دانشگاه علامه طباطبایی پژوهش های ترجمه در زبان و ادبیات عربی 2980-7735 15 33 2025 09 23 An Evaluation of the Arabic Translation of Three Poems by Nima Yushij (“Moonlight,” “In Memory of My Homeland,” and “My Home Is Cloudy”) Based on Vinay and Darbelnet’s Model ارزیابی ترجمه عربی سه شعر«مهتاب»، «بیاد وطنم» و «خانه‌ام ابریست» نیما یوشیج بر اساس نظریه وینه و داربلنه 168 195 20451 10.22054/rctall.2026.85425.1809 FA بهروز قربانزاده دانشیار، گروه زبان و ادبیات عربی، دانشگاه مازندران، بابلسر، ایران لیلا ولی‌پور لالیمی دانشجوی کارشناسی ارشد زبان و ادبیات عربی، دانشگاه مازندران، بابلسر، ایران Journal Article 2025 09 16 Abstract The translation of literary texts, especially poetry, is among the most complex areas of translation studies because meaning is intricately bound to language, style, and aesthetic elements. Nima Yushij (1897–1959), the founder of modern Persian poetry, occupies a prominent place in contemporary Iranian literature due to his linguistic and structural innovations. Translating his poetry into Arabic is particularly significant given the linguistic and cultural proximity of the two languages and therefore calls for rigorous scholarly assessment. Although numerous studies have been conducted on the translation of Persian poetry into Arabic and on the application of translation theories, systematic analyses of Nima Yushij’s poems based on the Vinay and Darbelnet model remain limited. Focusing on three specific poems and one particular translation, this study seeks to address part of this research gap. The study employs a descriptive analytical method. Data are analyzed by comparing the Persian source texts with the Arabic translations by Ramla Mahmoud Ghanem. The seven strategies proposed by Vinay and Darbelnet, including borrowing, calque, literal translation, transposition, modulation, equivalence, and adaptation, are used as the theoretical framework. The findings indicate that, due to the structural affinity between Persian and Arabic, the translator has predominantly relied on calque and literal translation. However, when encountering cultural elements and poetic imagery, the use of strategies such as modulation and adaptation has led to semantic compression and the weakening of certain aesthetic subtleties. Overall, the translation has been successful in conveying the core message, yet full recreation of the artistic layers of the poems has not been entirely achieved. Keywords: Translation, foreignization, domestication, Venuti, novel n Cite this paper as follows: Ghorbanzadeh, B., & Valipoor Lalimi, L. (2025). An evaluation of the Arabic translation of three poems by Nima Yushij (“Moonlight,” “In Memory of My Homeland,” and “My Home Is Cloudy”) based on Vinay and Darbelnet’s model. Translation Researches in the Arabic Language and Literature, 15(33), 168-195. https://doi.org/10.22054/rctall.2026.85425.1809 Received: September 16, 2025 n Revised: October 13, 2025 n Accepted: January 07, 2026 Translation Researches in the Arabic Language and Literature is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. Introduction Literary translation, particularly the translation of poetry, is widely regarded as one of the most complex areas of translation studies because of the multilayered nature of poetic language. Poetry is not merely a vehicle for meaning; it embodies form, rhythm, imagery, and emotional resonance. As a result, translating poetry requires more than linguistic competence and demands sensitivity to aesthetic, cultural, and stylistic dimensions. Modern Persian poetry, as represented by Nima Yushij, intensifies these challenges through its departure from fixed meters, its innovative imagery, and its engagement with social and personal concerns. Nima’s poetry redefines poetic expression by combining colloquial language with symbolic depth, thereby creating a distinctive style that resists straightforward translation. Given the close historical and cultural ties between Persian and Arabic, translating Nima’s poetry into Arabic holds particular significance for literary exchange between the two traditions. However, this proximity does not eliminate translational difficulty; rather, it introduces new complexities arising from structural similarity alongside stylistic divergence. Literature Review Previous studies on Persian–Arabic poetry translation have often focused on classical poets such as Hafez and Rumi, while comparatively fewer studies have addressed modern Persian poetry. Existing research that employs Vinay and Darbelnet’s model has demonstrated the usefulness of this framework for identifying translation strategies and assessing their effectiveness. Some studies have examined the Arabic renderings of individual poems by Nima Yushij, emphasizing techniques such as calque, literal translation, and modulation. However, these studies have typically concentrated on limited textual samples or have not included the Arabic translations by Ramla Mahmoud Ghanem. Moreover, insufficient attention has been paid to the cumulative effect of translation strategies on poetic imagery and stylistic coherence. The present research seeks to address this gap by providing a systematic, theory-based analysis of several poems translated by the same translator within a unified critical framework. Methodology The research adopts a descriptive and analytical method grounded in Vinay and Darbelnet’s translation theory. The Persian source texts of the three selected poems are compared line by line with their Arabic translations by Ramla Mahmoud Ghanem. The analysis focuses on identifying the seven translation procedures proposed by Vinay and Darbelnet: borrowing, calque, literal translation, transposition, modulation, equivalence, and adaptation. Each example is examined in order to determine the applied strategy and to assess its effectiveness in conveying semantic content, imagery, and stylistic nuance. Both qualitative analysis and observations of the frequency of specific strategies are used to identify dominant translation patterns. The selected poems were chosen because of their thematic diversity and their central position in Nima Yushij’s poetic oeuvre. Results and Discussion The findings show that the translator relies mainly on direct translation strategies, particularly calque and literal translation. This tendency can be attributed to the structural and lexical proximity between Persian and Arabic, which facilitates surface-level equivalence. In many instances, calque preserves the semantic structure of the original text, although it sometimes produces unnatural expressions in Arabic. Literal translation successfully conveys basic meaning but often fails to reproduce the aesthetic and emotional depth of the source poems. Indirect strategies such as modulation, equivalence, and adaptation are used less frequently and are employed mainly when translating culture-specific expressions, metaphors, or idiomatic language. While these strategies enhance clarity and readability in Arabic, they may also result in semantic compression or the loss of stylistic subtlety. The analysis suggests that excessive reliance on direct strategies restricts the re-creation of Nima’s innovative imagery and internal musicality. The findings also indicate that the translator’s strategic choices are not purely linguistic decisions but interpretive acts that influence how readers receive Nima Yushij’s poetic worldview. The frequent use of direct procedures reflects a tendency toward structural fidelity rather than aesthetic re-creation, a pattern often observed in translations between closely related languages. Although such fidelity promotes semantic transparency, it may unintentionally diminish the dynamic tension and emotional ambiguity that characterize modernist poetry. In contrast, the more limited but deliberate use of indirect strategies demonstrates the translator’s awareness of the need for creative intervention, particularly in the translation of metaphors related to nature, homeland, and personal memory. These results confirm that Vinay and Darbelnet’s model is an effective analytical tool not only for classifying translation techniques but also for evaluating their broader literary implications. The study highlights the need for a flexible methodological approach in the criticism of poetry translation, one that considers both structural correspondence and poetic effect. Conclusion This study concludes that Ramla Mahmoud Ghanem’s Arabic translations of Nima Yushij’s poems reflect an informed, theoretically based approach shaped predominantly by direct translation strategies. While the translations succeed in conveying the main thematic content and central imagery of the poems, they do not fully reproduce the stylistic richness and artistic complexity of the source texts. The limited use of indirect strategies restricts the poetic re-creation necessary for communicating the experiential depth of Nima’s modernist voice. The findings emphasize the importance of balancing fidelity to linguistic structure with creative adaptation in poetry translation. The study contributes to translation research by demonstrating the applicability of Vinay and Darbelnet’s model to modern Persian poetry and by underscoring the importance of stylistic sensitivity in Persian–Arabic literary translation. ترجمه متون ادبی، به‌ویژه شعر، به دلیل پیوند عمیق معنا با زبان، سبک و عناصر زیبایی‌شناختی، از پیچیده‌ترین حوزه‌های مطالعات ترجمه است. نیما یوشیج (1276–1338)، بنیان‌گذار شعر نو فارسی، با نوآوری‌های زبانی و ساختاری خود جایگاهی برجسته در ادبیات معاصر ایران دارد. ازاین‌رو، ترجمه اشعار او به زبان عربی، به‌سبب نزدیکی زبانی و فرهنگی دو زبان، اهمیتی ویژه یافته و نیازمند بررسی علمی و انتقادی است. اگرچه پژوهش‌های متعددی درباره ترجمه شعر فارسی به عربی و کاربرد نظریه‌های ترجمه انجام شده است، مطالعات نظام‌مند مبتنی بر الگوی وینه و داربلنه در تحلیل ترجمه اشعار نیما یوشیج محدود است. این پژوهش با تمرکز بر سه شعر مشخص و یک ترجمه معین، در پی پر کردن بخشی از این خلأ پژوهشی است. روش پژوهش توصیفی–تحلیلی است و داده‌ها از طریق مقایسه متن مبدأ فارسی با ترجمه عربی رمله محمود غانم تحلیل شده‌اند. هفت راهبرد ترجمه وینه و داربلنه شامل وام‌گیری، گرته‌برداری، ترجمه تحت‌اللفظی، جابه‌جایی، تغییر بیان، معادلیابی و همانندسازی به‌عنوان چارچوب نظری به کار رفته است. یافته‌ها نشان می‌دهد مترجم به دلیل قرابت ساختاری زبان‌های فارسی و عربی، بیشتر از گرته‌برداری و ترجمه تحت‌اللفظی بهره برده است. بااین‌حال، در مواجهه با عناصر فرهنگی و تصاویر شعری، به‌کارگیری راهبردهایی چون تغییر دیدگاه و همانندسازی موجب فشردگی معنا و تضعیف برخی ظرایف زیبایی‌شناختی شده است. به‌طور کلی، ترجمه در انتقال پیام محتوایی موفق بوده، اما بازآفرینی کامل لایه‌های هنری شعر به‌طور کامل محقق نشده است.

https://rctall.atu.ac.ir/article_20451_25a4b1ff447e61d96a8749e1e0bc7ef3.pdf