Global technology companies tend to keep a standardised approach to their communication with consumers and avoid local adaptations. An iPhone is called an iPhone everywhere. However, in Quebec, law 101 requires all companies operating in the region to provide communication in French. Furthermore, in contrast to mainland France, the authorities monitor the language quality. English loanwords must be avoided, something that is in opposition with the standardised marketing approach, thus making terminology translation challenging. This study examines the translation strategies by the two largest consumer-tech companies operating in Canada, Apple and Samsung. Our hypotheses state that the Canadian French translation is likely to be marked by neologisms to avoid English terminology. Calques will show the inevitable traces of the English language, due to the proximity of French and English in Canada. In contrast, the mainland France translation will likely use English terminology to a larger extent, due to less regulation. By compiling all terminology available on the product pages of said companies in French (CAN and FRA) and English, with the software Sketch Engine, the study confirms these general tendencies but remains sceptical about the capability of the Quebec authorities to keep pace with the language development of the industry.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:su-206494 |
| Date | January 2022 |
| Creators | Leminaho, Casimir |
| Publisher | Stockholms universitet, Romanska och klassiska institutionen |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | French |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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