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Errors in Arabic-English Translation of Documents from the Department of Lands and Survey in Jordan

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Abstract

This study seeks to explore the major errors that frequently emerge when novice translators translate technical texts, namely legal documents released by the Department of Lands and Survey in Jordan. The goal behind this investigation is to improve legal translation training, develop students’ drafts based on the types of their mistakes, and deliver a message to curricula designers in the field of legal translation. To this end, 20 Jordanian novice translators (MA students) are chosen from two private universities to translate three legal documents from Arabic into English. The main findings revealed that different problems emerged, namely the participants’ inability to translate near-synonym technical terms, grammatical problems, and stylistic problems at both lexical level and sentence level. These findings are hoped to be insightful for both learners and teachers. A number of pedagogical recommendations are proposed by the researchers to develop learners’ competence and reach a professional level and open the venue for trainers to achieve advances in the quality of the target text and in the translation teaching–learning process.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan

    Jihad Youcef, Mohd Nour Al Salem & Marwan Jarrah

Authors
  1. Jihad Youcef
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  2. Mohd Nour Al Salem
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  3. Marwan Jarrah
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Correspondence to Mohd Nour Al Salem.

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Appendices

Appendix 1: Document One in Arabic

figure i

Appendix 2: Document Two in Arabic

figure j

Appendix 3: Document Three in Arabic

figure k

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Youcef, J., Al Salem, M.N. & Jarrah, M. Errors in Arabic-English Translation of Documents from the Department of Lands and Survey in Jordan. Int J Semiot Law 37, 217–241 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11196-023-10058-3

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