysis of the historical origin is indeed possible, but the evidence points in another direction than that speculated in Functional Grammar. The reconstruction of Dyirbal ergativity is one of the major points of this paper.
The present understanding of the theme Dyirbal ergativity and embedding is presented, not only as valuable in itself, but also as a necessary revision of Functional Grammar in particular, as well as a contribution to the functionalistic paradigm in general.
The outline of the presentation is:
1. introduction — presentation of the theme;
2. theoretical background, exemplification, and historical hyotheses concerning the theme;
3. elaboration on the theme;
4. the topic Dyirbal embedding in particular;
5. theoretical implications of the present understanding of the theme;
6. conclusion — moral;
7. appendices.
Mimetic Parallels in Korean and Japanese
Authors: Garrigues Stephen L.
Published: January 2011

Korean and Japanese are both known for their extensive utilization of mimetic adverbs. A comparative examination reveals the systematic nature of sound symbolism in the two languages and the striking parallels in their phonology and morphology. Similar mechanisms of symbolic sound alternation, suffixation and reduplication are utilized in both languages to extend the expressive range of mimetic words. The utilization of dark-bright vowel pairs in Korean mimesis is well known, and a comparison between the two languages shows that Japanese also makes use of similar patterns of mimetic volume pairs. Not only does a comparative approach help illuminate the full systematic nature of sound symbolism in each language, but it may also help further our understanding of the wider relationship between the two languages.
The Semantic Structure of Causative Constructions
Authors: van Voorst Jan
Published: January 2011

This paper shows that an adequate semantic analysis of causative transitive constructions with verbs like break, turn and roll has to take into account two phenomena: 1) semantic specification, and 2) change of state or accomplishment. These two phenomena are not at all specific to this type of transitive construction and, as a matter of fact, causation is nothing more than the co-occurrence of an unspecified subject and a change of state. The process leading up to this change of state is not controlled by the initiator of the event. Interestingly, absence of control occurs precisely when the subject is unspecified.
Thematic Relations and the Semantic Representation of Verbs Expressing Change
Authors: Verkuyl Henk J.
Published: January 2011

The main purpose of this paper is to show that the system of thematic relations used in transformational (lexical) semantics to organize the semantic representation, is of great importance to both linguists and psycholinguists. The thematic analysis, developed by Gruber and recently elaborated by Jackendoff, amounts to claiming that with every verb expressing change a thematic kernel pattern can-be associated consisting of the semantic functions Theme, Source, Goal and Path. The Theme "travels" from a certain Source-position to a Goal-position, moving along a Path. It is proposed here that the semantic functions Theme, Source and Goal are analyzed in terms of a CHANGE-predication, consisting of a two-place predicate CHANGE and two arguments, namely a Source-proposition and a Goal-proposition. Both propositions are structurally similar AT-predications, where AT is taken as a two-place predicate whose first argument pertains to the Theme. The second argument \ of AT in both Source-and Goal-proposition consists of an ordered pair of times and spatial positions. The notion 'Path of a movement expressed by a verb' is taken as a function from temporal intervals to spatial positions. The notion 'Path of the Theme' is ultimately defined in terms of the above-mentioned AT-predication. On the basis of the notions developed with respect to the thematic kernel pattern, it is possible to exactly characterize information concerning the internal structure of the Path of a Theme, concerning repetition of movements and finally information concerning the medium. H. Clark's notion of P-Space is modified in such a way that more abstract kinds of movement can be taken into account.
Subjacency and Japanese Grammar
Authors: Haig John H.
Published: January 2011

It has been claimed by Hasegawa, Yoshimura, Nishigauchi, Kikuchi, Saito and Watanabe, among others, that Japanese observes subjacency in relative clause formation, question formation, topicalization, comparative deletion (all non-overt operator movements), PP-topicalization, and scrambling (overt movements). In this paper I present counterexamples to each of these claims and argue that an aboutness condition on topic-comment and focus-comment constructions not only better explains the data but also explains the fact that subjects are usually easier to relativize than non-subjects, the fact that NP-topicalization is more free than PP-topicalization and the fact that there is pressure for a "list" interpretation in multiple wh-questions.
Spoken Narrative and Preferred Clause Structure
Authors: Sutherland-Smith Wendy
Published: January 2011

This study examines the spontaneous oral narrative of three native speakers of Hebrew for overall clause structure in terms of number and type of arguments per clause, following DuBois' (1985) theory of Preferred Argument Structure. The results indicate that there exists a preferred shape for narrative clauses in Hebrew and that it strongly parallels that which has been found in the ergative Mayan language, Sacapultec, upon which Du Bois' study is based. As Hebrew is a nominative-accusative language, the results point to the universality of pragmatic-cognitive factors and information flow in discourse.
Words, Phrases, Pauses and Boundaries
Authors: Aikhenvald Alexandra Y.
Published: January 2011

This paper discusses the phonological properties of words and phrases in two Northern Arawak languages of the Upper Rio Negro, Brazil. These features are h-prosody, vowel harmony triggered by the glottal fricative h, vowel nasalization and vowel diphthongization. A feature that is used to mark a word in one language may mark a phrase in the other. There is a regular interdependence between morphemes and syllables.
The most unusual characteristic of the languages is the existence of pausal forms which mark phrase-final and utterance-final boundaries. The phonological character of pause marking devices, viewed cross-linguistically, contradicts a wide-spread assumption about the entirely phonetic realization of pauses.
The Relevance of Factivity to Complementizer Choice in Japanese
Authors: Suzuki Satoko
Published: January 2011

This article re-examines the correlation between factivity and complementizer choice in Japanese. Kuno (1973) argues that the concept of factivity proposed by Kiparsky and Kiparsky (1971) to analyze the choice of complement types in English is a determining factor in complementizer choice in Japanese. Observation of data collected for this study indicates that there are numerous instances that cannot be accounted for using the concept of factivity. Complementizer choice in Japanese is determined, not by factivity of the predicate, but by the degree of internalization of the information/proposition expressed in the complement.
Patient Primacy in Balinese
Authors: Artawa Ketut , Blake Barry J.
Published: January 2011

In Balinese, as in many Austronesian languages of Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan, a transitive verb may appear either in a morphologically unmarked construction in which the Patient is identified with the sole argument of a one-place predicate and is therefore arguably the subject or with a nasal-prefixed verb in a construction where the Agent is the subject. This raises the question of whether the language is ergative, accusative or neither. We argue that it could be considered ergative on the grounds that the Patient is identified with the sole argument of a one-place predicate in the unmarked transitive construction, and that certainly the Patient-subject construction is basic.
Evidentiality and Epistemic Modality in Lega
Authors: Botne Robert
Published: January 2011

Although encoding of evidential distinctions has been attested in most language areas of the world, relatively little has been written about evidentiality in sub-Saharan African languages. This paper describes the situation in Lega, a Bantu language spoken in eastern Zaire. The study considers Lega data in light of several models of evidentiality and suggests that their may be two organizational principles operating in different languages: one based on source of information, the other on mode of knowing.
On Identifying an Evasive Gram
Authors: Kuteva Tania
Published: January 2011

On the basis of data from both genetically and geographically remote languages the present paper builds a case for the existence of ACTION NARROWLY AVERTED (ANA) as a cross-linguistically identifiable gram involving the meaning was on the verge of V-ing but did not V.
The paper proposes the methodology of recent grammaticalization theory as a theoretical tool which enables us to describe the specificities of linguistic behavior (nuances of meaning, contextual distribution, etc.) of ANA and related grams in terms of the particular grammaticalization path along which they may develop.
The present treatment challenges structuralist-oriented approaches which tacitly assume that in juxtaposing grammatical structures from different languages we face only two situations: either full identity or idiosyncrasy.
Prosody and Segmental Effect Some Paths of Evolution for Word Stress
Authors: Bybee Joan L. , Chakraborti Paromita , Jung Dagmar , Scheibman Joanne
Published: January 2011

This study reports on a significant negative association found in a cross-linguistic sample between the degree of predictability of word stress from a word boundary and the extent to which stress has segmental effects. In other words, in a given language the less predictable stress is from the word boundary, the more likely that the language will have vowel reduction in unstressed syllables, vowel lengthening in stressed syllables, and consonantal changes restricted to stressed or unstressed syllables. These findings are interpreted as part of a major diachronic tendency for stressed and unstressed syllables to become more differentiated in terms of duration as a cumulative effect of phonetic change, which in turn leads to the deletion of unstressed syllables, which renders stress unpredictable in some cases. A model of phonological representation that best accounts for the unidirectionality of this strong tendency is one in which stress, even while it is still predictable, is considered an inherent part of the word, and phonetic changes have a permanent and cumulative effect on lexical representation.
A Study of Imperative Usage in Biblical Hebrew and English
Authors: Myhill John
Published: January 2011

This paper reports the results of a detailed text-based study of the use of Imperative constructions in Biblical Hebrew and English, and shows that the two languages differ significantly in this regard. The use of the English Imperative in the database is conditioned largely by social and interactive factors, e.g. the relationship between the speaker and the listener, their relative social status, the sensitivity of the action of giving the command, the setting of the interaction, who will benefit from the action, etc.; on the other hand, the usage of the Imperative in the Hebrew database is mainly determined by semantic and structural factors, e.g. the point in time when the commanded action is to take place, the linguistic form of the preceding clause, whether the command is the first in a conversation, etc. The clear differences here show that there cannot be any uniform explanation about why Imperatives in general are used, as have been proposed in speech act theory (e.g. Searle 1975); on the other hand, these differences are sufficiently complex that they also cannot be accounted for with simple statements regarding cultural differences (e.g. Blum-Kulka 1991). The results of this study suggest that theories about speech acts should be based not upon philosophical speculations using data from a single language, or upon limited linguistic and cultural data carefully selected to support a particular theory, but upon extensive, detailed, and exhaustive linguistic analysis which will clearly establish the descriptive facts of speech act usage in a variety of languages.
The Suffix -Kan in Oroqen
Authors: Whaley Lindsay J. , Li Fengxiang
Published: January 2011

The Tungusic language Oroqen has a number of qualitative suffixes used to express intensification, augmentation, approximation, diminution, and the like. Many of these suffixes have been previously identified, though the descriptions of their meanings are incomplete and are often in conflict. In this paper, we provide an overview of these suffixes which includes a more thorough description of their meaning and use. We then examine one of the suffixes, -Jean, in more detail. The suffix has been identified both as a diminutive and as an intensifier. We offer a model of the semantic range of -kan (based on Jurafsky 1996) which accounts for the apparent conflict in its meanings.
Possible Origins of Infixation in Khmer
Authors: Haiman John
Published: January 2011

The existence of infixation in Austroasiatic has always been treated as a given: one of such antiquity that it has been proposed as a possible index of genetic affiliation with Austronesian. Nor does the comparative method allow the reconstruction of a typologically more plausible set of prefixes from which the attested infixes could have been derived via metathesis.
Yet a plausible mechanism for the infixation process can be suggested on the basis of internal reconstruction, given the following facts about Khmer:
1. A canonical iambic word structure;
2. An ongoing process of initial syllable erosion whose most consistent effect is the simplification and reduction of the rhyme of the anacrusic syllable.
Both facts, although currently attested, are also of great antiquity in Austroasiatic. In Viet-Muong, the process of erosion, unchecked, led to a lexicon of monosyllabic roots. In (Mon-)Khmer, erosion created a perceived gap in the structure of the word. Infixation plugs that gap.
"Yes, I Agree"
Authors: Humberstone Lloyd
Published: January 2011

The present study of yes/no questions explores what it might be about them that has encouraged many to think of an affirmative answer as a form of agreement with the question. It is easy to see how such a view may be taken of questions which are, by their very form, biased in favour of such an answer, though less so in the case of neutral questions. Even here, however, something may be said in defence of the view, if we consider semantic theories associating with a question a particular proposition, which, though unasserted by the asker, is still expressed and 'on the table' to be agreed to by the answerer.
Enter and Exit in Kilivila
Authors: Senft Gunter
Published: January 2011

Based on film animation scenes and on an elicitation-task devised by members of the Cognitive Anthropology Research Group I elicited data on how the concepts ENTER and EXIT are expressed in Kilivila, the Austronesian language of the Trobriand Islanders. The paper presents the methodology used for data elicitation and the results for Kilivila. Kilivila can express ENTER and EXIT concepts either with specific lexicalized verbal expressions, or with constructions that use the motion verbs 'come' and/or 'go' together with a locative like 'in, into' or 'out, outside' (these constructions can be compared to Talmy's "verb+satellite constructions"), or with serial verb constructions that minutely describe the ENTER/EXIT actions observed. Both the form and the semantics of these constructions are discussed.
Variation and Grammaticization in Progressives Spanish -NDO Constructions
Authors: Torres Cacoullos Rena
Published: January 2011

This paper presents an account of the variation in Spanish Progressive constructions from the perspective of grammaticization. Retention of features of meaning from the source constructions is reflected in distribution constraints on the different auxiliaries, which, nevertheless, are converging toward continuous meaning. The evidence supports the hypothesis that progressives originate as locative or movement constructions and that the process by which they evolve is semantic generalization (as opposed to metaphor or pragmatic strengthening). An important mechanism in this grammaticization process is frequency of occurrence in certain contexts, in support of the view that frequent repetition plays a role in semantic change (Bybee and Thomspon 1997; Haiman 1994).
Serial Constructions and Verb Compounding Evidence from Tariana (North Arawak)
Authors: Aikhenvald Alexandra Y.
Published: January 2011

Tariana, a North Arawak language from northwest Amazonia, has a complex system of serial verbs and a certain amount of verb compounding. Serial verbs in Tariana provide important evidence in favour of the existence of cross-linguistically valid defining properties of serial verbs. Verb serialisation and verb compounding are independent grammatical processes, each with a grammaticalisation path of its own, and with distinct functions. Their coexistence in one language is consistent with the principle of iconic motivation: the closer the elements are in surface structure, the more they are grammaticalised or lexicalised.
Anti-Logophoricity and Indirect Mode in Mabaan
Authors: Andersen Torben
Published: January 2011

In Mabaan, a Western Nilotic language, indirect speech is characterised by the following three features. Firstly, verbs are inflected in a special way, having an indirect mode as opposed to the direct mode of direct speech. Secondly, in pronominal morphemes a distinction is made between forms that refer to a third person reported speaker (third person forms) and forms which have other third person referents (fourth person forms), a distinction which is coextensive with the use of the indirect mode. Thirdly, third person pronominal forms are identical to the third person pronominal forms used in direct speech, while fourth person pronominal forms are different and, thus, anti-logophoric. Taken together, these features make Mabaan typologically unusual.
What are S, A, and O?
Authors: Mithun Marianne , Chafe Wallace
Published: January 2011

The letters S, A, and O have been used heuristically for distinguishing ergative-absolutive languages from nominative-accusative languages. This schema, however, has serious disadvantages for the understanding of individual grammars and even more for broad typological work, because it obscures the incommensurable ways in which participants may be related to events or states. Three of these ways are described here and their incommensurability demonstrated. One is the starting point function, reflected in grammatical subjects; another consists of the semantic roles that are reflected in grammaticized agent-patient marking; the third is immediacy of involvement, reflected in absolutive marking. These relations may be cognitively available to speakers of all languages, and are often grammaticized in different parts of the grammar of a single language. Now that more is known about ways in which languages vary, it is time to sharpen our tools so that we may move on to understanding the forces that shape the grammatical structures we find.
The Tag as a Parenthetical
Authors: Knowles John
Published: January 2011

The marked syntactic similarities of English Tags and Parentheticals suggest that Tags themselves are a type of parenthetical. Based on this assumption a solution is proposed in which the properties of Tag form are accounted for in terms of certain non-transformational constraints required independently for parentheticals.
Grammatical Relations in Ergative Languages
Authors: Van Valin Jr. Robert D.
Published: January 2011

Two of the most important issues in the discussion of ergativity concern the pattern of syntactic organization and notion of subject in ergative languages. A number of scholars have claimed that most morphologically ergative languages are in fact syntactically accusative. Data from four ergative languages (Archi, Enga, Jacaltec and Dyirbal) are examined with regard to these two questions. It is found that each of these languages differs from the others both in syntactic organization and notion of subject, and these facts call into question recent claims about the syntax of ergative languages.
On Some Functional Constraints on Cliticization in Italian
Authors: Kuno Susumu , Tonfoni Graziella
Published: January 2011

Cliticization in Italian has been relatively well studied from a syntactic point of view, but it has not been examined at all from a functional standpoint. This paper addresses itself to the task of identifying various discourse constraints on the process. First, we propose that a focus constituent in a sentence cannot be cliticized even if its antecedent is clearly identifiable from the preceding context. More interestingly, we show that a nonfocus constituent that is recoverable from context must be reduced either by cliticization or deletion, and cannot remain in full-fledged NP form or in nonclitic pronominal form. Next, we examine cliticization of optional locatives, and hypothesize that they can be cliticized only when they are thematic and (weakly) contrastive, and that they must be deleted otherwise. We then proceed to examine the condition for cliticization of optional locatives in sentences that contain strictly sub-categorized locative or dative NPs. Lastly, we observe that while fronted locatives either may or may not leave clitic pronouns, thematic locatives, which we assume to have originated in sentence-initial position, cannot. We then demonstrate that data involving the interaction of this fact with forward nonclitic pronominalization bears out predictions that ensue from our functional analysis of cliticization.
Genre Analysis and the Translator
Authors: James Carl
Published: January 2011

In this paper I shall attempt three tasks. First, to give a brief account of the recent history of genre studies, leading to a definition of the notion. Secondly, to contextualise the notion of genre, that is, I shall see what it has in common with, or adds to, other related notions current in Discourse Analysis. Finally, I hope to show how genre study might be integrated into programmes of translator training.
The Pivotal Status of the Translator’s Habitus
Authors: Simeoni Daniel
Published: January 2011

The paper explores the possibility of nudging theory away from the properties of systemic constructs towards the main focus of translation norms, i.e., the translator. The current model of DTS could be reframed, or 'translated' in a topological sense, by giving it a slightly different slant on the assumption of a translating habitus understood as: (culturally) pre-structured and structuring agent mediating cultural artefacts in the course of transfer. A discussion of the translator's endorsement of subservience is included, followed by a brief genealogy of the concept of habitus. A prospectus for future research in product analysis and the acquisition of translatorial competence is also sketched out.
Choice Factors in Translation
Authors: Kashkin Vyacheslav B.
Published: January 2011

In this article, grammatical forms in context are viewed as processual patterns of choice activity. A hierarchy of choice factors is presented, using the example of the present perfect forms in parallel translations from Russian into several languages. To ensure adequacy of comparison, the notions of grammatical contextual complex and universal grammatical integral are introduced and used as the required tertium comparationis. Particular attention is devoted to the interplay of universal and language-specific features in processes of grammatical choice in translation.
Oedipus und die Folgen
Authors: Resch Renate
Published: January 2011

Metaphorischer Sprachgebrauch ist auch im wissenschaftlichen Diskurs von Bedeutung. Als erkenntnissteuernde Denkmittel wirken Metaphern theorienbildend und sogar theorienkonstitutiv. Ein feministisch-kritischer Blick auf die Zentralmetapher der Translationswissenschaft, die "Treue" zum Original entlarvt patriarchalische Denkstrukturen, die nicht nur längst überholt geglaubte gesellschaftspolitische Tendenzen spiegeln, sondern auch den theoretischen Rahmenfür ein Verständnis von Übersetzen als Reproduzieren bestimmen. Um dieser von seiten der Übersetzungswissenschaft selbst auf metaphorischer Ebene propagierten Geringschätzung des Übersetzens als nur reproduzierender Tätigkeit entgegenzuwirken, sollte eine moderne Translatologie Übersetzen als Textproduktion im theoretischen Rahmen "Intertextualität" beschreiben.
Conceptual Work and the "Translation" Concept1
Authors: Halverson Sandra L.
Published: January 2011

The concept of "translation" is required to carry a considerable load at several levels of inquiry. It functions as a causal element in sociological theories, and as a methodological tool, when used extensionally. Most importantly, it is the concept which in some way structures the field which we take as our object of inquiry. As such, it has particular functions in serving as a basis for generalizations and as a means of determining category membership. In response to what are perceived as difficulties in some of these areas, some scholars have hinted that the concept of "translation" might be fruitfully viewed as a prototype category. In this paper, I review the philosophical and empirical arguments which support such a move, and outline some of the programmatic consequences. The focus is on the resolution of current conceptual problems, and on the theoretical and metatheoretical implications.
Interdisciplinarity in Translation Studies
Authors: Wilss Wolfram
Published: January 2011

This article is aimed at clarifying the concept of interdisciplinarity in Translation Studies (TS). It concentrates on three aspects of possible interdisciplinary TS research: cultural studies, psychological issues, and technological aspects (machine translation). Depending on the kind of information-processing devices which translators have, and the amount of intellectual abilities which a specific translation task requires, there will emerge a relatively realistic picture of what translational information-processing is like and which type of interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary research would secure efficient translator performance.
Mock-Epic as a Byproduct of the Norm of Elevated Language
Authors: Weissbrod Rachel
Published: January 2011

Beginning in the late nineteenth century, Hebrew underwent a process of revival. Despite the growing stratification of the language, literary translations into Hebrew were governed by a norm which dictated the use of an elevated style rooted in ancient Hebrew texts. This norm persisted at least until the 1960s. Motivated by the Hebrew tradition of employing the elevated style to produce the mock-epic, translators created mock-epic works independently of the source texts. This article describes the creation of the mock-epic in canonized and non canonized adult and children's literature, focusing on the Hebrew versions of Henry Fielding's Joseph Andrews, Damon Runyon's Guys and Dolls, Peter O'Donnell's Modesty Blaise and A.A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner.
Typological Aspects of Translating Literary Japanese into German, I
Authors: Wienold Götz
Published: January 2011

Typological distance between languages gives rise to a huge amount of translation problems. The present article takes up 20th century Japanese novels and their translations into German. As areas of typological differences, movement verbs and causatives in describing human bodily reactions have been selected. Japanese lexicalizes the path a movement takes in a monomorphemic verbal base, whereas German lexicalizes the manner of movement. It is shown that this typological difference creates a tendency to substitute German manner for Japanese path verbs. As a morphological example a specific use of causatives is discussed. In descriptions of bodily reactions Japanese causatives tend to be ambiguous as to an intentional or unintentional interpretation. German, having few morphological causatives and no similar ambiguous expression, tends to level the ambiguities towards an objective description. In a second installment syntax and narrative technique will be considered.
Surely There Must Exist a Polish Equivalent
Authors: Tabakowska Elżbieta
Published: January 2011

The paper is a contribution to the ongoing discussion on the requirements that dictionaries should meet in order to satisfy the needs of language learners and translators. The shortcomings of some standard dictionaries are discussed in reference to one particular item: the modal qualifier surely and its Polish equivalents. The latter were compared with actual choices made by a group of advanced Polish learners of English, asked to translate five explanatory sentences taken from English—English dictionaries. Discrepancies between dictionary equivalents and translation replacements clearly suggest that apart from "prototypical" examples of usage, dictionary entries should also contain potential discourse functions of sample sentences.
Coincidence in Translation
Authors: de Beaugrande Robert
Published: January 2011

An important factor impeding the development of explicit theories of translation has been the centrality of coincidence. Skilled translating consists not of following rules or algorithms of equivalence, but of generating coincidences between the materials of the source language and those of the target language. Conventional aspirations of linguistic theory emphasize degrees of generality, uniformity and formality, which such an activity does not readily seem to fit. Also, language science and linguistics have consistently rated form over meaning and language system over communicative context, while translation is an activity in which meaning dominates over form, and context immediately controls and influences how the language system is used. Recent approaches to text and discourse are now striving to revise traditional theoretical aspirations in order to attain better models of language use, and may thus provide a basis for unifying theory with practice in translation.
Computer-Aided Translation
Authors: Neubert Albrecht
Published: January 2011

The paper addresses the problems involved in setting up a computer-aided expert system for human translators. It postulates four modules which function as an interactive reference guide in the framework of a translator's workstation: (1) a language component containing the syntactic and lexical correspondences between the SL- and TL-systems, (2) the >textual differential between the various types of SL- and TL-discourse, (3) the encyclopedic or knowledge base(s) underlying bi- or multilingual information transfer, and (4) a repertoire enabling the translator to word-process texts written in different languages.Emphasis is laid on the need for empirical research into the data culled from existing translations, parallel and background texts, diverse linguistic and encyclopedic as well as specialist reference works, and from practical experience of highly competent translators.
Scopos, Loyalty, and Translational Conventions
Authors: Nord Christiane
Published: January 2011

Within the framework of the functionalist or "scopos" theory, the (intended) scope or function of the target text is the most important criterion for the translator's decisions. However, this is a general theory of translation, which is not concerned with the culture-specific conventions valid in a particular culture. Since conventions determine what readers expect of a translation, the translator has the responsibility not to deceive the users of his translation by acting contrary to the conventions without telling them what he is doing, and why. This responsibility is what I will refer to asloyalty.Loyalty is a moral principle guiding the relationships between human beings.
A False Opposition in Translation Studies
Authors: Delabastita Dirk
Published: January 2011

After some preliminary notes on the fragmented state of Translation Studies, the author directs his attention to one of the seemingly irreconcilable oppositions within the discipline, namely, between "theoretical" and "historical" approaches to translation. On the basis of insights from modern epistemology it is claimed that the two are, in fact, complementary and that one should aim for a continuous interplay between them. Normative approaches fail to achieve this and prove to have little explanatory power when confronted with the historicalrealityof translation. Four discursive strategies are discussed whereby this anomaly is often camouflaged or explained away.
Two Traditions of Translating Early Irish Literature
Authors: Tymoczko Maria
Published: January 2011

In the translation of early Irish materials into English there are two translation traditions, a
scholarly
and a
literary
one, diverging markedly in their practices and norms. The effects of the Macpherson controversy, Irish nationalism, and the Irish language movement in defining and polarizing these translation traditions are explored. In historical poetics, analysis must allow for the ways in which historical circumstances may produce a translation system, internally differentiated itself, such that investigation of a part of the translation system will not necessarily be predictive or reflective of the whole.
On Constructing a Transfer Dictionary for Man and Machine
Authors: Laffling John
Published: January 2011

This article argues that, unlike conventional bilingual knowledge sources that are underpinned by the principle of filtering out a limited number of representative equivalents, transfer dictionaries that are derived from computer-assisted parallel text analysis can bring both the human and the mechanized translator a stage nearer the elusive ideal of text-insertable translation equivalents.
The Distinctive Nature of Interpreting Studies
Authors: Salevsky Heidemarie
Published: January 2011

In every sub-area of Translation Science (used as a hyperonym for Translating and Interpreting Studies) the formulation of a theory is a matter of concepts, structures and methodological problems. The author (1) provides a definition of interpreting, (2) structures Interpreting Studies (IS) according to general, special and particular theories for both theoretical and applied domains and (3) emphasizes the problem of the validity of experimental investigations as a major methodological issue in IS.
The Question of French Dubbing
Authors: Goris Olivier
Published: January 2011

In order to analyze how "international messages" such as films are appropriated by a specific target system, I studied the French dubbed versions of a number of films. This analysis revealed a set of norms which seem to be at work on various text levels in the dubbed translations: a linguistic standardization, which affects three types of language use, a naturalization strategy, in which visual synchrony plays an important role, and a strategy which aims in various ways at making the translation more explicit than the original. The presentation of this tentative set of norms proposes a first synthetic view of the policy concerning dubbing in France.
A Framework for Decision-Making in Translation
Authors: Wilss Wolfram
Published: January 2011

Decision-making in translation amounts to an information-processing concept that describes decision-making behaviour in terms of an interaction between the translator's cognitive system; his linguistic, referential, sociocultural and situational knowledge bases; the task specification; and the texttype-specific problem space. All four factors together enable the translator to build up an internal problem representation which, once constructed, will profoundly influence the translator's subsequent decision-making performance, taking account of probability ratings which are an important element in many translational decision-making settings.
Translating Literary Dialogue
Authors: Ben-Shahar Rina
Published: January 2011

The present paper focuses on literary dialogue as a text type highly susceptible to inadequate translation. It is claimed here that translators of literary dialogue are likely to reduce a linguistic-poetic-pragmatic source utterance into a linguistic or linguistic-poetic one. The paper discusses different causes for the difficulties of dialogue translation. Some are general, stemming from the nature of literary dialogue itself and/or general principles of translation, while others are specific to the Hebrew language, which will serve as a case in point.
Interpreting Research and the ‘Manipulation School’ of Translation Studies1
Authors: Schjoldager Anne
Published: January 2011

With a special view to applying it to interpreting research, this article examines, explains and puts into perspective what others have dubbed the 'Manipulation School'. This group of scholars see themselves as working within descriptive translation studies (DTS), as defined by James S Holmes, and their main methodological tool is a search for translational norms, first proposed by Gideon Toury. The article then looks at interpreting research—especially Daniel Gile 's work—and explores how the ideas of the 'Manipulation School ' relate to current research in this particular field.
Directionality in Translation Processes and Practices
Authors: Marmaridou A. Sophia S.
Published: January 2011

In this article an attempt is made to systematically approach directionality in translation processes and practices from a cognitive point of view. Within the framework of cognitive semantics, it is argued that translation is an instance of conceptual metaphor, whereby conceptual structures of the target language are mapped onto the source text in order to make it understood by the TL reader. The relevance of this position for the study of translation becomes obvious when considered against existing practices in professional and nonprofessional translating. Thus, the directionality from target to source is experimentally shown to correlate with another type of directionality, namely, translating from or into one's mother tongue, and can explain observable facts in the performance of translation tasks.
Some Thoughts About Think-Aloud Protocol
Authors: Séguinot Candace
Published: January 2011

Empirical studies of the translation process have used think-aloud protocols to provide a window into the mental activity which is not directly observable. This paper reports on a protocol study in a natural discourse situation involving two professional translators and discusses the relevance of the data to the debate on the use of verbalization as a methodology. The protocol provides evidence of translation strategies and points to the need for a dynamic model of the translation process that takes into account activation, suppression, and attending mechanisms.
A Translator's Reference Needs
Authors: Williams Ian A.
Published: January 2011

This paper examines how far consulting dictionaries and references cited in the bibliography can solve the problems raised by standardized and non-standardized terms in the translation of medical research reports from Spanish into English. Analysis of two translations representing different types of report (clinical and experimental) showed that use of three references offered greater certainty than using three specialized dictionaries: 71% and 51 % of items were found by the two methods, respectively. A combined method improved coverage to between 85% and 90%, and could guarantee acceptability for 95% of the items. As instances of parallel texts, references provided more and better information than dictionaries, especially at the higher sentence and text levels, as well as giving insight into stylistic aspects of lexical choice for the genre.
Translation of Modifications
Authors: Zhu Chunshen
Published: January 2011

Our study adopts a broadened concept of modification and discusses textual functions of modification in translating between Chinese and English. Our attention is firstly on information distribution realized by elaboration of a basic transitivity pattern through modifying a noun- or verb-head, and on matching in translation the textual effect thus created. We also illustrate some differences in using function words in the two languages, and analyze how they may affect translation. The logical nature of modification enables us to identify and observe internal modifiers within the meaning structure of a word, as against sentence and word modifiers as external modifiers. Consequently, the article argues for the importance of word and sentence translation in the practice and process of textual translating.
Syntactic Norms in Finnish Children's Literature
Authors: Puurtinen Tiina
Published: January 2011

Owing to children's developing reading skills and world knowledge, readability (comprehensibility as well as speakability) can be regarded as an important requirement of children's literature. This article focusses on one determinant of readability, the frequency of nonflnite constructions in children's books both originally written in Finnish and translated from English into Finnish. A high frequency of complex nonfinite constructions is likely to have a negative effect on readability, and consequently they might be expected to occur relatively infrequently both in original and in translated children's literature. A quantitative study of a large number of children's books shows that Finnish originals have indeed tended to favour finiteness, whereas translations show a higher degree of non-finiteness. The translations thus fail to conform to one of the syntactic norms of the receiving literature. The article discusses potential reasons for this syntactic difference, considers the possibility of the existence of different sets of norms for translated and originally Finnish children's books, and speculates upon the innovatory influence of translations.
Contrastive Rhetoric and Text-Typological Conventions in Translation Teaching
Authors: Colina Sonia
Published: January 2011

This paper illustrates the relevance of contrastive rhetoric research to Translation Studies and shows how it can be applied to translation pedagogy. After a brief descriptive analysis of the recipe genre in English and Spanish, student translations are examined. It is shown that the work of novice translators is one case in which source-language textual features are transferred into the target text. The effects of explicit instruction on textual-features and text-typological conventions are examined by comparing student translations: a significant improvement in the work of students exposed to explicit instruction is indicative of the benefit of pedagogical intervention. The evidence presented also indicates that translation competence is in fact separate from bilingualism.
A GDI (AGS3) and a GEF (GIV) regulate autophagy by balancing G protein activity and growth factor signals
Authors: Garcia-Marcos Mikel , Ear Jason , Farquhar Marilyn G. , Ghosh Pradipta
Published: January 2011

Autophagy is the major catabolic process responsible for the removal of aggregated proteins and damaged organelles. Autophagy is regulated by both G proteins and growth factors, but the underlying mechanism of how they are coordinated during initiation and reversal of autophagy is unknown. Using protein–protein interaction assays, G protein enzymology, and morphological analysis, we demonstrate here that Gα-interacting, vesicle-associated protein (GIV, a. k. a. Girdin), a nonreceptor guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Gαi3, plays a key role in regulating autophagy and that dynamic interplay between Gαi3, activator of G-protein signaling 3 (AGS3, its guanine nucleotide dissociation inhibitor), and GIV determines whether autophagy is promoted or inhibited. We found that AGS3 directly binds light chain 3 (LC3), recruits Gαi3 to LC3-positive membranes upon starvation, and promotes autophagy by inhibiting the G protein. Upon growth factor stimulation, GIV disrupts the Gαi3–AGS3 complex, releases Gαi3 from LC3-positive membranes, enhances anti-autophagic signaling pathways, and inhibits autophagy by activating the G protein. These results provide mechanistic insights into how reversible modulation of Gαi3 activity by AGS3 and GIV maintains the delicate equilibrium between promotion and inhibition of autophagy.
Phytoplankton phenology on the Scotian Shelf
Authors: Zhai Li , Platt Trevor , Tang Charles , Sathyendranath Shubha , Hernández Walls Rafael
Published: January 2011

Zhai, L., Platt, T., Tang, C., Sathyendranath, S., and Hernández Walls, R. 2011. Phytoplankton phenology on the Scotian Shelf. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 68: . The impact of physical forcing on seasonal and interannual phytoplankton dynamics was examined using SeaWiFS chlorophyll, AVHRR sea surface temperature (SST), nitrate, and other hydrographic measurements for the Scotian Shelf and Scotian Slope. The spring bloom was characterized by a shifted Gaussian function fitted to seasonal chlorophyll time-series. The background chlorophyll (a constant term in the Gaussian function) is a joint property of the stratification and bio-optics of the mixed layer. Rapid shoaling of the mixed-layer depth in spring promoted the early spring bloom on the middle Scotian Shelf and Slope, triggered when averaged light in the mixed layer reached 15 W m−2. The duration of the spring bloom was prolonged in slope water, resulting in a discontinuity in duration between the shelf and slope water masses. The position of the latitudinal discontinuity in duration was correlated with that of the shelf–slope front in SST. The amplitude of the spring bloom was correlated with the nitrate inventory in the surface layer at the end of winter. The rate of decrease (increase) in chlorophyll after the spring bloom was related to the depletion (resupply) of nitrate in summer. The position of the shelf–slope front influenced the interannual variability of bloom characteristics.