419534

Functionalism and Accuracy in Human Translation vs. AI Translation of Arabic Podcast Transcript: A Contrastive Study

Article

Last updated: 29 Mar 2025

Subjects

-

Tags

Studies in Translation

Abstract

This paper is a contrastive study of two translations of the popular Arabic podcast episode from functional perspective. The episode is entitled “How Relationships Succeed" presented by Yasser Al-Hazaimi, and is provided through the Arabic podcast “Fnjan'. It is one of the tops in global YouTube charts as it exceeds 100 million views. One of the translations under study is human translation produced as subtitles added to the video, while the other is an automated translation by AI-generated tool, specifically ChatGPT. AI translation tools are an attempt to artificially reproduce human thinking and transfer this to computers to imitate human cognitive abilities. However, when it comes to informal spoken language such as podcasts, the precision of the translated text is called into question. Applying functional theory by testing the functions of both contents of the target texts compared to the source text, rather than strict equivalence, is a must. Functional perspective confirms that the accurate translation is the one that provides precise representation of the hidden intentions, tone, and coherence of the original text, in addition to conveying cultural references. To assess the functionality of the two translations, the paper contrasts both target texts concerning accuracy, readability, coherence, and contextuality. The content of podcasts is chosen as it depends heavily on verbal communication that sheds the light on the importance of functionality in translation. Overall, the paper assumes that human cognitive abilities are indispensable in the area of translation studies, especially when it comes to verbal contents and informal language.

DOI

10.21608/tjhss.2025.344020.1287

Keywords

Functional Theory, AI translation tools, ChatGPT, Podcasts, human translation

Authors

First Name

Esraa

Last Name

Hasab El-Naby

MiddleName

Aly

Affiliation

Modern University for Technology and Information

Email

esraa-aly@hotmail.com

City

Cairo

Orcid

-

Volume

6

Article Issue

2

Related Issue

54729

Issue Date

2025-01-01

Receive Date

2024-12-12

Publish Date

2025-01-01

Page Start

145

Page End

164

Print ISSN

2636-4239

Online ISSN

2636-4247

Link

https://tjhss.journals.ekb.eg/article_419534.html

Detail API

http://journals.ekb.eg?_action=service&article_code=419534

Order

419,534

Type

Original papers

Type Code

1,090

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

Transcultural Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

Publication Link

https://tjhss.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

Functionalism and Accuracy in Human Translation vs. AI Translation of Arabic Podcast Transcript: A Contrastive Study

Details

Type

Article

Created At

29 Mar 2025