Survey of Edicts and Opinions of Religious Scholars and Faqihs in the Field of Translation

Abstract

Although the debate dealing with religious edicts relevant to the domain of translation may seem outlandish at first glance, one can realize the importance of the issue after some investigation. According to faqihs, rooting out corruption and developing virtue are the main objectives all religious edicts and referendums are based upon. Therefore, it is worthwhile for translators of Iran, which is an Islamic country, to appreciate the religious authorities and faqihs and seek their assistance and advice when they encounter religious matters in their realm. Undoubtedly, all the religious issues related to translation cannot be addressed in a single discourse. Hence, in this study, we intend to focus on translators’ intellectual property (e.g., copyrights, patents, and trademarks) and their religious edicts. After consulting the leading religious scholars on the matters and analyzing their reasons, it became clear that eleven of them were in favor of translators’ intellectual property and one of them was against it. In fact, the majority of the religious scholars believed in the legitimacy of translators’ intellectual property. About the latter point i.e., translators’ religious edicts, a referendum was also held to ascertain the scholars’ viewpoints. Ultimately, the issues appertaining to translators’ religious edicts were prioritized as follows: a) Issues relevant to translators’ moral rights, b) Issues relevant to translation of the Holy Quran, c) Issues relevant to translators’ economic rights, and stipulations of translation contracts, d) Issues relevant to the translation job market, and e) Miscellaneous issues.