The lexicon of the law poses problems in translation, especially because law terminology is so culture-bound that a satisfactory translation of all the legal terms of a text from one system to another is at times impossible. For instance, unlike the English legal system, the Italian one does not distinguish lawyers between BARRISTERS and SOLICITORS, for which it has no equivalent terms, nor does it have concepts corresponding to English JURY or TORT, although the terms GIURIA and TORTO do exist in the Italian general lexis. This study tackles the thorny problem of translating legal English into Italian. In particular, it suggests that translators from legal English should use sophisticated lexicographical tools, providing information about the etymology of legal terms, their use in actual contexts and the cultural system they belong to. In this study, data from De Franchis's encyclopedic Law Dictionary will be discussed to identify the lexical strategies and the semantic processes used by the lexicographer to convey language- or culture-specific concepts into a different linguistic and cultural system. Theoretically, it will be shown that the specific properties of legal terms can be accommodated within the paradigm of Lexical Complexity elaborated by Bertuccelli Papi and Lenci (2007).
Translating the lexicon of the law: A cross-linguistic study of De Franchis’s Law Dictionary
MATTIELLO, ELISA
2012-01-01
Abstract
The lexicon of the law poses problems in translation, especially because law terminology is so culture-bound that a satisfactory translation of all the legal terms of a text from one system to another is at times impossible. For instance, unlike the English legal system, the Italian one does not distinguish lawyers between BARRISTERS and SOLICITORS, for which it has no equivalent terms, nor does it have concepts corresponding to English JURY or TORT, although the terms GIURIA and TORTO do exist in the Italian general lexis. This study tackles the thorny problem of translating legal English into Italian. In particular, it suggests that translators from legal English should use sophisticated lexicographical tools, providing information about the etymology of legal terms, their use in actual contexts and the cultural system they belong to. In this study, data from De Franchis's encyclopedic Law Dictionary will be discussed to identify the lexical strategies and the semantic processes used by the lexicographer to convey language- or culture-specific concepts into a different linguistic and cultural system. Theoretically, it will be shown that the specific properties of legal terms can be accommodated within the paradigm of Lexical Complexity elaborated by Bertuccelli Papi and Lenci (2007).I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
