Volume-1, Issue-2, October 2025

Abstract

Resuscitation and sustainability of endangered minor Nigerian Languages are highly imperative for cultural, religious, social, economic, political and educational purposes. They preserve the cultural identities and heritages of ethnic groups; assist in intergenerational communications and allow inclusivity of social lifestyles and equities. Against this backdrop, this study investigates endangered minor Nigerian languages with a view to identifying their statuses, examining the attitudes of the users with a view to identifying whether or not they have positive or negative influences on the languages; and suggesting how they can be revitalised and sustained through multimodality. Data were randomly obtained from the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria; in the North-central (Koro and Igede), in the North-East (Bade and Tera) in the North-West, (Kamuku and Duwai) in the South-East (Ikkwere and Ohuhu Igbo), in the South-South (Ibibio and Ogoni) and in the South-West (Akoko and Egun), (a total of twelve Nigerian languages) were selected for this study. The mixed-methods research design and Cultural Sustainability Theory were also adopted. One of the major findings is that consistent use of minor languages in cultural festivals can rejuvenate and sustain minor languages in Nigeria. The study, therefore, recommends that minor Nigerian languages should be revived and sustained through multiple modes such as the use of social media and technology; and native speakers’ readiness to interact and communicate using these languages in private and public spaces freely.

Keywords: Nigerian Languages, intergenerational communications, cultural identities, multimodality, educational purposes.

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Keywords: Nigerian Languages, intergenerational communications, cultural identities, multimodality, educational purposes.

Abstract

Shashi Deshpande, one of the eminent writers in the field of Indio-Anglo literature, occupies a prominent place in the galaxy of Indian women writers in English. She was born in 1938, in Dharwad, a small town in Karnataka, to a Kannad father and Maharashtrian mother and is their second child. Her father Adya Rangachar, better known as Sriranga, was a noted Kannada dramatist as well as a distinguished Sanskrit scholar. In an interview with Sue Dickman, Deshpande stated that her birth in a well educated family indirectly helped her to be what she is now, 

“I started writing very late in life, and I never spoke to my father about my writing, nor did he ever speak to me about it. We never communicated about writing at all. But nevertheless, it did matter. It does matter, to some extent, particularly in a country like India, where I think women wouldn’t have been very educated in those days—I’m not talking of now—unless you had parents who were different and wanted their daughters to be educated. Normally it’s so difficult for a girl, if her family is against her, to go ahead and do anything, in our day at least.”

She pursued her early education at a protestant mission school in Dharwad and was an excellent student. Since her childhood Shashi Deshpnade was fond of classical English novels and had a particular liking for the works of Jane Austen and was very much influenced by her. The first book that she read as a child was Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice”. In an interview with Chandra Holm she tells, 

“I was a great reader, an absolutely voracious reader. I started reading at the age of eight. My first book was Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I was told, “You are too young for this book. Don’t pretend to understand it.” But I enjoyed reading that book, even though I may not have understood it.”

Keywords: Indo-Anglican, Culture, Patriarchy, Commonwealth

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Keywords: Indo-Anglican, Culture, Patriarchy, Commonwealth

Abstract

This research paper presents a qualitative analysis of the translation techniques employed and the resultant gaps in the Nepali translation (Phūlko Ãkhāmā) of Ani Choying Drolma’s autobiography, Singing for Freedom. The study focuses specifically on the translation of cultural terms, which are often the most challenging elements to render across linguistic and cultural boundaries.

The primary objectives of the study are to identify the English cultural terms in the source text and their Nepali equivalents, to analyze the techniques used in their translation, and to pinpoint the gaps that arise in this process. The researcher adopted a qualitative research design, systematically selecting and analyzing 50 cultural terms from the autobiography. These terms were categorized into five domains: ecological, material, social, religious, and conceptual culture.

The findings reveal that seven distinct translation techniques were utilized: literal translation, substitution, borrowing, sense translation, elaboration, blending, and deletion. Among these, literal translation was the most frequently applied technique (14 instances), while deletion was the least (1 instance). The study concludes that while techniques like literal translation and borrowing were effective in many contexts, they, along with substitution, elaboration, and deletion, often created semantic and cultural gaps. A notable example is the translation of "eldest brother" as sautenĭdāĭ (step-brother), which fails to convey the precise familial relationship of the source text. Deletion, in particular, was found to omit cultural meaning, thereby preventing target language readers from accessing the original flavor of the text.

The study underscores that translation is not merely a linguistic exercise but a complex bicultural process. It concludes that a translator must possess a profound understanding of both the source and target cultures to minimize gaps and effectively communicate the original message. The research offers pedagogical implications and recommendations for translators, translation evaluators, and curriculum developers, emphasizing the need to incorporate translation as a core skill in language teaching and to further investigate the challenges of translating culture-specific concepts.

Keywords: Translation Techniques, Cultural Terms, Translation Gaps, Singing for Freedom, Nepali Translation, Cultural Equivalence

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Keywords: Translation Techniques, Cultural Terms, Translation Gaps, Singing for Freedom, Nepali Translation, Cultural Equivalence

Abstract

Gender plays a crucial role in shaping language use and its interpretation across cultures. This study examines the strategic negotiation and ideological implications of gendered language in translations among English, Hindi and Nepali. Grounded in Feminist Translation Studies (FTS) and sociolinguistic analysis of grammatical gender and honorifics, it analyzes a trilingual corpus of literary and journalistic texts. The core challenge arises from typological asymmetry: English features natural (lexical) gender, whereas Hindi and Nepali employ compulsory grammatical gender and socially determined honorifics. A mixed-methods approach identifies four primary translation strategies: Neutralization, Amplification, Compensation and Ideological Default. Quantitative findings reveal a prevalent masculine default (GMD) in Hindi and Nepali target texts when translating gender-ambiguous English sources, especially in non-literary domains, reflecting patriarchal cultural norms. Conversely, gender compensation (GFC) occurs most frequently in official documents, signaling a gender-aware shift. Qualitative analysis shows that translators act as critical cultural mediators, whose choices shape the visibility and representation of women in the target culture. This study contributes to comparative sociolinguistics and translation pedagogy by providing an empirical model for understanding the interplay between linguistic structure, translation ethics and gender ideology in the South Asian context.

Keywords: English, Hindi, Nepali, Feminist Translation Theory, Grammatical Gender, Translation Strategies.

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Keywords: English, Hindi, Nepali, Feminist Translation Theory, Grammatical Gender, Translation Strategies.