How Are The Idioms In 'The Murder On The Links' Translated Into Arabic?

Abstract

Idioms are difficult to translate because of their unpredictable meaning and grammar. This study focuses on the strategies of translating idioms in Christie's novel 'The Murder on the Links' into Arabic. The aim of this study is to examine the strategies used by the translator when translating idioms into Arabic and examine the impacts of using these strategies when deducing the meanings of the idioms translated into Arabic. The theoretical part is based on Baker's strategies for translating idioms. In this study, a qualitative-analytical approach is adopted to analyse the strategies used in translating idioms. The analytical part is based on the novel 'The Murder on The Links' by Christie and the Arabic translation by Elbaradei. The data of the study consists of 90 idioms from the novel 'The Murder on The Links'. The results of the study showed that the translator adopted four strategies in translating idioms from English into Arabic, namely using an idiom with an idiom of similar meaning but dissimilar form, using an idiom with an idiom of similar meaning and form, paraphrasing and omission. Although previous studies have shown that paraphrasing was the most common strategy, this study showed that the strategy of translating an idiom with an idiom of similar meaning but dissimilar form was the most commonly used strategy when translating idioms from English into Arabic. The results also showed that when deducing the meaning of idioms translated into Arabic, most idioms were explicitly rendered.