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Analyzing the Perspectives and Strategies in Localizing Software in Kiswahili

Received: 5 April 2019     Accepted: 29 May 2019     Published: 12 June 2019
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Abstract

Computer software and the Internet has now become a worldwide commodity and unlike before when the market was limited to major languages such as English, it has now grown to include even smaller languages such as Kiswahili. This has been made possible through translation and localization of software products and Applications so that firstly, people can access those products and Applications in the language that they understand better and secondly, the products and sites are packaged in the form that is acceptable by the target culture. In order to deliver properly localized products and Applications, the role of the localization translator as an expert in linguistic and cultural mediation is crucial. This paper looks at perspectives and strategies employed by localizers to localize some of Google software products and Internet sites. This is done from the point of view of Translation Studies and particularly from the communicative-functional approach to translation. The paper looks into the linguistic, mechanical, cultural and other translatorial dimensions to translations that play out to facilitate the communicative function of Google’s software products that have been localized in Kiswahili.

Published in International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation (Volume 5, Issue 1)
DOI 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13
Page(s) 15-20
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2019. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Software Localization, Equivalence, Lexical and Terminological Units

References
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[4] Esselink, B. A Practical Guide to Software Localization. Amsterdam: John Benjamins, 2001. Google books. Web. 16 Mar. 2018. taylorfrancis.com.
[5] Hariyanto, S. The Implication of Culture on Translation and Practise. Bistec, 2000 Volume 8, Number 10, pp 119-126. Web 20 March 2015. http://www.accurapid.com.
[6] Hines, C. Localization: A Global Manifesto. London: Routledge, 2013. Google books. Web. 12 May 2018. taylorfrancis.com
[7] Ivir, Vladimir. "Formal correspondence vs. translation equivalence revisited." Poetics Today 2. 4 (1981): 51-59.
[8] Jakobson, R. "On Linguistic Aspects of Translation," in: RA Brower, ed., On Translation (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard UP), pp 232-239. 1959. Google books. Web. 15 Feb. 2018. taylorfrancis.com.
[9] Janssens, Maddy, José Lambert, and Chris Steyaert. "Developing language strategies for international companies: the contribution of translation studies." Journal of World Business 39. 4 (2004): 414-430.
[10] Karani, R. Challenges of Neologization on the Internet, Unpublished.
[11] Liubinienė, Vilmantė, and Indrė Mykolaitytė. "Linguistic and cultural adaptation of English websites into Lithuanian." Kalbų studijos 10 (2007): 17-52.
[12] Molina, Lucía, and Amparo Hurtado Albir. "Translation techniques revisited: A dynamic and functionalist approach." Meta: Journal des Traducteurs/Meta: Translators' Journal 47. 4 (2002): 498-512.
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[14] Nida, Eugene A. "Science of translation." Language (1969): 483-498.
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[16] Nord, Christiane. Translating as a purposeful activity: Functionalist approaches explained. Routledge, 2014.
[17] Olali, Tom. "Using Idiomatic Expressions as Rhetoric: A Strategy Towards Acculturation by Kenyan Students in China." International Journal of Education Research 2. 3 (2014).
[18] Oxford Dictionaries, Aug. 2013. Web. 24 Sept. 2017.
[19] Šarčević, Susan. "Translation of culture-bound terms in laws." Multilingua-Journal of Cross-Cultural and Interlanguage Communication 4. 3 (1985): 127-134.
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  • APA Style

    Rufus Karani Munyua, Tom Olali. (2019). Analyzing the Perspectives and Strategies in Localizing Software in Kiswahili. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, 5(1), 15-20. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13

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    ACS Style

    Rufus Karani Munyua; Tom Olali. Analyzing the Perspectives and Strategies in Localizing Software in Kiswahili. Int. J. Appl. Linguist. Transl. 2019, 5(1), 15-20. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13

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    AMA Style

    Rufus Karani Munyua, Tom Olali. Analyzing the Perspectives and Strategies in Localizing Software in Kiswahili. Int J Appl Linguist Transl. 2019;5(1):15-20. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13,
      author = {Rufus Karani Munyua and Tom Olali},
      title = {Analyzing the Perspectives and Strategies in Localizing Software in Kiswahili},
      journal = {International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation},
      volume = {5},
      number = {1},
      pages = {15-20},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijalt.20190501.13},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijalt.20190501.13},
      abstract = {Computer software and the Internet has now become a worldwide commodity and unlike before when the market was limited to major languages such as English, it has now grown to include even smaller languages such as Kiswahili. This has been made possible through translation and localization of software products and Applications so that firstly, people can access those products and Applications in the language that they understand better and secondly, the products and sites are packaged in the form that is acceptable by the target culture. In order to deliver properly localized products and Applications, the role of the localization translator as an expert in linguistic and cultural mediation is crucial. This paper looks at perspectives and strategies employed by localizers to localize some of Google software products and Internet sites. This is done from the point of view of Translation Studies and particularly from the communicative-functional approach to translation. The paper looks into the linguistic, mechanical, cultural and other translatorial dimensions to translations that play out to facilitate the communicative function of Google’s software products that have been localized in Kiswahili.},
     year = {2019}
    }
    

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    AB  - Computer software and the Internet has now become a worldwide commodity and unlike before when the market was limited to major languages such as English, it has now grown to include even smaller languages such as Kiswahili. This has been made possible through translation and localization of software products and Applications so that firstly, people can access those products and Applications in the language that they understand better and secondly, the products and sites are packaged in the form that is acceptable by the target culture. In order to deliver properly localized products and Applications, the role of the localization translator as an expert in linguistic and cultural mediation is crucial. This paper looks at perspectives and strategies employed by localizers to localize some of Google software products and Internet sites. This is done from the point of view of Translation Studies and particularly from the communicative-functional approach to translation. The paper looks into the linguistic, mechanical, cultural and other translatorial dimensions to translations that play out to facilitate the communicative function of Google’s software products that have been localized in Kiswahili.
    VL  - 5
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Author Information
  • Centre for Translation and Interpretation, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

  • Department of Kiswahili, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya

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