Common Syntactical Errors in Translation of L1 Passages into L2 A Study of EFL University Level Learners

Abstract

This research study aims to investigate syntactical errors of second
language learners in translation of Urdu passages into English in Quetta,
Pakistan. The research scrutinizes errors related to Dulay, Burt and
Krashen (1982) Surface Strategy Taxonomy which includes four kinds of
errors, such as addition, omission, misformation and misordering.
However, total 78 Pakistani EFL students enrolled in Department of
English at University of Balochistan, took part in study. The four groups
of errors which were committed by selected participants explored through
quantitative research design. It was observed that EFL learners had issues
in syntactical rules specially parts of speech, their correct usages in
translation of Urdu passages into English. The findings of present study
further revealed that learners made the most common errors in the area of
addition errors which were occurred 2019 (34.24%) times. Onwards, in
this category, addition of noun observed as the leading source of problem
which was seen in 359 (17.78%) cases. The present paper too aims to
catch the attention of university level foreign language learners‟ problems
in the use of syntactical rules in order to gain the art of translation and
produce error-free text. The research also highlights some practicable
recommendations for resolving the mentioned problems in translation.