Intralingual (Re)translations of Foreign words and phrases in the texts translated into Ottoman Turkish

Abstract

The Alphabet Reform of 1928 necessitated transcription/intralingual translation of works written in Ottoman Turkish in order to pass them to posterity. Reprints made in the new alphabet were soon to replace old books as the law only allowed book printing in Latin alphabet as of 1 January 1929. This intralingual translation activity has continued in full throttle until our day. At first, authors of the Ottoman period did intralingual (self) translations to continue their fame and remain readable in the Republic period. Similarly, the ageing words were simplified in intralingual translation efforts in the new era. However, there are translated works besides authored books to be transferred to the new alphabet. During intralingual translations of Ottoman translated works, the source text may contain lots of foreign words and/or phrases that are written as they are or as pronounced by the authors of the source texts. This may result in different renderings of the same foreign words by the translators. We find it important to problematize this subject as there is increased interest in our day on translated works by the Ottoman authors. This study aims to describe the strategies adopted by the translators, by examining how foreign words and phrases were rendered in the two transcriptions and/or intralingual translations of Ahmed Midhat Efendi’s Niza-i İlm ü Din – İslam ve Ulûm. The first intralingual translation of the Ottoman Turkish translated text was done by Mustafa Yıldırım in 2018. It was followed by Bünyamin Tan’s intralingual translation in 2021.