STRATEGIES USED BY LY LAN TO TRANSLATE NEOLOGISMS IN THE FIRST TWO VOLUMES OF THE HARRY POTTER SERIES =

Abstract

ABSTRACT Since 1997, Harry Potter has captivated wizards and Muggles alike. A large part of the series’ appeal is Rowling’s language and ability to create a world that completely immerses readers into the depths of their imagination through the use of neologisms. Though some words are borrowed, many of Rowling‘s neologisms are her own creation and each word has meaning and consequence to Harry and his story. This study will examine the characteristics of the neologisms in the first two volumes of the Harry Potter series and the strategies used by Ly Lan, the one and only successful translator of the Harry Potter series in Vietnam, to translate those neologisms into Vietnamese. All neologisms were pick out and categorized into 3 groups: 1) Persons (wizards, ghosts, and evils, etc); 2) Places (school, stores, platform, etc); and 3) Magical objects (subjects, books, charms, and games, etc). Then, the sorted data was analyzed based on the framework of 6 neologism translation strategies, namely: Near equivalent, Explanation, Loan translation, Translation by using more general words , Translation by using unrelated words, and Omission to figure out the most dominant strategies Ly Lan used to translate those neologisms. It is hoped that the research on will be useful for not only students majoring in translation but professional translators also.