Paper short abstract:

This article explores the notion functional equivalence in the translation of advertising statements from French into Wolof in Senegal. We intend to demonstrate, through translated advertising statements, the efficient use of functional equivalence, as developed by the skopos theories of translation.

Paper long abstract:

in modern times, the way we categorize and name all the elements that surround our daily environment somehow reflects to what extent the languages we use are dynamic and responsive to change. When it deals with languages for specific purposes, translation endeavours to abide by the specificity of the "textual material" aspects (Catford, 1965) of the source text. And yet, in many cases, extra-textual aspects tend to convey much better the actual meaning of statements. This seems to be usually the case with advertising statements, especially when they deal with the promotion of a product or service intended for local use. One of the major challenges translation faces with such statements lies in "the use of ambiguity and connotative meanings of words" (Dan, L. 2015) that require from the translator both creativity and a good grasp of the contextual elements.

This article explores the notion functional equivalence in the translation of advertising statements from French into Wolof in Senegal. Generally studied in terms of reception of the translated text, this concept may also involve other issues relating to the process of translation and help assess the quality and measure the effect of translated texts on the targeted receptor. In the context of this study, we intend to demonstrate, by analyzing a number of advertising statements and their respective translations in Wolof, the efficient use of functional equivalence, as developed by the skopos theories of translation.