Web Translation Projects/Polish Translations of Proper Names in The Lord of the Rings/LOTR in Jerzy Łoziński's Translation

Introduction
The aim of this project is to show how proper names have been translated by Jerzy Łoziński in The Lord of the Rings translation from 1996. In the translator's notes Łoziński explains that he tried to present the world of the book according to the wishes of J.R.R Tolkien. He also mentions that he tried his best to render the translation in a way that it could emulate the original, to give a notion as if Tolkien originally created it in Polish.

What are Proper Names?
In The Grammar of Names it is mentioned that according to Robert Gordon Latham, we can divide names into Proper or Common. Proper names are attributed to individual objects, a certain person or place. Common names refer to a class or collection (ex. dog, cat ,vehicle).

Translation of Proper Names
There are multiple ways and approaches to translating a text from the Source Language into the Target Language. We are going to focus on translation strategies proposed by Albert Péter Vermes: Transference, Substitution, Translation, Modification. However, we will expand the list further. The following strategies can be applied separately, but it is also possible to use multiple strategies simultaneously.


 * Transference
 * Substitution
 * Translation
 * Modification
 * Omission
 * Addition
 * Generalization
 * Transference + phonetic adaptation

Transference
It is a strategy of translation, where the translator does not change the given word in any way. The word is kept in the Target Language in the same form it appeared in the Source Language, so one can say it has been "transfered".

Substitution
It is connected with the use of already functioning equivalents of the word that are used in the Target Language. These include, but are not limited to names of countries (ex. Germany = Deutschland = Niemcy), cities, geographical names (rivers, seas, mountains, etc.). Vermes believes that translators are expected to make use of the names existing in the TL.

Translation
This strategy is used when the translator renders the noun in the Target Text. According to Newmark rendering the text into the target language and trying to make it as close as possible in meaning intended by the author is considered an act called translation.

Modification
It is a strategy that relies on searching for substitutes in the Target Language that are related partly, or not related at all to the original. This means that if a original name is translated from the Source Language, it is changed significantly in the Target Language.

Omission
It is a strategy that involves removing an original noun or its part in translation, due to various reasons. One of the reasons could be the fact that the translator deems a part of it as unnecessary, or problematic in the sense that it may be ambiguous to the reader of the Target Text.

Addition
This strategy involves expansion in the translation of a source noun. Addition is performed in the main body of the TT or as marginal notes. Its goal is to clarify the text for the reader by providing information and removing ambiguities that could affect the understanding of the text. Words that are culture-bound exist and thus it is often not possible to find fitting equivalents for them. In order to convey their meaning, instead of transfering them into the Target Text, a translator may resort to paraphrasing or presenting the omitted word in a descriptive way.

Generalization
This strategy revolves around the use of superordinates(or hypernyms) in the place of a given word. For example, instead of saying "I saw a man sitting by the oak tree" one can say "I saw a man sitting by a tree".

Transference + phonetic adaptation
In this strategy the nouns are transfered into the TT, however they are phonetically adapted to match the conventions of the TL.

Translation of names connected with the Elves in LotR
A note on page 13 in Władca Pierścieni: Bractwo Pierścienia (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring) can be found regarding linguistic changes that were applied for elven terms. It is explains that the changes were made in order to prevent the Polish readers from mispronouncing them. The changes are as follows "th" - "t" (Thranduil - Tranduil), "c"-"k" (Celebrimbor - Kelebrimbor), "ó" -"õ" (Lórien-Lõria) and "w" - "u" (Arwen-Aruena). There is one more change that appears, "í" - "i" (Celebrían - Kelebriana), however it seems that it does not influence the pronunciation and is only a visual change.