The paper examines lexical asymmetry as a translation problem in rendering the Holy Quran into English. It argues that seemingly synonymous words in the Quran often have subtle but important semantic differences that are lost in translation.
The authors analyze several examples of verb and noun pairs in the Quran that appear synonymous but convey distinct nuances. The study employs a selective analytical approach, examining specific examples from the Quran and comparing them across three widely-used English translations. The authors argue that translators often fail to recognize the carefully chosen vocabulary in the Quran, instead treating seemingly synonymous words as interchangeable.
The paper concludes that there are no true synonyms in the Quran - each word is meticulously selected to convey precise meaning. The authors contend this poses a significant challenge for translators and results in inevitable loss of semantic nuance in translation. They call for greater sensitivity to these subtle distinctions in future translations of the Quran.
Overall, the study sheds light on an under-examined aspect of Quranic translation and advocates for more nuanced approaches that can better capture the linguistic precision of the original Arabic text. The authors present this as an ongoing challenge in the field of Quranic translation studies.