Machine translation and the problems of translating cultural terms in the Arab world

Abstract EN

Translation is one of the most complex issues in modern Arab culture, thought and development.

Despite the fact that there are collective efforts of individuals, organisations and government policies, the results continue to be modest and not as expected.

The issues that contribute in the translation crisis in the Arab world are not the only ones because digital technology has changed the rules of the game almost entirely.

As a result, translation, in the traditional sense is no longer accessed through papers and books, but via screens, platforms, social networks and all that is online.

This is the speedily changing world of machine translation.

The aim behind this paper is to examine the status of machine translation in the Arab world in relation to culture specific terms.

Specifically, this work analyses the challenges of localising machine translation of cultural terms and the problems that translators face when using these technological devices, proposes some of the limitations in both policy and pedagogy that the field is currently facing.

Only a few universities have conducted research in this field.

It is recommended that more attention be paid and more research be conducted to get the most use out of this technology and that more efficient Arabic machine translation systems that suit the translation of cultural terms specifically between Arabic and English be developed.