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Interpreting as a Form of
Translation: Typology and
Modalities
Concepts
Conceptual Roots
Interpreting is regarded as a translational activity, a special form of translation. Interpreting is an ancient human practice that predates the invention of writing and written translation. Many Indo-European languages have words for interpreting and interpreters, whose etymology is largely autonomous from words for written translation. The Akkadian root "targumânu/turgumânu" gave rise to the English term "dragoman" for interpreter. The English word "interpreter" is derived from the Latin "interpres," the semantic roots of which are not entirely clear, but may be related to the meaning of "middleman," "intermediary," or "commercial go- between." The Latin term "interpres," denoting someone "explaining the meaning" or "making sense of" what others have difficulty understanding, provides an appropriate semantic foundation for the current understanding of "interpreter" and "interpreting."
Kade's Criteria
Otto Kade, a translation scholar, defined interpreting as a form of translation in which:
The source-language text is presented only once and cannot be reviewed or replayed. The target-language text is produced under time pressure, with little chance for correction and revision.
Kade's definition accommodates interpreting from, into, or between signed languages, as well as variants such as sight translation, live subtitling, and online written translation of internet chats. This definition foregrounds the immediacy of the interpreter's text processing rather than the real-time communicative use.
Defining Translation
There are various approaches and definitions of translation, each with its own emphasis and perspective:
A. Translation as a process by which a spoken or written utterance in one language is intended or presumed to convey the same meaning as a previously existing utterance in another language. This definition focuses on
the relationship between the source and target utterances and the notion of "sameness of meaning."
B. Translation as the transfer of thoughts and ideas from one language to another, whether the languages are written or oral, or whether one or both are based on signs. This definition describes translation as a process of "transfer" acting on "ideas" in the medium of language.
C. Translation as a situation-related and function-oriented complex series of acts for the production of a target text, intended for addressees in another culture/language, on the basis of a given source text. This definition introduces descriptive features such as "situation," "function," "text," and "culture," and emphasizes the target orientation of the translational product.
D. (No definition provided in the original text)
Interpreting: Conceptual Dimensions and
Typological Parameters
Defining Interpreting
The theorist in the given text provides a broad definition of interpreting as "any utterance which is presented or regarded as a translation within a culture, on no matter what grounds." This definition relinquishes any prescriptive authority and accepts as interpreting whatever is treated as such in a given community.
The text then outlines four different definitions of interpreting, each of which foregrounds different conceptual dimensions. These include:
The notion of interpreting as an activity, which could be specified as a 'service,' possibly qualified as 'professional,' for the purpose of 'enabling communication' and for the benefit of 'clients' or 'users.' The idea of 'production' (or communication) taking place in a given situation and culture. The presumption that the interpreted utterances have a similar meaning and/or effect as previously existing utterances in another language and culture. The elaboration and differentiation of key concepts such as 'culture,' 'language,' 'utterance,' and 'meaning.'
Settings and Constellations of Interpreting
The text explores the historical perspective on interpreting, highlighting the criterion of the social context or setting in which the activity is carried out. It distinguishes between:
Inter-social settings: Mediated communication between different linguistic and cultural communities, such as in trading, diplomatic, or military contexts.
the source-language utterance) and simultaneous interpreting (as the source-language text is being presented) became meaningful.
Simultaneous interpreting was initially implemented as 'simultaneous consecutive', where the interpreter would provide consecutive renditions in different output languages simultaneously.
A modern form of simultaneous consecutive has emerged, where the interpreter plays back a digital recording of the source speech and interprets it simultaneously.
Consecutive interpreting can range from the rendition of short utterances to the handling of entire speeches, often involving note- taking as developed by the pioneers of conference interpreting.
Sign language interpreters may work in the short consecutive or simultaneous mode, as signing is possible without special equipment.
Simultaneous Interpreting with Equipment
Spoken-language interpreting in the simultaneous mode typically requires the use of electro-acoustic transmission equipment, except when the interpreter can 'whisper' the rendition to a small number of listeners.
Simultaneous interpreting with full technical equipment in a sound- proof booth is widely established today.
Sight Interpreting
Sight translation, where the interpreter's target-text production is simultaneous with the visual reception of the written source text, is sometimes referred to as 'sight interpreting' when practiced in real time for immediate use by an audience.
Without the constraints of real-time performance, sight interpreting can shade into the consecutive mode or resemble 'oral translation' with more opportunity for reviewing and correction.
Simultaneous Interpreting with Text
A special mode of simultaneous interpreting is SI with text in the booth, where the input still arrives through the acoustic channel, but the interpreter may need to alternate between reading and signing, bringing it closer to the (short) consecutive mode.
Directionality
The interpreting process proceeds from source to target language, but the directionality of the communicative event can be bidirectional, with the interpreter working 'back and forth' between the two languages.
Bidirectional interpreting is typically associated with 'liaison interpreting' and 'dialogue interpreting', but it may also occur in conference-type interactions.
The International Association of Conference Interpreters classifies interpreters' working languages as:
A: native or best 'active' language B: 'active' language spoken with near-native proficiency
C: 'passive' language allowing 'complete understanding'
The Western tradition of conference interpreting has favored simultaneous interpreting from B or C languages into an interpreter's A language, while A-to-B (retour) interpreting has been less accepted.
Relay Interpreting
When the language combination of the interpreters available does not allow for 'direct interpreting', recourse is made to 'relay interpreting', where the output of one interpreter serves as the source for another.
Relay interpreting in the simultaneous mode was standard practice in the Eastern bloc countries, with Russian as the pivot language, and has also played an important role for some UN and EU working languages, often with English as the pivot.
Remote Interpreting
Electroacoustic and audiovisual transmission systems are used to overcome spatial distances and 'connect' speakers (including interpreters) and listeners in remote interpreting, where the interpreter is not in the same room as the speaker or listener.
Telephone interpreting, which became more widely used in the 1980s and 1990s, is usually performed in the bilateral consecutive mode.
The emergence of video(tele)phony has been particularly significant for the deaf and hard-of-hearing, allowing them to access video relay services (VRS) with 'video interpreters'.
Remote interpreting using videoconference technology has also expanded in international and multilateral conferences, as well as community-based institutional encounters.
Machine Interpreting
Attempts are being made to develop automatic interpreting systems based on machine translation software and technologies for speech recognition and synthesis, though 'fully automatic high-quality interpreting' is unlikely in the near future.
