Localization and Alienation in Translating the Titles of Children's Story Books

A Case Study of Books for the Age Group of 3–6 Years

Abstract

Topics such as localization and alienation become more important when the readers of translation are children as they become acquainted with foreign culture and cultural elements through translation. Therefore, translators working in this field face many problems. Fiction constitutes a major share of children’s literature. This section has its own characteristics. For example, in the titles of story books, there is the possibility of cultural-specific items (CSIs) and names. As a result, translators in this field have to use different techniques to convey foreign language concepts. The present study aims to identify the prevailing strategies and techniques in translating the titles of children’s story books. To do this, the main titles of story books for children aged 3–6 years during the 1390s SH in Iran were examined. The corpus of this study consisted of 90 titles of children’s story books and the techniques used in each were identified according to the model of Vinay and Darbelnet (1958). The results showed that translators in the field of children's literature, in this period, have used both localization and alienation strategies in translating these titles, but the percentage of each strategy is different. Translators have largely used the localization strategy, in particular equivalence or idiomatic translation procedures. On the other hand, in alienation strategy, the literal translation or literal translation and calque were the most and least frequently used strategies, respectively. The results will be a guide for translators in choosing strategies for translating cultural specific items in children’s literature.