Xorijiy lingvistika va lingvodidaktika –
Зарубежная лингвистика и
лингводидактика – Foreign
Linguistics and Linguodidactics
Journal home page:
https://inscience.uz/index.php/foreign-linguistics
The analysis of culture-specific words in the English
translations of the Uzbek historical novel "Starry Nights"
by Pirimkul Kadirov
Sharifa KHAMROYEVA
1
Bukhara State University
ARTICLE INFO
ABSTRACT
Article history:
Received December 2024
Received in revised form
10 January 2025
Accepted 25 January 2025
Available online
25 February 2025
Literary translation is considered a key tool in world culture
to strengthen mutual understanding and cooperation between
peoples. It is a creative process that brings national cultural and
aesthetic ideas to the universal arena, as well as revealing the
artistic and artistic potential of a new language. Linguistic
means that reflect things and phenomena specific to a particular
people, nation, or ethnic group are the main means of
expressing the national characteristics of a literary work. This
article discusses the direct and indirect translation of some
specific words taken from Uzbek historical novels. The object of
the article is the English translations of Pirimkul Kadirov’s
"Starry Nights" by local and foreign translators.
2181-3701/© 2024 in Science LLC.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47689/2181-3701-vol3-iss2
This is an open-access article under the Attribution 4.0 International
(CC BY 4.0) license (
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.ru
Keywords:
national color,
national characteristics,
realia,
historical,
translation method,
transliteration,
transcription,
analogy.
Pirimqul Qodirovning “Yulduzli tunlar” oʻzbek tarixiy
romanining ingliz tilidagi tarjimalaridagi madaniyatga xos
soʻzlarning tahlili
ANNOTATSIYA
Kalit so‘zlar:
milliy kolorit,
milliy xususiyatlar,
realiya,
tarixiy,
tarjima usuli,
transliteratsiya,
transkripsiya,
analogiya.
Badiiy tarjima jahon madaniyatida xalqlar o‘rtasidagi o‘zaro
tushunish va hamkorlikni mustahkamlashning asosiy vositasi
sanaladi. Bu yangi tilning badiiy imkoniyatlarini ochib berish
bilan birga milliy madaniy-estetik g‘oyalarni umuminsoniy
maydonga olib chiqadigan ijodiy jarayondir. Muayyan xalq,
millat, elatga xos narsa va hodisalarni aks ettiruvchi lisoniy
vositalar adabiy asarning milliy xususiyatlarini ifodalovchi
asosiy vositadir. Ushbu tadqiqot ishida o‘zbek tarixiy
1
PhD Student, Bukhara State University. E-mail: s.s.hamroeva@buxdu.uz
Xorijiy lingvistika va lingvodidaktika – Зарубежная лингвистика
и лингводидактика – Foreign Linguistics and Linguodidactics
Special Issue – 2 (2025) / ISSN 2181-3701
242
romanlaridan olingan ayrim o‘ziga xos so‘zlarning bevosita va
bilvosita tarjimasi muhokama qilinadi. Maqolaning obyekti
Pirimqul Qodirovning “Yulduzli tunlar” asarining mahalliy va
xorijiy tarjimonlar tomonidan ingliz tiliga tarjimalari
hisoblanadi.
Анализ
национально-культурной
лексики
в
английских переводах узбекского исторического
романа «Звездные ночи» Пиримкула Кадырова
АННОТАЦИЯ
Ключевые слова:
национальный колорит,
национальные
особенности,
реалии,
исторический,
метод перевода,
транслитерация,
транскрипция,
аналогия.
Художественный
перевод
считается
ключевым
инструментом в мировой культуре для укрепления
взаимопонимания и сотрудничества между народами.
Это творческий процесс, который выводит национальные
культурные и эстетические идеи на всеобщую арену,
а также раскрывает художественный и художественный
потенциал нового языка. Языковые средства, отражающие
вещи и явления, характерные для конкретного народа,
нации,
этнической
группы,
являются
основными
средствами выражения национальных особенностей
литературного произведения. В данной научной работе
рассматривается прямой и косвенный перевод некоторых
специфических слов, взятых из узбекских исторических
романов. Объектом статьи являются английские переводы
«Звездные ночи» Пиримкула Кадырова, выполненные
местными и зарубежными переводчиками.
INTRODUCTION
Any work of art is the product of the creativity of a person, its author, who grew up
in a certain cultural environment. This environment is reflected in the artistic text
because the author consciously or unconsciously touches upon the surrounding customs,
traditions, national mentality, and characteristics of people's life and everyday life, that
is, expresses the culture of his people. Currently, the concept of culture includes all the
features of historical, social, and psychological phenomena characteristic of a particular
ethnic group. Taken as a whole, these features create a national color in the work.
National color is manifested in works of art in its natural forms, in the composition of the
image, character, plot, composition, language, and style. The expression of words that
denote life concepts specific to different peoples in translation is one of the important
factors determining the national character of the work. Therefore, the translator is
required to approach such lexical units with sensitivity. In addition, the issue of
preserving the national spirit in the translation process deserves special attention.
Special subtle methods must be used so that the national characteristics of the original do
not inadvertently replace the specific spirit of the target language. Therefore, the sum of
nationality reflected in a work of art “national color” is noted in its place as an important
element that reflects the aesthetics of the work and the identity of the people.
Xorijiy lingvistika va lingvodidaktika – Зарубежная лингвистика
и лингводидактика – Foreign Linguistics and Linguodidactics
Special Issue – 2 (2025) / ISSN 2181-3701
243
LITERATURE REVIEW
There is no single opinion in the scientific literature on the methods of translating
lexical units that express the life concepts and cultural characteristics of peoples. This is
mainly explained by the creative nature of the translation process. Since there is no
universal approach to determining the appropriate translation method for each original
text, the solution of such issues in many cases depends on the individual skills and
creative approach of the translator.
The issue of restoring national characteristics remains relevant today, both
theoretically and practically. In the translation process, a creative approach, effective use
of the lexical and semantic capabilities of the language, and preservation of the general
aesthetic content of the work are of decisive importance in solving this problem. Words
with national characteristics are also used in science together with the term realia. Some
researchers have used terms synonymous with the word “realia” and called them
“culturemes”. [6, 224]
Nationally colored words include terms denoting national dishes, clothing, musical
instruments, household items, names, nicknames, nicknames, local village features,
architectural monuments, geographical names, natural landscapes, social classes, titles,
institutions, religious ceremonies, and other ethnographic signs. Restoring national
identity and expressing it through other language means is one of the main problems of
literary translation. In literary translation, issues of preserving nationality are mainly
reflected in the process of comparing the translated work with the original. A reader who
knows English well, for example, if he can read the work in the original language, will also
read the translated version in his native language. In this process, a work created in two
languages can either cause the reader to appreciate the work more highly or else to
complain that it does not fully convey the effect of the original. Taking this into account,
for the translation process not to remain just an experiment, the translator must be well-
versed, able to think critically about his work, and able to perfectly transfer the subtleties
of nationality to another language. At the same time, the experience gained in ensuring
linguistic and cultural harmony in the translation process is of decisive importance.
Peter Newmark proposes a classification of foreign cultural words, dividing them
into several categories: ecology (flora, fauna, winds, climate), material culture (food,
clothing, houses, cities, transportation), social culture (work and leisure), organizations,
customs, activities, procedures or concepts (including artistic, religious, political and
administrative subcategories). Newmark also emphasizes other elements of social
culture, such as gestures and customs. [7, 226]
According to Tahir Malik, popularity among the world community depends not
only on the author’s position but also on skillful translation. Translating a work that
reflects nationalism and historicality in every line is a difficult task for a translator, and
the success of this process depends mainly on two factors: first, the translator's perfect
knowledge of the period in which the historical work was created, and second, the ability
to deeply understand the national spirit in the work and accurately reflect it in another
language. [3, 32]
Having considered various interpretations of the concept of “realia”, we conclude
that the translator’s background knowledge is important for the correct and accurate
translation of realities. All researchers emphasize that reality is a culturally determined
entity, that a special approach is needed to translate it, and that the correct translation of
reality is the basis of effective intercultural communication.
Xorijiy lingvistika va lingvodidaktika – Зарубежная лингвистика
и лингводидактика – Foreign Linguistics and Linguodidactics
Special Issue – 2 (2025) / ISSN 2181-3701
244
Here are some translation methods of specific words in translation studies. Uzbek
translators use three methods of translating nationally specific words.
1. Transliteration – the replacement of letters of one language with letters of
another language. When translators use this method, they usually leave comments under
the text. The use of this method is explained by the lack of correct equivalents for
realities in the target language.
2. Analogy – giving a similar, i.e. alternative concept.
3. Creating new words and word combinations – recreating nationally specific
words and phrases under the original language. [2, 76-78]
METHODOLOGY
In the process of studying the issues of preserving national color in translation,
previous scientific research in the field of translation theory and practice was analyzed.
In particular, conclusions were drawn based on scientific sources such as E. Ochilov’s
“Theory and Practice of Translation” and “Issues of Artistic Translation”, Q. Muasayev’s
“Fundamentals of Translation Theory”, as well as I. Gofurov, O. Muminov and
N. Qambarov’s “Theory of Translation”. The methods and techniques put forward in these
works were analyzed, and scientific and theoretical approaches to the principles of
preserving national color in translation were developed. Examples are taken from the
English translation of P. Kadirov’s “Starry Nights”.
DISCUSSION
Our research on the translation of Uzbek historical novels in the 21st century
shows that several historical works have been directly and indirectly translated into
English. One of the historical novels analyzed in our study is Pirimqul Kadirov’s novel
“Starry Nights”, which depicts the life of the king and poet Zahiriddin Muhammad Babur.
The novel covers the events that occurred from Babur’s accession to the throne to the
last days of his life. The work was created between 1969 and 1978. The work has been
translated into English twice. The first translation, made in 2019 by Ilkhomjon
Tokhtasinov, U. Yuldoshev, and A. Hamidov, employees of the Samarkand State Institute
of Foreign Languages, was published under the title “Starry Nights: Babur”. In 2023, the
translation, made by Carol Ermakova with the support of the Islam Karimov Foundation,
was published under the title “Babur: Starry Nights”. Ermakova’s translation was
published by the French publishing house “Nouveau Monde Editions” under the
editorship of Julie Weekenden. The famous Uzbek artist Bobur Ismoilov created
illustrations for the publication.
Below, we analyze passages that reflect nationality in English translations of
Pirimqul Kadirov’s “Starry Nights”.
The word
chakmon
refers to a long men's robe made of woolen fabric and is
considered a national costume worn by our ancestors in ancient times.
Original text
Direct translation
Indirect translation
… Uning xinа qo‘yilgаn
qo‘llаri
guldаy
chirоyli.
Bоshigа оtаsining
qоrа jun
chаkmоnini
yopinib chiqqаn
ekаn. [8, 4]
While running out from the
house for the meeting with Takhir,
the girl had thrown over her head
her
father’s black woolen
chakmon
. [5, 5]
Robia had hustily thrown her
father’s black
chekmen
over her
head as she hurried out of the
house to meet Tahir. [1,18]
Xorijiy lingvistika va lingvodidaktika – Зарубежная лингвистика
и лингводидактика – Foreign Linguistics and Linguodidactics
Special Issue – 2 (2025) / ISSN 2181-3701
245
As can be seen from the above translations, the word
chakmon
, which was
originally given in the direct translation, was translated through the transcription
method, preserving the nationality, but when it was used for the first time, no
explanation was given by the translator. In the indirect translation, it was given through
the transliteration method, and the translator’s explanation was given as “
a long winter
kaftan, usually made of wool, and worn by men
”. In both translations, the reality of this
clothing was used reasonably and the spirit of nationality was preserved.
CONCLUSION
The process of translating culturally specific words is closely related to preserving
national color and accurately conveying the meaning to the target audience. Such words
pose difficulties in translation not only due to linguistic but also cultural and semantic
differences. Therefore, translators use several strategies to convey cultural realities,
including transliteration, equivalent selection, interpretation, or adaptation. Thus, the
process of translating such words requires not only linguistic knowledge but also the
ability to understand cultural differences and optimally convey them in translation.
In this, the competence and strategic approach of the translator are important factors.
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