TRANSLATOR’S ROLE AND CONTRIBUTION TO THE CULTURAL HERITAGE TOURISM
Pelin Şulha
DOI: 10.35666/25662880.2015.1.107
UDC: 338.483.12:06.053.56-051(560)
Abstract: In a globalizing competitive world, the communicative role of the translator in the tourism sector as a mediator between cultures and languages is essential with respect to the presentation of country‟s remarkable attractions and heritage. This study aims to explore in what ways the production or rewriting of the original text, based on the purpose and the function of the translational activity, enables the full appreciation of the inestimable reminiscences from the past. Turkish texts on two of the historical masterpieces in Istanbul are chosen to compare with their English versions. This analysis is carried out within the frame of Skopos theory which views translation as a cultural act to reveal behavioral patterns specific to the culture under consideration. The validity of the translator‟s decisions depend on not only whether the source content is transferred or not but also the strategy applied, i.e. the skopos of the action in relation to the expectations and needs of the assumed audience precedes the mode of the action and a redefinition of the relevance of certain source textual elements becomes necessary so as to attain a functional transfer (Vermeer 2004; Reiss & Vermeer 2014). In the analysis, it is observed that the translator remains faithful to the source text which means to place the tourist audience on the periphery; for instance, he/she would find it interesting to be informed about the architectural design of the building mentioned in the Turkish text, but he/she would be even more eager to discover the real stories and secrets hidden behind the stone walls, which may be included in the translator‟s narration. One of the aims of translating tourism texts is to represent a country‟s distinctive cultural identity that offers new traditions and opportunities, so there is a leeway for the translator to move away independently from the source text and use his craft to reconstruct a target text more appealing to the tourist.
Key Words: Tourism Texts, Translation Studies, Skopos Theory, Cultural Mediator, Cultural Heritage Tourism