handout of TU lecture (fwd)

[Yuphaphann Hoonchamlong]

Dera sealang-ers,
attached is an rtf file of a handout from Dr. Larry Jones' talk on
Transalation and community development at Thammasat Univ on Feb 10th.
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{\info{\title TRANSLATION IN SUPPORT OF ADULT EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT}{\author Larry Bert Jones Toshiba Preferred User}{\operator Larry Bert Jones Toshiba Preferred User}{\creatim\yr2000\mo2\dy17\hr6\min46}{\revtim\yr2000\mo2\dy17\hr6\min46}
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TRANSLATION IN SUPPORT OF ADULT EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
\par }\pard\plain \widctlpar\adjustright \fs20\cgrid {\fs24
\par 0. Abstract
\par
\par }\pard\plain \s15\widctlpar\adjustright \cgrid {
Intercultural community work not infrequently  requires communication across a language barrier, and on the choice of a language of communication has rested the success or failure of many a development project. In an intercultural development project, key
 participants\emdash the community which hopes to realize its aspirations for a better life and the change agent who seeks to support the community\rquote s efforts through the provision of crucial resources\emdash
must decide very early on what language they will use to commu
nicate with one another in order to achieve their common goals. In projects where human resource development and adult education are part of the development effort, the choice of a language of communication becomes even more critical. The options normally
 are:
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The language of the change agent or resource providers
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The language of the community (the local vernacular)
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A language of wider communication which all participants share.
\par }\pard \s15\fi60\widctlpar\adjustright {
\par }\pard \s15\widctlpar\adjustright {The choice to use the local vernacular as the preferred medium of communicatio
n for an intercultural development project entails the need to translate, at least orally and frequently in written form, the information the community needs to cooperate in the project. This paper explores challenges connected with translating written ma
t
erials as part of rural development projects and documents some solutions which have effectively met these challenges. The challenges discussed include translation methodology, technical issues related to orthography design, and literacy and acceptability
 issues.
\par }\pard\plain \widctlpar\adjustright \fs20\cgrid {\fs24
\par 1.  Introduction: The place of translation in development programs
\par
\par In the long history of mankind\rquote s efforts to reach in good will across cultural boundaries to support their neighbors\rquote
 aspirations for personal and community development, the disciplines of language teaching and translation have stood side by side as crucial tools by which such cross cultural endeavors may be accomplished. Indeed, when the cross cultural worker enters a
community for the purpose of facilitating development through the communication of new technology or information, the first question which must be answered is, \ldblquote  Through what medium shall communication be conducted?\rdblquote
 or, to put it simply, \ldblquote  What language shall we use to communicate?\rdblquote
\par
\par }\pard\plain \s15\widctlpar\adjustright \cgrid {
The question of medium of communication must be answered regardless of the scale and nature of the cross cultural development program. Bilateral and multilateral aid programs on the national level confront it. The government
s of developing countries who have rightly insisted on transfer of technology as the primary goal of international development programs face it. International non-government organizations concerned with development wrestle with it. The individual efforts
of well meaning volunteers such as the Peace Corps workers from the United States or missionaries from a variety of countries depend on it.
\par
\par }\pard\plain \widctlpar\adjustright \fs20\cgrid {\fs24 Typically the barrier of communication in a cross cultural development context has been approached in one of two ways: either
\par
\par }\pard \li720\widctlpar\adjustright {\fs24 a. Teach members of the target community the language in which the desired information is already encoded (normally the language of the cross cultural worker), or
\par
\par }\pard\plain \s15\li720\widctlpar\adjustright \cgrid {b. Translate the desired information into the language of the community.
\par
\par }\pard \s15\widctlpar\adjustright {While
 both approaches have their merits and place in development programs, this paper will focus on the place of translation, specifically written translation, in development programs, the problems encountered in using this approach, and some possible solution
s.
\par
\par The translation of written materials is a cornerstone in many cross cultural development programs. In the age of globalization, there is a compelling need to share knowledge along with technology. There is a demand not only to share machinery and electr
onic hardware but the knowledge of how to use and maintain these tools. There is a demand not only for food to relieve famine, but instruction on farming methodology to make communities better able to sustain extended spells of dry weather. There is furth
e
r the need to make this knowledge available to as many people in the project site community as possible. Publishing written materials in a language understood by the project site community makes the dissemination of project related information potentially

independent of face to face interaction with the cross cultural development facilitator. This significantly broadens the audience who can benefit from the translated information and also extends the time frame in which the information can be delivered bey
ond the time when the facilitator is personally present on the scene.
\par
\par The translation and dissemination of written materials in an understandable language also addresses the need for human resource development in the project site communities. The ability t
o read fluently is a key which can unlock new doors for a community. Fluent readers can gain access to written information apart from the presence of a human facilitator or change agent.  By increasing the body of available literature in a language to inc
lude information which addresses the felt needs of the community, information earnestly desired by some portion of the community, the translation effort stimulates the community towards reading fluency.
\par
\par Further, the  translation of materials into the langu
age of the target community represents a commitment to maximum communication to the broadest possible audience. The assimilation and application of new information in a heretofore isolated and underdeveloped community is a tremendous intellectual challeng
e
. To present this information to the community in an essentially foreign language often complicates and slows the transfer of technology. In this case the member of the target community must not only focus on learning the new technology, but also on the t
ask of decoding the second language in which the information is presented. On the other hand, by articulating the new concepts in the language of the community, the recipients are freed to give full attention to understanding the new concepts.
\par
\par For example,
 a number of years ago, my wife and I were developing written materials for the training of village health promoters in an isolated community in Irian Jaya, Indonesia. One of the challenges that we encountered was in the translation of the term for }{\i
germ}{, in that no term for }{\i germ}{ existed in the local vernacular. We  first considered borrowing the bahasa Indonesia term for germ, }{\i kuman}{,  for use in the written health promotion materials. However the community\rquote s knowledge of
bahasa Indonesia was marginal at best, so using a borrowed word would have communicated zero meaning to the target audience. We next tried a vernacular term meaning \ldblquote little, tiny insect\rdblquote
 in an attempt to capture the notion that germs were microscopic living organisms, but that was unacceptable, or rather unbelievable, to the village health promoters. We eventually decided that the best functional equivalent of \ldblquote germ\rdblquote
 in the local vernacular was }{\i wam}{, meaning \ldblquote a tiny particle of dirt\rdblquote }{\i .}{ The community already had been introdu
ced to the importance of cleanliness and the fact that dirty hands and dirty dishes can cause illness. They had seen very fine dust particles blowing in the wind. So the concept of invisibly small particles of dirt getting into wounds or into our sto
machs or lungs and causing illness made sense in their way of thinking. This translation freed the health workers to focus their attention on learning about how to avoid illness through better hygiene. Antibiotics were explained as medicines that cle
ansed our bodies of certain kinds of dirt. The translation of the concept into the local vernacular facilitated the transfer of health technology to these village health promoters, most of whom had only an elementary school education.
\par
\par 2. Challenges
\par
\par 2.1 Oral Cultures
\par
\par While
 there are obvious advantages in using translated written materials as part of development programs, there are also a number of challenges which militate against this approach being applied on a wide spread basis. One major difficulty in getting the targe
t
 audience to actually read the written material. In cultures where information is primarily transferred orally, written material of any kind is in danger of being left unused. When members of a community have not developed the pattern of reading to gain i
n
formation, it can be very difficult for them to choose to seek information through the written medium. This can be true even when they have learned the mechanics of the reading process, and helpful, interesting information is contained in the written mate
rials that are available.
\par
\par In the village health program I referred to earlier, we produced a well-illustrated, indexed resource manual in the local vernacular to help the village health workers diagnose the most common illnesses and prescribe the appropria
te medicines in the appropriate dosages.  However, within a few weeks after the initial training seminar, it became obvious to us that very few of the health workers were using the manual as a reference. Rather, they were diagnosing and prescribing entire
l
y from memory. All of this points to the fact that written materials can only support a development project to the extent that they are read, and the choice to read is ultimately a personal one, rooted in the culture, personal experiences, and history of
the community.
\par
\par 2.2 Unclear understanding of the intended audience
\par
\par Another set of challenges facing those hoping to use written translated materials in support of a development project are those related to an unclear definition of the audience for whom the translation is prepared. Language is a vehicle of c
ommunication that changes depending on the audience and context of the spoken or written utterance. For example, if I am talking about the advantages and dangers of nuclear energy as a power source, I won\rquote
t explain things to elementary school children using the same language I would use for university graduate students. I would not only adjust the content for the younger audience, I would also use a limited vocabulary, simpler grammar, and shor
ter sentences, in order to communicate more effectively.
\par
\par In the same way, the audience of materials translated in support of a development project must be kept clearly in mind in order for the materials to be maximally communicative.  The educational background and reading ability of the intended aud
ience will affect the choice of vocabulary, length and complexity of sentences and paragraphs, as well as the page layout and illustrations on the publication. New readers of all ages cannot easily read page after page of written text without some orth
ographic help such as paragraphing and often some illustrations.
\par
\par In addition to the educational background of the audience, their cultural background is also a crucial factor which can influence the effectiveness of translated materials in a development p
roject. In a cooperative effort with the World Health Organization, several booklets on prenatal care and healthy childbirth
 were produced in a number of the local vernaculars of eastern Indonesia. The line drawing illustrations, which appeared scientific and informative to the western and Indonesian physicians involved in the project, were perceived as positively pornographic
, and thus unacceptable, by some of the rural communities for which they were intended. In another project, the illustrations all depicted people from the majority ethnic group in the country, where the booklets were originally developed. Because of
ethnic animosities between members of the target community and the majority group (matters unrelated to the development project or the content of the booklets themselves) the booklets were unacceptable to the local communities for whom they were intended.
 In both cases, the translated materials were not sufficiently in tune with the cultural background of the intended audience to provide effective support for their respective development projects.
\par
\par The translation style used in preparing the materials must also match the intended audience. People who are accustomed to reading can often use translations which closely follow the form of the original text
, what has been traditionally called literal translation. However, written materials for less literate communities require translations that closely follow the natu
ral form of the target language, even at the expense of formal similarity to the original text.  Further, translation style must vary depending on the intended use of the translation. Translations of great works of literature naturally seek to capture the
 beauty of the form of the original text, along with the semantic content. On the other hand, directions for the use and maintenance of equipment place a premium on the functional goal of enabling the reader to perform the necessary p
rocedures at the expense of formal similarity to the source text.
\par
\par In my experience, mismatches between the style of translation and the intended audience most frequently have occurred when the translato
r is bilingual in the source language and the target language but is untrained in the principles of idiomatic translation. In this situation the translator\rquote
s default tendency is to translate literally, closely following the form of the original text. This
effort can produce a text that is difficult to read, at times incomprehensible for the average reader in the target community, and thus ineffective as a tool to support a development project.
\par
\par 2.3 Orthographic challenges
\par
\par There are also orthographic challenges to meet when we talk about translated materials in support of development projects, especially when we are discussing development in Asia. The writing system used to write a given translation
 can profoundly affect its readability and its use by the target community. Consider for example the problem of sound mismatches. The inventory of sounds which can occur in languages around the world is staggering. When a literacy program is
undertaken in a lesser known language of a country, it not infrequently happens that the target language includes sounds for which there is no near equivalent in the national language. For example,  the Biak language of Irian Jaya contains a phonemic
voiceless bilabial fricative [p] which does not occur in the national language, bahasa Indonesia. Some languages on the island of Timor have a phonemic glottal stop, whereas this sound is a word final allophone of the voiceless velar stop [k]
in bahasa Indonesia. Other Timorese languages have implosive and retroflex stops which also do not occur in bahasa Indonesia. In each case we have a mismatch between the sound inventory of the local language and the national lang
uage, such that there is no commonly agreed upon symbol in the orthography of the national language to represent these sounds. If such sound mismatches between the local language and the national language
are not clearly recognized and dealt with systematically in the local language orthography, the result is a marginally readable, and thus marginally useful text
\par
\par A related challenge occurs in the area of supra segmental features such as tone and stress when these are phonemic in the target language. In languages where tone carries a high functional load, (that is, when tone differentiates the meanings
 of many words in a given language) the orthographic representation of these tones can profoundly affect the ease with which a new reader can become fluent in reading his or her own language. For example, the Iau language of
 Irian Jaya, Indonesia has eight tone patterns, which have been represented by numbers in the orthography. These tones can not only occur in singly in syllables but also in combinations. Consider the  Iau words written below:
\par
\par Be9  \tab \tab \ldblquote father-in-law
\par Be8\tab \tab \ldblquote fire\rdblquote
\par Be7-3\tab \tab \ldblquote to fill\rdblquote
\par Be4-7\tab \tab \ldblquote I am going to sew it\rdblquote
\par
\par In this case, the number of the Iau tones which must be represented in the writing system creates a daunting challenge to the effectiveness of any literacy and development program for the Iau people.
\par
\par Punctuation can represent a similar challenge to the production of translations which effectively support local development programs
. Learning to read involves more than learning written symbols associated with the sounds of a given language. It also involves learning to recognize the punctuation marks on the page which aid in understanding the written text, such as the English
periods, commas, quotation marks, and so forth.  The challenge comes when the grammatical forms of the target language differ dramatically from those of the national language whose orthographic conventions are most frequently bo
rrowed for use in a local vernacular writing system. The intuitive notions of word, sentence, and paragraph can differ from language to language and orthographic mismatches can easily occur. For example, a number of
years ago, my wife and I were involved in a workshop in central Mexico where native speakers of several indigenous Mexican languages who were involved translation and literacy programs for their own communities were trained in the skills of writing,
typing, and mimeograph printing.  Near the end of training course, one of the participants commented, \ldblquote These things we have learned are very helpful, but what we really need to know is what a sentence is. We don\rquote
t know where to put the periods when we write our language.\rdblquote
\par }\pard\plain \widctlpar\adjustright \fs20\cgrid {\fs24
\par Likewise, word divisions can create difficulties in producing clear, readable, translated texts. In the Yawa language of Irian Jaya, clitics form a significant subset of the lexicon of the language. A clitic is a word which is grammatically and
 semantically distinct but is phonologically bound to another word when spoken. For example, in the English phrase }{\i\fs24 the ball}{\fs24 , the word }{\i\fs24 the}{\fs24  is pronounced as a unit with what follows it, but is a distinct word
 in English. Likewise in Yawa the morpheme }{\i\fs24 to }{\fs24 meaning \lquote already\rquote  occurs in clause final position. See the examples below:
\par
\par \tab Poroto to
\par \tab He goes already
\par \tab \lquote He has already gone\rquote
\par
\par \tab Po rene raunande to
\par \tab He sugar gives already
\par \tab \lquote He has already given the sugar\rquote
\par
\par \tab Po rene raunande rinai to
\par \tab He sugar gives to-me already
\par \tab \lquote He has already given the sugar to me\rquote
\par
\par \tab Po rene raunande sya arakova ai to
\par \tab He sugar gives my friend to-him already
\par \tab \lquote He has already given the sugar to my friend\rquote
\par
\par \tab Po rene raunande vatano una no Rosbori raije mai to
\par \tab He sugar gives    people   live in Rosbori in-it  to-them already
\par \tab \lquote He has already given the sugar to the people who live in Rosbori\rquote
\par
\par In these cases we can see that }{\i\fs24 to}{\fs24  is plainly an independent word in Yawa, rather than a bound form such as a suffix. However, orthographically it is very difficult for Yawas who are new readers to correctly interpret }{\i\fs24 to}{\fs24
 when it is not written conjoined to the preceding word because as a clitic it is pronounced as a unit with the word it follows. This sort of problem required extensive
 native speaker testing to determine the best way to represent clitics in the Yawa writing system.
\par
\par 2.4 Sociolinguistic challenges
\par
\par In addition to the challenges noted above, the development professional must be aware of  sociolinguistic factors that can affect the usefulness of translated materials in development projects. Two key sociolinguistic factors are language attitude
 and dialect geography.
\par
\par The attitudes which the target community has towards its own language, the national language and any other languages of wider commun
ication used in the area can have a profound impact on the effectiveness of translated materials supporting development projects.
Communities which take pride in their own language will respond enthusiastically to the efforts of a development worker to produce training and maintenance materials in the local language. On the other hand, some isolated communities
 view their own language as substandard or unworthy of being written down or read. This attitude is often the result of a history of social and economic powerlessness within the larger national community.
 The end result is that the community will be reluctant to accept materials written in their own language, even though they may very well be better understood than the same materials produced in the national language.
\par
\par Another language attitude that affects the acceptability of written translated materials is the script used to write the materials. For example, along the eastern border of Bangladesh
, there are at least three major scripts in which the local languages have been written: the national script of Bangladesh, the national script of Burma, and the Latin alphabet. In addition there are a few indigenous scripts which the local communit
ies themselves have devised. In a situation where a local language has not yet been written, the choice of a script can be a volatile affair, with profound political and social undertones.
\par
\par Yet another challenge to producing translated materials in support of rural development programs is the dialect geography of a language community. Dialectical variations within a larger language community can be linguistically analyzed
with respect to their phonology, lexicography , and intelligibility.
\par
\par Dialects within a language community can vary phonologically, that is, with regard to the pronunciation of words. For example, the differences of pronunciation of the word }{\i\fs24 about }{\fs24 in the Canadian and American dialects of English.
 They can also differ in their inventory of words and the meanings assigned to words. An obvious example is the terms }{\i\fs24 lift }{\fs24 and }{\i\fs24 lorry}{\fs24  in British English, whose comparable terms in American English are }{\i\fs24 elevator}
{\fs24  and }{\i\fs24 truck}{\fs24 . These differences can be catalogued and analyzed in terms of isoglosses-- lines on a language map which group together those communities which share common lexical or phonological features.
\par
\par Dialectical variations of this sort may or may not imply significant variations in the ability of native speakers from different communities to understand each other. In that language is intimately interwoven with a community\rquote
s perception of its identity, the community\rquote s perceptions of the language they speak and their ability to understand other varieties of that language have crucial bearing on the acceptability of written materials in any given dialect.  T
hese attitudes may have only a tangential connection with the dialectical relationships discovered through linguistic research.
\par
\par A number of years ago, my wife and I encountered a language dialect conundrum not unusual when working with ethnic minority peoples. In preparing for producing written materials in the Yawa language of Irian Jaya, Indonesia, we
conducted a number of lexicostatistical and intelligibility tests to determine the most appropriate dialect in which to translate the materials. Analysis and testing showed that there were six major dialects and
that intelligibility between them varied from 70-96%. On the other hand Yawa speakers throughout the language area acknowledged that there were dialect differences among them but insisted that they all spoke a common langu
age and that everyone understood everyone else. We chose to publish various health and education materials in the most widely understood dialect, of which all communities understood 95% or more according to our tests. Later, we were informed
by representatives of the other dialects that in fact there were signficant differences between the dialects and they would prefer written materials in each of their own dialects!
\par
\par 3.0 Conclusion: Addressing the Challenges
\par
\par In light of the overriding priority to effectively communicate to the target community in a development project, it is critical that the challenges listed above be addressed in any development project depending on written materials in the local language.
The effectiveness of translated materials to support of community development projects can be improved with attention to three areas: involvement of the local community, linguistic and cultural research, and training in translation.
\par
\par The local community\rquote s active participation in the literacy and translation process is crucial to the effectiveness of translation programs in support of development projects. Community-wide reading fluency and promotion activities
are frequently necessary to enhance the usage of written materials used to support development programs in predominantly oral cultures. In order for written materials to be read, they must contain information that is in high demand by the
intended audience, something which can only be ascertained through engaging community members themselves in the process of selecting the materials to be translated. Even more fundamental, the choice of the
 particular dialect into which materials are translated and the script to be used must be part of an integrated community-based language development program for the materials to be acceptable.
\par
\par Indepth phonological research is foundational to effective literacy and translation programs in lesser known language communities. Cultural research and understanding is necessary for ascertaining the most effective presentation of information
 related to development projects. Sociolinguistic studies on language attitudes and dialect intelligibility are also indispensible for successful development programs that include written translated materials.
\par
\par Finally, in order for a translation program to effectively support development  programs,  training in translation methodology must be included in the early stages of the
development program, so that the materials translated can be maximally effective. This training must cover the principles and practice of idiomatic translation to enhance the communicability and readability of the materials to be translated. There a
lso must be training in methods of checking to elicit native speaker reactions to drafts of the translated materials. This enables the translator to ascertain how the translation is understood by the target audience.  Further,
the translator-trainees need practice in incorporating native speaker input in subsequent revisions of the translation.
\par
\par All this emphasizes the  need for  a significant investment of foundational training, research, and literacy promotion up front in order for development projects to enjoy to enhanced communication
benefits of supporting materials translated into the local languages.
\par
\par
\par }}