Calque-formation vs use of loanwords in translations

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Sherlock
Posts: 1202
Joined: Sat Jan 28, 2012 3:14 pm

Calque-formation vs use of loanwords in translations

Post by Sherlock »

Traditionally, it seems like calques were by far the most common way Buddhist translators in Tibet and China translated technical terms into their own languages. Tibetan carried this out much more broadly than Chinese, but Chinese still seems to calque more often than use loanwords (besides for names).

However, I think forming new calques in modern translations into English (or other Western languages) is not as ideal as trying to use Sanskrit terminology as far as possible. Modern English is far more accommodating of loanwords than Tibetan and Chinese and the use of Sanskrit terms helps us link it back to Indian roots, not just in some "mystical" sense but in seeing the commonalities across different extant traditions. Certain translators from Tibetan seem to want to follow the Tibetan practice of calquing terms but then these calques vary so much from translator to translator and often the words used have pre-existent baggage in the modern language. It is more common among Tibetan translators but translators from Chinese are guilty of it as well, although maybe to a slightly lesser extent.

What do you think of either using more Sanskrit terms or forming new calques?
tingdzin
Posts: 1948
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2013 7:19 am

Re: Calque-formation vs use of loanwords in translations

Post by tingdzin »

Calques stink, generally speaking. Mere rote use of Sanskrit terms is not much better, as students have a strong tendency to parrot words like Dharmakaya without having a clue what the text is talking about (some Tibetans seem to have done this as well). Really, if one wants to understand Buddhism thoroughly, there is no substitute for learning the language texts are written in. If one wants to read translated works that are at all profound, one should try to get several different translators' works and compare them. If these are unavailable, one should always hold in the back of one's mind that the translation one is reading cannot be taken at face value.

"How Buddhism Developed a Soul on its way to China" is a good book which illustrates some ofthe problems translators faced in bringing Indic terms to China, and how they dealt with them.
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