The role of background knowledge in building the translating/interpreting competence of the linguist

Abstract

Background/Objectives: The paper deals with the role of background knowledge in building the translating/interpreting competence of the students majoring in Linguistics. Methods/Statistical Analysis: The analysis is based on the research into the phenomenon of background knowledge acquisition in Russian and international linguistic theory and practice. The leading approach used by the authors is observation and classification of the investigated material as well as interviewing, collecting, analyzing and synthesizing the data, received via interview and survey. Findings: Based on the research and empirical findings, the authors mark two mail problems: 1) The relationship of background knowledge of the linguist with the source language and culture of the author, written or oral information in understanding and interpretation of the text into the target language; 2) Lack of attention to background knowledge in teaching methodology of translation/interpretation in academic major of linguistics. To grant well-grounded conclusions the survey of background knowledge standard of 70 senior undergraduates is provided in the article. The authors come to the conclusion that background knowledge is crucial for will-be translators/interpreters and provide recommendations to improve the academic background knowledge acquisition process for the sake of better understanding between communication agents. Application/Improvements: The materials of the research may be applied worldwide by university staff, educators and researchers who are involved in professional linguistic research and training.