From Digitalization to Digital Transformation: Rethinking Translation in the Digital Age
Keywords:
Digitalization, Digital Transformation, Translation StudiesAbstract
This study explores the evolving relationship between digitalization, digital transformation, and translation practices in the digital age. Framed within the shift “from digitalization to digital transformation,” the research examines how technological advancements have redefined the nature of translation as both a linguistic and technologically mediated activity. The study adopts a qualitative analytical approach to investigate the impact of machine translation (MT) and neural machine translation (NMT) on translation quality, with particular attention to contextual accuracy, fluency, and idiomatic expression handling. The findings reveal that digitalization has enabled the conversion of linguistic resources into digital formats, while digital transformation has fundamentally reshaped translation workflows through the integration of artificial intelligence and neural technologies. Although NMT significantly enhances efficiency and linguistic fluency compared to traditional MT systems, limitations persist in handling cultural nuances and context-dependent meanings. The study concludes that translation in the digital age is best understood as a hybrid practice that combines human expertise with machine intelligence, rather than a fully automated process
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