May 20, 2008 17:41
16 yrs ago
5 viewers *
English term
honorific titles - translate?
English
Social Sciences
Government / Politics
El acto de inauguración de la 12ª Semana de la Ciencia en Cataluña tuvo lugar el viernes 9 de noviembre, en el Palacio del Parlamento, bajo la presidencia del M. H. Sr. Ernest Benach, presidente del Parlamento de Cataluña; el Hble. Sr. Josep Huguet, consejero de Innovación, Universidades y Empres
M. H. = molt honorable
Hble = honorable
My instinct is to exclude these but I'd like a second opinion.
The context is an annual report for a body "attached" to the public sector.
TIA:-)
M. H. = molt honorable
Hble = honorable
My instinct is to exclude these but I'd like a second opinion.
The context is an annual report for a body "attached" to the public sector.
TIA:-)
Responses
| 4 | exclude them |
lexical
|
| 4 +4 | Keep them in |
BrettMN
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| 5 | it depends |
Cagdas Karatas
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| 4 | Both have to be there (translation and original) |
d_vachliot (X)
|
Responses
54 mins
Selected
exclude them
The reason I say this is that the term you select may have established associations in the target language. For example, if you decide to translate Hble. by "The Hon." or "The Honorable", you may mislead readers into believing that the people so described have the same status as those who bear those titles in the target society (in this case, the younger sons of Earls in the UK, and former Presidents, and Judges in the USA).
The exception may be His Excellency, which seems to be standard for referring to ambassadors.
As I'm sure you're well aware, Lia, Latin countries seem to be fonder of these titles than Anglo-Saxon ones.
The exception may be His Excellency, which seems to be standard for referring to ambassadors.
As I'm sure you're well aware, Lia, Latin countries seem to be fonder of these titles than Anglo-Saxon ones.
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "I agree with Lexical, that these are more typical of Latin countries. In Ireland we would only very exceptionally refer to the head of the government using a honorific title, and that wd be in very formal contexts. TD, by the way, is teachta dala, it's not honorific, it's the Irish for MP:-)"
14 mins
it depends
In Turkish, we have Sn. for Honourable. If you have the same in your language, I recommend you to translate. Otherwise, you can leave as it is.
+4
43 mins
Keep them in
Why not keep them in? You've named English equivalents, and those titles were part of the original, part of the flavor of the original document. I don't see the rationale for excluding them.
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Note added at 1 hr (2008-05-20 18:57:08 GMT)
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If the titles do indeed have different associations from the original, don't use those titles. Find titles that have the closest equivalents in English to those they have in the source language. (I assume this goes without saying, but I've just read the post below.)
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Note added at 1 hr (2008-05-20 18:57:08 GMT)
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If the titles do indeed have different associations from the original, don't use those titles. Find titles that have the closest equivalents in English to those they have in the source language. (I assume this goes without saying, but I've just read the post below.)
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Ken Cox
: IMO it's quite common to refer to the speaker of a legislative body as the 'Right Honourable so-and so', and if a consejero holds a position comparaable to a deputy minister, 'Honourable' is not out of place
2 hrs
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I agree. Thanks!
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| agree |
Gary D
: Conferring or showing honour or respect, honorific It is a verycommon expression which is used as a "modern word" keep them in
6 hrs
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Thanks, Gary!
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| agree |
kmtext
: I would keep them as they are. For instance, when referring to Irish politicians in the UK, they're still called TD rather than translating to MP.
12 hrs
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| agree |
hazmatgerman (X)
: Leaving them out would impinge on flavour and might just possibly allow for ambiguities.
13 hrs
|
19 hrs
Both have to be there (translation and original)
Due to the fact that such titles and similar elements in the text are culturally determined and can also have legal significance, the reference must be there, in the translation.
Therefore, I would translate into the closest possible equivalent and put the original in parenthesis.
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Note added at 19 hrs (2008-05-21 12:55:38 GMT)
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...or I would make a footnote. In any case, this is more or less standard translation practise.
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Note added at 19 hrs (2008-05-21 12:55:53 GMT)
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...practice.
Therefore, I would translate into the closest possible equivalent and put the original in parenthesis.
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Note added at 19 hrs (2008-05-21 12:55:38 GMT)
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...or I would make a footnote. In any case, this is more or less standard translation practise.
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Note added at 19 hrs (2008-05-21 12:55:53 GMT)
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...practice.
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