ABSTRACT
This study investigates the use of glossing in translated and original scientific texts in Arabic and the factors that motivate this use, given existing knowledge and linguistic gaps between Arabic and English. The form of glossing investigated is the insertion of foreign terms next to their target text counterparts. The study draws on a corpus of 10 translated and 15 original research articles taken from three publications. Statistical analysis of the occurrence of glossing was conducted, taking into consideration variables such as the types of glossed expressions, the ratios of glossed expressions to the total number of words in each text and the recurrence of the same gloss in each text. Results show that glosses of source language scientific terms are used frequently in translated and original texts in the corpus, although the ratios are smaller in original texts than in translated texts. Historical, educational, linguistic and practical factors that could explain such usage in original writings are discussed.
