scholarly journals Translating the Sacred Text: A Polysystem Approach

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-27
Author(s):  
Abdelhamid Elewa

This paper attempts an extended version of the polysystem theory combined with corpus linguistics techniques in translating the Qur'an. The original version of the theory focuses on the network of relations around the target text, while the extended version includes the network of relations (or systems) of both the source and target text, be they linguistic, social, historical, etc. To explore the systems of both the source and target text, a model was developed for translating the Sacred Text which can serve as a framework for the translators to capture the early and late Arab contributions from linguistic, historical and social perspectives to maintain the original message and present it afresh to the modern generations. The model consists of three stages and each stage involves a number of systems, including the linguistic analysis of the original and target text, the network of relations of the early context, and the network of relations of the modern context. Three verses were selected in this paper to demonstrate the validity of the model. The verses deal with some social, historical, theological and legal debatable issues in the field of Sacred Text exegesis, theology and Islamic jurisprudence. The different readings of the verses are mirrored in the various translations of the Sacred Text.

2020 ◽  
pp. 1329878X2094712
Author(s):  
Monika Bednarek ◽  
Georgia Carr

Digital methods are becoming more and more important for text analysis in communications research. However, many computational methods require either relevant technical expertise or multi-disciplinary collaboration, which has impeded their uptake. This article introduces an alternative: computer-assisted linguistic analysis (corpus linguistics), an approach that is increasingly being used outside linguistics and requires less expertise. The article uses a dataset of almost 700 items of health news to demonstrate how such techniques can aid the analysis of (dis)preferred language, sources, stigma and responsibility, framing, and project-specific text analysis. We conclude with an evaluation of the key advantages and limitations of corpus linguistic analysis.


Terminology ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 167-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela Faber ◽  
Clara I. López Rodríguez ◽  
Maribel Tercedor

Advances in corpus linguistics are of vital importance in terminology. The information obtained from corpora can be used to complement data already codified in dictionaries and termbases. In this article, we describe a framework of linguistic analysis that facilitates the extraction of conceptual information from corpora, and thus contributes to the study and analysis of terminological contexts. We are presently using this methodology in a research project called Oncoterm. One of the objectives of this project is to elaborate a bilingual terminological database, whose conceptual structure is an extension of an existing knowledge resource, the Mikrokosmos Ontology. In our termbase, medical concepts are organized in categories represented by templates, which are systematically applied to all category members. The application of the template to more specific concepts generates values that show the inheritance of knowledge structures within a specialized domain. The definitional information within each term entry is thus totally coherent with the information regarding other terms within the same conceptual category. This is conducive to the specification of a language of terminographic definition, which is concise, consistent and applicable not only to the domain of oncology, but also extensive to other medical domains and other languages.


2021 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahwan Fanani ◽  
Achmad I. Hamzani ◽  
Nur Khasanah ◽  
Aji Sofanudin

This study uses a literature study of examining the Tarjih Council of Muhammadiyah, the second largest Islamic organisation in Indonesia. Criticism is directed towards manhaj’s principle which states that any classical Islamic school of law should not be embraced and, thus, breaks up from the chain of Islamic intellectuality. The critics, however, fail to cover the very idea of Muhammadiyah as an embodiment of the Islamic renewal vision. The article aims to reveal the evolution of the manhaj. The evolution will be elaborated into stages to show the development of concepts and principles in each stage. The article is based on a literature study using constructive conceptual analysis. The analysis is divided into three steps, namely analytical assessment, performative aspects, and conceptual genealogy, stressing the reflective relationship between knowledge and social reality. The study shows that the Tarjih Council’s preference not to embrace any classical Islamic schools of law has developed since the establishment of the Tarjih Council. The developments of manhaj’s formulation occur in three stages from 1924 until 2000. The manhaj comes up with the synthesis of textuality, rationality, and spirituality as the basic vision of Muhammadiyah’s renewal idea which reflects the achievement of a modernist Islamic movement. The study, in comparison to previous research, provides a more comprehensive picture of the manhaj of Muhammadiyah as a representation of the Islamic renewal movement and shows how the manhaj comes to a synthesis that marks Muhammadiyah as a unique modernist-renewal movement.Contribution: The study enriches the perspectives on the manhaj as the backbone of Muhammadiyah ideology and shows that Islamic modernism in Indonesia has stepped further to uncover a synthesis suitable to Indonesian society.


Author(s):  
Ahlam Ahmed Mohamed Othman

Corpus-based critical discourse analysis studies have gained momentum in the last decade. Corpus Linguistics allowed critical discourse analysts to avoid bias in data selection and enlarge their samples for more representative findings. Critical Discourse Analysis, on the other hand, gave depth to corpus linguistic analysis by contextualizing it. The present study combines the two approaches to analyze the semantic prosody of Islamic keywords common to John Updike's Terrorist published in 2006 and Jonathan Wright’s translation The Televangelist published in 2016. The results of the corpus-based analysis show that while the semantic prosody of Islamic keywords is negative in Updike’s novel, it is highly positive in the translated novel. The conclusion is that Van Dijk’s proposition of the polarized representation of ‘us’ versus ‘them’ holds for Updike’s fundamentalist Islamic discourse which negatively represents Islam and Muslims. However, Van Dijk’s proposition holds only partially for Wright's tolerant Islamic discourse which positively represents Islam and Muslims without misrepresenting the other.


2001 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 63-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Declan O'Sullivan

Sharīca rulings are based on the Qur'an and aḥādīth. It is very interesting to assess how these sources have been interpreted in reference to both defining the crime and establishing the legal sentences of those found guilty of either blasphemy (i.e. sabb Allah, sabb al-rasūl/al-nabī) and/or apostasy (ridda/irtidād) from Islam. This article will attempt to determine whether the death penalty for the act of apostasy can be identified with the Qur'anic text and tafsīr. It will also show how inteipretations both for and against the death penalty have been emphasised through various ahādīth. Analysis of the Qur'an, Qur'anic tafsīr, and ahādīth will lead to an understanding of the development of the different opinions in Islamic jurisprudence regarding the penalty for blasphemy and apostasy. Examples offered include Q.2:217; Q.5:54; Q.9:12; Q.4:89; Q.16:106; Q.3:85 and Q.4:137. Other āyāt dealing with freedom of religious beliefs include Q.22:17; Q.2:256; Q. 109:1–6; Q.88:22–4; Q.10:99 and Q.18:29. It can be argued that a clearer understanding of certain translations and interpretations of the sacred text underlying the sharīca can show that the established legal sentencing owes much to strong political undercurrents, as opposed to a single message revealed in only one, unequivocal interpretation of the Qur'an. The conclusion highlights Islam's tolerance towards ‘Others’ or ‘infidels’, who, while holding the wrong belief systems, nevertheless have the right to peaceful coexistence and mutual respect.


2011 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Barlow

This paper examines the relationship between corpus linguistics and theoretical linguistics from a variety of standpoints. We consider the nature of the fit between particular theoretical approaches and the three areas in which corpus linguistics has made a significant contribution to our understanding of language: the provision of frequency information, the highlighting of the importance of collocations, and the description of variation and text types. The complex relationship between data, theory, and representation is described with the aim of situating corpus-based research with respect to different linguistic theories, looking broadly at British and American traditions and paying particular attention to usage-based models of language. We then briefly discuss some current issues surrounding theoretical developments within corpus linguistics, including the divide between cognitive and social perspectives; the representation of corpus-based generalisations; and the relationship between patterns in corpus data and patterns in the mind.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-48
Author(s):  
Farah Shahin

Abstract Islamic feminism is characterised by a debate, a practice enunciated within the Islamic values and frame. Muslim women brought their experiences to the forefront and challenged the traditional and post-classical interpretation of the Qurʾan and Sunna. They claimed interpretations of the religious text as totally biased and based on men’s experience, questions that are male-centric, and the overall influence of the patriarchal society and culture. According to Islamic feminists, Islam has guaranteed women’s rights since its inception, confirming the notion of egalitarian ethics within Islam. However, the original message of Islam has been hindered by the hegemonic interpretation of Islamic jurisprudence; a product of existing patriarchy in the long passage of Islamic history for over several centuries. The rights of women as prescribed in Islam are not in practice anymore, even the demand for women’s rights is seen by many as going against the basic principle of Islam. Islamic feminists give their justifications from the Qurʾan and Hadith, and they called for re-opening the door of ijtihād (reasoning). This paper captures the significant works of feminist discourses and analyses different perspectives by the Islamic feminists who challenged the dominant discourses in Islam. It deals with the dominant discourse of Islamic feminists such as feminist hermeneutics of the Qurʾan, and includes a discussion on how feminist hermeneutics or new gender-sensitive interpretation of the Qurʾan tries to assert gender equality in the Qurʾan. There are two ways in which Muslims read patriarchy in the Qurʾan: first from the verses and the other from the different treatment of the Qurʾan on issues including marriages, divorce, inheritances, and witness. Islamic feminists reject anti-women elements, present in the Muslim umma and consider them as unethical and against Islam.


2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 169-177
Author(s):  
Dinh Nguyen ◽  
Mo Hong Tran

In this paper, we proved a new extended version of the Hahn-Banach-Lagrange theorem that is valid in the absence of a qualification condition and is called an approximate Hahn-Banach-Lagrange theorem. This result, in special cases, gives rise to approximate sandwich and approximate Hahn-Banach theorems. These results extend the Hahn-Banach-Lagrange theorem, the sandwich theorem in [18], and the celebrated Hahn-Banach theorem. The mentioned results extend the original ones into two features: Firstly, they extend the original versions to the case with extended sublinear functions (i.e., the sublinear functions that possibly possess extended real values). Secondly, they are topological versions which held without any qualification condition. Next, we showed that our approximate Hahn-Banach-Lagrange theorem was actually equivalent to the asymptotic Farkas-type results that were established recently [10]. This result, together with the results [5, 16], give us a general picture on the equivalence of the Farkas lemma and the Hahn-Banach theorem, from the original version to their corresponding extensions and in either non-asymptotic or asymptotic forms.


Author(s):  
Elena Manca

This paper aims to analyse the verbal techniques which are more frequently used in tourism discourse, that is to say comparison, key words and keying, testimony, languaging, and ego-targeting (Dann, 1996). In order to do that, five official websites have been chosen for analysis, namely the websites which promote the USA, Canada, Australia, Great Britain, and Italy as tourist destinations. The linguistic content available on these websites has been downloaded and five comparable corpora have been assembled and analysed through WordSmith Tool 6.0 software for linguistic analysis (Scott, 2012). The methodological approach adopted combines the Corpus Linguistics approach with Cross-cultural studies models, in order to extract quantitative data and to interpret them from a linguistic and cultural perspective (Manca, 2016a). The aim of these analyses is to show that, although these techniques are all peculiar of tourism discourse, they are employed with different frequencies by the five languages/cultures with relevant implications for cross-cultural tourist communication.


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