Question

From which of the following the burgeoning field of ‘Translation Studies' received its name?

• A. Eugene Nida's “Science of Translation”
• B. Walter Benjamin's “The Task of a Translator”
• C. J.S. Holmes “The Name and Nature of Translation Studies”
• D. W. Koller's “The Concept of Equivalence and the Object of Translation Studies”

Hint:

J.S. Holmes's “The Name and Nature of Translation Studies” is foundational for naming and defining Translation Studies as a discipline.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Step 1 : Understanding the Question:
This question asks us to identify the foundational paper that formally named and defined the academic discipline of "Translation Studies".

Step 2 : Key Formulas and Approach:
The approach involves reviewing the historical institutionalization of translation studies as an independent academic field in the late twentieth century. We identify the scholar who presented the defining structural map of the discipline.

Step 3 : Detailed Explanation:

• Although translation has been practiced for millennia, it was long treated as a minor sub-branch of comparative literature or language acquisition.

• The field was formally established and named by the American-Dutch scholar James S. Holmes in his 1972 paper "The Name and Nature of Translation Studies".

• In this landmark paper, Holmes argued for the creation of an independent academic discipline and provided a comprehensive structural framework dividing the field into "pure" and "applied" translation studies.

• While Eugene Nida's "Science of Translation", Walter Benjamin's "The Task of the Translator", and Werner Koller's research on equivalence are highly influential, they did not formally coin or introduce the standard name of the discipline.

Step 4 : Final Answer:
The discipline received its name from J.S. Holmes's paper "The Name and Nature of Translation Studies".
The correct option is (C) J.S. Holmes “The Name and Nature of Translation Studies”.