Options
Simultaneous Interpretation of Numbers: Comparing German and English to Italian. An Experimental Study
Pinochi, Diletta
2009
Abstract
An experimental study was carried out to investigate whether the difficulty of
delivering numbers in SI is language-independent or whether some specific
features – such as the different structures of the numerical systems in SL and TL –
may also be relevant and influence SI performance negatively.
To this end, a German text and an English text, both dense with numbers, were
interpreted simultaneously into Italian by 16 students. The first language pair (ENIT)
had a linear numerical system and the second one (DE-IT) did not, as in
German the so-called inversion rule has to be applied.
An initial analysis of the results suggested that the difficulty of delivering
numbers in SI is language-independent.However, amore detailed analysis of the
outcomes showed that a significant difference between the two language pairswas
apparent in the distribution and typology of errors: transposition/position errors
(including inversion errors) were evident in German but not in English.
Series
The Interpreters' Newsletter
n. 14
Publisher
EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste
Source
Diletta Pinochi, "Simultaneous Interpretation of Numbers: Comparing German and English to Italian. An Experimental Study", in: The Interpreters' Newsletter 14/2009, Trieste, EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste, 2009, pp. 33-57
Languages
en
File(s)