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Article published In:
Signed Language Interpreting and Translation
Edited by Laurie Swabey and Brenda Nicodemus
[Translation and Interpreting Studies 13:1] 2018
► pp. 49–70

“What’s the sign for nitty gritty?”

Managing metalinguistic references in ASL-English dialogue interpreting

| Gallaudet University
| Gallaudet University
| Gallaudet University

Humans have the unique capability of using language to talk about language (Jakobson 1957). For example, one can say, “The Italian word for dog is cane.” These metalinguistic references can create a dilemma for interpreters because the critical linguistic term (i.e., cane) must be maintained in the target language to create meaning. Spoken language interpreters can render the original form since both working languages are expressed in the same modality (speech-speech). However, signed language interpreters who work between languages having distinct modalities (speech-sign), thus, must interpret forms between different phonological structures. We videorecorded ten experienced American Sign Language-English interpreters as they interpreted a mock training session containing metalinguistic references. Results showed interpreters employed numerous strategies to manage and coordinate the target language output.

Keywords: metalinguistics, signed languages, interpreting, autonymy, discourse, strategies
Article outline
  • Introduction
    • Types of metalinguistic references
  • Methods
    • Participants
    • Scenario
    • Procedures
    • Analysis
  • Results
    • Interpreter strategies for managing metalinguistic reference
  • Discussion
  • Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 2 March 2018
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/tis.00004.pet
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