Accuracy, Clarity and Naturalness in Translation of Religious Texts

Abstract

Intelligibility of the meaning, normality of the style, and naturalness of the language all are of prime importance in translated texts, but they are not the only factors to be taken into account in evaluating a translation. The original text is considered as the keystone in assessing the accuracy and adequacy of a translated text. It may happen that a translation is clear and intelligible in its meaning, normal in its style, and natural in its language, but does not correspond to the original in the content of the message. That is, neither the intelligibility nor the naturalness of a translation is a sign of its faithfulness to the original. This study is an attempt to discuss the significance of accuracy, clarity and naturalness in religious translations in order to find out how much these criteria are important and influential in evaluating such translations.