Out Canard Lé Noir : the challenges in finding French and English equivalents to Reunionese Creole proverbs and idioms

Abstract

This study will analyze the translation process of Reunionese Creole proverbs and idioms and their corresponding equivalents in French and English. Alongside the symbolism of local food, animals and nature, the loss of cultural nuances in the French and English equivalents will demonstrate that despite Reunion Island’s official status as a French region, there are crucial social and cultural differences, which not only manifest themselves in the use of different proverbs, but also in the use of another language (Reunionese Creole). To contextualize the issue, there will be references to France’s colonial history and the influence of French on the development of Reunionese Creole. The starting point for the research is the assumption that there are three options for translating Creole proverbs. The first option is the literal translation (which is FR – RC, not vice versa), stressing the fact that Reunionese Creole is based on French. In this case, the respective Reunionese Creole proverbs and idioms are themselves translations, and therefore, this method has not been included in this project. The second strategy is more common and consists of finding an equivalent in the TLs, showing that despite the cultural differences, each language has a respective proverb which conveys the same (or a similar) meaning. Should an appropriate equivalent not exist, the reasons for this “untranslatability” will be explored and possible sentences or comments which compensate for the loss will be suggested. Therefore, the notion of (unintended) gain in the target languages will also play a role.