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In:Intralingual Translation: Beyond language and text
Edited by Hilla Karas and Hava Bat-Zeev Shyldkrot
[Benjamins Translation Library 168] 2026
► pp. 49–70

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Intralingual variation in translation into “English”

Rewriting the (para)text for local audiences

ORCiD logo with link | Sapienza University of Rome
Published online: 20 February 2026
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https://doi.org/10.1075/btl.168.03war
Abstract
This chapter focuses on the choice of natiolect used for fiction translated ‘into English’ — here British and American — and the often-opaque strategies adopted during the editing and publishing process, in producing first one translation ‘into English’ which, in turn, is ‘translated’ intralingually into a different variety of English. The chapter holds that this form of intralingual translation is akin to processes of retranslation. Along with textual analysis, the question is framed within the context of the paratext (artwork, endorsements, typography), highlighting the fact that it is not possible to isolate intralinguistic translation from Jakobson’s classic tripartite division. The examples illustrate how this practice of remediating translations within the ‘same’ language weaves interlinguistic, intralinguistic and intersemiotic (re)translation into a complex textual fabric.
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • English today
  • Intralingual translation
  • Examples of different strategies
  • The influence of the paratext
  • Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
References (48)
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