Calque is a way of borrowing words from another language. In this process, there's a direct translation of the elements of a word into the borrowing language.
Is calque equal to literal translation?
Add a comment
|
2 Answers
No. Calquing is the use of literal translation of a word or phrase to refer to the same thing that word or phrase refers to. So literal translation alone wouldn't be a calque.
-
so If I understand correctly, literal translation is only a tool used in calquing?– SophiefyCommented Oct 2, 2023 at 7:39
-
1More precisely, calquing is the process of using a literal translation as a new word in the language. A calque is a type of loan word, one that exists as part of the lexicon in the target language. You can make a literal one-off translation of a word and use it to refer to the same thing the source refers to without it being a calque – it only becomes a calque if it becomes established in the target language. Commented Oct 2, 2023 at 9:10
-
(Heh, just noticed I myself called it a ‘word’ here, immediately after pointing out in another comment that calques aren’t necessarily single words. Well done, me. Using a literal translation as an established entity in the target language was what I really meant.) Commented Oct 2, 2023 at 11:47
-
No. Literal translation refers to full sentences or texts while calque refers to a translation unit (word or multi-word expression). You can do literal translation without ever using a single calque, and you can use a calque of a certain word in a non-literal translation.
answered Oct 2, 2023 at 8:11
-
Who says a calque must be a single word? Expressions are calqued all the time (e.g., ‘it goes without saying’ is a calque of ça va sans dire, ‘long time no see’ is a calque of 好久不见). Commented Oct 2, 2023 at 9:07
-
OK, this looks relevant, I will replace the term word by translation unit which comprises multi-words expressions. Commented Oct 2, 2023 at 9:36