The main objective of any translator is to achieve a text that fully corresponds to the original, remaining close to it in terms of meaning and style. However, each language has its own characteristics, so it’s difficult to accurately convey all the nuances. Difficulties translating from English into Kazakh can lead to mistakes for various reasons, from problems determining the meaning of a word to a failure to understand the syntactic sentence structure.
1. Difference in classification.
The main difference is that Kazakh is a synthetic language, whereas English is an analytical language. In particular, their grammar systems show significant variations. Moreover, their affiliations with different language families increases their distinction: English belongs to a Germanic language group, while Kazakh is a Turkic language of the Kipchak branch, spoken in Central Asia. A good Kazakh translation service must take into account all the peculiarities of the target and source languages.
2. Grammar, such as verb/tense distinction.
The verb systems of Kazakh and English convey meaning in different ways. The Kazakh system is based on the concept of aspect: Actions are either completed or not completed. This feature is represented by appending affixes to the verb stem. In addition, there are no auxiliary verbs. This also creates a great contrast with English, which has progressive and perfect tense forms. English eliminates the need for affixation or inflection by the extensive use of auxiliaries.
Furthermore, the Kazakh language is characterized by the absence of modal verbs, unlike English. The modality category is conveyed through various language means. But there can be no doubt that Kazakh translation services will find the most appropriate equivalent. As an example, “He can speak Chinese” can be translated as Ол қытайша сөйлейдi or Ол қытайша сөйлей алады.
3. Lexical difficulties.
Most words in Kazakh are multiple-meaning words. Thus, the main lexical difficulty of translation is the choice of the most suitable meaning. Further, idioms, phrases and proverbs reflect the psychology of the language and share cultural and historical information. Generally, they don’t match in Kazakh and English.
4. Volume change.
When translating from English into Kazakh, the text volume increases from 5% to 15%. The problem of volume change is a major concern, subject to compliance with the length of words, phrases and sentences. Most short and concise English words are replaced by longer Kazakh words, such as “news” (Жаңалықтар), “home” (Басты бет) and “about” (Компания туралы), commonly used on websites. However, good Kazakh translation services can help you find an efficient solution to your translation needs.
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