Jurnal Arbitrer

Beyond Accuracy: The Essential Contribution of Text Function to Translation Quality Assessment

Rudy Sofyan — 2026-04-15

The growing diversity of translation quality assessment (TQA) models has raised concerns about consistency and reliability, as previous studies show that the same target text may receive different quality judgments when evaluated using different frameworks. This variation exposes the limitations of accuracy-oriented approaches and underscores the need for a more function-sensitive assessment model. In response, the Function-Based TQA model introduces text function as a key quality dimension that extends evaluation beyond linguistic correctness to communicative effectiveness. This study examines the importance of incorporating text function as a central criterion in TQA and explores its perceived role among translation professionals. Adopting a descriptive research design, the study draws on qualitative data from questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with translation lecturers and professional translators actively engaged in TQA. The data were analyzed using an interactive qualitative data analysis model. The findings demonstrate that text function plays a fundamental role in TQA by determining whether the target text fulfills the same communicative purpose as the source text within its target context. To facilitate practical assessment, this study proposes clearly defined quality descriptions and a corresponding scoring system for different levels of functional adequacy. Overall, the study argues that including text function as a distinct quality dimension enhances the consistency, explanatory power, and applicability of TQA models, contributing to a more holistic approach to translation evaluation.

Ethos, Ethics, and Spirituality in Minangkabau Petatah-Petitih: A Linguistic-Cultural Alternative to Weber’s Protestant Ethic

Hasanuddin Hasanuddin — 2026-04-15

The entrepreneurial culture of the Minangkabau is widely regarded as compelling, continually explored and discussed by scholars. It has long been widely recognized that this value system is embedded in a linguistic vessel known as petatah-petitih (traditional Minangkabau proverbs). These proverbs are often regarded as repositories of social norms, yet their role as a living linguistic system actively shaping everyday practices, particularly in the economic sphere, remains largely underexplored. Previous studies have tended to view petatah-petitih as static containers of moral prescriptions. However, their existence as dynamic catalysts of a community’s lived values and guiding principles has remained largely untouched. In fact, petatah-petitih function as a living linguistic system, continuously activated through hermeneutic engagement and practical actualization by social actors within the flow of their daily lives. This article addresses that gap by investigating how petatah-petitih both live and are lived by Minangkabau traders as they negotiate meaning within their entrepreneurial journeys. Drawing on Hymes’ ethnolinguistics and philosophical-phenomenological hermeneutics, the researcher conducted focus group discussions, participatory observation, and hermeneutic interviews with 14 informants across West Sumatra, Bogor, and Bali. Findings reveal that proverbs concerning Minangkabau entrepreneurial culture form an integrative whole, not operating as fixed prescriptions, but as a dynamic ethical framework continually reinterpreted through lived experience. Hermeneutic analysis shows that meaning is constructed dialogically, through a circular movement among text, context, and the interpreter’s subjectivity. This study contributes to decolonial approaches in ethnolinguistics by centering Indigenous interpretive practices as the core of analysis, while also proposing a new methodological model for understanding petatah-petitih as vital resources for building national economic resilience and as a critique of the dominant currents of global capitalism.

Performative Inclusion and Diplomatic Emotion: Strategic Crisis Communication of Global Food Security Leaders on Social Media

Nor Azila Hasbullah — 2026-04-15

Existing crisis communication frameworks are mostly orientated toward sheltering the reputation of an organization, thus limited insights are presented into how global leaders sustain legitimacy and solidarity during prolonged humanitarian crises, such as global food security issues. Addressing this gap, this study examines how six leaders from major international food security institutions (UN, FAO, WFP, IFAD, IFPRI, and USAID) employed rhetorical strategies on X (formerly Twitter) to address food security challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020–2022). The study investigates five communication styles: inclusive language, thematic framing, emotive discourse, rhetorical markers, and temporal storytelling by using qualitative content analysis of 302 tweets and following the Restorative Rhetoric framework. Findings show that leaders used strategic, inclusive, and empathetic language, narrative coherence, and solution-oriented framing to gain support and visualize institutional legitimacy. This study proposes two novel concepts: performative inclusion, which refers to the strategic use of rhetoric by leaders to convey unity while concealing persistent power asymmetries, and diplomatic emotion, the bounded expression of empathy regulated by institutional authority. These insights extend strategic communication theory by showing how leaders balance authenticity, authority, and legitimacy in digital crisis contexts. The study offers guidance for institutions on designing communication strategies with a combination of empathy, participation, and credibility in managing global crises.

Engagement Resources and Personal Pronouns: Mediation in the Translation of English-Malay Self-help Books

Phoebe Ian Yee Lim — 2026-04-15

This study examines how translators mediate Engagement resources when translating English self-help books into Malay, focusing on authorial positioning, dialogic stance, and the management of alternative viewpoints. Using Appraisal Theory, extended to include person deixis as an Engagement strategy, the research employs a qualitative approach to analyse three cognitive self-help books and their Malay translations to examine the distribution of Engagement resources, retention rates in translation, shift typology, person deixis patterns, and the factors motivating these strategies. A total of 245 textual segments containing critical points were identified as units of analysis. These units were manually coded and analysed for Engagement resources, with intra-rater reliability procedures to ensure consistency. Analysis reveals that translators maintain most Engagement resources at the category level with a modest shift towards monoglossic statements. Furthermore, substantial cultural mediation occurs through changes in person deixis. Translators systematically shift the second-person you to the first-person kita (inclusive ‘we’), reshaping interpersonal relationships from hierarchical to egalitarian positioning. This mitigates the direct and individualistic tone characteristic of the English self-help discourse, aligning with Malay preferences for a more inclusive and collective perspective. The study contributes theoretically by demonstrating the need for diverse approaches to highlight cultural mediation in translation analysis. Practically, the findings benefit three key groups: translators can refine their strategies for conveying persuasive language in culturally appropriate ways; publishers can provide better guidance to translators through detailed and genre-specific briefs that emphasize interpersonal positioning; and translation training programs can incorporate Appraisal Theory and person deixis as analytical frameworks into their curriculum, helping students develop systematic approaches to managing interpersonal resources in accordance with cultural norms.

Malay Kinship Terms and Their Relationship to the Formation of Social Identity in West Kalimantan, Indonesia

Yusriadi Yusriadi — 2026-04-15

This study examines Malay kinship terms and its role in shaping social identity among communities in West Kalimantan, Indonesia. Employing an ethnographic approach within the framework of Social Identity Theory, it analyzes how this terminology functions in everyday life. Data were collected through interviews with 33 Malay participants from nine regions of West Kalimantan, complemented by an analysis of published materials on local kinship. The results indicate that Malay kinship terms act as tools for social categorization, in-group identification, and social comparison across different ethnic communities, reflecting complex socio-historical processes and inter-ethnic relationships. The study also demonstrates the influence of the national language, which serves as both a lingua franca and a prestigious linguistic resource in this context. These findings contribute to ethnolinguistic theory by confirming that kinship terms constitute a reflexive social practice that shapes communal life in both literal and symbolic dimensions.

Keywords: kinship terms; social identity; ethnolinguistics; Malay; West Kalimantan; Social identity theory

Non-Observance of Gricean Maxims as a Literary Strategy in Short Fiction: A Discourse-Pragmatic Analysis of O. Henry and W. Somerset Maugham

Yokubjonova Ibodatxon Ulugbek Kizi — 2026-04-15

Meaning in discourse is frequently conveyed indirectly; conversational maxims are rarely followed strictly, serving instead as tools for speakers to generate implied meaning. In literary discourse, particularly within the semantically dense genre of short fiction, the non-observance of these maxims operates not as a communicative failure but as an intentional artistic strategy to shape characterisation and narrative depth. Building on this background, this study investigates how the non-observance of Gricean conversational maxims functions as a literary strategy in selected English short stories by O. Henry and W. Somerset Maugham. Drawing on Grice’s Cooperative Principle, the analysis examines how deviations from the maxims of Quantity, Quality, Relation, and Manner generate nonconventional implicatures that extend beyond the literal content. The study focuses on four stories: The Girl and the Habit and An Unfinished Story by O. Henry, alongside The Happy Couple and The Promise by W. Somerset Maugham. Employing a qualitative discourse-pragmatic methodology, representative instances of maxim non-observance are identified and interpreted regarding their narrative context and linguistic form. The findings demonstrate that maxim non-observance functions as a vital resource for creating irony, humour, characterisation, emotional reserve, and social commentary. Comparative analysis reveals distinct stylistic applications: O. Henry frequently employs overt exaggeration, verbal play, and socially dynamic exchanges, while Maugham utilizes understatement, ambiguity, and controlled indirection to convey psychological tension and moral complexity. Ultimately, the article concludes that Gricean pragmatics offers a highly effective framework for literary analysis, elucidating how fictional dialogue constructs layered, interpretively rich meanings. Furthermore, this framework provides a practical pedagogical tool, enabling students to explicitly connect pragmatic principles to the interpretation of character motivation and narrative structure in their analytical writing.

Ideological Influences on Bilingual Coffee Shop Signs in Najran City: A Translation Perspective

Abduljalil Nasr Hazaea — 2026-04-15

In a global era, English has an expanding role affecting everyday life, including commercial signs. The translation of these signs on culturally driven commodities such as coffee is a significant area of study, revealing broader sociolinguistic dynamics and ideological perspectives. This study investigates the translation features observed on coffee shop signs, exploring how ideological choices shape translation practices and their implications for visual identity. Employing Gu and Almanna’s model for categorizing street signs and Venuti’s concepts of domestication and foreignization, we analyzed bilingual coffee shop signs scattered in Najran city, Saudi Arabia. The findings delineate four predominant features in the assignment of bilingualism: pure Arabic and pure English (PA&PE), pure Arabic and English transliteration (PA&ET), pure English and transliterated Arabic (PE&TA), and mixed features (MF). Over half of the signs utilized PE&TA reflecting a foreignization strategy to reinforce English in the Saudi context while marginalizing Arabic. One quarter of the signs achieved a balance between PA&PE, indicative of domesticating translation practices. Mixed features are also found in coffee shop signs (17%), blending direct translation, transliteration, and adaptation techniques. Surprisingly, only 7% of the signs were in PA&ET aiming to support Arabic language presence for foreign visitors. While omission was mainly associated with PE&TA and PA&PE, addition was manifested with MF and PA&ET. The study concludes with practical recommendations for bilingual sign translation, contributing insights to translation studies and offering guidance for translators, policymakers, and businesses operating in bilingual environments.

Lexico-Semantic Equivalence in Specialised Discourse: Translating English Economic Terminology into Karakalpak

Akhmedov Oybek Saparbaevich — 2026-04-15

This research examines the lexical-semantic problems involved in translating economic terms from English into Karakalpak. The primary objectives of this study are to identify the main types of lexico-semantic difficulties in this domain and to describe how different translational solutions affect the accuracy, transparency, and functional stability of English–Karakalpak economic terminology. A qualitative, corpus-based methodology was applied, wherein empirical data was collected from specialised sources such as textbooks, financial reports, and dictionaries. The analysis involved structural, componential, and contextual examinations to classify the predominant translation strategies. The results demonstrate that terms are typically rendered through full lexico-semantic calques, partial calques, or pairs consisting of borrowed terms and native-based equivalents. Specifically, full calques effectively preserve internal conceptual meanings, while partial calques and borrowings reveal an ongoing tension between internationalisation and nationalisation. The significance of these findings lies in revealing that the translation of economic terms requires a careful balance between precise international comparability and national linguistic identity, as well as an awareness of instances of semantic shift, narrowing, or broadening. This research implies the informed adoption of a context-sensitive approach on the part of translators, terminologists and educators which takes into account their audiences and communicative purposes in order to preserve both professional accuracy as well as didactic accessibility within a developing Karakalpak terminological system.