Bilingualism and Law in Hong Kong: Translatophobia and Translatophilia
Tong King Lee (2020): Bilingualism and law in Hong Kong: Translatophobia and Translatophilia, International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism, DOI: 10.1080/13670050.2020.1721428
13 Pages Posted: 10 Sep 2021
Date Written: February 6, 2020
Abstract
Although translation may be considered the sine qua non of bilingual legislation, the perceived authenticity and equivalence of different language versions of the same law are contingent on the disavowal of translation. Yet precisely because of such disavowal, translated versions of law are paradoxically valorized as equal in meaning and status to their originals, notwithstanding possible infelicities in the translation, so as not to compromise the precepts of legal bilingualism. This paper theorizes such a situation in relation to Hong Kong’s bilingual jurisdiction. On the basis of relevant legislation, official guidelines on statutory interpretation, and court cases in Hong Kong, the paper proposes the terms Translatophobia and Translatophilia to highlight the double bind that entraps translation in institutional discourses on legal bilingualism. More specifically, it reveals the language ideology generating anxieties over translation, and observes how such anxieties may be channelled into a fetishization of translation.
Keywords: Legal bilingualism, translation, Translatophobia, Translatophilia, language ideology, Hong Kong
JEL Classification: Y90
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