A ROSE BY MANY OTHER NAMES: TRANSLATION, ADAPTATION, AND THE “NEW” LOCALIZATION INDUSTRY

Abstract

The rise of the fast-growing new language services industry referred
to as “localization” represents an interesting cultural phenomenon. I
examine this industry from the perspective of variant cultural
practices orbiting around the notion of translation and adaptation,
identifying a strong correspondent-versus-adaptive polarity. Using
examples of 19th-century Japanese adaptations of Western texts, I
note how contemporary market dynamics favored adaptations over
correspondent translations. Mapping these onto contemporary
localization practices, I suggest that the emergence of the
‘localization’ industry in a global marketplace today helps us
reconsider the importance of adaptation’s time-honored role within
the translation spectrum.