CULTURAL EMBEDDING IN DESIGNATING MARITIME METAPHORS

Abstract

An interesting and fruitful area of research in maritime language is represented by metaphors and metaphorical expressions which abound in the language of seafarers. Recent interest in terminological metaphor stems from the idea that metaphor has two basic functions. On the one hand, it is a conceptual device whose essence is “understanding and experiencing one kind of thing in terms of another” (Lakoff and Johnson 1980: 5) while on the other hand, it has an important aesthetic role, which “produces metaphorical combined names whose motivation can be found in similarities of form, function, and position” (Sager 1997: 29). This paper sets to highlight that several maritime terms are the result of understanding and naming on the basis of metaphorical scenarios. In addition, the aesthetic value of several maritime terms increases motivation and helps maritime language users to deal with them.  The idea should be pointed out that the cognitive theories of metaphor have put forward the thesis according to which metaphors are not only a cultural symbol or ornamentation within a given discourse, but also a phenomenon that takes place in order to categorize and understand experience. Thus, the cognitive process becomes a crucial factor in the translation process. This is because the maritime translator, by means of these mental processes, establishes appropriate linguistic relationships within the historical and cultural context of the text, and reformulates it in the target language (TL) and /or target culture (TC).