Practical Translation Swahili to English

Key information

Year of study
Year 2, Year 3 or Year 4
Module code
155906736
Credits
15

Module overview

The modue aims to familiarise students with the process and techniques of reading, analysing and translating from Swahili to English, and to develop their skills to a high level of proficiency. It will provide them with practical experience of translation, the identification and application of appropriate translation strategies, and awareness of different translation styles.

Students will be assigned different genres of texts in Swahili to translate into English, and these will be discussed and draft translated in class. Assignment preparation and active class participation will also help students expand their knowledge of various writing styles, sophisticated grammatical structures, idioms and expressions.

Objectives and learning outcomes of the module

On successful completion of the module a student will be able to..

  • Demonstrate highly developed skills in translating from Swahili into English, ensuring that the end product is cohesive, effective, and appropriate to the nature of the source text.
  • Assess and analyse the nature and features of varieties of source texts, and demonstrate these skills through commentary on their translation choices and strategies.
  • Assess, discuss and critique translation texts from Swahili into English, pointing out the difficulties and issues that face translators of these texts in terms of specific issues and overall translation strategy.
  • Develop intellectual perspectives on the activity of translation and expand topic-based vocabulary.
  • Demonstrate ability in handling a variety of texts, including literary, religious, academic, political, journalistic and biographical texts with confidence.

Workload

The module is taught over 10 weeks, 2 hours per week

Scope and syllabus

There is no set syllabus for this course, but texts will cover a core range of genres and text styles (academic, political, commercial, social media, technical, journalistic, religious texts, literary texts and non-fiction). It will include ongoing discussion of the process and techniques of translation, from Swahili to English, close examination of the nature and features of different genres and varieties of texts, and exploration of the relevant translation strategies to adopt with them, both in class and during independent study. The module also involves the application of translation theory to texts, and critique and assessment of pre-existing translations.The order and levels of the text types studied will be flexible and tailored to the needs of the students

Method of assessment

  • One (1000 words) take home translation excercise AS1 (25%)
  • One (1000 words) take home translation excercise AS2 (25%)
  • One Portfolio of assigned texts for translation (Swahili – English) with commentary AS3 (50%)
  • The exact assessment deadline dates are published on the relevant module Moodle/BLE page

Disclaimer

Important notice regarding changes to programmes and modules