Chapter 1: Overview of Translation
official version of the Bible
A. Etymology of Translation
The English word translation comes from the Latin
“translatio”. “Trans” translates as “across”, while
“ferre” means to “to carry or “to bring”, “latio”
derives from “latus”, the past participle of “ferre”.
Taking these meanings together, our contemporary
definition for translation is “carrying across”, or
“bringing across”. In this context, we are referring to
text only.
 Translation vs Interpretation
Translation focuses on written content. It requires a
high level of accuracy and can take time to produce.
Interpretation deals with the spoken word and is
delivered immediately. It prioritizes understanding
and communication over perfection.
Five Major Differences Between Interpretation and
Translation
1. Format - Interpretation handles spoken language
in real-time, while translation services are text-based.
2. Delivery - Interpretation takes place on the
spot. The process can occur in person, over the
phone, or via video. Translation, on the other
hand, can happen long after the source text is
created. This gives translators ample time to utilize
technologies and reference materials to generate
accurate, high-quality translations.
3. Accuracy - Interpretation requires a somewhat
lower level of accuracy to translation. Interpreters
aim for perfection, but it's challenging to achieve in a
live setting — some of the original speech may be
left out of the target language, for example. Again,
time is on translators' side when reviewing and
editing written text for accuracy.
4. Direction - Interpreters must be fluent in both the
source and target language, as they're required to
translate in both directions instantaneously without
the aid of reference materials. Professional translators
typically work in one direction: into their own mother
tongue.
5. Intangibles - Making metaphors, analogies, and
idioms resonate with the target audience is a
challenge that both interpreters and translators face.
On top of this, interpreters must capture tone,
inflections, voice quality, and other unique elements
of the spoken word and then convey these verbal cues
to the audience.
B. History of Translation: East and West
Several translators in the past have been hailed
for their work, due in part to the scarcity of
translators and likewise because what they
translated made a huge impact on religion,
politics, education and other fields.
 Saint Jerome “the patron saint of
translators” translated the Bible written in
Hebrew and Greek into Latin, which
Translations/Stylistics and Discourse Analysis (EL ELECT 1)
Prepared by: Ms. Dana Theresa V. Dalida
became the 
used by Catholics.
 But in the 21st century, translators
remained in the ‘background,’ silently
doing what they do best – translating not
only ordinary documents but literary
works, speeches, critical documents,
breakthrough inventions and discoveries,
contracts, presentations, clinical trials,
medical diagnoses, court cases and a lot
more. In fact, translators are essential for
culture, literature, science and knowledge. 
Ancient Era
 The Western World regards the Bible translation
from Hebrew to Greek as the first translation work
of great importance.
 The translation is called
the Septuagint, getting its name from
the 70 individual translators who
separately worked on the translation
in the 3rd century BC. They were
received by King Ptolemy II and given
a feast before they were sent to a house
in Pharos.
Each translator was confined in a cell
or more probably a room in the house.
Legend has it that despite working
alone, each of the 70 translators came
up with identical translations. And
get this, they worked for 72 days to
finish the translation! The translation
was read in front of the king and
queen. Each was given a considerable
reward before they were sent home.
 At that time, the Jews were dispersed in various
places and they have forgotten their mother tongue,
Hebrew. Because of this, they needed a new
version of the Bible. The Septuagint version of the
Bible was used later as the source material for
translations into Georgian, Armenian, Coptic,
Latin and several more languages.
 While the translation of the Bible during the 3rd
century was a major work, discussions about the
work of human translators to bring across values
among cultures were already done in the 2nd
century BC during the time of Terence, a famous
Roman playwright. He adapted several comedies
into Roman from the original Greek works.
 In the 3rd century, it is believed that the ‘sense for
sense’ term was made up by St. Jerome. It was
included in the Letter to Pammachius that he
wrote. According to records, St. Jerome said that
the translator should translate sensibly instead
of word for word.
 The same thought was echoed by Roman writer
and philosopher, Cicero. He said that translation
should not be ‘verbum pro verbo’ (word for word)
in his work, “De Oratore” or “On the Orator.” For
him, the translated words should not be counted in
weight rather than in coins. Cicero, who was a
Greek-Latin translator, said that the work of the
translator was like an artist’s work.

 Another famous translator from antiquity is the
translator, scholar and Buddhist monk,
Kumārajīva. He is famous for translating
Buddhist texts in Sanskrit into Chinese in the 4th
century. Among his translations, the most popular
is “Diamond Sutra”, which belongs to East Asia’s
Mahayana sutra (Chinese sacred writings)
 During the 5th century onwards, very few
translations of works in the Latin language were
available in common languages because Latin was
the popular language. Alfred the Great, who was
the king of England during the 9th century,
commissioned the Latin to English translation of
The Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius and
Ecclesiastical History by Bede. The translations
contributed to the development of English prose
during the time of King Alfred the Great.
 The foundations of the modern Spanish
language was established with the help of a
group of translators from the Escuela de
Traductores de Toledo or the Toledo School of
Translators in the 12th and 13th centuries. Several
of them came from different parts of Europe to
work on the translations of important medical,
scientific, religious and philosophical works into
Castilian and Latin from Hebrew, Greek and
Arabic. During the reign of King Alfonso X of
Castile in the 13th century, the translators from
the school were tasked to translate works into
Castilian, a revised form that led to the
beginning of the Spanish language.
 During the 13th century, Roger Bacon, an English
linguist, determined that a translator must be
fully knowledgeable in the source and target
languages to be able to produce an accurate
translation. At the same time, he already
established that the translator should also be a
subject matter expert. That’s how old the concept
is.
 In the 14th century, the first translation of the Bible
from Latin to English was done by John Wycliffe.
It was also during this century that Geoffrey
Chaucer, an author, poet and translator, translated
the works of Boethius from Latin into English and
the French work, ‘Roman de la Rose’ into English.
He also did many translations of works by Italian
authors into English. In fact, he founded a tradition
grounded on adaptations and translations of Italian
and Latin literary works.
 Gemistus Pletho (Plethon), a Byzantine scholar
from Constantinople went to Florence to
reintroduced the philosophy of Plato. He
influenced Cosimo de Medici into founding the
Platonic Academy, which was headed by Marsilio
Ficino, an Italian translator and scholar. The
Platonic Academy translated all the works of Plato,
Plotinus’ ‘Enneads’ and several other works into
Latin. The works of Ficino and Erasmus of
Rotterdam, who translated a new version of the
Bible’s New Testament in Latin, helped develop
translation work further, as readers demand more
Translations/Stylistics and Discourse Analysis (EL ELECT 1)
Prepared by: Ms. Dana Theresa V. Dalida
accuracy in the rendering of religions and
philosophical works.
 Another major translation work during the 15th
century is the free adaptation and/or translation by
Thomas Mallory of ‘Le Morte d’Arthur’ that
consists of the tales of King Arthur and the other
characters such as the Knights of the Round Table,
Merlin, Lancelot and Guinevere.
The Rise of The West
 The advancement in the printing process and the
growth of the middle class during the 16th century
further developed translation as the demand for
new literary materials increased. This is the period
when an English scholar named William Tyndale
led a group to work on the initial Tudor
translation of the New Testament in 1525. It was
also the first time that the portion of the Bible was
directly translated from Greek and Hebrew texts
into English. After finishing the translation of the
New Testament, Tyndale was able to translate half
of the Old Testament before he was given a death
penalty because he possessed an English version
of the Scripture without a license. One of his
assistants finished translating the Old Testament,
which was mass produced later.
 Theology professor Martin Luther produced
a German translation of the Bible, and in the
process claimed that only in the translator’s own
language can one achieve a satisfactory translation.
What he professed became the standard for two
centuries and his translation of the Bible into
German played a big hand in the contemporary
German language’s development.
 The Bible was likewise translated into Polish by
Jakub Wujek in 1535. The English version of the
Bible, known as King James Bible and the other
translated versions had a long-lasting effect on the
culture, language and religion of the countries
where it was used. The critical differences in the
translation of some of the passages and words in
the Bible based on the translation somehow
played a role in the division of Christianity in
the West into Protestantism and Roman
Catholicism.
Early Modern Era
 ‘Don Quixote’ creator Cervantes commented that
most of the translations during his time can be
compared to looking at the reverse side of the
Flemish tapestry, meaning you can still see the
primary figures but they are obliterated by the loose
woven threads.
 English translator and poet, John Dryden, tried to
translate Virgil’s work in the way the Roman poet
would write it if he was from England. However, he
said it was not necessary to imitate the conciseness
and subtlety of Virgil. It was an opposing view to
what Alexander Pope, an English poet and translator,
believed. Pope was known for the translation of
Homer’s Iliad. He said that the translator does not
have the license to alter the original. He explained
that it is like drawing from life, where the features
and alignments should not be changed.

Transparency in Focus
 At the latter half of this century, the ideals of
translation were transparency and
faithfulness. Faithfulness means the extent of the
translation’s accuracy in rendering the source text
into the target language while considering the context
and features of the original. Transparency in the
translation equates to idiomatic translation or how
close the text appears as if it was written in the target
language while conforming to the target language’s
idiom, syntax and grammar.
Period of French and American Revolutions
 German translator, poet, theologian and philosopher,
Johann Gottfried Herder further reaffirmed
the earlier statement of Martin Luther that a
translator should translate into his native
language instead of the other way around.
 In this century, the concern of many translators
focused on making reading the translated material
easier. Accuracy was not yet a big issue for the
translators. If they thought a passage might cause
boredom or they failed to understand a part, they
omitted them. They had the false impression that
their translation style is the most proper. Naturally,
they believed the source material should conform to
their translation. They were even bold enough to do
translations into languages they barely speak.
 Ignacy Krasicki, an encyclopedist from Poland,
stated that the translator plays a unique part in
society. He described that translation work is an art
form and difficult work. He said that translation
should only be done by people who are capable of
seeing a better application for translating other
people’s work instead of creating their own. They
should put translation at a higher level of service for
their country.
Start of the Industrial Revolution
 Translation in this century is all about style and
accuracy, with the translation policy centered on
text. Because it is the Victorian era, bawdy language
was the exception to the rule. Explanations in
footnotes were also deemed necessary. Translators
aimed to tell readers that the text or book they were
enjoying were translations of foreign originals.
 Another exception to the standard is the translation of
the ‘The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám’ by Edward
FitzGerald. Surprisingly, although he used very little
from the original poems in Persian, his translations
remain the most famous despite the availability of
more accurate and newer translations of the poems.
19th Century Influences
 The 19th century brought about many theories about
translation. For Friedrich Schleiermacher of
Germany, the translation could use two translation
methods: transparency or domestication, which
brings the writer to the readers, and fidelity or
foreignization, which brings the readers to the writer.
 On the other hand, the Chinese translator and scholar
Yan Fu, developed a three-facet translation
theory in 1898, based on his extensive experience in
the English to Chinese translation of social sciences
documents. The theories are faithfulness (being close
Translations/Stylistics and Discourse Analysis (EL ELECT 1)
Prepared by: Ms. Dana Theresa V. Dalida
to the source material in
context), expressiveness (accessibility of the
translation to the intended audience)
and elegance (availability of the translation in a
language that the target accepts as educated). Among
the theories, Yan Fu considers expressiveness the
most vital. This is because it allows the delivery of
the content’s meaning to its target audience. In his
theory, it meant changing the names into Chinese and
changing the word order to fit the requirements of
the  Chinese language. His theories had a huge effect
on translation work across the globe.
End of the 2nd Millennium
 Translation became more prominent and structured in
the 20th century, where interpreting the context of the
written text became important. Polish translator
Aniela Zagórska, who translated every work of
Joseph Conrad into Polish was given a great advice.
Joseph Conrad was her uncle, and Conrad viewed
translation as an art form that gives translators
choices, which meant interpreting some of the
text, instead of just translating them.
 Jorge Luis Borges of Argentina, who translated the
creations of Virginia Woolf, Walt Whitman, Edgar
Allan Poe, Rudyard Kipling, Franz Kafka, Hermann
Hesse, André Gide and William Faulkner into
Spanish also believed that translation is an art. He
said that a translator can do improvements on the
original work. He also said that they sometimes stray
from the source text. Borges also believed that
contradictory and alternative translations of the same
source material can be valid.
 Literal translations were confined to scientific,
academic, historic and religious materials. They
recognized interpreting as a special type of
translation in the past. It was established as a
different discipline in the middle of the 20th century.
General Purposes of Translation
 Retrieval of lost information
 Understanding of the Universal Truth
 Sharing of beliefs
 Understanding and appreciation of culture
 Bridging cultural barrier
 Advancement in human achievement
 Addressing social needs
 Social Empowerment
 Binding nations
 Neo-culture development