ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the development of usability concepts and, in particular, the relationship between the user and the reader, which is a more familiar concept in translation studies. User-centered translation is a new term, but the idea of taking users and readers into account is not a novelty in translation studies. Communication aspects are brought to the forefront in functional translation theories, where the focus shifts from the source text to the purpose of the translation. In functional theories, the guiding principle of the translator's work is the function and task of the translation, known by its Greek name, skopos. Skopos theory is indeed a theory of action, and the translation is seen as one potential outcome of translatorial action. The heritage of Eugene A. Nida, as well as of various other translation theories, provide a solid foundation for our explorations of usability research and a rich soil in which to plant our ideas of user-centered translation.
