Translation universals revisited

Abstract

Abstract According to the results of translation-based empirical research within the descriptive paradigm, transfer operations and the shifts that occur as a result of translators’ interventions are governed by norms, which represent general, standard practices built on informal social consensus (Toury 1995). Based on the scientific analysis of norms and general rules, the so-called translation universals were formulated describing the factors and qualities that distinguish translations from source texts and from authentic texts not produced through translation but originally written in the target language (Baker 1993). In the present study, I aim to summarise the theoretical conclusions drawn so far from the description of these observed translational features, as well as the results of the research into linguistic phenomena and laws that characterise translations in general, then I will synthesise and graphically represent the lessons learned in a theoretical model. Hopefully, it will provide help to understand and process the research data gained so far and in the future.