Transcreation

Last updated

Transcreation is a term coined from the words "translation" and "creation", and a concept used in the field of translation studies to describe the process of adapting a message from one language to another, while maintaining its intent, style, tone, and context. A successfully transcreated message evokes the same emotions and carries the same implications in the target language as it does in the source language. It is related to the concept of localization, which similarly involves comprehensively adapting a translated text for the target audience. [1] Transcreation highlights the translator's creative role. [2] Unlike many other forms of translation, transcreation also often involves adapting not only words, but video and images to the target audience. [3]

Contents

Transcreation theory was first developed in the field of literary translation, and began to be adapted for use global marketing and advertising in the early 21st century. [1] The transcreation approach is also heavily used today in the translation of video games [4] and mobile apps. [5]

The concept of transcreation emphasizes the translator's independent creative role. [2] In the context of marketing, the professional translators engaging in transcreation are often referred to as "copywriters" or "copyeditors", or alternatively as "transcreators". [6]

Background

The concept of transcreation was first developed by translators in India and Brazil in the mid-20th century. [2] In 1964, the Indian scholar Purushottama Lal wrote, regarding contemporary translations of the Sanskrit classics, that "the translator must edit, reconcile, and transmute; his job in many ways becomes largely a matter of transcreation". [1] In the Brazilian context, the term is associated with the work of Haroldo de Campos, who compared transcreation to the giving of a blood transfusion. [7]

The term is also recognized in China. In 2010, the Chinese design and advertising publication, Modern Advertising Magazine, discussed the term in an article for the first time. [8]

Examples

In popular culture, one example of the use of a strongly transcreational approach is in the United States adaptation of the Japanese anime Doraemon , in which characters and settings were dramatically modified to suit United States sensibilities. [3] For example, depictions of Japanese yen notes were replaced by United States currency, and a stand selling roasted sweet potato was replaced by a food truck selling popcorn. [3]

Similarly, the United States story of Spider-Man was transcreated for Indian audiences in Spider-Man: India , which is set in Mumbai. [9] This transcreated Spider-Man features an Indian-born Spider-Man whose “real” name is Pavitr Prabhakar. Thus, rather than battling the Green Goblin in the canyons of New York City, Prabhakar, clad in a dhoti, fights the demon Rahshasa against backdrops such as the Taj Mahal. "Unlike traditional translations of American comics, Spider-Man India will become the first-ever 'transcreation', where we reinvent the origin of a Western property," said Sharad Devarajan, the chief executive of the Gotham Entertainment Group. The goal in this case closely matched that of cross-cultural marketers: to make Spider-Man more relevant to the Indian audience, establish a deeper emotional connection with readers, and thus sell more comic books. [10]

The concept of transcreation has also been applied to other specialized fields such as technical and legal translation. For example, the creation of new technical vocabulary by specialized Icelandic translators in the mid-20th century has been retrospectively characterized as transcreation. [11] Accordingly, one author has defined transcreation as a "holistic" process of "re-interpretation of the original work suited to the readers/audience of the target language which requires the translator to come up with new conceptual, linguistic and cultural constructs to make up for the lack (or inadequacy) of existing ones." [12]

Purpose

As markets continue to broaden, advertisers face special challenges. To be effective, advertising must reach hearts as well as minds. Thus, the ability to transcend language and cultural boundaries is paramount to achieving an effective global marketing strategy. Not only must copy be translated correctly, but other factors must also be considered, such as culture, mores, dialects, idiom, humor, and context. Any perceived lack of respect for heritage, local values, beliefs and cultures may have a negative impact on consumers. [13] To meet these challenges, companies that market internationally are increasingly using transcreation, whether via their advertising company or with a company specializing in transcreation.

The tasks of a transcreator include establishing an emotional connection between the audience and the message, and maximizing cultural relevance. [14] Many factors may differ across cultural and linguistic boundaries and must be considered, as these differences can significantly limit the effectiveness and impact of a cross-market campaign. [15] These factors include cultural heritage, shared values, practices, and prevalent social cueing and reception thereof, including expression of emotions, gestures, body language, and facial expressions. These factors in turn influence consumers’ behavior and their reactions to advertising elements such as text, tone of voice, humor, settings, casting, and tonality.

Transcreation can also have a positive impact on a website's SEO performance, [16] as it favorises user experience and content quality; two essential factors for search engine optimisation. [17]

Relationship to translation

Classically, in a schema dating from the 17th century, translation has been divided into three approaches: metaphrase (word-for-word translation), paraphrase (i.e. “say in other words”), and imitation. [18] Transcreation is thus a variation on the "imitation" or "adaptation" approach to translation. [19] Similarly, viewed in terms of the continuum between free translation and literal translation, transcreation is considered to be "closest to ‘free’ on the literal – free cline." [20]

The validity of transcreation as a distinct form of translation, however, has been questioned. [21] While the term has been widely embraced by translation brokers seeking new business, it has been greeted with considerably more skepticism by professional translators. [22]

Commercial use

In the 21st century, some translation agencies began to specifically market themselves as transcreation agencies. [2] [23] Transcreation allows local marketers to take the essence of a global advertising message and tailor it to their market. Thus, a global advertising campaign subjected to transcreation becomes more supple, while still adhering to an overall global strategy.

Accordingly, the rise of transcreation has paralleled the growth in international marketing campaigns. In 1960, international billings accounted for 6% of the gross revenues of the top ten U.S. advertising agencies. By 1991, that share had climbed to 60%, and it has been rising ever since, [24] in line with the “think global; act local” principle. [25] [26]

See also

Works cited

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Advertising</span> Form of communication for marketing

Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a specific good or service, but there are wide range of uses, the most common being the commercial advertisement.

A translation memory (TM) is a database that stores "segments", which can be sentences, paragraphs or sentence-like units that have previously been translated, in order to aid human translators. The translation memory stores the source text and its corresponding translation in language pairs called “translation units”. Individual words are handled by terminology bases and are not within the domain of TM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internationalization and localization</span> Process of making software accessible to people in different areas of the world

In computing, internationalization and localization (American) or internationalisation and localisation (British), often abbreviated i18n and l10n respectively, are means of adapting computer software to different languages, regional peculiarities and technical requirements of a target locale.

Marketing research is the systematic gathering, recording, and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data about issues relating to marketing products and services. The goal is to identify and assess how changing elements of the marketing mix impacts customer behavior.

Cross-cultural communication is a field of study investigating how people from differing cultural backgrounds communicate, in similar and different ways among themselves, and how they endeavor to communicate across cultures. Intercultural communication is a related field of study.

Translation studies is an academic interdiscipline dealing with the systematic study of the theory, description and application of translation, interpreting, and localization. As an interdiscipline, translation studies borrows much from the various fields of study that support translation. These include comparative literature, computer science, history, linguistics, philology, philosophy, semiotics, and terminology.

Spira (<i>Final Fantasy</i>) Fictional world in Final Fantasy games

Spira is the fictional world of the Square role-playing video games Final Fantasy X and X-2. Spira is the first Final Fantasy world to feature consistent, all-encompassing spiritual and mythological influences within the planet's civilizations and their inhabitants' daily lives. The world of Spira itself is very different from the mainly European-style worlds found in previous Final Fantasy games, being much more closely modeled on a setting influenced by the South Pacific, Thailand and Japan, most notably with respect to its vegetation, topography and architecture.

A translation management system (TMS), formerly globalization management system (GMS), is a type of software for automating many parts of the human language translation process and maximizing translator efficiency. The idea of a translation management system is to automate all repeatable and non-essential work that can be done by software/systems and leaving only the creative work of translation and review to be done by human beings. A translation management system generally includes at least two types of technology: process management technology to automate the flow of work, and linguistic technology to aid the translator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Advertising campaign</span> Advertisements based on a theme

An advertising campaign is a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme which make up an integrated marketing communication (IMC). An IMC is a platform in which a group of people can group their ideas, beliefs, and concepts into one large media base. Advertising campaigns utilize diverse media channels over a particular time frame and target identified audiences.

Language localisation is the process of adapting a product's translation to a specific country or region. It is the second phase of a larger process of product translation and cultural adaptation to account for differences in distinct markets, a process known as internationalisation and localisation.

Video game localization, is the process of preparing a video game for a market outside of where it was originally published. The game's name, art assets, packaging, manuals, and cultural and legal differences are typically altered.

Fan translation refers to the unofficial translation of various forms of written or multimedia products made by fans, often into a language in which an official translated version is not yet available. Generally, fans do not have formal training as translators but they volunteer to participate in translation projects based on interest in a specific audiovisual genre, TV series, movie, etc.

Media planning is generally outsourced and entails sourcing and selecting optimal media platforms for a client's brand or product to use. The goal of media planning is to determine the best combination of media to achieve the clients objectives.

Technical translation is a type of specialized translation involving the translation of documents produced by technical writers, or more specifically, texts which relate to technological subject areas or texts which deal with the practical application of scientific and technological information. While the presence of specialized terminology is a feature of technical texts, specialized terminology alone is not sufficient for classifying a text as "technical" since numerous disciplines and subjects which are not "technical" possess what can be regarded as specialized terminology. Technical translation covers the translation of many kinds of specialized texts and requires a high level of subject knowledge and mastery of the relevant terminology and writing conventions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brand</span> Identification for a good or service

A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and store value as brand equity for the object identified, to the benefit of the brand's customers, its owners and shareholders. Brand names are sometimes distinguished from generic or store brands.

The Japanese video game developer and publisher Square Enix has been translating its games for North America since the late 1980s, and the PAL region and Asia since the late 1990s. It has not always released all of its games in all major regions, and continues to selectively release games even today depending on multiple factors such as the viability of platforms or the condition of the game itself. The process of localization has changed during that time from having a one-person team with a short time and tight memory capacities to having a team of translators preparing simultaneous launches in multiple languages.

Website localization is the process of adapting an existing website to local language and culture in the target market. It is the process of adapting a website into a different linguistic and cultural context— involving much more than the simple translation of text. This modification process must reflect specific language and cultural preferences in the content, images and overall design and requirements of the site – all while maintaining the integrity of the website. Culturally adapted web sites reduce the amount of required cognitive efforts from visitors of the site to process and access information, making navigation easier and attitudes toward the web site more favorable. The modification of the website must additionally take into consideration the stated purpose of the new website with a focus on the targeted audience/market in the new locale. Website localization aims to customize a website so that it seems "natural", to its viewers despite cultural differences between the creators and the audience. Two factors are involved—programming expertise and linguistic/cultural knowledge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Rosetta Foundation</span>

The Rosetta Foundation is a nonprofit organization that promotes social localization. The Rosetta Foundation was registered as a charitable organization in Ireland. It was an offshoot of the Localization Research Centre (LRC) at the University of Limerick, Ireland, and of the Centre for Next Generation Localization's (CNGL) research initiative, supported by the Irish government.

Multicultural marketing is the practice of marketing to one or more audiences of specific ethnicities—typically an ethnicity outside of a country's majority culture, which is sometimes called the "general market." Typically, multicultural marketing takes advantage of the ethnic group's different cultural referents—such as language, traditions, celebrations, religion and any other concepts—to communicate to and persuade that audience. Cultural as well as ethnic variations in multicultural societies such as the United States provide marketers with the opportunity to connect with consumers by developing consumer segments for targeted marketing initiatives. For example, insight into the culture and ethnicity of consumers is applied directly to consumer targeting through a variety of marketing initiatives in the U.S.

Social localisation (from Latin locus and the English term locale, "a place where something happens or is set") is, like language localization the second phase of a larger process of product and service translation and cultural adaptation to account for differences in distinct markets and societies, a process known as internationalization and localization.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Pedersen 2019, p. 44.
  2. 1 2 3 4 O'Hagan & Mangiron 2013, p. 196.
  3. 1 2 3 Chaume 2016.
  4. ↑ O'Hagan & Mangiron 2013, p. 191.
  5. ↑ Roturier 2015, p. 174.
  6. ↑ Pedersen 2019, p. 50.
  7. ↑ O'Hagan & Mangiron2013, p. 107, 199.
  8. ↑ "Textappeal: The Advantage of Talents". Modern Advertising: 20–21. August 2010. Translated article
  9. ↑ Bernal-Merino 2014, p. 90.
  10. ↑ Van Gelder, Lawrence (5 July 2004). "Arts Briefing". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  11. ↑ Gaballo 2012, p. 105.
  12. ↑ Gaballo 2012, p. 111.
  13. ↑ Polak, Elliot; Cuttita, Frank (March 2006). "Global Marketing Disasters and Recoveries". Admap (470): 36–38.
  14. ↑ Kates, Steven M.; Goh, Charlene (2003). "Brand Morphing: Implications for Advertising Theory and Practice". Journal of Advertising. 32 (1): 59–68. doi:10.1080/00913367.2003.10639049. ISSN   0091-3367. JSTOR   4622150. S2CID   144167731.
  15. ↑ Griffith, David A.; Chandra, Aruna; Ryans Jr., John K. (2003). "Examining the Intricacies of Promotion Standardization: Factors Influencing Advertising Message and Packaging". Journal of International Marketing. 11 (3): 30–47. doi:10.1509/jimk.11.3.30.20160. S2CID   155058684 . Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  16. ↑ "Transcreation Definition". Moc Digital. 2022-05-03. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
  17. ↑ Stein, Adriana (13 July 2021). "Your Cheat Sheet to Google's 200 (Known) Ranking Factors". blog.hubspot.com. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
  18. ↑ Hopkins, David (2014). "Dryden as Translator". Oxford Handbooks Online. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935338.013.10. ISBN   9780199935338.
  19. ↑ St-Pierre 2016, p. 83.
  20. ↑ Gaballo 2012, p. 96 n.1.
  21. ↑ Bernal-Merino 2014, p. 91.
  22. ↑ Gaballo 2012, p. 95.
  23. ↑ Pedersen 2019, p. 45.
  24. ↑ Ducoffe, Robert, and Andreas Grein. 1998. “Strategic Responses to market globalization among advertising agencies”. International Journal of Advertising 17 (3). 301–319.
  25. ↑ Harris, Greg (1994). "International Advertising Standardization: What Do the Multinationals Actually Standardize?". Journal of International Marketing. 2 (4): 13–30. doi:10.1177/1069031X9400200402. ISSN   1069-031X. JSTOR   25048564. S2CID   158254531.
  26. ↑ Vrontis, Dmetris; Thrassou, Alkis (2007). "Adaptation vs. Standardisation in International Marketing- The Country-of-origin Effect". Journal of Innovative Marketing. 3 (4): 7–21. ISSN   1814-2427 . Retrieved 16 September 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.