Abstract
Every culture has its mode of expression. This is true for its various aspects including social, material, political or religious aspects of culture. As culture varies with time and space, so its mode of expression varies too. One way culture is expressed is through the use of proverbs. The peculiarities of culture are seen in the form, style, imagery, metaphors, meaning, use and purpose of the proverbs. Proverbs are part of the social culture of different linguistic groups. Igbo and French cultural realities are embedded in their proverbs. Given the cultural and spatial distances and dissimilarities between the two languages and cultures, this paper intends to analyze and compare the cultural realities in equivalent Igbo and French proverbs. This would help the translator to arrive at an acceptable translation of the proverbs jn the two languages and cultures. When cultural realities are properly analyzed and extricated from the proverbs, the meaning and purpose of the proverbs become obvious and clear to all. It can then be appropriately used in order to achieve its purpose in the culture concerned. Hence, the paper would examine what a proverb is and the roles it plays in a given culture. It would equally discuss translation as it relates to culture and some of the obstacles to translation of proverbs. This would be followed by an analysis of some Igbo proverbs and their French equivalents in order to establish their meanings. This would enhance their acceptability as equivalents in the two languages under study.
Author Information
Kate Ndukauba, Abia State University, Nigeria
Paper Information
Conference: ECAH2015
Stream: Humanities - Language
This paper is part of the ECAH2015 Conference Proceedings (View)
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