Specialist terminology used in the Russian press as a translation problem

Abstract

Specialist terms used in non-specialist articles in the press not only attract the reader’s attention but also make the reception of a particular text difficult. Specialist terms frequently happen not to be understandable for the reader who does not specialize in a given field. Such terms are also perceived as elements connoting stylistic oddness.

Using Russian press articles viewed as texts to be translated into Polish, I attempt to demonstrate how difficult it is to apply the principle of faithfulness and – simultaneously – to observe the grammatical correctness of the text in the target language because translation involves a double interpretation activity and requires the selection of appropriate equivalents. What translators – especially students of Russian language studies attending translation courses – may find troublesome is their incompetence as translating specialist terminology frequently requires the knowledge of complete nomenclatures of particular sciences. A text containing numerous specialist terms lacks coherence, which makes the reception and translation processes even more complicated. Moreover, students find out – to their amazement – that numerous monolingual Russian and bilingual Russian-Polish dictionaries rarely include specialist terms.

However, this situation has some positive effects, especially for students of Russian language studies. While dealing with specialist terms, they have an opportunity to develop the good habit of consulting various reference works, including specialist dictionaries. What is then difficult to translate helps them to enrich their vocabulary in both languages and to practise the skill of selecting the most appropriate equivalents and stylistic devices to be employed in the text rendered in the target language. Furthermore, they acquire – at least partially – the knowledge of the science whose nomenclature they are required to learn in both languages, Russian and Polish.