Tutor: Dr.

Lazhar Sadoki

Level: Third YEAR

Domestication and Foreignization

DOMESTICATION VS FOREIGNIZATION IN TRANSLATION

Dear Students,

Today we're going to learn about two important ways to translate texts: Domestication and
Foreignization. Think of these as two different cooking styles - one adapts the recipe to local
tastes, while the other keeps the original exotic flavors!

1. DOMESTICATION (Making it Feel Local)

Definition: Changing the text to feel familiar to readers in your target language.

Simple Example:

- English: "It's a piece of cake!"

- Arabic: "‫( "سهل كشرب الماء‬Easy like drinking water)

Notice how we changed the "cake" to "water" because it's more common in Arabic culture!

More Examples:

1. English: "White as snow"

Arabic: "‫( "أبيض كالقطن‬White as cotton)

Why? Because snow isn't common in many Arabic-speaking regions!

2. English: "Break a leg!"

Arabic: "‫( "بالتوفيق‬Good luck)

Why? Because the English idiom wouldn't make sense if translated literally.

2. FOREIGNIZATION (Keeping it Foreign)

Definition: Keeping the original cultural elements, even if they seem unusual to your readers.

Examples:

1. English: "Big Ben"

Arabic: "‫"بيج بن‬

Why? We keep the name because it's a famous landmark.

2. English: "Fish and Chips"

Arabic: "‫"فيش آند تشيبس‬

Why? We keep it to preserve the British cultural reference.

✍️PRACTICE EXERCISES FOR STUDENTS:

Exercise 1: Choose Your Strategy

For each phrase, decide whether you would use domestication or foreignization, and explain
why:

1. "Santa Claus is coming to town"

2. "Harvard University"

3. "He drinks his tea with milk"

4. "They had a Halloween party"

Exercise 2: Translation Practice

Translate these phrases twice - once using domestication and once using foreignization:

1. "As cold as ice"

2. "Black Friday sale"

3. "They met for a coffee"

Exercise 3: Real-World Application

Look at these book titles and decide how you would translate them to Arabic:

1. "The Lord of the Rings"

2. "Pride and Prejudice"

3. "Fast Food Nation"

Discussion Questions:

1. When watching dubbed movies in Arabic, have you noticed examples of domestication?

2. Which strategy would you use when translating children's books? Why?

3. How would you translate modern social media terms like "trending" or "viral"?

Key Points to Remember:

- Domestication = Making it feel local and familiar

- Foreignization = Keeping the foreign flavor

- Neither strategy is always "better" - it depends on:

* Your target audience

* The purpose of your translation

* The type of text you're translating

Key-answers

1. "Long time no see"

- Formal translation: ‫وقت طويل ال رؤية‬

- Dynamic translation: ‫لم أرك منذ زمن‬

- Best choice: Dynamic

- Why? The formal translation makes no sense in Arabic. The dynamic translation captures
the friendly, casual greeting that's natural in Arabic culture.

2. "My hands are tied"

- Formal translation: ‫يداي مربوطتان‬

- Dynamic translation: ‫ ليس بيدي حيلة‬/ ‫ال حيلة لي‬

- Best choice: Dynamic

- Why? This is an idiom. The formal translation gives a physical meaning that loses the
intended message of "I can't help/I'm powerless."

3. "The ball is in your court"

- Formal translation: ‫الكرة في ملعبك‬

- Dynamic translation: ‫ األمر متروك لك‬/ ‫القرار قرارك‬

- Best choice: Dynamic

- Why? While ‫ الكرة في ملعبك‬is becoming more common due to translation influence,
traditional Arabic has its own ways of expressing this concept of "it's your turn to act/decide."

4. "I'm under the weather"

- Formal translation: ‫أنا تحت الطقس‬

- Dynamic translation: ‫ أشعر بتوعك‬/ ‫لست على ما يرام‬

- Best choice: Dynamic

- Why? The formal translation is meaningless in Arabic. The expression needs to be translated
to convey the meaning of feeling unwell.

Try translating these expressions both ways:

1. "It costs an arm and a leg"

* Formal: ______

* Dynamic: ______

2. "Actions speak louder than words"

* Formal: ______

* Dynamic: ______

3. "Time flies"
 * Formal: ______

* Dynamic: ______

Answers:

1. "It costs an arm and a leg"

* Formal: ‫يكلف ذراعًا ورجًال‬

* Dynamic: ‫ يكلف ثروة‬/ ‫ثمنه باهظ جدًا‬

2. "Actions speak louder than words"

* Formal: ‫األفعال تتكلم بصوت أعلى من الكلمات‬

* Dynamic: ‫العبرة في األفعال ال في األقوال‬

3. "Time flies"

* Formal: ‫الوقت يطير‬

* Dynamic: ‫ مر الوقت كلمح البصر‬/ ‫الوقت يمر سريعًا‬

Pro Tips for Choosing Between Formal and Dynamic Translation:

1. Ask yourself:

* Will the literal meaning make sense?

* Does this expression have a cultural equivalent?

* Who is my audience?
2. Remember:

* Formal translation is safer for:

- Legal documents

- Scientific texts

- Academic papers

- Technical manuals

* Dynamic translation is better for:

- Literature

- Marketing

- Social media

- Everyday conversation

Translating Titles:

When translating titles, we need to decide whether to keep the title as is or adapt it for the
target culture. Newmark, a famous translation theorist, suggests two main types of titles:

1. Descriptive Titles: These titles directly describe the topic of the text.

Example:

Madame Bovary – The title is directly related to the character's name. No adaptation
needed.

Arabic: "‫"مدام بوفاري‬

2. Allusive Titles: These titles have a figurative or metaphorical meaning and might refer to
something beyond the literal words.

Example:

Heart of Darkness – The title suggests deep themes of the book.

Arabic: "‫"قلب الظالم‬

Newmark says descriptive titles should usually be translated literally, while allusive titles can
be either translated literally or adapted.

Domestication and Foreignization in Action: Agatha Christie Examples

Let's look at how titles of Agatha Christie's novels have been domesticated or foreignized in
translation:

Novels’ titles Novels’ titles Novels’ titles

Poirot Investigates The Mysterious | The Thirteen Problems
Poirot enquête ‫لعنة‬ Mr Quin | Les Treize Problèmes | ‫ثالثة‬
‫الفراعنة‬ ‫عشر لغًز ا‬ |
| Murder in the Mews | The Adventure of Christmas | Partners in Crime |
| Meurtre dans les Mews | Pudding | L’aventure du Partenaires criminels | ‫شركاء‬
‫| جريمة قتل في اإلسطبالت‬ pudding de Noël | ‫في الجريمة مغامرة‬ |
‫| كعكة العيد‬
Exercise 1: Classify and Comment on Translation Procedures

For this exercise, look at the titles of Yassmina Khadra’s novels and classify them according
to their type (Descriptive or Allusive). Then, comment on the translation procedure used
(Domestication, Foreignization, or Adaptation).

| Original Title | Publication Year | English Version | Arabic Version |

| L'attentat | 2005 | The Attack | ‫الصدمة‬ |

| Les sirènes de Bagdad | | The Sirens of Baghdad | ‫صفارات انذار بغداد‬
|
| Les hirondelles de Kaboul | 2002 | The Swallows of Kabul | ‫سنونوات كابول‬
|
| Ce que le jour doit à la nuit | 2008 | What the Day Owes the Night | ‫فضل الليل‬
‫على النهار‬ |
| Dieu n'habite pas à La Havane | 2016 | God Doesn’t Live in Havana| ‫ليس لهافانا‬
‫رب يحميها‬ |
| Les Agneaux du Seigneur | 1998 | The Lambs of the Lord | ‫خرفان المولى‬
|
| La Dernière Nuit du Raïs | 2015 | The Dictator’s Last Night | ‫ليلة الريس‬
‫األخيرة‬ |

Discussion Points:

1. How do cultural differences impact translation?

2. Which titles do you think are domesticated, and which are foreignized? Why?

3. How would you approach translating a book title that has a deep cultural reference?

Exercise 1: Classify and Comment on Translation Procedures

Let's go through each of the titles from Yassmina Khadra’s novels, classify them according to
their type (Descriptive or Allusive), and comment on the translation procedure used
(Domestication, Foreignization, or Adaptation).

| Original Title | Publication Year | English Version | Arabic Version | Type

| Translation Procedure |

| L'attentat | 2005 | The Attack | ‫الصدمة‬ |

Descriptive | Domestication: The English translation and Arabic translation both use a
more direct, culturally-neutral term for the event (attack). |
| Les sirènes de Bagdad |- | The Sirens of Baghdad | ‫صفارات انذار بغداد‬
| Allusive | Foreignization: The title keeps "Baghdad" in both English and Arabic,
maintaining the cultural reference to the city. |
| Les hirondelles de Kaboul | 2002 | The Swallows of Kabul | ‫سنونوات كابول‬
| Allusive | Foreignization: The word "Kabul" is kept, preserving the original cultural
context, while "hirondelles" (swallows) is directly translated. |
| Ce que le jour doit à la nuit | 2008 | What the Day Owes the Night | ‫فضل الليل‬
‫على النهار‬ | Allusive | Domestication: The meaning of the original title is kept, but
the Arabic title adapts the phrase into a more culturally fitting expression ( ‫فضل الليل على‬
‫ النهار‬means "the favor of the night over the day"). |
| Dieu n'habite pas à La Havane | 2016 | God Doesn’t Live in Havana| ‫ليس لهافانا‬
‫رب يحميها‬ | Allusive | Domestication: The original title’s figurative meaning (about
a place being without divine protection) is kept, but adapted into Arabic in a more culturally
familiar manner. |
| Les Agneaux du Seigneur | 1998 | The Lambs of the Lord | ‫خرفان المولى‬
| Allusive | Domestication: "Lambs" is kept as the primary metaphor for vulnerability
and submission, but "Seigneur" (Lord) is adapted as "‫المولى‬," which fits the Arabic cultural
context. |
| La Dernière Nuit du Raïs | 2015 | The Dictator’s Last Night | ‫ليلة الريس‬
‫األخيرة‬ | Descriptive | Domestication: The term "Raïs" (meaning leader/dictator) is
adapted into the Arabic "‫ريس‬," making the reference more culturally specific for Arabic
readers. |
Analysis and Comments:

1. L'attentat / The Attack / ‫الصدمة‬:

- Type: Descriptive

- Translation Procedure: The title is translated directly to both English and Arabic with
minimal changes. The translation maintains the clarity and directness of the original, making
it easy for readers in both languages to understand. This is an example of Domestication.

2. Les sirènes de Bagdad / The Sirens of Baghdad / ‫صفارات انذار بغداد‬:

- Type: Allusive

- Translation Procedure: Both the English and Arabic translations keep the cultural
reference to Baghdad. The word "sirens" remains a metaphor for danger or warning, which is
universal across cultures, but the location (Baghdad) is kept intact. This is an example of
Foreignization since the original cultural reference is maintained.

3. Les hirondelles de Kaboul / The Swallows of Kabul / ‫سنونوات كابول‬:

- Type: Allusive

- Translation Procedure: The title keeps the cultural reference to Kabul and adapts the
metaphor of swallows. The word "hirondelles" (swallows) is a universal metaphor for
freedom or hope, but the place name "Kabul" is culturally specific. This is another example of
Foreignization.

4. Ce que le jour doit à la nuit / What the Day Owes the Night / ‫فضل الليل على النهار‬:

- Type: Allusive
 - Translation Procedure: The title is metaphorical, referring to the relationship between day
and night. The English and Arabic versions adapt the phrase but still keep the meaning intact.
The Arabic version uses a phrase that is culturally familiar but conveys the same metaphorical
idea. This shows Domestication since it adapts the language to fit the cultural norms.

5. Dieu n'habite pas à La Havane / God Doesn’t Live in Havana / ‫ليس لهافانا رب يحميها‬:

- Type: Allusive

- Translation Procedure: The English version keeps the figurative meaning of the original
title. The Arabic version adapts the figurative meaning in a way that makes it more culturally
relevant. The phrase "‫( "ليس لهافانا رب يحميها‬There is no god protecting Havana) is a clearer
expression in Arabic, making this a case of Domestication.

6. Les Agneaux du Seigneur / The Lambs of the Lord / ‫خرفان المولى‬:

- Type: Allusive

- Translation Procedure: The English translation keeps the metaphor of lambs, which is a
universal symbol of innocence or submission. The Arabic version adapts the term "Lord" into
"‫ "المولى‬which is more familiar to Arabic-speaking audiences. This is an example of
Domestication, as the translator adapts the religious term to fit the cultural context.

7. La Dernière Nuit du Raïs / The Dictator’s Last Night / ‫ليلة الريس األخيرة‬:

- Type: Descriptive

- Translation Procedure: The term "Raïs" (leader/dictator) is translated into the Arabic word
"‫ريس‬," which is culturally familiar to Arabic readers. This is an example of Domestication,
as the translator adapts the term to make it more familiar and acceptable to the target
audience.