Translating Blackfoot kinship terms in a Blackfoot-English bilingual dictionary
Date
2016
Authors
Mizumoto, Madoka
University of Lethbridge. Faculty of Arts and Science
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Volume Title
Publisher
Lethbridge, Alta : University of Lethbridge, Dept. of Modern Languages
Abstract
This research explores how to best translate Blackfoot kinship terms that do not have a one-to-one equivalent in English, and how to represent cultural information regarding these kin terms in the Blackfoot-English dictionary included in the Blackfoot Language Resources and Digital Dictionary project (http://blackfoot.atlas-ling.ca). Dictionaries for endangered languages, including Blackfoot, have to serve all audiences at once, since there are generally not the resources available to publish different dictionaries for different purposes, age and fluency levels, as is usual for dictionaries of major languages. The translator must therefore carefully consider how a dictionary can meet all levels of users: speakers, learners, and teachers. Based on a careful study of Blackfoot kinship terms as discussed in the literature and a fieldwork project with speakers of the three Canadian dialects of Blackfoot, I propose different ways to represent Blackfoot kinship terms that are suitable for all levels of users.
Description
Keywords
bilingual dictionary , Blackfoot , cultural knowledge , culturally specific lexical items , endangered languages , kinship terms