| dc.description.abstract | The role of vernacular FM radio stations as a tool for communicating in Kenya should be underscored. Accordingly, Mulembe FM is a vernacular radio station targeting listeners of the Luhya dialects spoken in Western Kenya which employs newscasters drawn from different Luhya dialects. Although theLuhya dialects exhibit vast lexical mismatches, Mulembe FM hiring policy is that the presenters use their dialects in the newscast translation on the assumption that the dialects are mutually intelligible. This situation calls attention to the word level translation strategies by the non-native presenters to effectively accommodate all the Luhya listeners in Mulembe FM programmes. The study focuses on Lukabras listeners as representatives of Luhya listeners who have to be accommodated in the newscasts. The specific objectives of the study were to: establish and categorize the word level strategies used by the non-Kabras presenters to attain functional Lukabras equivalence in the translation of Mulembe FM newscasts, identify and describe categories of Lukabras non-equivalence at the word level in the translation of Mulembe FM newscasts by the non-Kabras presenters of Mulembe FM newscasts and evaluate the relevance and applicability of the word level strategies used in the translation of Mulembe FM newscasts by the non-Kabras presenters to Lukabras listeners.The study adopted the Skopos Theory by Reiss (1989) which considers the function of the language of a specific text type to be the criterion of a satisfactory translation. The analytical research design was applied. A sample of thirty news transcripts from the evening Mulembe FM newscasts June 2016 was investigated. The researcher also sampled 47 Lukabras listeners as respondents and 3 non-Kabras presenters from Lwisukha, Luwanga and Lukhayo dialects as key informants. Data was collected using extraction of the news transcripts, interviews for the presenters and Focus Group Discussions for the listeners. The researcher used multi stage sampling which involved the use of purposive and systematic random sampling. The data was analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data by classifying the extracted phrases into various translation strategies and categories of Lukabras non-equivalence, describing the context in which they occurred and evaluating their impact on Lukabras listeners. Tables were used to tabulate frequencies and percentages of receptor responses to compare the application of the translation strategies used by the presenters. The researcher piloted the research instruments two months before the actual data collection to ensure reliability. All the three non Kabras presenters were found to be using seven translation strategies: word for word, naturalization, domestication, elaboration, deletion, conservation and use of functional equivalents. However, most of the strategies were not relevant and applicable to address the various categories of Lukabras non-equivalence that emerged from the newscasts. The study recommends four specific strategies for dealing with TL non-equivalence at the word level: translating using a superordinate word, using loan word plus explanations, substitution, and using a specific word. This study contributes to the field of translation and to media practitioners who can assess the impact of their translations on radio listeners. | en_US |
