Analysis of translations of Turkish lexeme in the novel“The Bridge over the Drina” by Ivo Andrić

The aim of this paper is to determine conceptual and linguistic possibilities for transposition of Turkish words into English and their equivalents in Bosnian language in the novel “The Bridge over the Drina” by Ivo Andrić. The starting hypothesis of this research is that the transition can be successfully achieved to a great extent; however there is a small number of cases where the translation is not possible. In order to check the translatability hypotheses, in this paper, I shall apply the method of di rect contrasting of conceptual – linguistic translations and original. Contrasting (comparing) will always be performed in particular plan: syntax (grammar), semantic, and pragmatic. Every example from the original shall be followed by translated equivalen t. As I stated before, the starting hypothesis of this research is that the transition can be successfully achieved to a great success, but the small possibility of untranslatability still exists. Professor Ranko Bugarski, in his book “Jezici” (1996), quotes Edward Sapir: “The theory of linguistic relativity emerges from the sense that, over countless generation, expressive means of every community accumulated different traditional values, believes, and ways of interpreting the surrounding world. Therefore, this repository of spiritual and cultural life is considered as something that imposes certain inherited philosophy of life that is firmly rooted in the language. It must be noted that here we are not discussing well known connections between language and culture in broader sense which is reflected in lexicon of particular communities and their immediate environment... However, the hypothesis of linguistic relativity postulates deeper than the relation between language and culture illustrated in the lexicon: it argues that there is a connection between language and thought which is primarily being manifested in grammar.