NATIONALLY BIASED UNITS OF LEXICON AND WAYS OF THEIR TRANSLATION

The distinguishing features find their reflection in different aspects of material and spiritual life and are materialized in
separate words and word-groups designating national customs, traditions, folk rites and feasts, administrative or political
systems, etc. Culturally biased, i.e., nationally specific are often elements in a governmental or election systems of a country;
the monetary systems in most countries contain some nationally peculiar units as well (shilling, penny, rouble, dollar, hryvnia).
Culturally biased are mostly the titles of address and the ways of conduct, and, at last but not at least, some articles of
clothing/footware (cf. the Scottish kilt, tartan, the Ukrainian вишиванка, кептар or the American Indians' moccasins). Most
peculiar are always national meals, beverages and even partaking of food, established as a result of a nation's agricultural
traditions and consumption of peculiar products. The nationally biased notions as non-equivalent units of lexicon are also
observed in some national systems of weights and measures (cf. English mile, ounce, Ukrainian верства, пуд).
Hence, many specific notions referring to localisms i.e. being of exclusively local nature and circulation, remain within
the boundaries of the national languages. They may sometimes be known even to a greater part of the national community.
These may be archaic notions like the Ukrainian бунчук, виборний, осаул, тулумбас, сіряк or localisms like кулеша,
ллачинда, верета, пательня, бануш, etc. Besides, many other rather wide-spread and well-known specific notions within a
national community may often be of minor importance for the target language communities, which live under different
economic, social, cultural or geographical conditions. Our ordinary reader, for example, would pay little if any attention to the
highly specific and unique for every Englishman notions like latkes, kedgeree (meals), proctor or whip (Parliament), the Eton
and Harrow match, Charring Cross, the East End, or Bloomsbury. These culturally biased names are often mentioned in
English fiction, especially in the works by the British authors as Conan Doyle, J.Galsworthy, A.Cronin and others. Hence, the
names have to be explained to our readers in the footnotes or in commentaries to the novels.
Not infrequently national specific units of the source language lexicon belonging to the social and political domain can
be recognized by the target language speakers due to the existence of partly similar notions in their mother tongue. These kinds
of notion are available in English and in Ukrainian as well: new penny/shilling новий пенні/шилінґ; the Order of Merit орден
«За заслуги»: Scout leader вожатий бойскаутів; медаль «За бойові заслуги» the Medal for Combat Valour; «Орден
Ярослава Мудрого» the Order of Yaroslav the Wise; «Орден княгині Ольги» the Order of St. Princess Olha; класний
керівник class tutor/form master; табель успішності й поведінки pupil's report/record card.
Despite the fact that the referential meaning of such and the like units of specific national lexicon may be either similar
or at least closely related in English and Ukrainian (cf. class tutor/form master and класний керівник, залік test), they are still
far from identical in their particular meaning. As a result, they can scarcely be substituted for each other in the target language,
which points to the notions being nationally biased by their nature.
Apart from these there are a lot more units of lexicon which have generally the same referential meaning in both the
languages in question. For example: pancake, financial year, pie and many others can be fully substituted at language level for
Ukrainian млинець, фінансовий рік, пиріг, etc. The difference between the notions in the two language is confined to some
insignificant details. Thus, the financial year in Gr.Britain begins on April 1 and ends on March 31 the next year; pies are stuffed
with minced steak-and-kidney meat or with onions/sweet mincemeat (mixture of currants, raisins, sugar, candied peeled apples,
suet, etc.) and not with peas, beans, ground poppy seeds, soft cheese/curds or boiled rice as in our country. But: pop-corn
кукурудзяні баранці is practically identical in English and Ukrainian.
As it may be observed, the units of culturally biased/specific national lexicon are rarely similar by their nature and
meaning in either of the two languages. Consequently, various approaches to expressing their meanings in the target language
must also exist.

WAYS OF RENDERING THE MEANING OF NATIONALLY BIASED UNITS OF LEXICON

I. By Transcription or Transliteration Exclusively The units of the nationally specific lexicon, whose meanings are
rendered at the phonological level, usually belong to genuine internationalisms and comprise social and political units of lexicon
in the main (cf. lord, lady, mister, shilling, kozak, hryvnia, etc.).
New classified rates per word for ads in hryvnias in the Kyiv Post. Нові тарифи на рекламу в гривнях за слово в газеті «Київ
Пост».
2. By Transcription or Transliteration and Explication of Their Genuine Nationally Specific Meaning
In many a case the lingual form of a unit of nationally specific lexicon conveyed through transcription or transliteration
can not provide a full expression of its lexical meaning. Then an additional explication of its sense becomes necessary. It
happens when the unit/notion of the culturally biased lexicon is introduced in the target language for the first time or when it is
not yet known to the broad public of the target language readers/listeners. The explanation may be given either in the translated
passage/speech flow, where the culturally biased unit is used, or in a footnote - when a lengthy explication becomes necessary:
Downing Street is guarded outside by a single policeman. Резиденцію прем'єр-міністра Великої Британії охороняє один
полісмен.
3. By Descriptive Explaining/Explication Only. For some reason or other the orthographic form of a considerable
number of sense units belonging to the nationally specific lexicon of the source language can not be rendered into the target lan-
guage. That happens mostly when the transcription/transliteration can not be helpful in expressing the sense of the culturally
biased national unit, or when it might bring about an unnecessary ambiguity in the target language narration/text cf.: matron
завгосп у навчальному закладі (суміщає економку і медсестру); Pilgrim Fathers Батьки-прочани - перші колоністи з
Англії, що прибули 1620 року до Північної Америки на вітрильнику «Мейфлауер»; prorogation офіційне розпорядження
монарха про відновлення/закінчення сесії парламенту Великої Британії; quartermaster старшина-стерновий у морській
піхоті (and also квартирмейстер) в англ. армії.
4. By Translation of Componental Parts and Additional Explication of Units of the Nationally Biased Lexicon. The
proper meaning of some specific units of the national lexicon can be faithfully rendered by way of regular translation of all or
some of their componental parts and explication of the denotative meaning pertaining to the source language unit. The combined
approach in the treatment of this group of specific national lexicon units is called forth by the complexity of meaning inherent in
the source language units. It is also due to the inadequacy of componental translation, which does not reveal the essentials that
are absolutely indispensable for correct comprehension of the real meaning of the culturally biased lexical units of the source
language. Due to this the way of rendering the meanings of this kind of units practically involves two simultaneous
performances. The first is a regular translation of the main, if not all, componental parts and the next, which follows it, is a more
or less exhaustive explanation of the essence pertained to the specific national element of the source language. The extent of the
explanation in the target language is first of all predetermined by the nature of the specific unit of national lexicon, by the
purpose of translation, and also by some characteristic possibilities of the text in which the unit is used. When translating at lan-
guage level (out of context) the explanation may be practically unrestricted: Battle of Britain Битва за Англію (повітряні бої
англійської авіації з гітлерівськими бомбардувальниками над територією Великої Британії, особливо в районі Лондона
і Південної Англії 1940-1941pp.), collective membership тимчасове колективне членство в лейбористській партії
(наприклад, на час виборів), профспілок, кооперативних товариств; члени цих організацій автоматично стають
членами лейбористської партії), ginger ale, імбірний ель/імбірне ситро (безалкогольний газований напій), inner Cabinet
«внутрішній кабінет» (кабінет у вузькому складі), до якого входять керівники найважливіших міністерств на чолі з
прем'єр-міністром.
Such and the like explanations can not, naturally, be made in the text of a translation, hence they are given usually in the
footnotes. When the lexical meaning of the unit of specific national lexicon is not so complex it is usually explained in the target
language text. The explanation then is not always as exhaustive as it can be in a footnote, cf.: Keep your fingers crossed for me!
(M.Wilson) Щоб мені була вдача, склади навхрест (хрестиком) пальці!
Though veneered by his thirty years in the Civil Service - he had worked his way from boy clerk to principal - Gill was human
underneath. (A.Cronin) Пройшовши за тридцять років служби в державному апараті від розсильного до завідуючого
відділом, Джіл у душі все ж залишався людиною. Левкові чи не вперше за своє парубкування стало чомусь тоскно. (М.
Стельмах) It was probably for the first time in all his mature boyhood that Levko felt somewhat dull.
5. By Ways of Word-for-Word or Loan Translation. When the componental parts making up the units of the nation-
ally specific lexicon are at the same time the main transparent bearers of their proper sence, expressed through their meaning, a
faithful translation of such sense units may be achieved either by way of word-for-word translation or by way of loan
translation. Each of these ways can be well exemplified in English and Ukrainian.
A. Translated word-for-word are the specific national units of lexicon as first (second, third) reading перше (друге,
третє) читання (офіційне внесення законопроекту в англійський парламент); secondary grammar school (середня
граматична школа); стінгазета wall newspaper; студентське наукове товариство Students' Scientific/Research Society;
щоденник (учнівський) student's everyday record book, etc.
B. The denotative meaning of many units of the specific national lexicon may be rendered by way of loan translating as
well. Thus, from English: Salvation Army (USA, Gr.Britain) Армія порятунку; the Order of the Garter/of the Ва?/?орден
Підв'зки/Лазні; the Order of St. Michael and St. George орден св.Михаїла і св.Георгія; fan club клуб
прихильників/уболівальників (артиста, спортсмена тощо); from Ukrainian: орден Ярослава Мудрого the Order of
Yaroslav the Wise/Yaroslav the Wise Order; орден св. княгині Ольги Київської the Order of St. Olga Princess of Kyivan Rus'.
Some of the above-given and other Ukrainian units of the kind may be translated into English either as asyndetic
structures or as syndetic (prepositional) word-groups. The latter are absolutely predominant in conversational English, while the
former are more common in written (or official) language: заслужений учитель/артист України the Honoured Teacher/Artist
of Ukraine or Ukraine's Honoured Teacher/Artist; медаль «За трудову відзнаку» the medal for Labour Distinction or the
Labour Distinction Medal. But: герой України Hero of Ukraine.
6. Translating by Means of Semantic Analogies. Despite the differences in economic, social, political, cultural and in
many cases also geographical/environmental conditions, under which the nation of the source language and that of the target
language lives and develops some peculiar notions in both the languages may be identical or similar/analogous in their meaning
and functioning. It happens due to the existence of common routine or habitual actions, common occupations, social services,
food, etc., in these two contrasted language communities.
English: the City/Town Board of Education міський відділ освіти; pop corn кукурудзяні баранці;
gingerbreadімбірний пряник, коврижка; shop-steward цеховий староста (голова профкому); stewed fruit узвар/компот;
Welt done! Well done! (sports) Мо-лод-ці! Мо-лод-цi; come! come! Вгамуйся, заспокойся/ цить, цить, не плач. Ukrainian:
залік preliminary/qualifying test/examination; дипломна робота graduation essay/project; курсова робота term/yearly
essay/project; доцент principal lecturer/reader, associate professor; курси вдосконалення refresher course; підвищення
кваліфікації in-service training course; кватирка hinged window pane/ pilot window; консультація tutorial.