Филологические науки/6. Актуальные проблемы перевода
К.филол.н. Мищенко В.Я.
Национальный
юридический университет имени Ярослава Мудрого, Украина
Legal
and Institutional Frameworks for Terminology Activities in Ukraine
Among the reasons why terminology activities are vital
for the development of Ukraine is the need to facilitate Ukraine’s integration
into international community through rapid and smooth
communication between specialists by compiling mono- and multilingual
specialized vocabularies (terminologies) and making them available for the
widest possible circle of users via the data communications networks.
Due to constant growth of Internet
penetration, centralization of access to multilingual terminological resources
becomes crucial. The major terminology developers include public institutions,
universities, technical societies as well as representatives of the private
sector. Despite the existence of a significant number of such institutions,
resources that are exchangeable and/or marketable are not so numerous. In many
countries there is a lack of coordination between institutions engaged in
terminological activities. This often leads to useless efforts or duplicate
results. Terminologists and subject specialists have little contact with their
colleagues working on similar subject areas. Across subject fields and in
different sectors potential users of terminology are often not even aware what
resources are available.
Terminology work is
carried out differently in different countries and settings. How the work is
performed depends on the institutions, organizations or bodies involved in the
process as each of these sets individual goals and objectives. Within The EuroTerm Bank project research [1] three
categories of scenarios are identified based on the distinction between
international, national and local terminology settings. In this context, a
terminology scenario means a schematic framework of terminology work that is
based on a certain set of conditions and goals. The international scenario (or
level) is concerned with coordination and management of multilingual
terminology work in a well-organized infrastructure and primarily deals with approval
or dismissal and harmonization of terms that are coined at the national and
local levels. The main activities in the national scenario (or level) are
similar to those of an international scenario. The main distinctive element is
that terminology work at the national level is usually mono- or bilingual.
Another difference is that organizations belonging to the national framework
may have national regulatory obligations. The local scenario (or level) covers
organizations that do not belong in an international or national framework and
concerns terminology work that originates from translation and creation of
documents. This type of terminology work involves identification of national
language terms in relevant documents, terminology glossaries, available
terminology bases, and possibly in relevant literature of the domain. When a
national language term cannot be identified, new terms are coined.
Characteristic features of a local framework are that terminology work is
usually limited to one or a few closely related domains, harmonization does not
often play a significant role, and restricted budgets and tight time frames are
more likely than in national or international frameworks.
In Ukraine there exists a framework for
terminology activities at the national level. They are conducted in accordance with the Constitution of Ukraine (chapters 10, 11), and
“Conception of the State Program of
the Development of the National dictionary database for 2009-2015” [3].
The
main centers authorized by the government to carry out terminology activities
are the Ukrainian Language Institute of the National Academy of science of
Ukraine (the Department of Scientific Terminology), Ukrainian
Lingua-Information Fund set up
by the Institute, and the Technical
Committee for Scientific and Technical
Terminology Standardization (TC STTS) established by
the joint order
of the State Committee of Ukraine for Standardization,
Metrology and Certification and Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. There are also the
following subcommittees based in Lviv Polytechnic: Oil Products; Machines,
Equipment and Instruments; Electrical Engineering; Chemistry, Health
Protection; Agriculture and Forestry; Measurements, Automatics and Informatics.
The following duties
are imposed on TC STTS: to work out
conceptual principles and practical recommendations for Ukrainian scientific
and technical terminology normalization; to organize and coordinate
working out, investigating and establishing Ukrainian terminology standards;
to create the software and to form the standardized Ukrainian scientific
and technical terminology data bank; to promote an international
cooperation and experience exchange in the field of scientific and technical
terminology standardization, to participate in corresponding ISO and IEC
committees; to organize experience exchange and development of
specialists’ skills in Ukrainian scientific and technical terminology
standardization.
The TC STTS has
worked out nearly 600 terminology standards. It has improved methods and
quality of investigation on terminology standards projects. The investigation
deals with the following issues: requirements for directive normative
documents, logical and semantic investigation of concept systems, and of the
Ukrainian language rules. Principles and tendencies of the development of
Ukrainian scientific and technical terminology standards have become separate
spheres of TC STTS activities.
Another center of terminology activities in Ukraine is
the
Department of Scientific Terminology at the the Ukrainian Language Institute of the
National Academy of science of Ukraine . The history of the Department began when
the Committee of Scientific Terminology was established
by the Presidium of the USSR Academy of Sciences at the end of
1977. The Sector of Scientific Terminology at the Institute of Linguistics
named after O. O. Potebnia worked during 1989-1992.
In
1991, when the Ukrainian Language Institue was founded, the
Committee and the Sector of Scientific Terminology were brought under its
jurisdiction, and from 1993 to 1995 they together were reorganized into the
Department of Scientific Terminology.
The work of the Department falls into theoretical and practical areas. Theoretical area implies
writing scientific articles, monographs on modern terminology problems, in
particular, semantic structure, nature and genesis of terms, cognitive principles of term creation and
new concepts formation, ways of terminological systems replenishment, scientific terminology
systematization, regulation and standardization. In view of the aforesaid the analysis of the main stages
of terminological cognitive sphere development takes on special significance since it enables to identify the time when different areas of
knowledge appeared, trace the development of various terminological systems, specialist notions nomination, describe lexico-semantic
and structurally-grammatical peculiarities of terms.
The Department pays attention to the terminology related to the following areas: art studies,
biology, geology, military, linguistics, jurisprudence (namely, the terminology of
criminal law), aviation; the problems of term formation and terminographical processing
of specialist lexemes.
Practical area of the department activities includes compiling and editing terminological dictionaries dealing
with different subject areas: building, sugar industry, power engineering,
medicine, medical jurisprudence, welding, information systems and technologies.
A third center of terminological activities is
the Ukrainian Lingua-Information
Fund, the unique institution that specializes in applied, mathematical, and
computer linguistics. It develops and applies modern scientific methods to
linguistic research and supports the Ukrainian language functioning in the
systems of computer communications. A theory of the computer lexicographical
systems (L-systems) has been developed and a series of such systems fundamental
for the Ukrainian lexicography concerning their status, functionalities and
exhaustiveness of the language material involved have been created. These
L-systems, according to the nature of systems engineering, are instrumental,
i.e. they are oriented to the support of the compiling of new lexicographical
works. Among these L-systems are the grammatical system
of Ukrainian and Russian languages, the system for the composition of
intelligent, etymological, synonymous, phraseological dictionaries. The
L-systems mentioned above were created through investigating
the structures of the fundamental traditional dictionaries, first of all,
Ukrainian ones, on the basis of the information theory of lexicographical
systems the researchers had developed [2].
The
application of this theory to the study of
the structures of traditional lexicographical objects resulted
not only
in finding new types of regularities in the Ukrainian
language system, but also in creation of an effective computer technology aimed at the
development of large lexicographical projects. This
application made it possible, in particular, to compile a 20-volume explanatory
dictionary of the Ukrainian language. In this case the most effective modes of
use of this technology were experimentally determined. Particularly, the
lexicographers work immediately with the computer system to use all the
advantages of the new information lexicographical
resources (among them the resources of the Ukrainian lingual-information fund –
a corpus which amounts to more than 58 million word usages and numerous
computer dictionaries) as well as the lingual resources of the Internet. The
characteristic feature of systems engineering in this technology is its
orientation to the functioning in the network mode which in principle permits
for the dictionary compilers – linguists from different institutions or even
countries – to work simultaneously at the development of common lexicographical
projects. This technology was named the “Virtual Lexicographical Laboratory” [4].
At present, besides the already mentioned L-system of the Dictionary of
Ukrainian Language, there exist the following L-systems
ready to operate in the mode of the Virtual Lexicographical Laboratory (VLL):
grammatical dictionaries for a number of languages (Ukrainian, Russian,
English, German, French, Spanish, Turkish and, partially, Polish), explanatory
dictionaries (Russian and Turkish languages), dictionaries of synonyms
(Ukrainian and Russian languages), the etymological dictionary of Ukrainian
language. Furthermore, a technology of the computer-aided transfer of hard-copy
lexicographical works into computer L-systems with their subsequent integration
into the VLL-structures is being worked out.
Terminological work at the local level is mainly determined by the
user’s needs (e.g. translation or localization of documents, etc.) and their
working conditions (e.g. the framework of research projects). Speed is a basic
requirement in terminology management and development tasks (e.g. the
translation bureaus have to observe the deadlines).
The types of terminology sources and tools used by the terminology developers are of great
importance. In Ukraine there is relatively a large number of printed
terminology dictionaries in different domains, however very few electronic
terminology dictionaries are available. The international terminology banks and
internet-based databases often are not accessible for terminology developers at
the local level, while a similar problem is not faced in the national scenario.
As to the staff employed, terminologists are
only rarely involved at the local level, thus the translators’ professional
competence, in particular knowledge of the native language and main principles
of terminology, is essential. The terminology developed at the local level is,
as a rule, not approved and endorsed by any competent national organization,
while such practice is common to the national level. One should be aware of how
important it is to carry out terminology management and development tasks at
the local level effectively, making sure that terminology is reliable and of
high-quality. The involvement of skillful and experienced translators as well
as different specialists with thorough knowledge of both the language and the
key principles of terminology work is desirable. The staff should have access
to reliable terminology sources. In addition, the work quality considerably
improves if terminologists are included
in the staff or they are being
constantly consulted. Only a few institutions on the organizational level apply
such practice, though. In the best possible scenario newly coined terms are to
be submitted to a relevant national body for approval.
Literature:
1.
Towards
Consolidation of European Terminology Resources Experience and Recommendations
from EuroTermBank Project. Edited by: Signe Rirdance, Andrejs Vasiļjevs .
– Riga: Tilde, 2006.
2. Shyrokov V. Integral Slavic Lexicography in the
Linguotechnological Contex// Volodymir
Shyrokov / Lexicographic Tools and Techniques. Moscow, IITP RAS, 2008. – p.23–30
http://www.mondilex.org/pro1.pdf
3.
Концепція
Державної цільової програми розвитку Національної словникової бази на 2009-2015
роки.
http://zakon4.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/140-2009-%D1%80
4.
Формування
національної термінологічної системи в галузі зварювання на основі віртуальних
лексикографічних лабораторій / В.А.
Широков, О.А. Мазур, В.С. Петрук [та ін.] //
Вісник НАН України. – 2014. –
№4. – с.75 – 83
ftp://ftp.nas.gov.ua/akademperiodyka/Downloads/Visnyk_NANU/downloads/2014_04/13.pdf