PHYTONYMS WITH AN ETHNOCULTURAL COMPONENT OF MEANING IN THE ASPECT OF TRANSLATION

Abstract

The article, based on the translations of Ukrainian folk and original poetic works carried out by the translator Florence Randal Livesay, analyzes the methods of reproducing the ethnocultural features of Ukrainian phytonyms through the means of the English language. The conducted study is based on the analysis of translation methods applied to plant names, which function as transmitters of ethnocultural information and symbolic meanings in the Ukrainian language. It has been established that the dominant technique used in translating phytonyms is transcoding (barwēnok, rozha, wasylki; lewbistock, trezilie; kalina, teren; cheremshina, topolia), accounting for 82 % of the examples. In 18 % of the examples, the botanical name of the plant, phonetically similar to the Ukrainian lexeme (malva, ruta), was used. It should be noted that, with the exception of two names (zilie, trezilie), all other transcoded Ukrainian phytonyms have equivalents in the target language. This indicates that transcoding is a deliberate choice of the translator, aimed at preserving the authentic sound of the name, emphasizing the uniqueness of the phytonym and its significance in the Ukrainian culture. To convey the commonly accepted meaning of the phytonym in the target language, a dictionary equivalent is used alongside the transcoded name (64 % of the examples). This equivalent may appear in the title of the work (Topolia – The Poplar; Kalina – The Cranberry), be used within the poem itself, or be provided in footnotes at the bottom of the page. This approach ensures the adequacy of translation and the comprehensibility of the text for the English-speaking reader. In 73 % of the examples, the use of a translator’s commentary has been recorded. This commentary may be either concise (expressed as a phrase or a short sentence) or extended (a full sentence, two or more sentences, or even a paragraph). The commentaries clarify the denotative meaning of the phytonym and explain its symbolic sense, which is manifested in rituals, beliefs, folklore, and literary texts and may not be obvious to representatives of another culture. A distinctive feature of Florence Randal Livesay’s translation style is the use of combined techniques for rendering phytonyms, among which the most productive is the model «transcoding + dictionary equivalent + commentary». The combination of these translation techniques makes it possible to reproduce as fully as possible the semantic and cultural content of phytonyms, preserve their cultural coloring, and ensure an adequate understanding of all the information encoded in these names by the target audience.