‘Repetition’ in Arabic-English Translation: The case of Adrift on the Nile

Abstract This study investigates ‘repetition’ in the English translation of the Arabic Novel, Adrift on the Nile (1993). It aims to explore the communicative functions of ‘repetition’ and to see if these functions have been maintained or lost in the process of translating the Novel. In addition, it seeks to find the translation strategies used in rendering ‘repetition’. To achieve this aim, a deep analysis of the functions of lexical items, phrase and root ‘repetitions’ was carried on the basis of the typology of ‘repetition’ proposed by Dickins et al. (2002). The results of the study show that the ‘repetitions’ examined have been used rhetorically for confirmation, assurance, and warning in terms of function. They have also been used as text-building devices. Regarding the maintenance or loss of the functions, it was found that they were both lost and gained in the translation. The translation strategies applied in the process of translation were found to be synonym, near-synonym, deletion, pronominalisation, and paraphrase. An important point found is that the translator has preferred to use ‘variation’ in his translation rather than ‘repetition’.