Year:2022   Volume: 4   Issue: 3   Area: Education

In this research, the researcher aims at investigating the impact of the translator's cultural background on translating Arabic cultural-literary texts into English with a specific reference to the translation of I Saw Ramallah, and I Was Born There; I Was Born Here. The researcher compares the translated version of I Saw Ramallah - and the translated version of the I Was Born There; I Was Born Here using analytical, descriptive, and qualitative methodology. The researcher compares the translated books to determine how the translator's cultural background affects the translation of the source text under the hypothesis that the translator mastering the source text culture is more faithful and adequate to the source text than the translator who doesn't master the culture of the source text. Besides, the translator mastering the source text culture keeps the source text language and culture flavor and doesn't keep using deletion. This research's importance stems from the fact that translation and culture are connected and overlapped topics that influence each other. Therefore, cultural gaps are considered a crucial factor affecting the translation process. Despite the language being used to express the culture, as many scholars such as Nord, Venuti, and Rabadan pointed out, translating cultural, literary terms and expressions causes many problems for translators, especially those who don't master the culture of both texts. "Differences between cultures may cause more severe complications for the translator than make differences in language structure." (Nida, 1964; 50). Therefore, this research is fundamental and adds to translation studies in the cultural and literary fields.‎

Keywords: Translation, Cultural Background, Cultural Literary Texts, Translation Strategies, Source-Language, Target Language, Speech Acts, Conversational Implicature

http://dx.doi.org/10.47832/2757-5403.14.15