translation question
Vadim Besprozvany
vbesproz at UMICH.EDU
Mon Jul 21 22:22:02 UTC 2008
According to American modern dictionaries the rank of "praporschik" is
below lieutenant junior grade but in the Navy; whereas in Russian it
would be ?michman? rather than "praporschik". Besides that the problem
is complicated since we talk about the same word with significant
differences in meaning, in this case - with a historic notion (in
Russian the old and modern words are common only by their signifier).
Also the system of ranks in various armies has specifics supported by
cultural tradition, so I very much doubt that this realia simply
exists in AE. That is why any comment is better than a definite but
defective choice. Of course, if it?s just a matter of choice, a final
approximate choice ? ?warrant officer?, ?military commissioner,? even
??junior lieutenant? or simply ?lieutenant? will fit.
Best,
VB
> Vadim Besprozvany wrote:
>
>> The answer of the second question is much obvious: "praporshchik"
>> (Engl. ensign) is a junior officer in an infantry regiment; from
>> "prapor" - "flag, banner" *(cf. with English "ensign"). "Warrant
>> Officer" usually means in Russian "unter-oficer." ...
>
> I don't claim to know British usage, but in American English,
> "ensign" is specifically a naval rank, roughly like "lieutenant" in
> the other services. It would sound very peculiar for us to hear an
> army officer called "ensign."
>
> --
> War doesn't determine who's right, just who's left.
> --
> Paul B. Gallagher
> pbg translations, inc.
> "Russian Translations That Read Like Originals"
> http://pbg-translations.com
>
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