This paper examines the phenomenon of anglicisms—the incorporation of English words into other languages—and discusses the implications this may have for the work of translators. The paper first outlines the main elements which have contributed to making English the lingua franca of our modern era and provides a snapshot of its current level of spread both worldwide and within the European Union, focussing in particular on the relationship between English and Italian. Various features of anglicisms are then analysed, as well as the degree to which they may become incorporated into another language. The extent to which this happens poses a dilemma for the translator – should anglicisms be translated or not? Traditionally, an ‘ethical’ approach has been taken in deciding whether to produce a ‘foreignising’ or ‘domesticating’ translation. This paper, however, suggests that corpus based analyses of language can enable a more informed decision. Using data drawn from the Official Journal of the European Union, the paper shows how this can be done in the case of anglicisms in Italian.
Stretching the Boundaries of English: Translation and Degrees of Incorporation of Anglicisms
GAUDIO, PAOLA
Writing – Original Draft Preparation
2012-01-01
Abstract
This paper examines the phenomenon of anglicisms—the incorporation of English words into other languages—and discusses the implications this may have for the work of translators. The paper first outlines the main elements which have contributed to making English the lingua franca of our modern era and provides a snapshot of its current level of spread both worldwide and within the European Union, focussing in particular on the relationship between English and Italian. Various features of anglicisms are then analysed, as well as the degree to which they may become incorporated into another language. The extent to which this happens poses a dilemma for the translator – should anglicisms be translated or not? Traditionally, an ‘ethical’ approach has been taken in deciding whether to produce a ‘foreignising’ or ‘domesticating’ translation. This paper, however, suggests that corpus based analyses of language can enable a more informed decision. Using data drawn from the Official Journal of the European Union, the paper shows how this can be done in the case of anglicisms in Italian.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
