Begrepsforståelse - et bærende element i terminologi- og ordboksarbeidet
Original version
SYNAPS - A Journal of Professional Communication 20(2007) pp.45-54Abstract
One of the statements in this article is that the translators’ profession is perhaps one of the most demanding
professions you can think of. Professional translators are supposed to be both linguistically and factually correct
in their work, and in addition to their linguistic competence, this requires a thorough understanding of the
conceptual aspects of the text concerned. “You can only translate well what you know well” is indeed a basic
truth in this connection.
The title of the article “The understanding of concepts – a principal element in terminology and dictionary
work” refers to the importance of providing special language students and translation candidates with the
necessary terminological and conceptual aids to help them achieve the levels of competence required for
professional translation work. Traditional word-for-word dictionaries are of little help unless the user has
already a pretty good idea of what the answer is expected to be. In many cases there is a need for more thorough
information on the precise meaning of terms and their correct domaine.
The author elaborates on the intentions behind, and the process of making, two of the special language
dictionaries that he has published. The first of the two, Engelsk-norsk samfunnsøkonomisk ordbok (English-
Norwegian economics dictionary), is based on extensive excerption of relevant terms from American and
British textbooks in economics at university level and a corresponding excerption of terminology from
Norwegian textbooks within the same area. The finished dictionary is a result of contrastive analysis within the
framework of a systematic term classification and provided with definitions and additional semantic
information. The second dictionary, Bedre engelsk forretningsspråk (Better English Businesss Language), is
based on the experience gained from many years of teaching business English to special language students and
translation candidates, and provides users with economic-administrative terminology set in a context to help
them avoid the pitfalls that are so numerous in this field. To a certain extent the dictionary may be described as
a ”manual” in that many relevant terms are presented under their separate headings with reference to related
terms and their meaning in English and Norwegian. In addition Bedre engelsk forretninsspråk may be used as a
dictionary in its own right by means of the registers listing all terms alphabetically in the two languages.
Description
This article is in Norwegian.