Is it easy to translate ‘type 2 diabetes for dummies’ into Arabic? Challenges and solutions

Abstract

This Thesis is composed of two parts: my own translation of Chapters 1, 2 and most parts of Chapter 5 into Arabic of the book "Type 2 Diabetes For Dummies". The reason behind the choice to translate the abovementioned book is that Diabetes is a prevalent disease in my home country: Saudi Arabia, and that there is little good accessible literature written about Type 2 Diabetes in Saudi Arabia. In the translation, the functional approach of translation is adopted to a large extent. This means that Nida's, Nord's and Reiss's ideas about producing a TT that is functionally equivalent to the ST is relevant here. In this thesis, I came across some stylistic, cultural and technical difficulties, and each of which has its own challenges. These difficulties and challenges are mainly motivated by the huge differences between English and Arabic on the linguistic and cultural levels. It is also motivated by the different expectations of both the ST and TT rea! ders. In order to solve the arising challenges and problems, the strategies of adaptation, addition, omission and transliteration with explanation are used to make the TT conforms to the norms of the target language and/or to deliver the meaning clearly to the target audience. What was important in the translation is to maintain the functions of the ST, which are informative and appellative, in the TT.