foreignization

Foreignization is a translation strategy in which the translator preserves the source text's linguistic and cultural features in the target language, rather than fully naturalizing them for the target audience. This approach seeks to foreground the source culture and its textual texture, leaving markers of foreignness visible in the translated text. It contrasts with domestication, which emphasizes reader-friendly style and cultural adaptation.

Origin and theory: The term is associated with Lawrence Venuti, who contrasted foreignization with domestication in The Translator's Invisibility (1995). He argues that domestication renders translations fluent and invisible, while foreignization makes translation choices visible, thereby safeguarding textual fidelity, cultural diversity, and ethical relationships between author, text, and reader.

Methods and examples: Foreignization can be achieved by retaining source-language terms, proper names, and cultural concepts; using loanwords or calques; preserving unusual syntax or punctuation; and providing footnotes or glosses to explain cultural references. Examples include leaving terms such as haiku, kimchi, or samba untranslated or explained, rather than replacing them with localized equivalents.

Impact and criticism: Proponents contend that foreignization protects minority literatures from cultural erasure and invites readers to engage with difference. Critics argue that it can hinder readability, disproportionately burden the reader, or appear pedantic. The suitability of foreignization depends on genre, audience, and purpose.

In practice, foreignization is applied across literature, film subtitles, and other translations, often in opposition to domestication. It remains a central concept in translation studies and postcolonial theory, where translators negotiate between fidelity to the source text and accessibility for the target audience.