Relevance Theory as Applied to the Translation of Logistics Handbook USAID’s Supply Chain Management of Health Commodities ACase Study

Abstract

The current paper tackles the application of Relevance Theory on translating a logistic handbook. Drawing on (Gutt, 2000), this paper shows how a translation can be achieved without adopting a certain theory in translation. It argues how the interpretive process of translators can define and give credence to the translation of a logistic handbook. The paper presents examples of irrelevant translations along with suggested rendering. It sheds light on the difference between what is termed as a novice translator and an expert translator. The paper provides an evidence about how novice translators resort to dictionary based-meaning, which is the denotative meaning of words while expert translators resort to contextual meaning and connotative meaning of words. The paper explains how possible it is to translate without resorting to a theory of translation depending on the interpretive process of translators. The suggested translations for 20 examples, from a logistic handbook, are used as a reference in translation.