African Educational Research Journal - Translating technical texts: The Igbo language example

Oct 15, 2026

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Translating between languages creates difficulties for translators, and the challenge grows when moving from a highly developed language to a developing one and when the text is technical. Technical translation relies on specialized terminology, yet Igbo often lags behind in creating adequate technical terms. The paper highlights linguistic and cultural gaps between English and Igbo and identifies key challenges in translating technical texts into Igbo, proposing directions for progress.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Method of Data Collection

Data Presentation

Techniques in Term Creation

Borrowing

Naturalization

Composition

Description

African Educational Research Journal Vol. 3(2), pp. 104-110, April 2015 ISSN: 2354-2160 Full Length Research Paper Translating technical texts: The Igbo language example Ngozi Patricia Ijioma1* and Olivia Ezeafulukwe2 1 National Institute for Nigerian Languages, Aba, Nigeria. 2 Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Nigeria. Accepted 14 April, 2015 | ABSTRACT
Translating a text from one language to another poses problems to the translator. The task becomes more enormous when translating from a well developed language to a developing one. It even becomes more complex when dealing with a technical text. While the English language belongs to the Anglo-Saxon group, Igbo language belongs to the Congo Basin. Every domain of translation presents its own difficulties and the technical domain too. Technical translation belongs to a specialized area. This implies that it involves specialized terminology. Igbo language is lagging behind in the development of technical terms. There is a wide gap between the two languages both linguistically and culturally. This paper tries to identify some challenges in translating a technical text into Igbo and suggest the way forward.
Keywords: Translation, technical terms, specialized translation. | | --- | | *Corresponding author. E-mail: [ngolemmy@yahoo.com](ngolemmy@yahoo.com). | INTRODUCTION Translation generally involves a range of difficulties and this can be a very challenging activity. The problem is even more accentuated when dealing with technical translation. Technical translation belongs to a specialized field. It implies that it requires specialized terminology. Specialized translation has its peculiar problems no matter the language. The situation becomes more critical and complex when translating from a widely accepted and developed language. English language is far more advanced than Igbo language in all ramifications. The two languages do not belong to the same family and as such do not share much in common. There is a wide gap between the two. While English language is well advanced in scientific and technical terminologies, Igbo language is in the process of developing terms to bridge the gap. Buttressing this point, Eke and Ugorji (1999:26) note that: Many factors account for this variance: levels of scientific development, levels of cultural evolution [etc. it](etc. it) is true that Igbo man has come in contact with the computer, yet, since it is not in our culture, it is difficult for the translator to find on the spot equivalents to suit the English terms for parts of the computer. Every language has a particular way of expressing things. And this is often influenced by the environment and culture, which in turn determine their choice of words. In other words, the lexical resources of a language reflect the environment in which its native speakers live. Bellos (2011:160) opines that, “languages tend to have words their users need, and not to have words for things never used or encountered”. In this era of globalization, there is need to disseminate information concerning scientific researches and knowledge to the public through the media and different reading materials. The Igbo race should not be left out in the fast changing world. This will no doubt go a long way in the development of Igbo language. We have chosen a technical text that is multidisciplinary culled from Osita Eze’s book, Nigeria and the World Trade Organization. We shall look at the concept of translation, technical translation. We have done a brief comparison of the two languages. Finally, a commentary will be done based on the translated text before we draw a conclusion. METHOD OF DATA COLLECTION The idea of this paper was informed by the fact that Igbo language is lagging behind in the creation of technical terms. There is need to create technical terms in Igbo to meet up with the fast changing world instead of resorting to direct borrowing from other languages. The major method of

FAQs

Why is translating technical texts more difficult than general translation?

Technical translation requires specialized terminology. When the source language is far more developed than the target language, suitable equivalents become harder to find and produce accurately.

What does the paper say about the development of Igbo technical terms?

Igbo language is described as lagging behind in creating technical terms, creating a wide linguistic and cultural gap compared with English.

Which term-creation techniques are discussed for developing Igbo technical terms?

The paper discusses techniques such as borrowing, naturalization, composition, and description, along with other approaches referenced from Igbo scholars (e.g., acronym, adaptation, hybridization, creative equivalence).

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Stanford