Techniques of Bridging Cultural Gaps in Translation: A Case of Dwandwa Ra Yuddhaka Katha

Abstract

The present study entitled “Techniques of Bridging Cultural Gaps in Translation: A Case of Dwandwa Ra Yuddhaka Katha” attempted to present a descriptive analysis and interpretation of: (i) translation of cultural terms from Nepali into English, (ii) the techniques adopted in translating these terms, (iii) gaps found in the process of translating. Two hundred cultural terms from Nepali version of the anthology ‘Stories of Conflict and War’ and corresponding words from the English version of the same book were collected for the study. These were categorized under five group- Ecology, Material Culture, Social Culture, Religious Culture and Conceptual Terms. This thesis aimed to find out the gaps in translation and techniques used in the translation of the English version of the ‘Dwanda Ra Yuddhaka Katha’ Findings of this study showed that eleven different techniques were found to have been employed in translating cultural words of the anthology. There were many instances of use of non-corresponding meaning components, which lead gaps in translation. So, gaps in meaning existed between the SL terms and TL terms. This thesis is divided into four chapters. Chapter one introduces the study in terms of general background, review of the related literature, objectives and significance of the study. Chapter two deals with the methodology under which sources of data, procedures of data collection and limitations of the study are presented. Chapter three analyzes and interprets the data. Descriptive and analytical approaches were used for the purpose. Chapter four discusses the findings of the study. On the basis of the findings, some recommendations are drawn. The references and appendices are the concluding parts of the study.