ABSTRACT
A translated text is made on the basis of a translator’s understanding of another text, which is usually immediately present while the translator is translating. Often, the purpose of translating is to convey at least some of what is conveyed by this immediately present text which will therefore both exercise a major influence on the translation and be evident in it (to people who have access to both texts). In other words, there is usually an expectation of strong semantic similarity between a text and its translation. The standard expectation with regard to the languages involved is, however, the opposite – that there will not be evidence of the language of the source text in the translation; such evidence is described using the pejorative terms, ‘false friends’1 and ‘translationese’.2 But insofar (and it is very far) as linguistic formalities contribute to meaning they must nevertheless be respectfully considered and dealt with in translating.
