•  
  •  
 

Abstract

One of the difficulties in translating English legal texts derives from the uses of specialized language, also known as “legalese“. This research is a preliminary study which sets out to investigate the translation of English legalese into Indonesian in four open-accessed agreements. The data in English, which cover terms and expressions commonly used in legal documents, are classified into seven categories of legal English features. Their Indonesian translations are analysed by using Indonesian dictionaries to discover whether they can be considered as Indonesian legal language. The research finds that most English legalese terms and expressions studied are translated using common words and expressions, which can be looked up in the official monolingual Indonesian dictionary (Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia/KBBI) but cannot be found in an Indonesian law dictionary. Therefore, it is concluded that Indonesian legal language is not yet established.

References

Bernadrova-Gibová, Klaudia. 2011. “On Modality in EU Institutional-Legal Texts”. In English Matters II, edited by Alena Kačmárová, Prešov: Prešovská univerzita, 6-12.

Black, Henry Campbell. 1910. “Legalese”. In Black's Law Dictionary 2nd ed. Retrieved from: https://thelawdictionary.org/legalese.

Cao, Deborah. 2009. Translating Law. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.

Chen, Yan. & Yun, Dai. 2014. “On the Language Features of English Contract Translation. International Journal of Language and Linguistics”. Special Issue: The Sociolinguistics of a Changing World. Vol. 2, No. 6-2, 2014, 1-5. doi: 10.11648/j.ijll.s.2014020602.11

Fiorito, Lorenzo. 2006. “On Performatives in Legal Discourse”. Metalogicon, XIX, 2, 101-112. Retrieved from: http://www.metalogicon.org/rivista/2006ld/Fiorito06ld.pdf

Garner, Bryan A. 2015, September 2. LawProse Lesson #226: ‘including but not limited to’ [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.lawprose.org/lawprose-lesson-226-including-but-not-limited-to/

Harikrisnowo, Harikristuti. 2007. Bahasa Indonesia sebagai Sarana Pengembangan Hukum Nasional. Retrieved from: http://www.legalitas.org/?q=node/67.

Hastuti, Endang Dwi. 2007. Analisis Terjemahan Istilah-Istilah Hukum dalam Buku Teks Intelectual Property Rights: Kajian Strategi Penerjemahan, Ketepatan dan Kealamiahan Terjemahan [Unpublished Master’s Thesis]. Universitas Sebelas Maret, Surakarta, Indonesia.

Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia Online. n.d. Accessed from https://kbbi.web.id

Kamus Hukum Online Indonesia. n.d. Accessed from https://kamushukum.web.id

Khairani, Ade Irma. 2004. Analisis Strategi Penerjemahan Inggris-Indonesia dalam Teks Kontrak Umum Perjanjian Kerja [Master’s Thesis]. Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, Indonesia. Retrieved from: http://repository.usu.ac.id/handle/123456789/5773

Pascarina, Hanifa, Nababan, Mangatur, & Santosa, Riyadi. 2017. “Loss dan Gain pada Terjemahan Buku Hukum The Concept of Law Karya H.

L. A Hart ke dalam Versi Bahasa Indonesia ‘Konsep Hukum’”. Prasasti: Journal of Linguistics 2 (2), 237-252. Retrieved from: https://jurnal.uns.ac.id/pjl/article/download/1374/12744

Qamar, Nurul & Djanggih, Hardianto. 2017. “Peranan Bahasa Hukum dalam Perumusan Norma Perundang-undangan (Role of Legal Language in Formulation of Legislation Norms)”. JIKH Vol. 11 No. 3, 337–347. Retrieved from: http://ejournal.balitbangham.go.id/index.php/kebijakan/article/view/288/pdf

The World Law Dictionary Project. n.d. Accessed from https://www.translegal.com/legal-english-dictionary

Verentina-Chiriac, Ina. 2012. “Characteristics and Features of Legal English Vocabulary”. Revistă Ştiinţifică a Universităţii de Stat din

Moldova, 2012, nr.4(54), 103-107. Retrieved from: http://studiamsu.eu/wp-content/uploads/20.-p.103-107.pdf

Wijayanti, Sri Hapsari. 2009. Bahasa Hukum Indonesia di dalam Surat Perjanjian. Retrieved from http://www.atmajaya.ac.id/web/KontenUnit.aspx?gid=artikel-hki&ou=hki&cid=artikel-hki-bahasa-hukum-indonesia

Wuryantoro, Aris, Subroto, D. Edi & Nababan, Mangatur. 2014. “Translation Techniques on Indonesian Sworn Translator’s Legal Texts Translation”. English Teaching Journal, Vol. 2 No.2, December 2014, 41-49. Retrieved from: http://download.portalgaruda.org

Download

Share

COinS