Connotations of winged words in translation
Joanna Szerszunowicz
Uniwersytet w BiałymstokuAbstract
Winged words are combinations of lexical items which can be attributed to a given source. There are two main types of such word combinations: intercultural units, found in a number of languages, and intracultural ones, i.e. the units which are language-specific and are not present in other languages. The focal issue of the paper is the translation of intracultural winged words. Such items are bound to pose a number of problems in the process of translation. First of all, they belong to so-called phraseological lacunae; second, many of them are due to the cultural connotations which they evoke in the native users of a given source language. Therefore, there are no equivalents in the target language. Moreover, many units are not included in bilingual lexicographic works. As a consequence, the translator has to decide on a technique to deal with intracultural winged words. In order to do so, a multiaspectual analysis of a given occurrence of intracultural units has to be conducted to interpret the intratextual and extratextual factors. The analysis is necessary to determine the parametres important for choosing the most adequate technique. Selected case studies of Polish phraseological units are discussed to shed light on the complex phenomenon.
