Các phương pháp dịch tên riêng trong văn học thiếu nhi nghiên cứu so sánh hai bản dịch tiếng việt bảy truyện ngắn của beatrix potter

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

GRADUATION PAPER

STRATEGIES FOR TRANSLATING PROPER NAMES
IN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE:
A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF
TWO VIETNAMESE TRANSLATIONS OF
BEATRIX POTTER’S SEVEN SHORT STORIES

Supervisor: Ngô Hà Thu, MCS
Student: Ngô Đỗ Trâm Anh
Course: QH2011.F1.E20

HÀ NỘI – 2015


ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI
TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ
KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH

KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP

CÁC PHƯƠNG PHÁP DỊCH TÊN RIÊNG
TRONG VĂN HỌC THIẾU NHI:
NGHIÊN CỨU SO SÁNH HAI BẢN DỊCH TIẾNG VIỆT
BẢY TRUYỆN NGẮN CỦA BEATRIX POTTER

Giáo viên hướng dẫn: Ngô Hà Thu, MCS

Sinh viên: Ngô Đỗ Trâm Anh
Khóa: QH2011.F1.E20

HÀ NỘI – 2015


I hereby state that I: Ngo Do Tram Anh, QH2011.F1.E20, being a candidate for the
degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the College relating to
the retention and use of Bachelor’s Graduation Paper deposited in the library.
In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the
library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance
with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or
reproduction of the paper.

Signature

Date


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I owe the success of this paper to the following people without whom this study
could not have been finished.
Firstly, I wish to express my sincerest gratitude to my supervisor, Ms. Ngô Hà
Thu, for her invaluable help, insightful guidance and supportive encouragement
throughout the study and beyond.
I would also like to take this chance to extend my appreciation to those who
carefully responded to my questionnaires and actively participated in my interviews.
Lastly, I am incredibly thankful for the support and motivation from my family
and friends throughout the four years of tertiary education as well as their help and

encouragement during the time I conducted this graduation paper.

i


ABSTRACT

Translation with its expanded role as a means of communication has attracted
translators’ and researchers’ attention and spurred numerous debates about the optimal
translation strategies for various components of language, one of which is characters’
names in imaginative literature, especially children’s literature, as they contain
implications about features or fates of the characters. Nonetheless, seldom have those
studies evaluated the translation strategies or provided a guideline on when or for whom
to use what strategy. Also, the previous findings cannot be generalized since the
effectiveness of a translation strategy may vary according to time and geographical areas.
Furthermore, many strategies proposed cannot be employed to translate from English into
Vietnamese. Thus, it is important to conduct a study to figure out the optimum strategies
by investigating the reception of Vietnamese readers of various ages and levels of foreign
language proficiency towards strategies employed to translate proper names. The
research used two Vietnamese translations of Beatrix Potter’s seven children’s classics by
two translators, Ly Lan and Ngo Ha Thu, as case studies. By reading and analyzing
documents, administering questionnaires to 239 participants and carrying out interviews
with some participants, the study found that older readers and readers whose level of
foreign language proficiency is higher are generally in more higher favor of the
foreignization and the semantic adequacy of the translated names. On the other hand,
younger people and people with lower foreign language proficiency level, including most
children, prefer domestication, i.e. phonologically appealing, memorable and readable
names. Therefore, in order to guarantee children an exhilarating reading experience, the
translator should use strategies such as phonological replacement and substitution, which
can be combined with rendition and translation of connotation(s) if a name has semantic

or semiotic meaning or connotation(s). Concurrently, with a view to motivating children
to learn foreign languages and cultures, original names should be put in footnotes.

ii


TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................. i
ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................... ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS................................................................................................ iii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................................... vi
LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................ vii
LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................... viii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................... 1
1.1. Statement of the problem ...................................................................................... 1
1.2. Research objectives and research questions ........................................................... 4
1.3. Significance of the study ....................................................................................... 5
1.4. Methods of the study ............................................................................................. 5
1.5. Scope of the study ................................................................................................. 6
1.6. Overview of the study ........................................................................................... 6
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .......................................................................... 7
2.1. Translation ............................................................................................................ 7
2.1.1. Definition ....................................................................................................... 7
2.1.2. Translation process ........................................................................................ 8
2.1.3. Translation strategies ..................................................................................... 8
2.2. Readership ........................................................................................................ 109
2.2.1. Definition ................................................................................................... 109
2.2.2. The impact of readership on translation ........................................................ 10

iii


2.3. Children’s literature ........................................................................................ 1110
2.3.1. Definition of children’s literature and its characteristics ........................... 1110
2.3.2. Readership of children’s literature ................................................................ 12
2.4. Proper names in children’s literature ................................................................... 12
2.4.1. Definition of literary proper names............................................................... 12
2.4.2. Types of literary proper names and their characteristics ............................... 13
2.4.3. Characteristics of proper names in children’s literature ............................ 1615
2.4.4. Translation of literary proper names ............................................................. 16
2.4.5. Translation of proper names in children’s literature .................................. 2019
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ................................................................................. 22
3.1. Research subjects ................................................................................................ 22
3.2. Participants ......................................................................................................... 23
3.3. Research instruments .......................................................................................... 25
3.3.1. Research Question 1 ..................................................................................... 25
3.3.2. Research Questions 2 and 3 .......................................................................... 25
3.4. Data collection procedures .................................................................................. 26
3.5. Data analysis methods ......................................................................................... 27
3.5.1. Quantitative data analysis ............................................................................. 27
3.5.2. Qualitative data analysis ............................................................................... 27
3.6. Data analysis procedures ..................................................................................... 27
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ............................................................ 28
4.1. Research Question 1: What are the strategies used by the two translators (Ly Lan
and Ngo Ha Thu) to translate proper names in Beatrix Potter’s seven short stories into
Vietnamese? .............................................................................................................. 28

iv

4.2. Research Question 2: Which translated version is more favored by each group of
readers of different ages and levels of foreign language proficiency? What are the
possible reasons? ....................................................................................................... 33
4.3. Research Question 3: Which strategies are the most effective for translating proper
names in Beatrix Potter’s seven short stories? ............................................................ 41
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION................................................................................... 4443
5.1. Summary of findings ....................................................................................... 4443
5.2. Limitations of the study and suggestions for further research .......................... 4544
REFERENCES .......................................................................................................... 4746
APPENDICES ........................................................................................................... 5953
Appendix 1: Proper names in Beatrix Potter’s seven stories by categories; Ly Lan and
Ngo Ha Thu’s translations and translation strategies .............................................. 5953
Appendix 2: Classification of names according to translation strategies ..................... 60
Appendix 3: Questionnaire (in English) ..................................................................... 64
Appendix 4: Questionnaire (in Vietnamese)............................................................... 67
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................. i

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Number

Abbreviations

Meanings

1

SL

Source language

2

TL

Target language

3

ST

Source text

4

TT

Target text

vi


LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Strengths of nine translation strategies .................................................. 39
Table 2. Proper names in Beatrix Potter’s seven stories by categories; Ly Lan and
Ngo Ha Thu’s translations and translation strategies ........................................... 54
Table 3. Group 1 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 60
Table 4. Group 2 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 61
Table 5. Group 3 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 61
Table 6. Group 4 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 61
Table 7. Group 5 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 62
Table 8. Group 6 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 62
Table 9. Group 7 of names categorized according to translation strategies .......... 63
Table 1. Strengths of nine translation strategies .................................................. 39

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Groups of participants .......................................................................... 23
Figure 2. Translation strategies used to translate three types of names by Ly Lan
and Ngo Ha Thu ................................................................................................. 29
Figure 3. Translation strategies used to translate three types of names by Ly Lan
and Ngo Ha Thu ................................................................................................. 31
Figure 4. Translation strategies employed by Ly Lan and Ngo Ha Thu ............... 32
Figure 5. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 1 .......................... 33
Figure 6. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 2 .......................... 35
Figure 7. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 3 .......................... 35

Figure 8. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 4 .......................... 36
Figure 9. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 5 .......................... 37
Figure 10. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 6 ........................ 37
Figure 11. Readers' preferences for translated names in Group 7 ........................ 38
Figure 1. Groups of participants .......................................................................... 23

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

The first chapter states the rationale for the study, identifies the objectives
together with research questions as the guidelines for the whole research,
the significance, methods, scope and outline of the paper.

1.1. Statement of the problem
The growing importance of translation as a means of communication in the
globalized world has provoked numerous debates about the superior strategies for
translating multiple components of language. Among those components, proper
names areis one of those that are rarely viewed as a meaningful and functional unit
of language; thus, they do not require translation. This view has been shared not
only by laymen but also by experts like Mill (1959, p. 20), who wrote that “proper
names are not connotative” and are “unmeaning mark[s]”. Vendler (1971) also
stated that “proper names have no meaning” besides identifying meaning, and
hence, do not need to be translated (p. 117). This view is actually true for most
proper names in real life, which are usually transferred or naturalized into TL.
However, many other linguists have put forward the opposite view,

especially when it comes to proper names in imaginative literature such as short
stories, novels or jokes. Jespersen (192475, pp. 65-66) said that proper names, like
common nouns, have certain attributes. Searle (1975) pointed out that proper
names have senses (p. 139). This view is more likely to be applicable to literary
names because most writers do put effort into giving their characters memorable
names as a name is what creates the very first impression about of a character.
Rowling said in an interview that she loved names: “I collect them. […] If I hear a
good name, I have got to write it down. And it will probably crop up somewhere”

1

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(2000). Tolkien (1975) even wrote “Guide to the Names in The Lord of the Rings”
(1975) to serve as a handy tool for translators to translate proper names in his
book. Thus, it should be the job of a translator to render literary proper names
adequately. As a result, quite a few studies have been conducted to address the
problem of translating proper names. Newmark (1988) suggested that names that
have connotations should first be translated into TL and then naturalized into a
new SL proper name (p. 215). Nevertheless, this strategy can only be used to
translate names when SL and TL are cognate with each other such as English and
French or Dutch and German. Meanwhile, Nida (1964) proposed three solutions to
translating proper names, namely, (1) adapting the sound of SL names to TL, (2)
borrowing the orthographic form of SL names and (3) “compromising”, i.e.
familiar names should have the written form and pronunciation of TL and
unfamiliar names should be naturalized (p. 194).
Many other researchers such as Davies (2003), Fernandes (2006), Coillie
and Verschueren (2006) partly based themselves on Newmark (1988)’s theory of
translation procedures to coin their own sets of strategies and to figure out the

most dominant ones. Nonetheless, rarely have these studies provided an
assessment of the effectiveness and suitability of those strategies in producing
adequate translation of literary proper names or stated any general rule on when or
for whom to use what strategy. Moreover, even though some of them did so, the
body of research remains inconsistent as the success of a strategy for translating
proper names may vary according to periods of time and geographical areas. As a
consequence, the results of previous studies cannot be generalized. Therefore, it is
necessary to conduct a research to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies used
to translate proper names in children’ literature based on the reception of
contemporary Vietnamese readers of various ages and levels of foreign language
proficiency.

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The thesis will only examine literary proper names in children’s literature
for two main reasons. Firstly, characters’ names in children’s literature are usually
meaningful and related to the characteristics of the characters because unlike most
names in everyday life, literary names actually carry the authors’ implications
about some features or fates of the characters (Garcés, 2003, p. 122; Fernandes,
2006, p. 46). Some examples are Dark Lord in Tolkien’s The Lord of the Ringss
(Tolkien, 1954), Piglet (young pig ) in Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh (Milne, 1926),
Mr. and Mrs. Beaver in Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Lewis,
1950) and Wormtail in Rowling’s Harry Potter series (Rowling, 1999). Secondly,
stories for children can be around for centuries and are still enjoyed by children all
over the world. Although the plots of many children’s books probably never get
old, the language, especially in the translated version, does as languages change
constantly and readers’ preference changes with time, with age, with the people
and the events they encounter on a daily basis. Hence, it is necessary to carry out a
research to investigate the preference of the contemporary readership regarding

translated proper names in children’s literature.
The researcher uses two translations of Beatrix Potter’s seven short stories
(The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902), The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin (1903), The Tale of
Benjamin Bunny (1904), The Tale of Jeremy Fisher (1906), The Tale of Tom
Kitten (1907), The Tale of Jemima Puddle Duck (1908), The Tale of Samuel
Whiskers (1908)) of two translators Ly Lan and Ngo Ha Thu as the case. The
reason for this choice is that Beatrix Potter’s stories are considered children’s
classics. Additionally, they contain names that are typical of children’s literature
such as Cotton-tail, Nutkin, Jack Sharp, Old Brown, etc. These names have
meaning in English and describe important attributes of the characters. Therefore,
careful attention needs to be paid to the translation of these proper names. In order
to investigate readers’ response to the translated proper names, the researcher
chooses two translations so that comparison and contrast can be made. Since most

3


of the names present in the stories are characters’ names, the concern of this thesis
is

limited

to

names

of

animate

beings

(e.g.

people,

personified

animals/objects/etc., fictional creatures, etc.).
All of the aforementioned rationales have heightened the need for a study
on “Strategies for Translating Proper Names in Children’s Literature: A
Comparative Study of Two Vietnamese Translations of Beatrix Potter’s
Seven Short Stories”.
1.2. Research objectives and research questions
The thesis is expected to work out a variety of strategies used by two
translators, namely Ly Lan and Ngo Ha Thu, to translate proper names in Beatrix
Potter’s seven short stories (The Tale of Peter Rabbit (1902), The Tale of Squirrel
Nutkin (1903), The Tale of Benjamin Bunny (1904), The Tale of Jeremy Fisher
(1906), The Tale of Tom Kitten (1907), The Tale of Jemima Puddle Duck (1908),
The Tale of Samuel Whiskers (1908)). Subsequently, the researcher will identify
the strengths and weaknesses of each strategy for translating proper names
perceived by readers of various ages and foreign language, English in this case,
proficiency levels. Conclusions about the optimum translationng strategies for
readers of different ages and levels of foreign language proficiency can then
hopefully be made.
To achieve the aforementioned objectives, the thesis attempts to answer the
three following questions:
1. What are the strategies used by the two translators (Ly Lan and Ngo Ha Thu)
to translate proper names in Beatrix Potter’s seven short stories into
Vietnamese?

2. Which translated version is more favored by each group of readers of different
ages and levels of foreign language proficiency? What are the possible
reasons?
4


3. Which strategies are the most effective for translating proper names in Beatrix
Potter’s seven short stories from the perspectives of the sampled readers?
1.3. Significance of the study
Firstly, by compiling and assessing strategies used to render proper names
in Beatrix Potter’s seven short stories from English into Vietnamese as well as
suggesting the most effective strategies based on readers’ reception, the researcher
will draw out implications about the strategies for translating proper names in
children’ literature that satisfy readers of a variety of ages and foreign language
proficiency levels and thence hopefully bring about more enjoyable reading
experience for Vietnamese readers. As Vietnamese readers at different ages and
levels of foreign language proficiency will be investigated, the researcher will also
be able to figure out some characteristics and preferences of contemporary
Vietnamese readers.
Secondly, the thesis can be useful for students and translators who have to
deal with literary proper names. This research can at least inform them of the
appropriate translationng strategies favored by Vietnamese readership.
Thirdly, this study can also serve as a source for future researchers to refer
to when they investigate related issues. This thesis by no means aims to make any
generalizations about any translating issues. However, it is hoped to contribute to
the existing body of research on the translation of proper names in particular and
on translation in general.
1.4. Methods of the study
The researcher used both quantitative and qualitative methods to collect
data for the research. After document reading and analysis had beenwere used to

answer the first research question, a survey using questionnaires and semistructured interviews was conducted with the sampled readers to find the answers

5


to the second and third research questions. The data gathered were subsequently
processed to draw out findings and implications.
1.5. Scope of the study
This study examineds strategies used to translate proper names in children’s
literature, using two translations of Beatrix Potter’s seven short stories as the
cases. The evaluation of the effectiveness of each strategy wasis based on the
response of Vietnamese readers to each strategy. The sample of the research wasis
limited to 239160 people, who weare divided into eight groups of different ages
and foreign language proficiency levels.
1.6. Overview of the study
The thesis has five chapters:
Chapter 1: Introduction states the rationale, objectives, significance, methods,
scope and overview of the study.
Chapter 2: Literature review lays the theoretical foundation for the research by
defining and discussing key terms and frameworks.
Chapter 3: Methodology describes in detail the data collection and data analysis
methods and procedures the thesis adopts.
Chapter 4: Findings and Ddiscussions answers the three research questions to
figure out the strategies used by two translators to translate proper names seven
short stories of Beatrix Potter and then point out the strengths and weaknesses of
each strategy as well as make suggestion regarding the optimum strategies as
perceived by Vietnamese readers of different ages and foreign language
proficiency levels.
Chapter 5: Conclusion summarizes the main points of the study, points out the
limitations and makes suggestions for further studies.

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter found the theoretical bases for the whole research by
critically reviewing literature about translation, readership, children’s
literature, proper names in children’s literature and their translation.

2.1. Translation
2.1.1. Definition
Since translation studies officially became an academic subject sixty years
ago, the term “translation” has been given various definitions by different
scholars. It can be used to refer to the subject, the product or the process. The
process of translation, according to Newmark (1988, p. 5), involves “rendering the
meaning of a text into another language in the way that the author intended the
text.” This definition corresponds to Jakobson (2000)’s concept of “interlingual
translation” (p. 114). Newmark (1981, p. 8) also defined translation as “a craft”,
indicating that translation is a complicated process that requires translators to have
enough skills to take into account various factors, such as the context, rules of the
two languages, intention and writing style of writers (1981, p. 15). Meanwhile,
according to Nida and Taber (1969), “translation is reproducing in the target
language the closest natural equivalent of the message of the source language” (p.
12). However, concerning this task of translation, there is a contrasting opinion
proposed by Mounin (1963, p. 24) that it iwas impossible to reproduce the original
text and even affirmed that “the only pity about a translation is that it is not the
original”. This implied that even though translation could be a bridge to bring
readers closer to the ST and source culture, it is not an ideal process.

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To sum up, there has not been any universal definition of translation.
Nonetheless, this research adopts the viewpoint of Newmark (1981, 1988) because
it concentrates on analyzing and evaluating the translating strategies that are
chosen when translators have specific intention and intended audience in mind,
which is suitable for the goals of the thesis.
2.1.2. Translation process
In order to identify the contributing factors to strategy selection, the
researcher bases her analysis on Nida (1964)’s three-stage process of translation
since “Nida and Taber’s own description of the process emphasizes the ‘scientific
and practical’ advantages of this method compared to any attempt to draw up a
fully comprehensive list of equivalences between specific pairs of SL and TL
systems” (Munday, 2001, p.39):
-

Analyzing the surface structure of the ST into the basic elements of the deep
structure (analysis of the ST);

-

Transferring the basic elements of the deep structure from the SL source
language to the TL target language;

-

Restructuring the target language semantically and stylistically into the surface
structure of the TT.
(cited in Munday, 2001, p. 39)
2.1.3. Translation strategies
The growing importance of translation as a means of communication in the

globalized world has provoked numerous debates about what the superior
translating strategy is. The debates take place not only among different translators
but also within each translator’s mind. For centuries, these debates had stayed
mostly in the realm of linguistics. However, approximately after the 1970s, when
theorists-translators such as Lefevere, Simon and Venuti went beyond language

8


and focused on “the larger issues of context, history and convention” (eds Bassnett
& Lefevere, 1990, p. 11), a “cultural turn” (Snell-Hornby, 1995) was observed. In
this “cultural turn”, besides theorists- translators who were concerned about the
power relations in the postcolonial world, Venuti emerged as one of advocates of
the role of the translator at “the interface between the source culture and the
foreign” (Munday, 2001, p. 144). This role is closely associated with Venuti’s
theory of domestication and foreignization, which deals with the impact of cultural
and ideological difference on translation. While some translators prefer
domestication (e.g. Nida and his concept of dynamic equivalence “[aiming] at
complete naturalness of expression, and [trying] to relate the receptor to modes of
behavior relevant within the context of his own culture” (Nida, 1964, p. 159),
others, among whom Venuti is a typical example, are in favor of foreignization, a
style he defined as “a non-fluent and estranging translation style designed to make

visible the presence of the translator by highlighting the foreign identity of the ST
and protecting it from the ideological dominance of the target culture” (cited
1995in Munday 2001, pp. 30145-306). The concepts of domestication and
foreignization, though termed differently, have been discussed by many scholars
such as Schleiermacher, Nida and Venuti. According to Venuti (1995),
domestication is a strategy adopting a “transparent, fluent and ‘invisible’ style in
order to minimize the foreignness of the TT” (cited in Munday 2001, p. 146). In
this way, the writer and the foreign culture are brought towards the reader. In
contrast, foreignization “[signifies] the linguistic and cultural difference of the
foreign text” (Venuti, 1995, p. 23). In other words, this translating strategy takes
the reader abroad. Domestication and foreignization can be realized by multiple
translation procedures. They are not mutually exclusive, i.e. the realization of one
does is not the negation of the other. They are two ends of a spectrum.

9


2.2. Readership
2.2.1. Definition
Readership is a group of readers that a text is aimed at. According to
Newmark (1988, p. 15), three types of reader are expert, the educated layman and
the uninformed. Readers are categorized based on their interest in the topic of the
text, their knowledge of the problem and culture as well as their language
proficiency and preference.
2.2.2. The impact of readership on translation
Nida (1964) underlined the importance of readership when discussing
dynamic equivalence. A translated text must meet the receptor’s “linguistic needs
and cultural expectation” (Nida, 1964, cited in Munday, 2001, p. 42). Therefore,
the ultimate goal of dynamic equivalence is to achieve “the closest natural
equivalence to the source-language message” (Nida, 1964, p. 166) so that the

translation can produce an effect on TL readers as similar as possible to the effect
that the original version has on SL receptors. Nida’s dynamic equivalence (1964,
p. 166) resembles Newmark’s communicative translation (1988, p. 41) or Nord’s
instrumental translation type (2005, p. 81), which is also a TL receptor-oriented
approach. A comprehensive understanding of the target readership can assist
translators greatly in choosing suitable translating strategies (Reiss & Vermeer,
1984, p. 101). Based on the topic of and the language employed in the original, a
translator can define the readership of the original and the translation (Newmark,
1988, p. 13). A group of readership can be characterized by age, education,
culture, interest, knowledge, of certain subjects, etc. These features can serve as
bases for translators to make decisions regarding “the degree of formality,
generality and emotional tone” of the translation (Newmark, 1988, p. 13).
Newmark (1988, p. 13) suggesteds that a text normally aims at “an educated,

10


middle-class readership in an informal, not colloquial style.” Generally, a
translator needs to identify his or her readership before translating.
2.3. Children’s literature
2.3.1. Definition of children’s literature and its characteristics
There cannot be a single definition of children’s literature since “works of
literature and whole literary genres acquire different meanings and are redefined
again and again. It might, therefore, well be that “today’s adults’ literature is
tomorrow’s children’s literature” (Oittinen, 1993, p. 42). Therefore, Čeňková
(2006, cited in Olexová, 2009, p. 10) pointed out that there are two main types of
children’s literature: intentional literature, which is directed at children by the
writer such The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Winnie the Pooh, and unintentional
literature, which is previously literature for adults such as Robin Hood, Robinson
Crusoe or Gulliver’s travels.

Most researchers defined children’s literature by taking into account the
recipients. Puurtinen (2006) regarded children’s literature as fiction that is aimed
at readership ranging from infants to teenagers (p. 314). Oittinen (2006) also
offered a similar definition that children’s literature is all pieces of writing
“produced and intended for children and it is also literature read by children” (p.
35). As this research bases on readers’ reception of the translation to achieve its
objectives, the researcher adopts a recipient-oriented definition, which is a
combination of Puurtinen’s and Oittinen’s definitions: Children’s literature is all
pieces of writing produced and intended for readership ranging from infants to
teenagers.
Children’s literature usually functions as a source of moral lessons, of
knowledge and a tool for developing language skills (Puurtinen, 2006, p. 314). In
order to fulfill this function, children’s literature, according to McDowell
possesses the following characteristics:

11


Children’s books are usually shorter, they tend to favor an active rather than a
passive treatment, with dialogue and incident rather than description and
introspection; child protagonists are the rule; conventions are much used; the
story develops within a clear-cut moral schematism [...] Children’s books tend to
be optimistic rather than depressive; language is child-oriented; plots are of a
distinctive order; probability is often discarded; and one could go on endlessly
talking of magic, fantasy, simplicity, and adventure. (1973, p. 51)

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2.3.2. Readership of children’s literature
Children are obviously not the only audience of children’s books. As many

adults as children enjoy reading literature aimed at children, especially fantasy
novels or adventure novels such as Colfer’s Artemis Fowl, Carroll’s Alice’s
Adventure in Wonderland or Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia. Children’s books
can also be read to children by adults. Therefore, children’s literature hasve dual
readership of children and adults. Nevertheless, the child-readers should be
considered the primary audience and the adult-readers the secondary audience
only. Another noteworthy point is that children do not form a homogeneous group
as the term “children” refers to all children of various ages, abilities, preferences,
cultures, experiences, and so forth. Hence,
[w]e can’t speak about the child as a singular entity – class, ethnic origin, gender,
geopolitical location and economic circumstances are all elements that create
differences between real children in real places – and […] children are
constructed very differently in different parts of the world. (Hunt, 2004, p. 19)

Therefore, child readers can be considered experts, educated laymen or the
uninformed depending on their age, culture, experience, knowledge, interest, etc.
2.4. Proper names in children’s literature
2.4.1. Definition of literary proper names
According to Quirk and Greenbaum (1973), proper names are names of
“specific people, places, countries, months, days, holidays, magazines, and so
forth” and have unique reference (p. 76). They are written in initial capital letter.
Their main function is to identify a person, an animal, a place, etc. (Nord, 2003, p.
183). Though proper names are usually used interchangeably with proper nouns,
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they are not to be confused as unlike a proper noun, a proper name can be an

adjective such as Fluffy in Rowling’s Harry Potter series(Rowling, 1997), Lumpy
in Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh(Milne, 1926), a noun phrase like Hungarian Horntail
in Rowling’s Harry Potter series(Rowling, 2000), Fatty Lumpkin in Tolkien’s The
Lord of the Rings(Tolkien, 1954), and so forth. Literary proper names are names
found in literary works such as novels, poems and short stories. In fictitious works,
proper names are “dense signifiers” because they contain “clues about the destiny
of a character or indicatations of the way the storyline may develop” (Fernandes,
2006, p. 46). As the focus of this research is on proper names of animate beings
only, from this point onward, name/ proper name refers to proper name of animate
beings.
2.4.2. Types of literary proper names and their characteristics
Many attempts have been made to classify proper names. Gardiner (1940)
categorized proper names into two types, namely composite proper names and
compound proper names. Composite proper names are full names, including first
name and surname. Meanwhile, a compound proper name often includes an
adjective or a common noun. Some examples are Nearly Headless Nick in
Rowling’s Harry Potter series(Rowling, 1997), Jeremy Fisher (Potter, 1906),
Marigold in Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings(Tolkien, 1954), etc. However, this
classification is not specific enough for the purpose of examining names in literary
works.
Whereas, Ainiala et al. (2008, cited in Mäkinen, 2010, p. 30) divided
literary proper names more specifically into four types: (1) Authentic names which
are common names used in the real life, (2) realistic but unauthentic names which
are names for imaginative things but can be used in the real world, (3) artificial
names which are invented by the author to refer to fictional things and are not used
in the real world as names, and (4) borrowed names which are taken from other

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fictional works and does not exist in the real world’s onomastic lexicon. The
drawback of this categorization is that it did not mention the semantic,
phonological, orthographic or semiotic features of each type, which are the main
concern of translators. Hence, this classification is not suitable for a study
concerning the translation of proper names.
Meanwhile, Bertills (2003, p. 45) mentioned three categories of literary
proper names: conventional personal names, invented names (or coined names)
and classic names. The first type consists of names that “belong to the general
anthroponymy” and do not suggest any characteristics of the name-bearers such as
Alice, Peter and Harry. The second type includes those names that are “formed or
invented for the purpose of a certain narrative context”. These names are used to
describe some features of characters; thus, they have explicit semantic meaning.
Little Red Riding Hood, Squealer in (Orwell’s Animal Farm, 1945), Flesh-Eating
Slug in Rowling’s Harry Potter series(Rowling, 1998), etc. are some examples.
Bertills (2003) also distinguished between invented names and imaginary names
(p. 45); and the latter have no obvious semantic meaning. Nevertheless, detecting
the semantic meaning of a literary name is no easy task as “[s]emantic ambiguity
in invented names of literary characters is more a rule than an exception” (Bertills,
2003, p. 162). As a result, literary proper names form one of the major sources of
challenge for any translator working with literary works. The third type of proper
name proposed by Bertills can also be referred to as historical, universal or
literary names. The character is named after a historical figure or a fictitious
character that has already established some kind of connotation in people’s minds.
Names of this type are neither conventional nor loaded with any semantic
meaning.
From the perspective of a translator, names can be classified into two
categories: conventional names, which are considered unmotivated for translation,
and loaded names, which are motivated for translation (Hermans, 1988, p. 88).
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