Leiden University Student Repository

Ploeg, Hilde van der (2020)

Specialized Language in AVT: The translation of medical terminology in the Dutch subtitles of Grey’s Anatomy

Master thesis | Linguistics (MA)

This thesis analyzes the techniques applied to translate medical terminology in the Dutch subtitles of three episodes of the American medical TV series Grey’s Anatomy (2005-present, Rhimes). The model for analysis is based on the taxonomy of Molina and Hurtado (2002), which distinguishes between fifteen different translation techniques. It was found that, as expected, established equivalents are used most commonly, and that most of these established equivalents are literal translations. This can be explained by three factors: medical concepts and culture are similar in English and Dutch, they have both been strongly influenced by Greek and Latin, and Dutch has been influenced by English as the current lingua franca of medicine. The latter was also supported by the high number of borrowings from English found in the Dutch subtitles. Moreover, it was found that generalization, reduction and amplification are commonly used techniques. These techniques can be part of simplification and...Show moreThis thesis analyzes the techniques applied to translate medical terminology in the Dutch subtitles of three episodes of the American medical TV series Grey’s Anatomy (2005-present, Rhimes). The model for analysis is based on the taxonomy of Molina and Hurtado (2002), which distinguishes between fifteen different translation techniques. It was found that, as expected, established equivalents are used most commonly, and that most of these established equivalents are literal translations. This can be explained by three factors: medical concepts and culture are similar in English and Dutch, they have both been strongly influenced by Greek and Latin, and Dutch has been influenced by English as the current lingua franca of medicine. The latter was also supported by the high number of borrowings from English found in the Dutch subtitles. Moreover, it was found that generalization, reduction and amplification are commonly used techniques. These techniques can be part of simplification and explicitation strategies, which confirms the hypothesis that medical texts for a lay audience are de-terminologized. Lastly, the relatively high number of inadequate equivalents has led to a twofold recommendation: the development of specialized AVT training and the compilation of term bases.Show less

AVT

medical terminology

subtitling

translation

de-terminologization

Author

Ploeg, Hilde van der

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

Translation

Supervisors

Valdez, S.

ECTS Credits

20

Language

en