A Study of the Translatability and Untranslatability of Qur’ānic Arabic Particle laʿalla لَعَلَّ in Some Selected Surahs: A Linguistic Perspective

Abstract

Theoretically and in practice, the issue of translatability and untranslatability has been a controversial matter in translation studies and translation theories. This study, carried out from a linguistic perspective, examined the translatability and untranslatability of the Qur’ānic Arabic particle laʿalla لَعَلَّ in several surahs, specifically in terms of three renowned translations of the Holy Qur’ān which were sourced from The Qur’ānic Arabic Corpus, namely those of Abdelhaleem (2004), Al-Hilali and Khan (1996) and Pickthall (1930). A descriptive analytical method was utilized together with Jones' (2016) concept which asserts that the random treatment of laʿalla لَعَلّ needs to be addressed. Findings of the study revealed that, the three translators have comparatively succeeded in rendering the Qur’ānic Arabic laʿalla لَعَلَّ into English. Most of the time, it is rendered as 'so that', 'so', 'that' and the model auxiliary 'may’ that suggests the adverb 'perhaps'. The study concluded that, regarding the adequacy of the rendering, communication, and comprehension of the Holy Qurʾān these conjunctions and the model auxiliary are appropriate as they convey the intended notion of 'likelihood’ or ‘probability'.