The significance of translation skills in interpreting training : the case of King Fahd school of translation (KFST

Abstract EN

This paper examines the significance of translation skills in interpreting training.

Interpreting training usually takes place in institutions that also train translators.

Some training programs offer a common basic training for both translators and interpreters.

The key question to be asked in this regard is: does prior knowledge and/or training in translation improve the ability to do interpreting? Early research in interpreting did not consider translation as helpful to interpreters.

However, according to Holmes (1988), interpreting and translation are regarded as two components of the same discipline, translation.

If this approach is valid, there should be elements common to both disciplines.

Nevertheless, few research efforts have attempted to identify and test what specific skills learned from translation may apply to interpreting.

In this regard; this study aims at validating the hypothesis that prior translation training is an advantage in interpreting training.

For this purpose, data were collected and analyzed qualitatively.

The data consisted of recordings of participants’ interpretations of three speeches of varying levels of difficulty.

The participants were grouped into two categories: participants with experience or formal training in translation and participants with no experience or training in translation.

The results indicated a correlation between prior translation experience and simultaneous interpreting performance.