The Procedures of Translating Abbreviations in English Medical Texts into Indonesian
on
January 2019 Vol. 13. No. 1 P: 1—12
DOI.10.24843/eJL.2019.v13.i01.p01
https://ojs.unud.ac.id/index.php/eol/
e-Journal of Linguistics
DOAJ Indexed (Since 15 Sep 2015)
e-ISSN: 2442-7586 p-ISSN: 2541-5514
The Procedures of Translating Abbreviations in English Medical Texts into Indonesian
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1I Gusti Ayu Agung Dian Susanthi, Warmadewa University
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2Ketut Artawa, [email protected], Udayana University, Bali-Indonesia
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3Ida Bagus Putra Yadnya, [email protected], Udayana University, Bali Indonesia
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4Made Sri Satyawati, [email protected], Udayana University, Bali-Indonesia
*Corresponding Author: [email protected]
Received Date: 21-06-2018 Accepted Date: 21-07-2018 Published Date: 22-01-2019
Abstract—This study reveals the procedures of translating abbreviations in English medical texts into Indonesian. It aims at (1) identifying how the abbreviations of English medical terms are translated into Indonesian and (2) identifying the phrase of the SL transferred into Indonesian. This study discusses three procedures of translating abbreviations of English medical terms which are reformulated based on the need of this study, i.e.(1) translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (borrowing); this procedure showed that the abbreviations of English medical terms were translated into abbreviations, in which borrowing was found (2) translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (adaptation); this procedure showed that the abbreviations of English medical terms were translated into abbreviations, in which adaptation was found (3) translating the abbreviation into phrase; this procedure showed that the abbreviation was translated into phrase. The data were taken from the translation of a medical textbook, Oxford Handbook of Midwifery (2006) and its translation into Indonesian Buku Kebidanan Oxford (2010). The results showed that there were three types of procedures used to translate the abbreviations in this study referred to as translating abbreviation to abbreviation (borrowing), and translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (adaptation), and translating the abbreviation into phrase.
Keywords: translation, abbreviation, medical terms
The study of translation has become a very crucial study, especially in the countries where people do not speak English as their national language. They will find some difficulties in interacting with various purposes of our life, such as in politics, economy, medical, etc. Medical is one of important aspects of human life; it also has rapid development which makes translation a crucial branch of linguistic study and it helps people in order to be easier to interact in various aspects of life. However, the translation process is not an easy one, the translator must have adequate knowledge and skill in terms of mastering the grammar, culture, or lexicon of both the SL (Source Language) and the TL (Target Language). In line with this explanation, Newmark
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(1988: 4) stated that in translating a text, there are four important elements; they are writers, norms, culture and setting and tradition. Translator should keep the originality of each element from the source language. The only change on the translation process is the form. The form of the source language is changed by the form of the target language. The form of language refers to words, phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs, etc. Moreover, translator should consider the appropriate form in the target language such as lexicon and grammatical structure.
This study tries to reveal the procedure used by translator to translate English medical abbreviations. Some experts who explained about procedures of translation are Molina and Albir (2005: 498) who proposed 18 procedures, Vinay and Darbelnet in Venuti (2000: 84) who proposed 7 procedures and Newmark (1988: 81) who proposed 8 procedures. Those procedures are shown in the following table:
Table 1.1
Procedures of Translation
|
Newmark (1988 : 81) |
Vinay and Darbelnet in Venuti (2000: 84) |
Molina and Albir (2005: 498) |
|
1.Word-for-word translation |
1. Borrowing |
1. Calque. |
|
2.Literal translation |
2. Calque |
2. Borrowing. |
|
3.Faithful translation |
3. Literal translation |
3. Word for word. |
|
4.Semantic translation |
4. Transposition |
4. Literal translation. |
|
5. Adaptation. |
5. Modulation. |
5. Transposition. |
|
6. Free translation. |
6. Equivalent |
6. Amplification. |
|
7.Idiomatic translation |
7. Adaptation |
7. Reduction. |
|
8.Communicative translation |
8. Generalization. | |
|
9. Substitution. | ||
|
10. Variation. | ||
|
11. Adaptation. | ||
|
12. Description. | ||
|
13. Discursive Creation. | ||
|
14. Established Equivalent | ||
|
15. Linguistic Amplification | ||
|
16. Linguistic Compression | ||
|
17. Modulation. | ||
|
18. Particulation. |
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Table 1.1 above shows that there are, added together, 33 procedures proposed by the translation experts; however, there are no procedures which explain in particular how abbreviations should be translated; there is only one procedure proposed by Molina and Albir (2005:98) as to how abbreviation is translated, namely substitution procedure. However, this procedure needs more exploration and example. The procedure needs to be reformulated based on the need of the study. This study tries to explore how abbreviation is translated, since in the medical text there are a lot of abbreviations found. There are three procedures used in this study, which are categorized into three discussions; namely (1) abbreviation translated into abbreviation (borrowing), (2) abbreviation translated into abbreviation (adaptation), (3) abbreviation translated into phrase.
The data were the abbreviations and the medical terms translated into abbreviations found in the medical book “Oxford Handbook of Midwifery” and its translation in Indonesian “Buku Kebidanan Oxford”. According to Olohan (2004 :4), those data are categorized as unidirectional parallel corpora. The investigation of three procedures is related to translating abbreviation into abbreviation (borrowing), abbreviation translated into abbreviation (adaptation), and abbreviation translated into phrase. Those three procedures were applied in this study because they are considered in accordance with the need of this study.
This study applied the observation method which was conducted through the note taking technique and the data were classified based on the three formulations of translation procedures, meaning that there were three categories determined in the process of classification. After identifying the three categories and the data, the analysis of meaning was conducted by comparing the meaning of the SL to the meaning of the TL using the semantic component proposed by Nida and Taber (1975).
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This translation procedure shows that abbreviation in the SL is translated into abbreviation in the TL, in which the TL translation still uses the same abbreviation as that of the SL. The examples are as follows.
Table 3.1
Translating Abbreviation into abbreviation (Borrowing)
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1. |
A woman may request VBAC (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 324) |
Ibu mungkin meminta VBAC (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 296) |
VBAC Abbreviation stands for:Vaginal birth after C-section (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary |
|
2. |
PPROM is often associated with maternal infection (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 354) |
PPROM sering kali dikaitkan dengan infeksi maternal (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 327) |
Preterm, prelabour, rupture of the membranes (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary |
|
3. |
The prognosis depends on the antenatal administration of steroids to the mother, the gestation and birth weight, condition at birth and the immediate care after birth, including the availability of a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 354) |
Prognosis bergantung pada pemberian steroid di masa antenatal kepada ibu, usia gestasi dan berat badan lahir, kondisi saat lahir, dan perawatan langsung/segera setelah bayi lahir, termasuk kesediaan unit perawatan intensif neonates (NICU) (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 328) |
NICU Abbreviation stands for: Neonatal intensive care unit (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary |
|
4. |
Monitor the contractions and fetal heart and movement via |
Memantau kontraksi dan jantung janin serta pergerakan |
CTG Abbreviation stands for: Cardiotocography |
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a CTG monitor. (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 355) |
janin melalui monitor CTG (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 329) |
(Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary | |
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5. |
Although the CTG may appear nonreassuring, fetal blood sampling (FBS) frequently does not demonstrate any acidosis in the fetus (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 361) |
Meskipun CTG dapat tampak tidak reaktif, pengambilan sampel darah janin, FBS)sering kali tidak menunjukkan terjadinya asidosis pada janin (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 336) |
FBS Abbreviaton stands for: Fetal blood sampling (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary |
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6. |
The woman and her partner understand and consent. If induction fails, a caesarean section is indicated. NICE has produced a booklet about induction of labour. (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 364) |
Wanita dan pasangannya memahami dan memberikan izin. Jika induksi gagal, seksio sesarea diindikasikan. NICE telah membuat sebuah booklet tentang induksi persalinan. (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, pg 340) |
NICE Abbreviation stands for:National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary |
Table 2.1 shows that the abbreviations in the S are translated into abbreviations in the TL, and that the pronunciation is usually adapted by using the TL pronunciation or may still use the SL pronunciation.
This translation procedure shows that the abbreviations in the SL are translated into abbreviations in the TL; in this case, the TL has its own adaptation abbreviation. The examples are as follows:
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7.
8.
PROM (>37 weeks)
(Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 364)
The uterus may be hyperstimulated. This may cause FHR irregularities. Stop the infusion temporarily and observe the FHR
(Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 367)
KPD (>37 minggu)
(Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 339)
Uterus mungkin mengalami hiperstimulasi. Itu mungkin menyebabkan ketidakteraturan DJJ. Hentikan infuse sementara dan pantau DJJ.
(Buku Kebidanan Oxford, pg 345)
Data 7 shows that the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the abbreviation in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into the element which is accepted in the TL. PROM is stands for premature rupture of membranes (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into KPD or ketuban pecah dini in the TL.
Data 8 has the same case, FHR stands for fetal heart rate (Farlex and Partner, 2009), which is translated into DJJ or denyut jantung janin. However, in data 8, there is loss of information which is not transferred to the TL; it is described as follows:
FHR (Fetal Heart Rate) DJJ (Denyut Jantung Janin)
Thing/rate of the fetal heart +-
Event/memantau banyaknya
Denyut jantung janin dalam satu menit ++
The semantic component description for data (8) shows that the SL contains the meaning the rate of the fetal heart so the semantic component is (+), meanwhile the TL does not contain the meaning of rate, so the semantic component can be (-). It can be seen that there is loss of information in the TL, since the meaning of rate is not transferred in the TL. However, DJJ is the equivalent of the FHR; it undergoes an adaptation in the translation process.
This translation procedure shows that the abbreviation in the SL is translated into phrase in the TL, namely verb phrase or noun phrase. The examples are as follows.
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|
9 |
Religious reasons— some women see it as a religious obligation. There are no references in the Bible or the Koran referring to FGM. (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 282) |
Alasan keagamaan— beberapa wanita menganggap sirkumsisi sebagai kewajiban agama. Tidak ada referensi dalam kitab Injil atau Al-Quran mengenai mutilasi genital wanita. (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 246) |
Female Genital Mutilation (Kamus Kebidanan, 2005: 152) |
|
0 |
Continuous EFM during labour (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg324) |
Memantau jantung secara elektronik dan kontinu selama persalinan. (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 296) |
Electronic Fetal Monitor (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary |
|
1 |
Ask the woman to produce a clean MSU (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 334) |
Minta wanita untuk menampung urine bersih aliran tengah (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 308) |
MSU Abbreviation stands for: midstream urine (Farlex and Partners. 2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary Kumpulan urin yang diperoleh setelah genitalia dibersihkan, aliran urin dimulai, porsi tengah urin diambil. (Kamus Kebidanan, 2005: 268) |
|
2 |
U/E: indicate renal function since waste products of metabolism are excreted via the kidneys (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 335) |
Urea dan elektrolit; mengindikasikan fungsi ginjal karena produk sisa metabolism di ekskresi melalui ginjal (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 309) |
Urea and elektrolit (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 309) |
|
3 |
LFTs: will assess the extent of liver damage |
Uji fungsi hati; akan mengkaji luasnya kerusakan hati |
LFTs Liver function tests, (Farlex and Partners. |
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|
(Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 335) |
(Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 309) |
2009. The Free Dictionary Medical Dictionary, https://medical- | |
|
4 |
ARM should always be avoided (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 361) |
Pemecahan ketuban secara artifisial (ARM) juga harus dihindari (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, Pg 336 |
ARM Ketuban dibocorkan sehingga cairan amnion keluar; sering dilakukan untuk mempercepat persalinan dan melihat apakah meconium telah keluar, yang menunjukkan gawat janin Efek sampingnya termasuk peningkatan nyeri, bertambahnya kemungkinan intervensi lanjut dalam persalinan, dan kadang terjadi prolapse tali pusat. |
|
(Kamus Kebidanan, 2005: 38) | |||
|
5 |
ECV may be offerd at 36-38 weeks, depending on parity and the position of placenta. (Oxford Handbook of Midwifery, pg 381) |
Versi sefalik eksternal dapat ditawarkan pada usia 36-38 minggu, bergantung pada paritas dan plasenta (Buku Kebidanan Oxford, pg 359) |
External Cephalic Version adalah manipulasi sepenuhnya dilakukan melalui dinding abdomen untuk merubah presentasi |
janin yang bukan kepala menjadi presentasi kepala sehingga memungkinkan terjadinya persalinan secara normal.
(Kamus Kebidanan, 2005: 146)
Data 9 shows that the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the phrase in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into Verb Phrase in the TL. FGM stands for Female Genital Mutilation (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into mutilasi genital wanita in the TL. This case shows that the abbreviation Female genital Mutilation in form of noun
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phrase is translated into Verb Phrase mutilasi genital wanita, which consists of V+NP. This data shows that the meaning is well transferred; thus the equivalence can be achieved.
Having seen data 10, the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the phrase in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into Verb Phrase in the TL. EFM stands for Electronic Fetal Monitor (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into memantau jantung secara elektronik in the TL. This case shows that the Electronic Fetal Monitor in the form of noun phrase is translated into Verb Phrase memantau jantung secara elektornik, which consists of V+NP (NP+AdvP) in the TL. This data shows that the meaning is well transferred; thus the equivalence can be achieved.
Having viewed data 11, the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the phrase in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into Noun Phrase in the TL. MSU stands for Midstream Urine (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into urine bersih aliran tengah, which, according to Winson dan Mcdonald (2005:26), means kumpulan urin yang diperoleh setelah genitalia dibersihkan, aliran urin dimulai, porsi tengah urin diambil. This case shows that Midstream Urine in the form of noun phrase is translated into Noun Phrase urine bersih aliran tengah, which consists of NP (N+Adj.P) in the TL. This data shows that the meaning is well transferred; thus the equivalence can be achieved.
Having seen data 12, the abbreviation in the SL is translated into noun in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into noun in the TL. U/E stands for Urea and Electrolyte (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into urea dan elektrolit in the TL. This case shows that Urea and Electrolyte in the form of noun is translated into the noun urea dan elektrolit. This data shows that the meaning is well transferred; thus the equivalence can be achieved.
Having seen data 13, the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the phrase in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into Noun Phrase in the TL. LFTs stands for Liver Function Tests (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into uji fungsi hati in the TL. This case shows that Liver Function Tests which is in the form of noun phrase is translated into noun phrase which consists of NP (N+NP) uji fungsi hati. This data shows that the meaning is well transferred; thus the equivalence can be achieved.
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Having seen data 14, the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the phrase in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into noun in the TL. ARM stands for artificial rupture of the membrane (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into pemecahan ketuban secara artifisial in the TL. This case shows that the phrase artificial rupture of the membrane is translated into noun phrase in the TL, which consists of NP (NP+AdvP). This data shows that the meaning is transferred well, thus the equivalence can be achieved.
Having viewed data 15, the abbreviation in the SL is translated into the phrase in the TL, in which the element of the SL is translated into noun phrase in the TL. ECV stands for External Chephalic Version (Farlex and Partners, 2009), which is translated into Versi Sefalik External in the TL. This case shows that the external cephalic version which is in form of noun phrase is translated into noun phrase in the TL which consists of NP (N+NP). This data shows that the meaning is well transferred, thus the equivalence can be achieved.
Having done the analysis, there are some novelties of this study which are presented as follows:
There are three categories of procedures in translating abbreviations, namely (1) translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (borrowing); this procedure showed that the abbreviations of English medical terms were translated into abbreviations, in which borrowing was found (2) translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (adaptation); this procedure showed that the abbreviations of English medical terms were translated into abbreviations, in which adaptation was found (3) translating the abbreviation into phrase, this procedure showed that the abbreviation was translated into phrase.
The medical abbreviation can be translated into phrase, in which the medical abbreviations which are in the form of nouns or noun phrases can be translated into nouns, noun phrases or verb phrases.
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There was a very specific phenomenon found in translating medical text, namely some abbreviations were translated in various ways; thus in analyzing this kind of data the procedures proposed by the experts mentioned above must be reformulated. This study proposed three procedures of translation which were formulated based on the data found in this study, namely (1) translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (borrowing), this procedure showed that the abbreviations of English medical terms were translated into abbreviations, in which borrowing was found (2) translating the abbreviation into abbreviation (adaptation); this procedure showed that the abbreviations of English medical terms were translated into abbreviations, in which adaptation was found (3) translating the abbreviation into phrase; this procedure showed that the abbreviation was translated into phrase. The medical abbreviation can be translated into phrase, in which the medical abbreviations are in the form of nouns or noun phrases and were translated into nouns, noun phrases or verb phrases as explained in the novelties.
The translation procedures used to translate abbreviations can be classified based on the characteristics of the phrase. From the formulation of the three formulation procedures based on the data phenomenon on the medical abbreviations especially on midwifery, it is expected that this research can be developed in other text genres by other researchers. The results of other text translation research will contribute to the development of linguistic studies, especially to translation studies. The examination of translation in terms of accuracy, acceptability and readability will help the researcher to confirm the quality of the translation.
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The researcher would like to thank to those who have given beneficial contribution during the writing of this research so that the results can be published, the appreciation of thankful is dedicated to the board of examiners: Prof. Dr. Made Budiarsa, M.A., Dr. Ida Ayu Made Puspani, M.Hum., Dr. Dra. Ni Wayan Sukarini, M.Hum., and Prof. Dr. I Nyoman Kardana, M.Hum., for their support, advice during the writing of this research.
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