Language and Culture in Business Translation from English into Arabic

Abstract

Today, a new communication era is emerging in the fast paced world of business and economy. A case in point is our region (the Gulf and particularly Dubai) where the economy is globally expanding and with this, demand is also increasing for innovative communication approaches to transmit and disseminate field related knowledge and information. As perhaps the vital means of intercultural communication, translation plays an essential role in the world of business across cultures. There are tremendous pressures on translators to convey intended messages and meanings as efficiently and as accurately possible. But do those translators possess the required translation tools and strategies to meet such evolving demands? Do they find enough support from the available translation theories and practices? This thesis surveys and investigates actual market demands in business translation in the multicultural environment of Dubai. This will be demonstrated through the translation of chapter Three "Reputation Management: a celebrity - driven society" from a recently published book on public relations titled: Public Relations Strategy by S. Oliver (2007). This title is published by Kogan Page Printing in London, UK. Through the translation of the above named chapter, this thesis aims to highlight the impact of several interrelated factors (i.e. organizational, local and global cultural dimensions and constraints) on the act of business translation, in which field translators require more dynamic theoretical and practical insights, such as strategic text approaches, independent agendas, decision making skills and high level awareness of local and global media.