1.5 Translation competence

The PACTE research group at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain, has been conducting research for nearly two decades on the acquisition of translation competence, defined as ‘the underlying system of knowledge needed to translate’ (PACTE, 2003, p. 16). They started by describing the characteristics that define the professional translator and then developed a model for their acquisition. The aim was to understand how best to teach these competences to would-be translators.

The following model presents the sub-competences that make up translation competence, which include both declarative (knowing that) and procedural (knowing how) knowledge. These sub-competences are looked at in more detail in the reading activity in the next section.

Figure 1 Model of translation competence revisited.

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This graphic shows five interconnected boxes labelled: bilingual sub-competence, instrumental sub-competence, knowledge and translation sub-competence, extra-linguistic sub-competence and strategic sub-competence. The latter is placed in the middle of the other four. Outside this cluster of sub-competences but connected to it by a double-sided arrow is the label psycho-physiological components.

Figure 1 Model of translation competence revisited.