Common errors on word choices in translating cultural texts of the fourth year English linguistics students at Hung Vuong University

1

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my
supervisor, Nguyen Thi To Loan, M.A for her guidance and encouragement
during my study. I’m very grateful for being accepted as her student in this
subject and I really appreciate all her help and suggestions on various drafts of
this graduate paper. Without her valuable advice and support, this research could
not have been completed on schedule.
I would also like to express my full appreciation to all teachers at the
Foreign Language Faculty of Hung Vuong University who helped me so much
in my data collection.
Besides, I want to use this opportunity to express my deepest thanks to all
45 members of class K12 – English Linguistics for having cooperated in
providing valuable information in the survey as well as doing the test. If it
hadn’t been for their help, I wouldn’t have finished my graduation paper with
great success.
Additionally, I would like to express my sincere thanks to my dear friends
for their help and warm encouragement throughout my hard times carrying out
the study. Without them, I could not have overcome such times and concentrated
on my study.
Finally, I am greatly indebted to my family, especially my loving parents
for their continuous support during my study. Their love and encouragement
helped me overcome the difficult times during the study. I could not have been
able to complete this project without their intense devotion.


2

ABSTRACT

The purpose of the study was to investigate the common errors in word
choice in Vietnamese – English cutural translation committed by fourth - year
English majors, Department of Foreign Languages, Hung Vuong University and
to propose some specific recommendations for students. Together with the
attempt to fulfill the graduation paper, the following processes were made:
Firstly, the researcher gave theoretical background about translation,
translation methods, errors, and some common errors committed by Vietnamese
translation when translating from Vietnamese into English.
Secondly, the researcher presented the methodology of the study together
with giving a test and implementing a survey by delivering the questionnaire to
students of class K12 – English Linguistics. After that, the researcher carried out
the interview to lecturers of Department of Foreign languages in Hung Vuong
University. Having collected the data from the test results, survey questionnaire
and the interview found that students make various lexical errors in Vietnamese
– English translation. Some common lexical errors of students when translating
and the causes of the errors were also identified.
Based on the result of the interview, the researcher gives some
recommendations for English major students as well as lecturers of English to
improve students’ translation skills and help them get better translation
performance, especially in cutural translations.


3

LIST OF TABLES
PART I: INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................1
1.1.

Rationale.........................................................................................................................1

1.2.

Previous researches........................................................................................................2

1.2.1.

In the world..................................................................................................................2

1.2.2.

In Vietnam...................................................................................................................4

1.2.3.

Gaps of previous researches........................................................................................5

1.3.

Research purposes..........................................................................................................5

1.4.

Research questions.........................................................................................................5

1.5.

Settings of the research..................................................................................................6

1.6.

Significanceoftheresearch..............................................................................................6

1.7.

Scope of the research.....................................................................................................6

1.8.

Design of the research....................................................................................................6

PART II: DEVELOPMENT........................................................................................................8
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW...................................................................................8
1.1.

An overview on translation...........................................................................................8

1.1.1.

Definition of Translation............................................................................................8

1.1.2.

Translation strategies..................................................................................................9

1.1.3.

Factors affecting translation process.......................................................................19

1.1.4.

Translation methods..................................................................................................23

1.2.

Translation errors........................................................................................................25

1.2.1.

Errors.........................................................................................................................25

1.2.2.

Translation errors......................................................................................................25

1.2.3.

Classification of translation errors...........................................................................26

1.2.4.

Common errors in translation..................................................................................29

1.3.

An overview on cultural texts.....................................................................................34

1.3.1.

The definition of culture...........................................................................................34

1.3.2.

The definition and features of culture texts.............................................................36

1.3.3.

The relation between translation and culture..........................................................39

CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY.........................................................................................42
2.1.

Participants...................................................................................................................42

2.2.

Methods of the study....................................................................................................42

2.2.1.

Qualitative research methods....................................................................................42

2.2.2.

The quantitative method............................................................................................42

2.3.
2.3.1.

Data collection instruments.........................................................................................42
Test.............................................................................................................................42

4
2.3.2.

Questionnaires...........................................................................................................43

2.3.3.

Interview....................................................................................................................44

2.4.

Research procedure.....................................................................................................44

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION............................................46
3.1.

The results from test....................................................................................................46

3.1.1. Error 1: Word collocation..............................................................................................47
3.1.2. Error 2: Misuse of preposition......................................................................................47
3.1.3. Error 3: Misuse of synonyms.........................................................................................48
3.1.4. Error 4: Misuse of part of speech..................................................................................49
3.1.5. Error 5: Name of organization......................................................................................49
3.2.

The results from questionnaires.................................................................................50

3.2.1. The students’ attitude towards translation and word choice in translating culture

texts...........................................................................................................................................50
3.2.2. The students’ difficulties and common errors in translating Vietnamese- English
texts...........................................................................................................................................52
3.2.4.
3.3.

Suggestions to improve the students’ translation.....................................................56
The result from interview............................................................................................57

3.3.1.

The result from question 1........................................................................................58

3.3.2.

The result from question 2........................................................................................58

3.3.3.

The result from question 3........................................................................................58

3.3.4.

The result from question 4........................................................................................59

3.4.

Discussions....................................................................................................................60

3.4.1. Common errors in word choice made by 4th year students...........................................60

3.4.2. The causes of errors made by the students....................................................................60
CHAPTER 4: RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVING STUDENTS’
TRANSLATION PERFORMANCE.....................................................................................62
4.1.

Build up vocabulary – improve background knowledge..........................................62

4.1.1.

Using Word Cards......................................................................................................62

4.1.3.

Create vocabulary notebook – enhance vocabulary................................................65

4.2.

More translation practice............................................................................................66

PART III: CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................68
1.

Summary..........................................................................................................................68

2.

Suggestions.......................................................................................................................68

3.

Implications.....................................................................................................................70

4.

Limitations of the study..................................................................................................70

5.

Suggestions for the further study........................................................................70

REFERENCES........................................................................................................................72


5

LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS
Table 2.1: Errors and codes of errors..................................................................43
Table 2.2: Contents of the questionnaires............................................................44
Table 3.1: The errors in the students’ translation test..........................................46
Table 3.1: The students’ attitude towards translation and word choice in
translating culture texts.......................................................................................50
Table 3.2: Difficulties in types of translation texts..............................................52
Table 3.3: Topics of cultural translation texts that the students easily commit
error.....................................................................................................................53
Chart 3.1:Student’common errors in word choice in translating cutural texts
from Vietnamese into English.............................................................................54
Chart 3.2: The causes for errors in word choice by students...............................55
Table 3.4: Suggestions to improve the students’ translation...............................56

6

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
N0.

Codes

Name of codes

1

E1

Error of word collocation

2

E2

Error of preposition

3

E3

Error of synonyms

4

E4

Error of parts of speech

5

E5

Name of organization

6

SC

Source culture

7

SL

source language

8

SLC

9

ST

source text

10

TC

target culture

11

TL

target language

source language culture


1

PART I: INTRODUCTION
1.1. Rationale
In the modern life, English has become the most widely used language all
over the world. It is considered as the medium of communication in many
different fields such as science, technology, aviation, international sport,
diplomacy, and so on. Therefore, English translations have played a prominent
part in globalization, and international integration in recent years. Thanks to
English translated versions, countries are able to have mutual understanding and
a sense of global citizenship in this multilingual world. Moreover, English
translation makes people understand each other more in the process of
diplomatic relations and economic cooperation and other fields in today's era
when countries tend to integrate for the whole development. As a result, English

translation has gradually become an indispensable and pressing tool which set
the path for the global success of individuals, organizations, and even businesses
in the modern time when society is more developed and competition is
relentless. Therefore, nowadays when Vietnam becomes one of the members of
World Trade Organization, it is necessary for Vietnamese students of English to
have expert translation skill in order to meet the demand of integration into the
world economy and exchange of culture with other countries.
Nowadays, social and cultural documents display many linguistic
peculiarities, as well as social and cultural aspects of our lives and, thus, we can
assert that cultural translation is one of the main ways of communication across
cultures. Translating these texts, however, is not an easy task, since it certainly
poses many problems for the translator. One of the problems a translator can
face arises from the fact that word choices. Some words or phrases denoting
objects, facts, phenomena, etc, are so deeply rooted in their source culture (SC)
and so specific (and perhaps exclusive or unique) to the culture that produced
them that they have no equivalent in the target culture (TC), because they are
unknown, or because they are not yet codified in the target language (TL). Word
choices in translating is an important thing so it requires translators while


2

translating carefully.However, in reality, Vietnamese-English translation skill is
not easy for Vietnamese students to master, so learners can't avoid mistakes in
their translating practice. Perhaps, because of some influence on the differences
about cultures or their own limited language ability, etc, Vietnamese students of
English in general still have mistakes on grammar, word choices and so on in
translating, and special in translating cultural texts from Vietnamese into
English. Students in K12 English Linguistics are no exception. They made a lot
of mistakes/errors in choosing vocabulary when translating texts.

For those reasons, I decided to choose the study “Common errors on word
choices in translating cultural texts of the fourth year English linguistics
students at Hung Vuong University” with the aim of identifying common
Vietnamese–English translation errors made by these students and thereby,
proposing suggestions to improve the current practice.
1.2. Previous researches
1.2.1. In the world
Translation is a complex process where fragile balance is achieved between
the equivalence of the text translated and the linguistic means chosen. In reality,
translation from one language into another language is a complex work. In the
translation processing, translators may make mistakes so there are many
researchers studying on these problems. They can be seen in the following
studies:
Mossop, B. (1989) in his study about “Objective and cultural norm of
translation” describes translation errors as “a given rendering will be deemed to
be no translation if it fails to conform to the concept of translation predominant
in the target culture”. He identifies translation errors in terms of cultural norm
and formal equivalence. It means that the definition of translation error by
Mossop includes the achievement of formal equivalence but excludes other
critical factors such as smoothness, readability, and consistency in translational
product.


3

A more thorough notion of error is proposed by Pym. A. (1992) in the
studyabout “Translation and text transfer: An Essay on the principles of
intercultural communication”. This scholar supposes that translation errors may
be attributed to lack of comprehension, misuse of time, inappropriateness to
readership, language, pragmatics, culture, over-translation, under-translation,

discursive or semantic inadequacy.
Krzysztof, H. (1992), in his resarch about “Translation: A Cognitive Communicative Approach” divides translation errors into four main types: errors
of syntagmatic surface translation, errors of mistaken interpretation, realization
errors and meta-translation errors. The first type includes equivalents, false
friends, calques and unjustified borrowings. The second type covers misreading
syntagms and wrong interpretation of verb frame, misinterpret scenes and scripts
and misreading the text modality. The third type covers TL errors, wrong
evaluation of recipients’ knowledge and insufficient of knowledge of subjectmatter. The final type comprises translation technique, additions, omissions, two
versions, too many or too few footnotes, a wrong translation strategy,
corrections and changing the text’s intertextuality. Nevertheless, this approach is
complicated and troublesome for researchers to figure out translations errors of
professional translators in general and undergraduates in particular.
Wang Baorong (2009) in his research about “Translating publicity texts in
the light of the skopos theory: Problems and suggestions” arrives at a mutual
conclusion that translation errors should be classified into three main types
including pragmatic translation errors, cultural translation errors and linguistic
translation errors. Pragmatic translation errors are caused by practical issues
such as a lack of receiver orientation and background knowledge. Cultural
translation errors are related to equivalent problems and methods to deal with
cultural words. Linguistic errors occur due to the lack of the proficiency of the
translator.


4

1.2.2. In Vietnam
Duong T.T.H and Nguyen T.C.X (2010) intheir studies about “The study
Common mistakes in learning translation subject by the second-year English
majors at Dong Thap University” found out that Vietnamese students of English
in general still have mistakes on grammar, word choices and so on in translating

Vietnamese texts into English. The study also revealed that lack of vocabulary
causes many problems in translation process, frequently; students could not
choose the right word in the context or use the right term.
Nguyen T.T.H andTrieu T.H (2015) intheir studies about “Vietnamese –
English Translation Errors Made by Second Year Translation - Major Students:
An Initial Step towards Enhancing Translation Standards” pointed out that
lexical choice posed the biggest challenges to students, and gave suggestions for
improving students’ performance.
The study “Errors in the translation of topic-comment structures of
Vietnamese into English” conducted by Pham (2005) aimed to investigate what
kind of errors the students made in translating topic – comment structure. The
participants of the study were ninety-five students from English translation
classes in their first, second, third, and fourth years of the Department of English
Language and Literature at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in
Vietnam. The results showed that students made five types of errors including
omission of subject, repetition of subject, inappropriate choice of subject, no
logical connection between subject and predicate, and inappropriate connection
between subject and passive verbs. The omission of subject was the most
frequent type of error among all types of errors relating to the sentence’s subject.
Huynh Thanh Thuy (2012) studied “An analysis of common errors on verb
tenses and word choices in Vietnamese-English translation made by the secondyear English majors at Dong Thap University” aimed to find out the common
errors on verb tense and word choice in Vietnamese – English translation made
by the second-year English major students at Dong Thap University. The
participants of the study were the second-year students of English majors at the


5

University. After the data was analyzed, grammatical errors about verb tense in
misuse of verb tense, misuse of verb forms and incorrect structures, and using

vocabulary in context inappropriately were indicated.
1.2.3. Gaps of previous researches
Many researchers in the world as well as in Vietnam studied on the
translation and translation errors. However, the above researchers have mainly
focused on finding out the errors in translation in general, not particular in
Vietnamese – English translation, and cultural texts. There have been causes that
lead to the errors and they have also proposed some possible solutions to deal
with the problems. However, they did not suggest the specific solutions for a
certain groups of learners.
The present study would have two aspects that were different from the
above studies. The first thing was that the study was conducted to investigate
English major students' common error types in word choice in translating
cultural text from Vietnamese – English, the causes leading to those error types,
and propose specific recommendation. Another was that the participants of the
study were the fourth-year English major students and the translation teaching
teachers at Hung Vuong University.
1.3. Research purposes
The purpose of this research is to:
- Find out the majors' common errors in word choicesin translating cultural
texts from Vietnamese into English.
- Find out the causes of these problems and then suggest some possible
strategies to overcome the problems.
1.4. Research questions
- What are the common errors on word choiceswhen translating cultural
texts made by fourth year English linguistics students?
- What are the possible causes of these common errors?
- What are the suggestions to rectify these errors?


6

1.5. Settings of the research
The study is conducted at Faculty of Foreign Languages, Hung Vuong
University, Phu Tho Province.
1.6. Significanceoftheresearch
The graduation paper will help the students recognize their common errors
on word choice in translating cultural texts. The study will be a useful reference
with the solutions suggested which help the students to self-correct their
common mistakes and find out their own effective ways in leaning in order to
improve their translation skill. Furthermore, it helps the students not only
improve their language learning in general but also have a great advantage for
their future ideal job.
1.7. Scope of the research
The graduation paper focuses on finding out common errors on word
choices in translating cultural texts from Vietnamese into English of the fourthyear English linguistic students at Hung Vuong University. Moreover, the study
only

focuses

on

the

following

themes

(ecology,

material

culture,

andorganisations, customs, and ideals) of five culture themes which were
classified by Newmark (1988).
1.8.

Design of the research

This research consists of the following parts:
Part 1: Introduction
In this part will presents the overview of the study including the rational,
previous researches,research purposes, research questions, setting, significance
of the research, and structure of the research.
Part 2: Development
Chapter 1: Literature review
This part presents theoretical background of translation, translation
strategies, factors affecting translation process, translation methods, translation
errors, classification of translation errors, common errors in translation, cutural
translation and its significance, types and characteristics.


7

Chapter 2: Research methodology
In this part will focus on the objectives of the research, the scope of the
research, research participants, research methods, and data collecting
instruments.
Chapter 3: Findings of the research
This chapter aims to present some common errors on word choices when

students translate cultural texts from Vietnamese into English and find out the
causes of the errors through the results got from the test, survey questionnaire
and interview, thus propose some recommendations for teachers and students to
improve students’ translation skills.
Chapter 4: Discussions and suggestions
Part III: Conclusion
The researcher summarizes the major findings, limmitations of the
research, and provides suggestions for further studies.
This chapter presents the background of the study and shows the rationale
for the study, lists limitations, its implications as well as mentions some
suggestions for future study and presents conclusion.


8

PART II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. An overview on translation
1.1.1. Definition of Translation
It has been long taken for granted that translation deals only with language.
Cultural perspective, however, has not yet been brought into discussion. The
first definition presented by Catford (1965: 20) refers to translation as the
“Replacement of textual material in one language by equivalent textual material
in another language”. Yet, it is still vague in terms of the type of equivalence.
Culture was not taken into account.
Next, Nida and Taber (1969) explain the process of translating as follows:
Translating consists of reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural
equivalent of the source language message, first in terms of meaning and
secondly in terms of style.
Newmark’s definition about translation was introduced in 1981, with major

focus on linguistic aspect: "Translation is a craft consisting in the attempt to
replace a written message and/or statement in one language by the same
message and/or statement in another language"
Oxford University defines translation as “the process of translating words
or text fromone language into another”. The Cambridge Dictionary also
endorses that. This canmean the word to word rendering of the text in one
language to another or replacingthe equivalents of the words or phrases in one
text to another. The translated text mayhave formal equivalence when the
source text and the translated text look alike in form.It may have functional
equivalence when the source text and the target text or translatedtext convey the
same sense or perform the same function, though they have formal differences.
It is often seen that the idiomsand usage of the source language creep intothe
target language through translationswhich often enrich and shape the
targetlanguage.


9

Bell, RT. (1991) says “Translation is the expression in another language
(or TL) of what has been expressed in another, source language, preserving
semantic and stylistic equivalences”. Hatim and Mason (1990) see translation as
a communicative process which takes place within a social context. These
definitions attach importance to equivalence between SL and TL. Indeed,
translator should be the one of superior language ability in at least two
languages.
According to Andreea-RosaliaOlteanu (2012), translation is often
associated with the transliteration of literary works from one language to
another. The question that has become sacramental is: what is translation, a
science or an art. Regarding the artistic texts it can be said that translation is an
art based on science, and the interpretations made by linguists have often been

the basis of the translators' actual experiences.
In brief, it's not easy to give a complete definition of translation. It can refer
to the general subject field, the products (the text that has been translated) or the
process (the act of producing the translation, otherwise known as translating).
The process of translation between two different languages involves the
translator changing an original text (the source text or ST) in the original verbal
language (the source language or SL) in a different verbal language (the target
language or TL). In a more general way, translation is considered the process of
transformation of a message expressed in one language, in the same message,
but formulated in another language, provided that there are preserved all (or
approximately all) qualities of the original message.
1.1.2. Translation strategies
The word strategy is used in many contexts. In translation studies many
theorists have used the term translation strategies widely but with some
considerable differences in the meaning and the perspective from which they
look at it. A list of more general definitions of the word strategy is given below:
 A strategy is a long-term plan of actions designed to achieve a particular
goal (Wikipedia Committee).


10

 A systematic plan, consciously adapted and mentioned, to improve one's
learning performance (Instruction Curriculum Reading Glossary)
 A strategy is a planned, deliberate, goal-oriented (has an identifiable
outcome) procedure achieved with a sequence of steps subject to
monitoring and modification (Curriculum Learning Literate-Futures
Glossary)
 A set of explicit mental and behavioral steps used to achieve a specific
outcome (Deep Tranc)

Mona Baker (1992) lists different strategies in each catergory, which have
been used by professional translators, to cope with the problematic issues while
doing a translation task. The analysis is based on the translation strategies
described by Mona Baker and the strategies suggested by some translators,
commissioners of translations, and others involved in translating as ways to
approach difficulties in translations.
a. Strategy 1: How to deal with non-equivalence at word level
It is often the case that no direct equivalents can be found in Vietnamese
for English words. It may be that the concept or idea is new to Vietnam, which is
in fact a relatively new concept in general, and a difficult one to understand and
explain in many languages. Or, it may be that the concept is known or readily
understood but there is no specific word in Vietnamese to express it. Another
difficulty is that, in addition to their concrete meaning, some words have special
connotations that are not conveyed by the Vietnamese word for the same thing.
The strategies listed below can be used to handle cases of non-equivalence.
+ Translating by a more specific word
In some cases, it may be appropriate or necessary to use a more specific
word to translate an English word into Vietnamese. This usually involves
choosing among several different words, as there may be many Vietnamese
words that correspond to the general category or meaning expressed by the
English term. For example, the English word for “take” can be translated by


11

many different Vietnamese words (lấy, cầm, mang đi, chịu đựng), depending on
the context. (Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation 1&2). In these cases, the
English word alone is not enough to determine the appropriate Vietnamese
translation, and it is necessary to examine the English context in deciding which
Vietnamese word is to be used.

+ Translating by a more general word
In other cases, it may be appropriate to use a more general word to
translate English with no specific Vietnamese equivalent. Similarly, the English
words “niece” and “grand daughter”, “nephew” and “grand son” may all be
translated by the Vietnamese word “cháu gái”, “cháu trai” which create
problems of comprehension in Vietnamese, as it should be clear from the context
which of these words is meant.
+ Translating by cultural substitution
This strategy involves replacing a culture-specific item or expression with
one of the different meanings but similar impact in the translated text. Because
of their self-described “respect” 28 for the original text, most Vietnamese
translators object to this strategy and tend to translate directly, even though it is
in appropriate. For example, a farmer’s manual that has been translated into
Vietnamese suggests the planting of different types of fruit trees which are not
even grown in Vietnam. The original manual, which was developed in other
parts in Asia, was not modified at all for the Vietnamese context. Though some
translators argue that it is not the responsibility of the translator to chance the
text in this way, the translator is in fact playing an important role in this task.
Translators should be encouraged to consider the appropriateness of the
documents they are translating and suggest changes to make them more
culturally appropriate. However, this is not only the burden of the translator, but
also of the commissioners of the translation and the editor.
+ Translating by using a loan word plus explanation
There is some objection to this strategy in Vietnam, as many translator
prefer to coin new words in Vietnamese rather than borrow English words.


12

However, this strategy is very useful when the translator deal with concepts or

ideas that are new to Vietnamese audience, culturespecific items, and proper
names of diseases or medicines that are widely known in English names. For
instance, TV and radio are two loan words that are frequently used in
Vietnamese, as they are referred to by their English names in almost every part
of the world. Because these words have been in common used in Vietnam for a
long time, they are often used without any accompanying explanation.
Whenever a loan word is used, it is better to give an explanation. Another
example is the acronym for oral rehydration salts, or ORS, which is printed on
every package and hence easily recognized; this is normally written in English
with an explanation in Vietnamese: muối bù điện giải. (Pham Thanh Binh, 2010)
+ Translating by paraphrase
This strategy can be used when translating an English word or concept
that does not exist in Vietnamese, or when the Vietnamese term for it does not
include all the meanings conveyed by the English term for the same concept.
For example, in the sentence “Pregnant women should avoid alcohol.” In
English the word “alcohol” includes all alcoholic beverages in its meaning.
However, the Vietnamese word for alcohol, “rượu”, does not include beer in its
definition, so the Vietnamese translation should add the word beer to reflect the
full meaning of the source language sentence “Phụ nữ mang thai nên tránh
uống rượu, bia.” (Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation 1&2)
+ Translating by omission
Though some translators may reject this strategy as too drastic, it is
sometimes appropriate to omit words or phrases that are not essential to the
meaning or impact of the text. This is especially true for words that would
require lengthy explanations, awkward paraphrases, or literal and unnatural
translations, which would interrupt the flow of the text and could distract the
readers from the overall meaning. For example, the sentence “Much can be
done even without being physically present in the meeting.” is best translated
into Vietnamese by ‘‘Nhiều việc có thể được làm ngay cả khi không có mặt tại

13

cuộc họp” which omit the word “physically” in the translation. (Nguyen Van
Tuan, 2006, Translation 1&2). The difference in meaning between “being
physically present” and being “present” is so minimal that it does not justify
translation into Vietnamese, which cannot easily express the slight emphasis
implied here by the author, and would not do so by emphasizing the physicality
of a person’s presence.
b. Strategy 2: How to deal with idioms and fixed expressions
According to English Idioms in Use (Mc Carthy & O’Dell, 2004, p.6), an
idiom is defined as a fixed expression which “has a meaning that is not obvious
from the individual words”. In other words, words have lost their individual
identity in the idiom. The structure of the idiom is, to a large extent, fixed and
unchangeable. Every language has a set of idioms and fixed expressions of its
own, which has been created and developed throughout history. It is profoundly
influenced by the geographical position, natural and social conditions of the
culture in which the language is used. Thus, the sets of idioms and fixed
expression in different languages vary in many ways. Idioms and fixed
expressions can be dealt with in ways similar to those discussed above. With
idioms, however, there is the added difficulty that the translator may not realize
that she is dealing with an idiomatic expression, since more idioms may make
sense when translated literally.
+ Using an idiom or fixed expression of similar meaning and form
It is sometimes possible to find a Vietnamese idiom or expression with a
similar meaning to an English idiom or expression, and which is expressed in
the same way. One example is the idiom “Easier said than done”, which is
expressed using the same words in Vietnamese “Nói dễ, làm khó”; another is
“Like father, like son”, which is translated as “Cha nào con nấy”. It is ideal if
such a match can be found, but this kind of correspondence is not common, and

it is usually necessary to use other strategies in dealing with idioms and fixed
expressions. One example is the idiom “It costs me an arm and a leg”. This
idiom does not have any meaning related to the body parts (arms or legs), but it


14

just means“It is very expensive” – “Giá đắt cắt cổ.” or “Giá của nó rất đắt.” in
Vietnamese. If this English idiom is translated in the way of literal translation
which just focuses on the meaning in dictionary of the word “an arm”- “tay” and
the word “a leg” – “chân” like “Nó tốn của tôi một tay và một chân”, the
sentence is totally nonsense. Thus, it is clear that no Vietnamese idiom or
expression with a similar meaning to this English idiom can be found. (Tran
Ngoc Que Chau, 2011)
+ Using an idiom or fixed expression of similar meaning but dissimilar form
It is also possible, and usually easier to find a Vietnamese idiom with a
similar meaning to an English idiom or set expression, but which is expressed
differently. A good example is the translation for “nhập gia tùy tục”, which is
translated as “join the family, follow the custom”. However, in English “join the
family, follow the custom” is not an idiom and does not have the meaning as the
Vietnamese idiom “nhập gia tùy tục”. The correct English equivalent of the
Vietnamese idiom is “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”. The meaning here
is clearly the same for both idioms, which is to behave however the people
around you behave, adapt yourselves to the custom of the places you visit, but
the way in which each language expresses it is bound to the culture of that
language. It would be far more cumbersome to translate this idiom word-forword into Vietnamese with an explanation that the expression was found in a
letter from Saint Augustine from 390AD. In that letter, there is a sentence which
says: “When I go to Rome, I fast on Saturday, but here [in Milan] I do not. Do
you also follow the custom of whatever church you attend, if you do not want to
give or receive scandal.” (The Oxford Dictionary of Quoations, 1999). It would

unduly interrupt the flow of the text and greatly diminish the idiom’s impact. By
substituting a similar Vietnamese idiom, then, the flow and the impact of the
original text are retained in the translation.
+ Translating by paraphrase
When Vietnamese equivalents cannot be found, paraphrasing may be the
best way to deal with an idiom or fixed expression. A good example can be


15

found in an article on maternal mortality, which includes the sentence, “But
before the new estimates replace the old as a way of packaging up the problem,
it should be said that a mistake has been made in allowing statistics such as
these to slip into easy language”. The expression “packaging up the problem”
presented

problems

in

translation,

as

it

was

misinterpreted

to

mean“assembling” or “gathering together”. However, even if this phrase were
clearly understood, it would be difficult to find a concise equivalent in
Vietnamese; in fact, it would be difficult to re-state concisely in English. This
phrase is best dealt with by paraphrasing, which in English should read
something like, “summing up the problem by referring to it simply as number,
which does not reflect its true magnitude or impact”. The expression “to slip
into easy usage” is problematic for the same reasons, and is also best dealt with
by paraphrasing, as a direct translation into Vietnamese would nonsensical.
(Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation 1&2).
c. Strategy 3: How to deal with voice, number and person
VOICE: The passive voice is used very frequently in English and poses
some problems for translation from English into Vietnamese and vice versa in
the following ways:
(a)

- Vietnamese: (i) A được + động từ + (bởi B) (positive meaning)
A được/do + (B) + động từ
(ii) A bị + động từ + (bởi B) (negative meaning)
A bị + (B) + động từ
- English: A to be done (by B) = A be + V3/ed (by B)

For example: (1) Lily được Peter tặng một bó hoa.
= Lily is given a bunch of flowers by Peter.
(2) Tòa nhà này do ông Brown xây năm 1972.
= This building was built by Mr. Brown in 1972.
(3) Tony bị một kẻ say rượu đâm xe vào tối hôm qua.
= Tom was hit by a drunker last night.

16

(b)

- Vietnamese: (i) A được + động từ (positive meaning)

(ii) A bị + động từ (negative meaning)
(iii) Người ta/ai đó + động từ + A
- English:A to be done = A be + V3/ed or A has/have been + V3/ed
For example: (1) Tom mới được thăng chức gần đây.
= Tom has been promoted recently.
(2)

Cái bình hoa đã bị vỡ rồi, or
= Ai đó đã làm vỡ cái bình hoa rồi.
= The flower vase has been broken.
(Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation book 1&2)

The positive and negative connotation is often conveyed in English, it can
be difficult to know which verb to use in the Vietnamese.
For example: English: The students were assigned a lot of homework.
Vietnamese: “Các học sinh được giao rất nhiều bài tập về nhà.” or
“Các học sinh bị giao rất nhiều bài tập về nhà.”
(Nguyễn Thị Thu Hằng, Triệu Thu Hằng, 2014)
Depending on whether doing a lot of homework was considered a positive
or negative experience. On the other hand, when the positive or negative
connotation of the sentence is clear, it is more appropriate to retain the passive
voice in the Vietnamese.
For example:

English: He does not like to be called a bookworm, he prefers to be called
a learned man.
Vietnamese: Anh ấy không thích bị gọi là con mọt sách, anh ấy thích
được gọi là một học giả hơn.
Note: In Vietnamese, there are some cases where you see the word bị/được, but
there are not passive sentences in English at all.
(Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation book 1&2)
For example:
- Anh ấy bị ngã = He falls.


17

- Chị Lan bị ho = Lan has a cough.
- Hôm nay chúng ta được đánh chén no nê.
= We have an enormous and fantastic meal today.
(Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation book 1&2)
NUMBER: Through both languages have similar notions of number and
countability, each language expresses this in very different ways. In Vietnamese,
number is often not expressed at all. In English, number is expressed as a
grammatical category, that is, there are different grammatical forms for the
singular and plural nouns. In Vietnamese, however, no such distinction is made
grammatically. For example, “Phụ huynh” can mean either Parent or parents. In
Vietnamese, some plural makers such as “các”, “những”, “tất cả”, “mọi”,
“mỗi”… can be used in addition to the noun. “Các” generally means all of a
given category of thing, whereas “những” refers only to some of the total
number of the things being discussed. “Mỗi” emphasizes the identity of the
individual members of the category without connoting anything of their totality,
while “mọi” expresses both individuality of the items and the totality of the
category. If it is clear from the English context which of these plural markets

should be used in the Vietnamese, then the translator should choose accordingly.
Note: some words that can be countable in Vietnamese but are uncountable
in English. For example: information, equipment, furniture, potential, advice …
PERSON: Participants roles and forms of address are expressed in
Vietnamese through a very complicated system of personal pronouns based
largely on kinship (mối quan hệ họ hàng) terms. Unlike their distinctions,
depending on relationship within the family, familiarity, social status, and even
one’s particular mood or attitude in a given situation. These distinctions are not
always clear in English and can usually be determined by the context, if at all. If
it is not possible to determine the distinctions of the English pronouns, the
decision should be based on consideration of tone and overall purpose of the
document.


18

For example: A manual on health care contains sections written
specifically for children and adults. In the section for children, “you” should be
translated as “chúng ta”, which is the inclusive “we” – that is, the speaker is
including the listener in a group with him/herself. And in different contexts,
“we” can be translated as “chúng tôi” meaning “other people and I, but not
you” or “chúng ta” meaning “you and I”.
(Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation book 1&2)
Note: In English, age is often not important in the addressing system. And
there is no distinction between the relatives of mother’s side or father’s side.
Hai anh em = two brothers
Hai chị em = two sisters
Chú, bác = uncle
Cô, dì, bác gái = aunt
d. Strategy 4: How to deal with proper names

Geographical terms: either translated into another word in English or
translated phonologically (“s”becomes “x”) or remained unchanged.
Example:
- Phi-lip-pin = The Philippines
- Vương quốc = Kingdom
- Singapore or Xingapo = Singapore
- Liên bang, Liên hiệp, Khối thịnh vượng = Common wealth
- Bỉ = Belgium
- Xã hội chủ nghĩa = Socialist
- Campuchia = Cambodia
Names of organizations: Translation from Vietnamese into English:
often using the reverse order or adjective + noun or noun +preposition + noun.
“Bộ”, “Sở” = Ministry of …, Department of …
“Ngân hàng” = Bank for …, or Adjective + Bank
“Tổng công ty” = Corporation
Example:


19

Ngân hàng phục vụ người nghèo = Bank for the poor
Ngân hàng nhà nướcViệt Nam = The State Bank of Viet Nam
Bộ thông tin và truyền thông = Ministry of Information and
Communications
Đài Truyền hình Việt Nam = Vietnam Television
Viện Khoa học và Công nghệ Việt Nam = Viet Nam Academy of Science
and Technology
Văn phòng Chủ tịch nước = Office of the President
e. Strategy 5: How to deal with non-subject sentences
In Vietnamese-written passages, some non-subject sentences are often

come across. In this case, the following techniques of translation can be used:
1. Passive voice
2. It to be + adjective + to do something
3. There is/are …
4. Ving (s) + V + O
5. Put in the real subject that is often found in the previous sentence(s).
Example:
-

Cần triển khai những chiến lược phát triển toàn diện.

= Comprehensive development schemes should be implemented.
Or: It is necessary to implement comprehensive development schemes.
-

Vẫn chưa có cách chữa trị bệnh ung thư.

= There has been no cure for cancer.
(Nguyen Van Tuan, 2006, Translation book 1&2)
1.1.3. Factors affecting translation process
1.1.3.1. Linguistic Aspects
According to Mildred (1984) and Le Phuong Lan (2006), characteristics of
language, grammatical features and lexical features can affect translation
process.
Firstly, the translators can get both advantages and disadvantages from the
positive and negative transfer from their mother tongue. During the process of