Information Theory in Translation and Interpreting Studies

This article deals with the application of information theory in empirical, quantitative translation and interpreting studies. In particular, we focus on translationese, i.e., the specific linguistic choices in translation compared to original, non-mediated communication. We show how Shannon’s information theory can be used to (i) explore translationese effects in corpora, (ii) test specific translationese hypotheses (e.g., simplification, explicitation), and (iii) link up with explanations from rational communication, such as processing efficiency and cognitive resource limitations.