Grammar and Translation: The Noun + Noun Conundrum - Érudit
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Journal des traducteurs
Grammar and Translation: The Noun + Noun Conundrum
Christine Bagge and Alan Manning
Volume 52, Number 3, septembre 2007 Article abstract
This article deals with the vexed question regarding the translation into French
URI: https://id.erudit.org/iderudit/016739ar of English NOUN1 + NOUN2 sequences. Using the 15 meaning categories
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7202/016739ar presented by Biber et al. (1999: 589-591), with some modifications and
corrections, the authors expand each category into 20 representative items and
See table of contents translate them into French; they then show, by means of case study based on
the translation into French of several noun sequences, that students whose
first language is English seem to have difficulty rendering certain of these
structures; by contrast, students participating in the study whose first language
Publisher(s)
is French tend to commit errors not made by their English counterparts. The
Les Presses de l'Université de Montréal pedagogical implications of this pilot project are pointed up, and new linguistic
developments concerning the use NOUN1 + NOUN2 in French are identified.
ISSN
0026-0452 (print)
1492-1421 (digital)
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Cite this article
Bagge, C. & Manning, A. (2007). Grammar and Translation: The Noun + Noun
Conundrum. Meta, 52 (3), 556–567. https://doi.org/10.7202/016739ar
Tous droits réservés © Les Presses de l'Université de Montréal, 2007 This document is protected by copyright law. Use of the services of Érudit
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PRIMARILY FROM AN %NGLISH &RENCH POINT OF VIEW
#LASSIFYING !DJECTIVES AND THE .OUN .OUN 3EQUENCE
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GROUPS AS FOLLOWS
ADJECTIVES PROPER SCIENTIlC DENTAL AGRARIAN
S ADJECTIVES A MANS WATCH A LADYS BIKE A BUTCHERS KNIFE AND
ADJECTIVAL NOUNS A COAL MINE A GLASSWORKS A RIVER BED PEACE NEGOTIATIONS
.OUN NOUN SEQUENCES BELONG TO THE LATTER CATEGORY AND ARE WRITTEN AS ONE WORD
GLASSWORKS AS TWO WORDS JOINED BY A HYPHEN RIVER BED OR AS TWO SEPARATE WORDS
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LINE DICTIONARIES AND DO NOT POSE TRANSLATION DIFFICULTIES /N THE OTHER HAND
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OF MODERN %NGLISH AND ARE THEREFORE NOT UNIFORMLY LEXICALIZED %NGLISH GRAMMARIANS
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4HE 3TRUCTURE AND -EANING OF .OUN .OUN 3EQUENCES
.OUN NOUN SEQUENCES CONTAIN ONLY hCONTENTv WORDS WITH NO FUNCTION WORDS TO
SHOW THE LOGICAL RELATIONS BETWEEN THE TWO PARTS 7HILE THEY MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO
SQUEEZE A LOT OF INFORMATION INTO FEW WORDS THEY ARE HIGHLY DEPENDENT ON IMPLICIT
MEANING THAT IS THE READER HAS TO INFER THE SENSE OF THE LOGICAL RELATIONSHIP UNDER
PINNING SEQUENCES OF ADJECTIVAL AND HEAD NOUNS )NDEED UNDER ,ONGMANS CLASSIlCA
TION NOUN NOUN GROUPS FALL INTO BASIC SEMANTIC GROUPS . ADJECTIVAL NOUN
. HEAD NOUN 7E HAVE CATEGORIZED THE LIST OF SEQUENCES AT THE END OF ,ONGMANS
LIST AND PLACED CERTAIN ALREADY CLASSIlED ITEMS IN THE CATEGORY THAT BETTER CORRESPONDS
TO THEIR MEANING 7E HAVE HIGHLIGHTED THESE ITEMS WITH AN ASTERISK 4HE MODIlED LIST
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CRUELTY
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DERIVED FROM AN INTRANSITIVE VERB EG CHILD DEVELOPMENTCHILDREN DEVELOP LEAF APPEAR
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%NGLISH NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES INTO &RENCH CAN BE FACILITATED BY PRESENTING THEM
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CATEGORIES !S WE DID NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE ,ONGMAN DATA BASE AT THE TIME OF WRITING
WE CONSULTED A NUMBER OF QUALIlED INFORMANTS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTIVE MEANING
OF EACH SEQUENCE 7E TRANSLATED THE ITEMS IN THE CHART INTO &RENCH AND IN ORDER TO
WIDEN OUR SCOPE OF ILLUSTRATIONS WE ADDED SEQUENCES OF OUR OWN UNDERLINED DRAWN
FROM A WIDE VARIETY OF %NGLISH SPECIALIZED AND SEMI SPECIALIZED SOURCES 7E ALSO ADDED
IN CAPITALS THE NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES FROM h#RY 7OLF v A SHORT PASSAGE THAT WE
TRANSLATED INTO &RENCH AND WHICH WE WILL USE IN THE lNAL PART OF THIS ARTICLE IN A CASE
STUDY OF THE CONTEXTUAL PROBLEMS OF TRANSLATING NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES
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MASSES OVIGÞRES METAL SEATSIÞGES M£TALLIQUES PLASTIC BEAKERGOBELET EN PLASTIQUE ZINC
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PITALCENTRE HOSPITALIER UNIVERSITAIRE
0ARTITIVE CAT LEGSPATTES DE CHAT RImE BUTTCROSSE DE FUSIL FAMILY MEMBERMEMBRE DE
LA FAMILLE TELEPHONE CABLECABLE DE T£L£PHONE BICYCLE HANDLEBARSGUIDON DE V£LO OU BICY
CLETTE TABLE TOPPLATEAU DE TABLE GARAGE DOORSPORTES DE GARAGE DESK DRAWERTIROIR DE
BUREAU RAILWAY STATIONGARE AIRPORT LOUNGESALON DA£ROPORT SEA mOORFOND DE LA MER
MAGAZINE COVERCOUVERTURE DE MAGAZINE TENT PEGPIQUET DE TENTE EYE SOCKETORBITE DE
LIL BANANA SKINPEAU DE BANANE RIVER CHANNELLIT DE RIVIÞRE ALARM BELLSONNETTE
DALARME CLOCK FACECADRAN DHORLOGE PIANO PEDALSP£DALIER DE PIANO HOCKEY STICK
BºTON DE HOCKEY WINDOW FRAMECHºSSIS DE FENãTRE
3PECIALIZATION lNANCE DIRECTORCHEF DES lNANCES DIRECTEUR DES lNANCES %DUCATION
SECRETARYMINISTRE DE LDUCATION GOSSIP COLUMNISTS£CHOTIERS FOOTBALL FANSAMATEURS DU
FOOTBALL ESTATE AGENTAGENT IMMOBILIER MANAGEMENT CONSULTANTCONSEILLER EN GESTION
TAXI DRIVERCHAUFFEUR DE TAXI ADMINISTRATION OFlCIALSADMINISTRATEURS CURIO SELLERS
BROCANTEURS CORN FARMERCULTIVATEUR DE MAÆS COMPUTER USERSUTILISATEURS DORDINATEUR
GUIDANCE COUNSELLORCONSEILLER EN ORIENTATION BUSINESS MAGNATEMAGNAT DE LA lNANCE
HEART SURGEONCHIRURGIEN CARDIOLOGUE FOOTBALL COACHENTRA¦NEUR DE FOOTBALL BOOK
REVIEWERCRITIQUE LITT£RAIRE FAMILY THERAPISTTH£RAPEUTE FAMILIAL SOUND ENGINEERING£NIEUR
DU SON 3(%%0 &!2-%2,%6%52 $% -/54/.3 %#/,/'9 -).)34%2-).)342%
$% ,#/,/')%
! #HART OF &RENCH %QUIVALENCES OF %NGLISH .OUN .OUN 3EQUENCES
4HE FOLLOWING CHART TABULATES THE SEMANTIC NOUN NOUN CATEGORIES REFERRED TO
ABOVE AND LISTS THE &RENCH STRUCTURAL TRANSLATION PATTERNS ASSOCIATED WITH EACH OF THEM
&OR STATISTICAL PURPOSES WHEN THERE WERE TWO EQUIVALENTS GIVEN FOR A TERM IN &RENCH
THEN THE EQUIVALENT THAT WAS PERCEIVED TO BE THE MORE COMMON WAS USED IN THE TABLES
4HE FOLLOWING CAVEAT SHOULD BE NOTED )F WE ASSUME THAT THE NOUN NOUN
SEQUENCES ARE TYPICAL OF EACH CATEGORY THEN THE DIFFERENT FREQUENCIES FOUND SHOULD
REmECT THE PATTERN OF TRANSLATIONS FOR EACH CATEGORY (OWEVER THIS CAN ONLY BE TESTED
CONCLUSIVELY BY TAKING A MUCH LARGER RANDOM SAMPLE OF NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES FROM
A LARGE VARIETY OF SOURCES 3IMILARLY NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES ARE UNLIKELY TO BE DIS
TRIBUTED EVENLY OVER THE CATEGORIES AND THEREFORE THE OVERALL PATTERN OF &RENCH
TRANSLATIONS COULD ONLY BE DETERMINED FROM A LARGER RANDOM SAMPLE /UR CONCLUSIONS
CAN THEREFORE ONLY BE PARTIAL HOWEVER SIGNIlCANT THEY MAY BE
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-.FUB -**
. . ! " # $ % & ' ( ) * + , - .
4OTAL
,EGEND 4HE STRUCTURAL PATTERN TYPES OF &RENCH TRANSLATIONS
! . DE DElNITE ARTICLE . EG SET THEORYTH£ORIE DES ENSEMBLES
" . DE . EG ALGEBRA TEXTLIVRE DALGÞBRE
# . EN . EG PLASTIC BEAKERGOBELET EN PLASTIQUE
$ . ADJECTIVE EG SEX MAGAZINESREVUES PORNOGRAPHIQUES
% /NE WORD EG PICNIC HAMJAMBONNEAU
& .. EG MEMBER COUNTRY£TAT MEMBRE
' IDIOM EG CANDY mOSSBARBE Í PAPA
( . POUR DElNITE ARTICLE . EG WAR FUNDSOUSCRIPTION POUR LA GUERRE
) PERIPHRASE EG COMPUTATION TIMESTEMPS UTILIS£S DANS LES CALCULS
* . Í . EG TOOL BOXBO¦TE Í OUTILS
+ . PAR DElNITE ARTICLE . EG VOICE COMMUNICATIONCOMMUNICATION PAR LA VOIX
, . . EG CARGO PLANEAVION CARGO
- . Í DElNITE ARTICLE . EG BUDGET REACTIONR£ACTION AU BUDGET
. . DE INDElNITE ARTICLE . EG BUILDING COLLAPSEEFFONDREMENT DUN EDIlCE
,EGEND 4HE TYPES OF . . CATEGORIES
#OMPOSITION
0URPOSE
)DENTITY
#ONTENT
3OURCE
/BJECTIVE 4YPE
/BJECTIVE 4YPE
3UBJECTIVE 4YPE
3UBJECTIVE 4YPE
4IME
,OCATION 4YPE
,OCATION 4YPE
)NSTITUTION
0ARTITIVE
3PECIALIZATION
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-HSBNNBSBOEUSBOTMBUJPOUIFOPVO OPVODPOVOESVN
4HE CHART CONFIRMED OUR INITIAL GENERAL HYPOTHESIS THAT &RENCH PATTERN "
. . IS THE MOST COMMONLY ADOPTED STRUCTURE FOR TRANSLATING ALL %NGLISH NOUN
NOUN SEQUENCES FOLLOWED A LONG WAY BEHIND BY PATTERNS $ . ADJECTIVE AND
EX AEQUO ! . DE DElNITE ARTICLE . AND % ONE WORD 4HE POPULARITY OF
THE LATTER PATTERN CAME AS A PARTICULAR SURPRISE TO US /UR SECOND SURPRISE WAS TO lND
THAT CERTAIN CATEGORIES TEND TO CLUSTER AND PREDOMINATE IN SPECIlC SEMANTIC CATEGORIES
&OR EXAMPLE IN CATEGORY )DENTITY PATTERNS % ONE WORD AND $ . ADJECTIVE
ARE MORE PROMINENT THAN CATEGORY " IN CATEGORY 3OURCE PATTERNS ! . DE
DElNITE ARTICLE . AND $ ARE MORE SIGNIlCANT IN CATEGORY /BJECTIVE 4YPE
PATTERN % ONE WORD IS THE MOST PROMINENT STRUCTURE IN CATEGORY 3UBJECTIVE 4YPE
PATTERNS $ AND ! ARE PREFERRED IN CATEGORY 4IME PATTERNS ! AND " ARE EQUALLY
DISTRIBUTED lNALLY IN CATEGORY 3PECIALIZATION PATTERN " IS JUST SLIGHTLY AHEAD OF
PATTERN ! 4HE PEDAGOGICAL RAMIlCATIONS OF THESE OBSERVATIONS IS OBVIOUS NAMELY
THAT ALTHOUGH PATTERN " IS BY FAR AND AWAY THE MOST COMMON &RENCH STRUCTURAL
EQUIVALENCE OF %NGLISH NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES IN GENERAL ITS ACTUAL RATE OF INCIDENCE
DEPENDS ON THE PARTICULAR SEMANTIC GROUPING TO WHICH IT BELONGS 4HAT SAID ANY
EQUIVALENCE CHART WILL ALWAYS BE LEFT WANTING SINCE THE ACT OF TRANSLATING DOES NOT
INVOLVE TRANSCODING OR THE SIMPLE TRANSFER OF ONE WORD OR GROUP OF WORDS FROM ONE
LANGUAGE TO ANOTHER STYLE AND CONTEXT ARE EQUALLY DECISIVE )N ORDER TO DEMONSTRATE
THE TRUTH OF THIS ASSERTION WE ANALYZED STUDENT TRANSLATIONS OF AN %NGLISH MAGAZINE
ARTICLE THAT CONTAINED SEVERAL NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES 7E SUBSEQUENTLY ADDED THESE
SEQUENCES TO OUR EQUIVALENCE CHART
.OUN .OUN 3EQUENCES ! #ASE 3TUDY
7E SELECTED AN ARTICLE FROM THE MAGAZINE 4HE %CONOMIST THAT HAD BEEN TRANSLATED INTO
&RENCH BY STUDENTS ALL IN THEIR LAST YEAR IN THE &RENCH (ONOURS GROUP AT #OVENTRY
5NIVERSITY IN THE 5NITED +INGDOM 4HE ARTICLE n #RYING WOLF n CONTAINED SIX NOUN
NOUN STRUCTURES /NE STRUCTURE n SHEEP FARMERS n WAS UNUSUALLY HYPHENATED IN THE
ORIGINAL AFTER CHECKING A NUMBER OF INFORMANTS AS WELL AS SEVERAL WEBSITES WE RESTORED
ITS NORMAL ORTHOGRAPHY 3EVEN OF THE GROUP WERE NATIVE &RENCH SPEAKERS AND THE
REMAINING EIGHT NATIVE %NGLISH SPEAKERS 4HOUGH THE FORMER DID NOT PLAY A PRIMARY
ROLE IN THIS STUDY WE NONETHELESS RETAINED THEIR ANSWERS TO SEE WHETHER LIKE THEIR
%NGLISH SPEAKING PEERS THEY TOOK ACCOUNT OF STYLE AND CONTEXT IN THEIR TRANSLATIONS
"EFORE COMPARING AND CONTRASTING THE STUDENTS WORK WE DID OUR OWN TRANSLATION AND
ASSIGNED THE NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES TO THEIR INDIVIDUAL PATTERNS AND CATEGORIES
4HUS
#RYING WOLF
&AIRY TALE MENACE AND BIBLICAL DEMON THE WOLF IS CREEPING INTO &RENCH POLITICS !FTER A
STRING OF WOLF ATTACKS ON SHEEP IN THE 3OUTHERN !LPS 3ERGE ,EPELTIER THE ECOLOGY MINISTER
AGREED TO A CULL "UT THE DECISION HAS PROMPTED FURIOUS DEBATE BETWEEN PASTORALISTS AND
ECOLOGISTS DIVIDED THE GOVERNMENT AND RE OPENED THE WHOLE QUESTION OF WHAT THE &RENCH
COUNTRYSIDE IS FOR
!T THE START OF THE TH CENTURY &RANCE HAD SOME WOLVES 4HEN THE WOLF DISAPPEARED
IN THE S CHASED BY GUNSHOT POISON AND URBANISATION )N WOLVES FROM )TALY REAP
PEARED IN THE 3OUTHERN !LPS ,AST YEAR THERE WERE WOLF ATTACKS EIGHT TIMES AS MANY AS
TEN YEARS AGO INVOLVING THE LOSS OF SHEEP -OST TOOK PLACE IN THE -ERCANTOUR AREA OF
THE 3OUTHERN !LPS
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-.FUB -**
&OR THEIR PART ECOLOGISTS ARE LIVID ABOUT THE CULL /LIVIER 2OUSSEAU HEAD OF THE !SSOCIATION
FOR THE 0ROTECTION OF 7ILD !NIMALS ARGUES THAT SHEEP FARMERS SHOULD TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE
RETURN OF THIS MAJESTIC CREATURE AND DIVERSIFY INTO SUCH ACTIVITIES AS ECO TOURISM
4HIS TOUCHES THE POLITICALLY SENSITIVE MATTER OF HOW TRADITIONAL &RENCH FARMING IS TO SURVIVE
%COLOGISTS CLAIM THAT FARMERS ARE EXAGGERATING THE WOLF THREAT TO CLING TO AN OUTDATED SYSTEM
OF SUBSIDIES &ARMERS RETORT THAT THEIR BUSINESS IS PRODUCTION NOT PARK KEEPING h7E WILL NOT
TOLERATE $ISNEYlCATION v SNIFFS ONE SHEEP FARMER
4HE %CONOMIST 3EPTEMBER TH
3UGGESTED TRANSLATION
#RIER AU LOUP
)NCARNATION DU DANGER DANS LES CONTES DE F£ES ET DU D£MON DANS LA "IBLE LE LOUP SINSINUE
DANS LA VIE POLITIQUE FRAN½AISE !PRÞS UNE S£RIE DATTAQUES DE LOUPS SUR DES MOUTONS DANS
LES !LPES DU 3UD 3ERGE ,EPELTIER MINISTRE DE L%COLOGIE A AUTORIS£ UN ABATTAGE S£LECTIF
/R CETTE D£CISION A SUSCIT£ UNE VIVE POL£MIQUE ENTRE PASTORALISTES ET £COLOGISTES DIVIS£ LE
GOUVERNEMENT ET ROUVERT LE GRAND D£BAT SUR LA VOCATION DES CAMPAGNES FRAN½AISES
!U D£BUT DU XIXE SIÞCLE LA &RANCE COMPTAIT QUELQUE LOUPS 0AR LA SUITE DANS LES
ANN£ES LE LOUP A DISPARU POURCHASS£ PAR LE TIR LES EMPOISONNEMENTS OU LURBANI
SATION %N DES LOUPS VENUS D)TALIE ONT R£APPARU DANS LES !LPES DU 3UD ,ANN£E
DERNIÞRE ON A D£NOMBR£ ATTAQUES DE LOUPS SOIT HUIT FOIS PLUS QUIL Y A DIX ANS QUI
SE SONT SOLD£ES PAR LA PERTE DE MOUTONS ,A PLUPART SE SONT PRODUITES DANS LA R£GION
DU -ERCANTOUR DANS LES !LPES DU 3UD
,ES £COLOGISTES QUANT Í EUX SONT FURIEUX QUON AIT AUTORIS£ LABATTAGE /LIVIER 2OUSSEAU
PR£SIDENT DE L!SSOCIATION POUR LA PROTECTION DES ANIMAUX SAUVAGES SOUTIENT QUE LES
£LEVEURS DE MOUTONS DEVRAIENT PROlTER DU RETOUR DE CE MAJESTUEUX ANIMAL POUR DIVER
SIlER LEURS ACTIVIT£S EN SE TOURNANT NOTAMMENT VERS L£COTOURISME
#ETTE CONTROVERSE SOULÞVE LA QUESTION SENSIBLE DUN POINT DE VUE POLITIQUE DE LA MANIÞRE
DONT ON ENVISAGE LA SURVIE DE LAGRICULTURE TRADITIONNELLE EN &RANCE ,ES £COLOGISTES PR£
TENDENT QUE LES £LEVEURS EXAGÞRENT LIMPORTANCE DE LA MENACE QUE REPR£SENTE LE LOUP
POUR CONSERVER UN SYSTÞME DINDEMNISATIONS D£PASS£ ,ES £LEVEURS EUX R£TORQUENT QUE
LEUR R¯LE CONSISTE Í G£N£RER DES BIENS AGRICOLES ET NON Í GARDER DES PARCS i .OUS NE
TOL£RERONS PAS LA $YSNEYlCATION DE NOS CAMPAGNES w D£CLARE AVEC D£DAIN UN £LEVEUR DE
MOUTONS
&AIRY TALE MENACE )NCARNATION DU DANGER DANS LES CONTES DE F£ES ,OCATION 4YPE
0ATTERN )
WOLF ATTACKS OCCURRENCES ATTAQUES DE LOUPS 3UBJECTIVE 4YPE 0ATTERN "
ECOLOGY MINISTER MINISTRE DE L%COLOGIE 3PECIALIZATION0ATTERN !
-ERCANTOUR AREA R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR ,OCATION 4YPE 0ATTERN !
WOLF THREAT MENACE QUE REPR£SENTE LE LOUP 3UBJECTIVE 4YPE 0ATTERN )
SHEEP FARMER £LEVEUR DE MOUTONS 3PECIALIZATION0ATTERN "
!LL NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES lT NEATLY INTO SEMANTIC CATEGORIES ,OCATION 4YPE
3UBJECTIVE 4YPE AND 3PECIALIZATION THEY ARE TRANSLATED BY THE FORMS PREDICTED
BY OUR CHART TWO ARE TRANSLATED USING THE PATTERN ! ECOLOGY MINISTER -ERCANTOUR
AREA TWO THE PATTERN " WOLF ATTACKS SHEEP FARMER THE REMAINING TWO &AIRY TALE
MENACE WOLF THREAT ARE EXPRESSED BY THE PATTERN ) PHRASEOLOGICAL IN BOTH CASES
&ORMALLY &AIRY TALE MENACE AND -ERCANTOUR AREA BELONG TO THE SAME SEMANTIC
CATEGORY HOWEVER THE UNDERLYING MEANING BETWEEN THE NOUNS IN EACH SEQUENCE IS
NOT THE SAME )N THE lRST CASE THE AUTHOR EVOKES A MENACE TYPICALLY FOUND IN FAIRY
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-HSBNNBSBOEUSBOTMBUJPOUIFOPVO OPVODPOVOESVN
TALES THE MEANING EXPRESSED IN &RENCH BY THE hDANGER QUI SE TROUVE DANS LES CONTES
DE F£ESv )N THE SECOND THE NOUNS ARE PERCEIVED AS EQUIVALENT IN OTHER WORDS
-ERCANTOUR IS AN AREA HENCE hR£GION DU -ERCANTOURv )F WOLF THREAT WERE TO BE REN
DERED BY MENACE DE LOUP IT WOULD DESIGNATE A TYPE OF THREAT 4HE SENSE IS MUCH MORE
CONCRETE AS THE WOLF IS THE AGENT OF THE ACTION EVOKED IN THE HEAD NOUN hTHREAT v HENCE
THE MORE EXPLICIT PHRASE hMENACE QUE REPR£SENTE LE LOUPv
&OR REASONS OF STYLE AND LEXIS WE HAVE INCLUDED THE FOLLOWING ITEMS IN OUR DISCUS
SION BIBLICAL DEMON D£MON DANS LA "IBLE FARMERS £LEVEURS !S WITH THE LATTER
EXAMPLE WE CHOSE THE SYMMETRICAL RENDERING D£MON DANS LA "IBLE BECAUSE WE CON
SIDERED IT STYLISTICALLY MORE APPROPRIATE THAN ITS VARIANT DEMON BIBLIQUE )N THE SECOND
EXAMPLE WE CONSIDERED IT AS AN ABBREVIATION OF SHEEP FARMERS IN THIS CONTEXT AND
TRANSLATED IT IN &RENCH BY THE ABBREVIATION OF £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS n £LEVEURS
.EXT WE COMPILED AN ANALYTICAL CHART OF THE STUDENTS TRANSLATIONS OF THE NOUN
NOUN SEQUENCES !S MENTIONED EARLIER WE HAVE RECORDED THE ANSWERS OF THE NATIVE
&RENCH SPEAKERS ALONGSIDE THEIR %NGLISH COUNTERPARTS IN ORDER TO MEASURE THEIR
SENSITIVITY TO CONTEXTUAL MEANING
!NALYTICAL #HART OF 3TUDENTS .OUN .OUN 4RANSLATIONS
4%2-3 %.',)3( 345$%.43 &2%.#( 345$%.43 /52 42!.3,!4)/.
FAIRY TALE MENACE COMME LA MENACE DANS LES MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES )NCARNATION DU DANGER
CONTES DE F£ES CONTE DE F£E QUI SE FAIT DANS LES CONTES DE F£ES
UNE MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES MENA½ANT
LA MENACE DES CONTES DE F£ES MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES
UNE MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES SYMBOLE DUNE MENACE DANS
LE MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES LES CONTES DE F£ES
MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES MENACE ENCHANTERESSE
UNE MENACE CONTE DE F£ES MENACE DE CONTES DE F£ES
LA MENACE ENCHANTERESSE MENACE DES CONTES DE F£ES
7OLF ATTACKS ATTENTATS CONTRE DES ATTAQUES DE LOUPS ATTAQUES DE LOUPS
MOUTONS xATTAQU£S PAR DES LOUPS
ATTAQUES DE LOUP ATTAQUES PAR LES LOUPS
ATTAQUES DE LOUP ATTAQUES
ATTAQUES DE LOUP ATTAQUES DE LOUPS
ATTAQUES PAR LES LOUPS ATTAQUES DE LOUPS
ATTAQUES ATTAQUES DE LOUP
LOUPES ATTAQUES
ATTAQUES DU LOUP
ECOLOGY MINISTER MINISTRE DE LCOLOGIE MINISTRE DE LCOLOGIE MINISTRE DE LCOLOGIE
-INISTRE DE LCOLOGIE -INISTRE DE L£COLOGIE
MINISTRE DE LCOLOGIE MINISTRE DE
MINISTÞRE DE L£COLOGIE L£COLOGIE
MINISTRE DE L£COLOGIE MINISTRE DE LCOLOGIE
MINISTRE DE L£COLOGIE MINISTRE DE
MINISTRE D£COLOGIE LENVIRONNEMENT
MINISTRE D£COLOGIE MINISTRE DE
L£COLOGIE
MINISTRE DE LCOLOGIE
-ERCANTOUR AREA R£GION DE -ERCANTOUR R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR
R£GION DE -ERCANTOUR R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR
R£GION DE -ERCANTOUR R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR
R£GION DE -ERCANTOUR ZONE DU -ERCANTOUR
R£GION DE -ERCANTOUR R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR
R£GION -ERCANTOUR ZONE DU -ERCANTOUR
-ERCANTOUR R£GION R£GION DU -ERCANTOUR
R£GION -ERCANTOUR
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-.FUB -**
SHEEP FARMERS £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS BERGERS £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
AGRICULTEURS £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
£LEVEURS DE MOUTONS £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
£LEVEURS DE MOUTON £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
PºTURAGES Í MOUTONS £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
AGRICULTEURS DU MOUTON £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
AGRICULTEURS £LEVEURS DE MOUTONS
AGRICULTEURS DU MOUTON
WOLF THREAT LA MENACE DU LOUP LA MENACE DU LOUP MENACE QUE REPR£SENTE
LA MENACE DE LOUP LA MENACE DU LOUP LE LOUP
LA MENACE DE LOUP LA MENACE QUE REPR£SENTE
LA MENACE DU LOUP LE LOUP
LA MENACE DU LOUP LA MENACE DU LOUP
LHISTOIRE DU LOUP LA MENACE DU LOUP
LA MENACE DE LOUPES LA MENACE POSSIBLE DU LOUP
LHISTOIRE DU LOUP LA MENACE DU LOUP
4HE SCORES OF THE %NGLISH SPEAKING STUDENTS WERE AS FOLLOWS
&AIRY TALE MENACE
WOLF ATTACKS
ECOLOGY MINISTER -ISTAKES OF CAPITALIZATION NOT COUNTED
-ERCANTOUR AREA
SHEEP FARMER
WOLF THREAT
!LL THE ERRORS APPEAR TO ARISE FROM INSUFlCIENT TRAINING IN RENDERING NOUN NOUN
STRUCTURES INTO &RENCH )N PARTICULAR THE lRST SEQUENCE IN THE TEXT &AIRY TALE MENACE
REQUIRED THAT ITS CONTEXTUAL MEANING BE CLEARLY DISTINGUISHED FROM THAT OF -ERCANTOUR
AREA THAT THE CONTEXTUAL MEANING OF WOLF THREAT BE CLEARLY ASCERTAINED AND THAT STY
LISTIC ADJUSTMENT IN THE INTEREST OF SYMMETRY BIBLICAL DEMON BE MADE AS WE MEN
TIONED EARLIER
4HE NATIVE &RENCH SPEAKING STUDENTS SCORED AS FOLLOWS
&AIRY TALE MENACE
WOLF ATTACKS
ECOLOGY MINISTER -ISTAKES OF CAPITALIZATION NOT COUNTED
-ERCANTOUR AREA
SHEEP FARMER
WOLF THREAT
4HEY WERE PATENTLY THE STRONGER OF THE TWO GROUPS GIVEN THEIR LINGUISTIC ADVANTAGE
HOWEVER THEY WERE LIKEWISE FOUND WANTING IN THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES ,OCATION 4YPE
&AIRY TALE MENACE AND 3UBJECTIVE 4YPE WOLF THREAT )N OTHER WORDS BOTH
%NGLISH AND &RENCH LACKED SENSITIVITY TO CONTEXTUAL MEANING AND STYLISTIC VARIATION
#ONCLUSION
4HERE IS NO DOUBT IN OUR MINDS THAT BASED ON THE RESULTS OF OUR #ASE 3TUDY MANY OF
THE STUDENTS WHO TOOK PART IN IT WOULD BENElT FROM EXPOSURE TO THE EQUIVALENCE CHART
THAT WE HAVE PRESENTED IN THIS ARTICLE !LTHOUGH THE CHART PROVIDES MANY OF THE SOLU
TIONS RELATED TO THE MEANING AND TRANSLATION OF NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES OUR CASE
STUDY UNDERLINES THE RULE THAT THE LANGUAGE STUDENT AND THE FUTURE TRANSLATOR SHOULD
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-HSBNNBSBOEUSBOTMBUJPOUIFOPVO OPVODPOVOESVN
BE CONSTANTLY AWARE OF CONTEXTUAL MEANING AND INDIVIDUAL STYLISTIC REQUIREMENTS !FTER
ALL IS NOT THE PRIMARY GOAL OF LANGUAGE TRANSFER TO CONVEY THE MESSAGE NOT THE FORM
3TUDENTS COMMIT ERRORS BECAUSE THEY DO THE OPPOSITE AS WE HAVE SEEN IN THE TABULA
TION OF THEIR ERRORS )N PARTICULAR THE NOUN NOUN SEQUENCE WILL CEASE TO BE A CONUN
DRUM FOR THEM ONCE THEY HAVE GRASPED AND BEGUN APPLYING THIS RULE ALONG THE LINES
THAT WE HAVE LAID DOWN FOR THEM IN THIS ARTICLE
4HE DIFlCULTY OF TRANSLATING THE NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES INTO &RENCH NATURALLY
STEMS FROM THE FACT THAT THIS STRUCTURAL PATTERN IS NOT CHARACTERISTIC OF &RENCH !S
WE MENTIONED EARLIER NOUN NOUN SEQUENCES MAKE IT POSSIBLE TO SQUEEZE A LOT OF
INFORMATION INTO FEW WORDS AND ACCELERATE THE COMMUNICATION PROCESS 4HIS MAY BE
THE REASON WHY THEY SEEM GRADUALLY TO BE lNDING THEIR WAY INTO THE &RENCH LANGUAGE
THROUGH CATCHY POLITICAL AND JOURNALISTIC PHRASES ,A POSITIVE ATTITUDE OF &ORMER 0RIME
-INISTER *EAN 0IERRE 2AFFARIN 3EE THE EDITORIAL BY -5LRICH IN ,IB£RATION OF
*ANUARY APPARENTLY SET THE STAGE WHEN HE USED THE PHRASE LA POSITIVE ATTITUDE
A PATENTLY %NGLISH STRUCTURE PUTTING THE ADJECTIVE BEFORE THE NOUN )T SEEMED TO GIVE
RESPECTABILITY TO THIS PATTERN AT LEAST WITH REGARD TO THE WORD ATTITUDE &OR EXAMPLE
IN ITS -AY ISSUE ,E &IGARO CONTAINS THE PHRASE ,A FRA¦CHE ATTITUDE TO DESCRIBE
,A SEMAINE DE D£COUVERTE ET DE D£GUSTATION DES FRUITS DE MER ET DES L£GUMES FRAIS THE
*ULY ISSUE OF ,%XPRESS CONTAINS AN ARTICLE ON ,A BLOG ATTITUDE A CLEARLY %NGLISH
NOUN NOUN STRUCTURE 7ILL THIS SYSTEM OF CLASSIFYING NOUNS INTO PARTICULAR TYPES
BECOME WIDESPREAD IN &RENCH )F EVER IT DOES HAPPEN THE PROCESS WILL OCCUR OVER A
VERY LONG PERIOD OF TIME )N THE MEANTIME IT DOES NOT UNDERMINE THE VALIDITY OF OUR
lNDINGS
2%&%2%.#%3
!TTAL * 0 4OTHILL ' 3 ET ! 3WAN 'RAMMAIRE ET USAGE DE LANGLAIS 0ARIS 'EMBLOUX
$UCULOT
"IBER $ *OHANSSON 3 ,EACH ' #ONRAD 3 AND % &INEGAN 'RAMMAR OF 3POKEN AND
7RITTEN %NGLISH (ARLOW ,ONGMAN
#HUQUET ( ET - 0AILLARD !PPROCHE LINGUISTIQUE DES PROBLÞMES DE TRADUCTION 0ARIS
/PHRYS
$£L£PINE 3 ,A GRAMMAIRE ANGLAISE DE L£TUDIANT 0ARIS /PHRYS
'RELLET 3 )NITIATION AU THÞME ANGLAIS 4HE -IRRORED )MAGE 0ARIS (ACHETTE
(UDDLESTONE 2 AND ' + 0ULLUM 4HE #AMBRIDGE 'RAMMAR OF THE %NGLISH ,ANGUAGE
#AMBRIDGE #AMBRIDGE 5NIVERSITY 0RESS
-ALAVIELLE * ET 7 2OTG£ ,A GRAMMAIRE ANGLAISE 0ARIS (ATIER
-ARCELIN * &AIVRE & 'ARNER # 2ATI£ - 'RAMMAIRE DE LANGLAIS 0ARIS (ATIER
3WAN - 0RACTICAL %NGLISH 5SAGE /XFORD /XFORD 5NIVERSITY 0RESS
-ETA CORR PUBINDD 0-You can also read
