Techniques of Subtitling Jokes from English into Arabic

https://doi.org/10.48185/jtls.v5i1.892

Authors

  • Ahmed Mansour Assistant professor. Faculty of Law, Economics and Social Sciences, University Mohammed First Oujda
  • Abdennour Kharraki Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, University Mohammed First Oujda, director of Applied Communication in Context Laboratory, and head of the Master programme in Communication, Culture, and Translation

Keywords:

Jokes, subtitling, cultural jokes, linguistic jokes, universal jokes, punchlines

Abstract

Translating jokes from English into Arabic is a challenging task since jokes are strongly related to their languages and cultures. The task is becoming more challenging due to the subtitling rules, conventions, and constraints. The present study endeavours to investigate the translating techniques used by different Arabic subtitlers in different films to solve the technical, linguistic, and cultural problems of subtitling jokes in different American films. To achieve this pursuit we adopt Baker’s (2011) techniques for translating idioms and adapt them to meet the requirement of the subtitling of jokes’ punchlines, using a qualitative research method. The study reveals that subtitlers always translate the setting of the joke literally except for joke 4. The subtitlers use different translation techniques to render the punchlines; however, some of them fail to trigger a laugh.  Unlike universal jokes, linguistic and cultural jokes are difficult to render. Besides, the subtitlers omit (the entire or part) of the joke which is inappropriate and unacceptable in the host culture.

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Author Biography

Abdennour Kharraki, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, University Mohammed First Oujda, director of Applied Communication in Context Laboratory, and head of the Master programme in Communication, Culture, and Translation

Full Professor, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, University Mohammed First Oujda, director of Applied Communication in Context Laboratory, and head of the Master programme in Communication, Culture, and Translation

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Published

2024-01-12

How to Cite

Mansour, A., & Kharraki, A. . (2024). Techniques of Subtitling Jokes from English into Arabic. Journal of Translation and Language Studies, 5(1), 40–49. https://doi.org/10.48185/jtls.v5i1.892

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 1 (2024): 2024 (1) Published

Section

Articles
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