Issue

Vol. 2 No. 3 (2025): July

Copyright (c) 2025 Sakhi Murad Ghorianfar, Muhammad Nabi Rahimi, Obaidullah Burhani

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Foreignization and Domestication in Translating Culture-Specific Items: A Case Study of Yusuf Ali’s Surah Al-Baqarah

https://doi.org/10.62810/jssh.v2i3.123
Sakhi Murad Ghorianfar
Ghor Institute of Higher Education, English Language and Literature Department, Education Faculty, Ghor, AF
Muhammad Nabi Rahimi
Ghor Institute of Higher Education, Islamic Sciences and Culture Department, Education Faculty, Ghor, AF
Obaidullah Burhani
Ghor Institute of Higher Education, Islamic Sciences and Culture Department, Education Faculty, Ghor, AF

Corresponding Author(s) : Sakhi Murad Ghorianfar

s.ghorianfar@gmail.com

Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vol. 2 No. 3 (2025): July

Abstract

Translation of culture-specific items (CSIs) has always posed a challenge for translators, as these items are deeply rooted in the culture of the source language. To address this issue, scholars have proposed various translation strategies. This study aimed to achieve two objectives: (1) to explore the translation strategies employed by Yusuf Ali in his English translation of CSIs in Surah Al-Baqarah, based on Venuti’s (1995) theoretical framework of domestication and foreignization, and (2) to categorize the types of CSIs found in the text. The study adopted a qualitative approach, collecting data from the second chapter of the Noble Qur’an. The findings revealed that the translator employed both strategies. Domestication was the most frequently used strategy (67%), whereas foreignization was employed less often (33%). In terms of CSI categories, proper nouns were the most dominant (39.66%), followed by religious activities (25.86%) and material culture (20.69%). The ecology and miscellaneous categories were less common, comprising 3.45% and 10.34%, respectively. The results of this study could be beneficial for both translation students and practitioners in the field, helping them become familiar with the most influential strategies for rendering CSIs.

Keywords

Culture-specific items Domestication Foreignization Surah Al-Baqarah Translation Stratégies
Ghorianfar, S. M., Rahimi, M. N., & Burhani, O. (2025). Foreignization and Domestication in Translating Culture-Specific Items: A Case Study of Yusuf Ali’s Surah Al-Baqarah. Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, 2(3), 147–163. https://doi.org/10.62810/jssh.v2i3.123
Download Citation
Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)
BibTeX
References
  1. Abdul-Raof, H. (2001). Noble Qur’an translation, discourse, texture, exegesis. Curzon.
  2. Abdul-Raof, H. (2005). Cultural aspects in Noble Qur’an translation. Translation and Religion, 1(1), 162–172.
  3. Abdul-Raof, H. (2018). New Horizons in Noble Qur’anic Linguistics: A syntactic, semantic and stylistic analysis. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315670911
  4. Al-Azzam, B. & Al-Ahaydib, M. & Al-Huqail E (2015). Cultural Problems in the Translation of the Noble Qur’an. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, 1, 28-34. doi: 10.11648/j.ijalt.20150102.12
  5. Al-Azzam, B., Al-Ahaydib, M., & Al-Huqail, E. (2015). Cultural problems in the translation of the Noble Qur’an. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and Translation, 1(2), 28–34.
  6. Aldahesh, A.Y. (2014). (Un).Translatability of the Noble Qur’an: A theoretical perspective. International Journal of Linguistics, 6(6), 23-45. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5296/ijl.v6i6.6497
  7. Ali, A., Brakhw, M. A., Nordin, M. Z. F. B., & ShaikIsmail, S. F. (2012). Some linguistic difficulties in translating the Holy Noble Qur’an from Arabic into English. International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, 2(6), 588. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7763/IJSSH.2012.V2.178
  8. Allaithy, A. (2020). Challenges in translating the Qur’ān–translating the untranslatable: Omission/ellipsis. Handbook of the Changing World Language Map, 2637-2671.Springer DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-02438-3_211
  9. Anari, S. M., & Sanjarani, A. (2016). Application of Baker's model in translating Noble Qur’an-specific cultural items. Journal of Language Sciences & Linguistics, 4(3), 145-151.
  10. Baker, M. (2018). In other words: A coursebook on translation. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315619187
  11. Bassnett, S. (2011). The translator as cross-cultural mediator. In M. Baker & G. Saldanha (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of translation studies (pp. 77–85). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199239306.013.0008 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199239306.013.0008
  12. Beaugrande, R. (2003). On the concept of sensitive translation. Offshoot: A Journal of Translation and Comparative Studies 5(1): 1–14.
  13. Bustam, B. M., & Astari, R. (2018). Meaning Differences Between Two Quran Translations in Activism Era in Indonesia (Ideology in Translation Analysis). Analisa: Journal of Social Science and Religion, 3(1), 131-147.‏ https://doi.org/10.18784/analisa.v3i1.602 DOI: https://doi.org/10.18784/analisa.v3i1.602
  14. Blažytė, D., & Liubinienė, V. (2016). Culture-specific items (CSI) and their translation strategies in Martin Lindstrom’s Brand Sense. Studies about languages, (29), 42-57.
  15. Braçaj, M. (2015). Procedures of translating culture-specific concepts. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(1), 476. Doi:10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n1s1p476 DOI: https://doi.org/10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n1s1p476
  16. Daghoughi, S., & Hashemian, M. (2016). Analysis of culture-specific items and translation strategies applied in translating Jalal Al-Ahmad's "By the Pen". English language teaching, 9(4), 171-185. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v9n4p171
  17. Dastjerdi, H. V. & Jamshidian, E. (2011). A sacrament wordplay: An investigation of pun translatability in the two English translations of the Noble Qur’an. Asian Social Science, 7(1). DOI: https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v7n1p133
  18. El Haj Ahmed, M., & Abu Shammala, A. (2020). Foreignization and domestication strategies in the translation of cultural specific items in Itani's and Ali's translations of Alnisaa’Sura. AWEJ for Translation & Literary Studies, 4. DOI: https://doi.org/10.24093/awejtls/vol4no1.20
  19. Fallah Tafti, M. (2016). A comparative study of the strategies applied in translation of culture specific items of Noble Qur’anic verses, translated by Arberry into English and by Ghomshei into Persian. (Master’s thesis, Islamic Azad University).
  20. Gambier, Y., Miriam, S., & Radegundis, S. (2004). Doubts and directions in translation studies. John Benjamins.
  21. Hervey, S., & Higgins, I. (1992).Thinking translations on. A course in translation method: French-English. Routledge.
  22. Hilmi, A. B. A., Amir, S., Yakub, M., Yusoff, Z. M., & Ibrahim, A. F. (2014). Terjemahan Al-Qur’an Bahasa Melayu Penilaian Berasaskan Tafsīr ‘Ilmī. Jurnal Usuluddin, 39, 111-134.‏
  23. Irving, T. B. (1985). The Qur’an: First American version. Amana Publications.
  24. Issa, A. L. S. M., & Hammood, L. H. R. (2020). Noble Qur’anic-specific phrases under the study of translation; significance and applications. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science (IJHSS), 11 (25), 451-465. DOI: 10.33193/IJoHSS.11.25
  25. Kashgary, A. D. (2011). The paradox of translating the untranslatable: Equivalence vs. non-equivalence in translating from Arabic into English. Journal of King Saud University Languages and Translation, 23(1), 47-57. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jksult.2010.03.001
  26. Li, F., Ran, S., & Xia, T. (2010). Translation of words with cultural image. Journal of Language Teaching & Research, 1(5). DOI: https://doi.org/10.4304/jltr.1.5.694-700
  27. Moir, C. (2009). Translational resonance, authenticity and authority in the Bible and the Noble Qur’an: translation and religious change. New Voices in Translation Studies, 5(1), 29-45.
  28. Murata, S., & Chittick, W. C. (2023). The Vision of Islam. Defence Journal, 25(8), 12.
  29. Manafi Anari S, 2003. An approach to English translation of Islamic texts (1). SAMT.
  30. Manafi Anari S, 2003. Chimerical idea of total equivalence in translating the word Allah. Translation studies,1(3).
  31. Newmark, P. (1988). Approaches to translation. Prentice Hall.
  32. Nida, E. A. (1964). Toward a science of translating: with special reference to principles and procedures involved in Bible translating. Brill Archive. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004495746 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004495746
  33. Obeidat, A, M., & Mahadi, T. S. T. (2019a). The translation of Arabic religious-cultural collocations in literacy texts into English: An application of domestication and foreignization translation strategies. International Journal of Humanities, Philosophy, and Language, 2(6), 155-165. DOI: https://doi.org/10.35631/ijhpl.260013
  34. Ordudari, M. (2007). Translation procedures, strategies and methods. Translation journal, 11(3), 8-16. http://www.bokorlang.com/journal/41culture.htm
  35. Peachy, D. W. (2013). English translations of the Noble Qur’an and the roles of why, by whom, for whom and how. Al-Bayan: Journal of Noble Qur’an and Hadith Studies,11(2), 31–54. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11136/jqh.1311.02.03
  36. Rahman, F. (1988). Translating the Noble Qur’an. Religion and Literature, 20(1), 23-30.
  37. Ramli, S., & Bakar, A. A. (2021). Domestication as strategy in translating religious cultural elements into English. Malaysian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (MJSSH), 6(8), 486-491. DOI: https://doi.org/10.47405/mjssh.v6i8.940
  38. Robati, F. Z. N. (2016). Comparative analysis of strategies applied in Persian and English translations of Noble Qur’anic-Arabic culture bound term “Jilbab” (33: 59). International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature, 5(2), 64-75. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.ijalel.v.5n.2p.64
  39. Saeed, A. (2008). The Noble Qur’an: An introduction. Routledge.
  40. Siddiek, A.G. (2012). Viewpoints in the translation of the Holy Noble Qur’an. International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature, 1 (2), 18-25. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7575/ijalel.v.1n.2p.18
  41. Tabrizi, A., & Mahmud, R. (2013). Coherence analysis issues on English-translated Noble Qur’an. Communications, Signal Processing, and their Applications (ICCSPA), 1-6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/ICCSPA.2013.6487276
  42. Turner, C. (1997). The Noble Qur’an: A new interpretation. Suitey: Curzon Press.
  43. Valipoor, K., Heidari Tabrizi, H., & Chalak, A. (2019). Cultural-specific items in translation of the Holy Noble Qur’an by Irving. Linguistic Research in The Holy Noble Qur’an 8(1), 43-52.‎
  44. Venuti, L. (1995). The translator`s invisibility: A history of translation. Routledge.
  45. Vinay, J. P., & Darbelnet, J. (1995). Comparative stylistics of French and English: A methodology for translation. John Benjamins Publishing. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1075/btl.11
  46. Ayyad, G. R., & Mahadi, T. S. T. (2019). Strategies of translating Noble Qur’anic cultural terms. International Journal of Humanities, Philosophy and Language, 2(7), 139-147. DOI: https://doi.org/10.35631/ijhpl.270012
  47. Ayyad, G. R., & Mahadi, T. S. T. (2020). Procedures of foreignizing culture-specific-terms in the Noble Qur’an. International Journal of Humanities, Philosophy and Languages, 3(9), 8-13.
  48. Ayyad, G. R., & Tengku Mahadi, T. S. (2021). Procedures of domesticating culture-related words in the Noble Qur’an. e-BANGI Journal, 18(3). DOI: https://doi.org/10.35631/IJHPL.39002
  49. Yusuf Ali, A. (1983). The Holy Quran (A.Yusuf Ali, Trans.). Retrieved October 1, 2024, from https://quranyusufali.com/what-is-the-holy-quran/
  50. Zhu, J. (2002). Domestication and foreignization: Shift of researching point. Journal of PLA University of Foreign Languages, 2, 78-82.
Read More
Author biographies is not available.
Received 2025-06-23
Accepted 2025-07-26
Published 2025-07-31
Download
PDF
Statistic
Read Counter : 113 Download : 33