During our 13th meeting on the 21st of November, we focussed on the following article:
ARTICLE: Olagbaju, O.O. and Senghore, A., 2022. Question of Equivalence in Translation: Analysis of the Mandinka-English Translated Transcripts of TRRC Witnesses in the Gambia. Studies in Literature and Language, 25(1), pp.38-44. [you can download it below]
Attendees (+15): mixture of interpreters from The Gambia and other countries, (Africanist) linguists, educators, etc.
Alieu Touray who worked as part of the Research and Investigation Unit of the TRRC was our guest facilitator. The meeting was organised around two questions (see below).
1. In which contexts do people typically need to interpret (verbally on the spot) in The Gambia? Who does interpreting apart from professional interpreters?
To start with, several people emphasised that most people do not speak English in The Gambia, that illiteracy is still high and that therefore the issue of interpretation is important (for the TRRC but not only). Then attendees attempted to define interpretation. Some suggested that ‘interpreters are meant to bridge the gap between speakers and non-speakers of a language, so interpreters are essential’, that ‘interpreting is about allowing the other party understand what has been said’, etc. All definitions put emphasis on the important role played by interpreters in The Gambia in a wide range of communicative situations. Some underscored that interpreting is not only a ‘linguistic’ interaction but also ‘sociolinguistic’ one.
About interpretation during the TRRC, it was emphasised that it was particularly important because it allowed the Gambian public to be included in discussions which they might otherwise been excluded form and that therefore supported access to an important part of the history of The Gambia. Witnesses were always asked which language they wanted to give their testimony in during the TRRC. Someone alluded to the difficulties caused when people who could have used use a local language chose nevertheless to use English when their command of English was not adequate for the interpreters to follow. Such cases sometimes gave way to interesting discussions, e.g. laughter among audience members present during the hearing, people mocked the witnesses online.
There is a wide range of contexts in which interpreters are needed, e.g. interactions in healthcare contexts, naming ceremonies, president’s current tour of the country were. Attendees emphasised that interpreters in those situations are not usually professional interpreters. They are community members who know the languages being used and are called upon to serve as interpreters.
Interpretation in the courts was deemed to be different from the other kinds of contexts in which interpretation happens due to the official nature of the proceedings, but also the fact that such interpreting contexts often involves speakers who do not speak Gambian languages. This applies, for example, to many of the judges who come from Nigeria or Ghana. Attendees highlighted that without interpretation the language barrier in courts in such that cases would need to be adjourned as they would not understand what the witness is saying and vice versa unless an interpreter is present. Few judges were said to be Gambian, e.g. the five judges who were appointed recently were Nigerian and Ghanaian.
An interpreter talked about dialect variation and the fact, for example, Olof in the Gambia and Olof in Senegal are not similar and that it can sometimes be difficult for interpreters to understand what is said. Another attendee asked how great the variation in people’s usage of Olof and Mandinka is and how interpreters deal with variation but we did not have time to fully explore this question.
We also had very interesting insights from Gambian Sign Language interpreters (GSL). The Gambian Association for the Deaf was reported to conduct classes for people interested in sign language. Many sign interpreters in The Gambia were said to have been trained by Daren Townsend (based in the UK). During the TRRC, two GSL interpreters were involved. Regarding challenges with GSL interpretation, we learnt that interpreters use the Gambian Sign Language grammar to assist them when necessary. It was emphasised that no official curriculum for teaching deaf children in schools in The Gambia.
Dialect variation in GSL was evoked, e.g. the different ways in which GSL is used on the West Coast region in comparison to the Kanifing municipality. The differences were said to be slight but that nonetheless GSL interpreters needed to be sensitised beforehand when such differences applied.
It was also evoked that the level of education of a deaf person has a significant impact on the sign language they use with people who have ‘not been to school’ using the ‘local sign language’, while people who have learnt the conventional way use GSL. We discussed the implications of this for interpreters, e.g. the need for the GSL interpreter to be accompanied by someone who knows the local sign language as well as GSL if the need to interpret for someone who hasn’t gone to school.
2. Many interpreters have received little/no training, what strategies have they used to self-train and how could these be built upon to develop training, e.g. could it be possible to develop a joint online glossary of minority language equivalents for the key terms?
An interpreter shared they didn’t receive training but with the ‘big words’ they’d jot it down, look the words up or also sometimes they would ask for clarification from the people in the court. Reading was also presented as another strategy they used to support them in developing a glossary of law terms. Another interpreter shared they were sent for induction for two months, then after they were posted at Banjul’ main headquarters. They emphasised interpretation is, however, difficult in that you have to develop your own way of doing it, your own strategies. The ability of some lawyers, if they use a word which they see interpreters don’t understand, to ‘break it down’ was also mentioned as useful tool for learning. Having a pen and paper at all times to jot words down was presented as quasi compulsory for interpreters.
Training was said not to be available, with some interpreters saying ‘You, the interpreter, will struggle with your colleagues and establish themselves’, ‘Interpreting in court can be very challenging’, etc. These underscored how difficult the absence of training was for practicing court interpreters. Training ideas mentioned included the possibility to have internships at the court. Access to technology which could help interpreters was said to also be worth considering.
One of the attendees with experience of researching interpreting in a church in The Gambia shared that there was a strong element of training among the interpreters who had developed between themselves ways of expressing in the target Gambian language. This was referred to as ‘cognitive apprenticeship’ and was deemed to be difficult for court interpreters since they would not usually work in the same courtroom. Opportunities for discussion regarding interpreting choices among church interpreters were also alluded to. This led some to suggest that discussion platforms for court interpreters might be helpful to promote the kind of cognitive apprenticeship alluded to with reference to church interpreters.
The possibility for Gambia College to develop short courses in interpreting and translation were considered to be a potentially useful first step while waiting for more full-fledged courses.
Bearing in mind the ongoing challenges the country has faced in supporting literacy in Gambian languages, the writing of legal terms in Gambian languages as well as English was deemed to be a desirable endeavour, with all interpreters pulling forces to share their knowledge so as to develop a database of these terms.
Related to this, it was suggested that a problem with interpreting in The Gambia is the absence of schools or centres where Gambians can learn to become interpreters. It was therefore suggested that a curriculum for interpreters to learn how to write the Gambian languages they know is necessary. Uncle Mussa Manneh (veteran journalist and interpreter) and Aunty Ida Jobe (Olof interpreter) were mentioned as the kind of people who could support the development of bespoke training for interpreters in The Gambia. It was also suggested that the National Language Programme of CREDD would also be open to developing such courses.
Some attendees emphasised that the article we had to read had certain methodological issues, but that it was nonetheless useful in bringing to the fore an important topic for those interested in language matters in The Gambia. We concluded the discussion by asking what the best way of evaluating translation and interpretation might be.
The main ideas which emerged from the discussion in our WhatsApp group before our ‘live’ meeting was that there were three main areas of challenge for interpreters: proficiency in English (general English and English for specific purposes), literacy in the Gambian languages and training in interpreting and translation. Suggested solutions included: two-day training in interpreting in the court The Gambia (e.g. with sessions on: how the court system works; standards of professional integrity as an interpreter, the meaning of legal terms used), development of dictionaries and education in the minority languages, courses in interpreting and translation outside The Gambia. Articles shared include:
- Akpaca, S.M., 2022. Presentation of a Translators’ Training Programme Focusing on Economics and Law.
- Bassnett, S. and Lefevere, A., 1998. Constructing cultures: Essays on literary translation (Vol. 11). Multilingual Matters.
- Karlik, J., 2010. Interpreter-mediated scriptures: Expectation and performance. Interpreting, 12(2), pp.160-185.
- Mikkelson, H., 1999. Relay interpreting: A solution for languages of limited diffusion?. The Translator, 5(2), pp.361-380.
- Ngué Um, E., 2020. Had Ferdinand de Saussure spoken Wolof or Basaa…, the discipline of linguistics would have fared differently. Language, Culture and Society, 2(1), pp.107-115.
A warm thank you to all the attendees and our guest facilitator Alieu Touray.