A glossary of medical terms related to diseases, disorders and conditions

Abstract

My first degree from the University of Malta is a Bachelor of Education in Biology and Integrated Science. My dissertation back then was the production of a science TV miniseries for children entitled ‘Fittex u Tkixxef’. That coincided with the very early stages of my career as a broadcaster, which now runs into its nineteenth year. After twelve years teaching Biology and Integrated Science at secondary level, I felt the need to further my studies. After much encouragement from Prof. Eynaud, I took the decision to study fulltime again and read for a Postgraduate Diploma in Interpreting at the University of Malta. My previous career as a teacher and my present jobs as a broadcaster with the national television station and as an interpreter with the EU institutions, made me more aware of how carelessly we sometimes speak Maltese. We often switch to English, sometimes half way through a sentence, for a plethora of reasons, most commonly because sometimes we cannot find the right word in Maltese to put across what we want to say. Medicine has always been of great interest to me, and during the course I became more aware of the difficulties faced by interpreters and translators when translating medical terms, especially for those with no medical background. Doctors consulted in this study acknowledged that, although there is the appropriate Maltese vocabulary in the medical field, they still tend to use the English equivalent or a descriptive phrase when communicating with their patients. This makes specialised terminology in Maltese less widespread in its use in the vernacular, and hence it is less likely to be absorbed into the language. This dissertation is a compilation of 154 terms related to diseases, disorders and conditions translated from English into Maltese, which will prove useful not only for translators, but also for interpreters, experts in the field, teachers, students, journalists and anyone else interested in the subject. The compilation and analysis of the terminology in this dissertation was done using bilingual dictionaries, specialised texts as well as consultations with various experts in the field. The first chapter briefly outlines the evolution of the Maltese language, and the realities it is facing in today’s world. The chapter then discusses technical translation and the importance of terminology. It addresses problems faced by technical translators, particularly in the field of medical terminology, focusing on the Maltese context. The final part covers briefly the processes involved in translating English medical terminology into Maltese. The second chapter presents the methodology adopted to compile this glossary. It describes the details and the processes involved in its completion. The procedures include the collection of terms in the source language (English), the translation of terms into the target language (Maltese), and finally analysing the terms themselves. It also outlines the resources used throughout the study. Details on the structure of the glossary are explained at the end of the chapter. The glossary itself makes up the third chapter. It contains the suggestions in Maltese, an English definition translated into Maltese by the researcher and an in-depth analysis of variants and popular terms found for the terms chosen. The last chapter gives a summary of observations, suggests ways of promoting the use of medical Maltese terminology and proposes further work in the field.