Towards Functional Translation: Translation of some Yoruba Proverbs

Abstract

The case of culture, language and proverb is like the junction where three paths meet. Language is an integral part of a people’s culture in one hand, and proverb is an essential facet of any given language. In some cases, understanding a people’s perception on issues becomes a problem because of the inability to decode the cultural background of such people. Inadequacy in the comprehension of people’s cultural context is capable of bringing misinterpretation or misrepresentation. This study, therefore, examines thirty Yoruba proverbs; translated into English and French to demonstrate how proverbs can be used in conflict resolution, give instructions or warnings and encouragement in taking well-informed actions among other things. The study aimed at educating people about the Yoruba people’s world view as regards certain issues and actions. Field Study is the methodology adopted for the research while Functionalist theory of translation serves as the theoretical framework on which the study is premised. This theory investigates the nature of translation as a communicative action which should take into account cultural context. Findings revealed that proverbs permit people to communicate, learn as well as allowing them to express feelings for their material and non-material needs. It is equally established that some proverbs have the capacity to provide solutions to societal problems. The paper concludes that understanding people’s culture is important because it explains how culture defines and shapes their actions. The application of functionalist theory to translation will help to achieve a better translation which considers cultural and linguistic properties all together.