Translation, Language and Globalization

Abstract

Broadly speaking, translation is the interpreting of the meaning of a text and the subsequent production of an equivalent text, likewise called a translation, that communicates the same message in another language, the text to be translated is called the source text and the language that it is to be translated into is called the target language. The final product is sometimes called the target text. The aim of this paper is to consider translation and globalization in relation to language diversity, maintenance and dynamicity; it also argues that translation will not be beneficial unless it results in an additional value effect. Standard practice acknowledges that every translation activity is a simultaneous decoding encoding process of the text. As a process, while it decodes the meaning embedded in the source text, it also transfers the meaning into a coded form in the target language. Thus every translation becomes an extension of the original text, bringing fresh appreciation to it as well as enrichment to the TL. However, such a process needs to be clearly recognized, not as a mere mechanical transference from one linguistic register to another but as an encounter of two languages and two cultures.