Understanding the Idea: Dynamic Equivalence and the Accurate Translation of Jihadist Concepts

This article argues that inaccurate translation of commonly-transliterated jihadist terms poses a major difficulty to scholars and policy makers who are seeking to understand the appeal and potential weaknesses of jihadist movements. Jihadist English-language propaganda is filled with transliterated terms, usually from Arabic. Although these transliterated terms (such as jihad and sharia) are extremely common, the shorthand English translations of these terms (such as “holy war” and “Islamic law”) often fail to accurately convey the connotative meaning experienced by the jihadist groups using them.The translation theory of dynamic equivalence suggests that accurate translation consists not of word-for-word correspondence between an original source language and a reception language, but instead by finding concepts in the reception language that provide the same sense of emotive meaning that exists in the community using the source language. This concept-to-concept model of translation offers insights into both the community using the source language and the community for which the scholar is writing.A brief overview of dynamic equivalence and its merits for translation is followed by redefinitions of ten commonly-transliterated Arabic words found within the ISIS publication Dabiq. A refined understanding of some of these jihadist terms provides insights into both the appeal and weaknesses of jihadist groups. This model of translation and these improved definitions can serve as the foundation for a longer-term project providing an updated, comprehensive lexicon of jihadist terms.