97Te minologija | 2024 | 31
doi.o g/10.35321/ e m31-05
Concep ual Equi alence
in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
Koncep ualusis lygia e iškumas daugiakalbėje
ES e minijoje: iššūkiai i galimi sp endimai
ORSOLYA HEDVIG KARDOS
Council o he Eu opean Union1
ORCID id: h ps://o cid.o g/0009-0003-8038-6715
ABSTRACT
This a icle examines he implica ions o concep o ien a ion o ansla ion-o i-
en ed mul ilingual e minology wo k in he Eu opean Union con ex . Te ms and
concep s in EU ex s can be di ided in o h ee g oups based on hei uni e sali y
o speci ici y o a pa icula concep ual sys em: uni e sal, EU-speci ic, and coun-
y-speci ic. These e ms o en appea oge he in EU ex s, and ansla o s mus
be awa e o hei na u e o ind he bes equi alen in he a ge language. The
pape ou lines s a egies o ansla o s dealing wi h di e en ypes o e ms. I
also discusses he challenges o ansla ing uni e sal e ms wi h coun y-speci ic
dimensions. I highligh s how a lack o equi alence in o ma ion and con usion
be ween uni e sal and coun y-speci ic e ms can comp omise e minology en-
ies. Due o he di e si y o legal sys ems in he 27 Membe S a es, he lack o
an equi alen e m in he a ge language equi es ansla o s o choose be ween
inexac o pa ial equi alen s. I is he e o e c ucial o indica e in a e minological
da abase he absence o concep ually equi alen e ms in he a ge language. To
assis ansla o s, IATE, he EU’s concep -o ien ed e minology da abase, p o-
ides in o ma ion on he o igin o e ms and he deg ee o equi alence be ween
concep s exp essed by speci ic e ms in di e en languages. Howe e , his in o -
ma ion is no always sys ema ic. I can o en only be ob ained a e ho oughly
examining se e al da a ields. I is a gued ha sys ema ically indica ing he EU-,
o coun y-speci ic o igin o he concep ep esen ed by he da abase en y, o-
ge he wi h he in oduc ion o a new op ional ans e commen ield o cla i y
he deg ee o equi alence be ween e ms, as seen in o he mul ilingual e mbases,
1 Disclaime : The iews exp essed a e solely hose o he w i e and may no be ega ded as s a ing an o icial
posi ion o he Council o he EU.
O solya Hed ig Ka dos98 Concep ual Equi alence in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
would g ea ly bene i ansla o s by p o iding a clea e unde s anding o equi -
alence ela ionships and helping hem o make in o med choices when selec ing
a ge language e ms.
KEYWORDS: EU e minology, ansla ion-o ien ed e minology, mul ilingual e minology,
concep -o ien a ion, concep ual equi alence, deg ee o equi alence, equi alence ield.
ANOTACIJA
S aipsnyje nag inėjama o ien a imosi į są okas eikšmė į e imą o ien uo am
daugiakalbiam e minologijos da bui Eu opos Sąjungos kon eks e. ES eks ų e -
minai i są okos gali bū i suski s y i į is g upes, a siž elgian į jų uni e salumą
a speci iškumą am ik oje są okų sis emoje: 1) uni e salūs, 2) būdingi ES i
3) būdingi konk ečiai šaliai. Šie e minai ES eks uose dažnai igū uoja ka u,
o e ėjai u i su ok i jų pobūdį, kad as ų ge iausią e imo kalbos a i ikme-
nį. S aipsnyje pa eikiamos s a egijos e ėjams, di ban iems su ski ingų ipų
e minais. Taip pa ap a iami iššūkiai, kylan ys e čian uni e salius e minus,
u inčius konk ečiai šaliai būdingų aspek ų, pa odoma, kaip in o macijos apie
lygia e iškumą ūkumas i uni e salių bei konk ečiai šaliai būdingų e minų
painiojimas gali susilpnin i e minų į ašus. Nag inėjami speci inių ES e minų
e imo į nacionalinės eisės kalbą iššūkiai konk ečiai 27 als ybėse na ėse, ku-
ių eisės sis emos ski iasi. Dėl als ybių na ių eisės sis emų į ai o ės, nesan
a i inkamo e mino e imo kalboje, e ėjai u i ink is ne ikslius a dalinius
a i ikmenis. Todėl labai s a bu e minų bazėje nu ody i, kad e imo kalboje nė a
koncep ualiai lygia e čių e minų. Siekian padė i e ėjams, IATE, į są okas
o ien uo oje ES e minologijos duomenų bazėje, pa eikiama in o macija apie e -
minų kilmę i są okų, į a dy ų konk ečiais ski ingų kalbų e minais, lygia e -
iškumo laipsnį. Tačiau ši in o macija ne isada y a sis eminga. Dažnai ją galima
gau i ik nuodugniai išnag inėjus kelis duomenų laukus. S aipsnyje eigiama,
kad są okos kilmės nu odymas duomenų bazės į aše kaip ES a konk ečios šalies
i naujo nep i alomo lauko PERKĖLIMO KOMENTARAS į edimas, siekian
paaiškin i e minų lygia e iškumo laipsnį, kaip da oma ki ose daugiakalbėse e -
minų bazėse, bū ų labai naudingas e ėjams, nes jie ge iau sup as ų lygia e iš-
kumo san ykius i galė ų p iim i pag įs us sp endimus pa inkdami e imo kalbos
e minus.
ESMINIAI ŽODŽIAI: ES e minija, į e imą o ien uo a e minija, daugiakalbė e minija,
o ien a imasis į są okas, koncep ualusis lygia e iškumas, lygia e iškumo laipsnis,
lygia e iškumo laukas.
99Te minologija | 2024 | 31
1. THE PRINCIPLE OF CONCEPT-ORIENTATION
AND TERMINOLOGICAL EQUIVALENCE
Concep analysis is c ucial in mul ilingual e minology because e mi-
nology ocuses on concep s (onomasiological app oach)2 a he han on
wo ds (semasiological o lexicog aphic app oach). Indeed, a compa a i e
concep ual analysis mus i s be ca ied ou o ind an equi alen in he
a ge language (TL) whene e e minology wo k in ol es mo e han one
language, as is he case in he EU con ex . P ecisely because o he con-
cep -o ien ed na u e o e minology, e ms a e s ic ly speaking no ans-
la ed om one language o ano he . Ins ead, he equi alen TL e m is
selec ed o c ea ed based on concep ual analysis. As each cul u e concep-
ualises he wo ld om i s poin o iew, concep s a e o en no iden ical
ac oss languages. ISO 860:2007 (clause 3.5) de ines ‘equi alence’ as a “ e-
la ion be ween designa ions in di e en languages ep esen ing he same concep ”.
ISO 25964-2:2013 ecognises ha e ms a e o en no ully equi alen and
i classi ies deg ees o equi alence as exac , inexac o nea -equi alence,
pa ial and non-equi alen . I also acknowledges ha equi alence si u-
a ions usually canno be desc ibed in e ms o clea -cu ca ego ies, bu
a he in e ms o “poin s along he spec um o possibili ies ha lie be ween he
ex emes o exac equi alence and absence o equi alence” (ISO 25964-2:2013,
51). Indeed, he cases along his con inuum a e he mos di icul . In sec-
ion 5, we will look a di e en equi alence scena ios wi h e e ence o he
ca ego ies o equi alence men ioned abo e.
2. CONCEPTUAL AUTONOMY OF EU TERMINOLOGY
Regula ion No 1/1958 o he EEC Council3 es ablishes he o icial and
wo king languages o he Union and equi es he mul ilingual p oduc ion
o documen s, esul ing in ‘linguis ic e sions’ ha a e equally au hen ic.
Consequen ly, mul ilingual, ex -based, collabo a i e e minology wo k is
in eg al o ansla ion. Ye , he exis ence o an independen EU concep
sys em makes he ansla ion o ‘mul ilingual d a ing’ o EU ex s uly
2 ISO s anda d 1087:2019 de ines a ‘ e m’ as “a designa ion ha ep esen s a gene al concep by linguis ic me-
ans”. A ‘gene al concep ’ is u he de ined as a “concep ha co esponds o a po en ially unlimi ed numbe o
(pe cei able o concei able) objec s which o m a g oup by eason o sha ed p ope ies”.
3 Consolida ed e sion o he Regula ion No 1/1958 o he EEC Council de e mining he languages
o be used by he Eu opean Economic Communi y. A ailable a : h p://da a.eu opa.eu/eli/
eg/1958/1(1)/2013-07-01.
O solya Hed ig Ka dos100 Concep ual Equi alence in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
unique. The Cou o Jus ice ecognised he au onomy o EU concep s in
Case 283/81, s a ing ha “communi y law uses e minology which is peculia
o i ”, and ha “legal concep s do no necessa ily ha e he same meaning in
communi y law and in he law o he a ious Membe S a es”. The Join p ac-
ical guide o he Eu opean Pa liamen , he Council and he Commission o
pe sons in ol ed in he d a ing o Eu opean Union legisla ion (JPG) unde lines
his au onomy in he d a ing o EU legisla ion, ad ising ha “concep s o
e minology speci ic o any one na ional legal sys em a e o be used wi h ca e”
(sec ion 5) and ha “ e ms which a e oo closely linked o a pa icula na ional
legal sys em should be a oided” (sec ion 5.3.2). The aim is o a oid concep-
ual di e ences by choosing anspa en e ms no linked o a speci ic legal
sys em. This cul u al neu alisa ion (Biel, Doczekalska 2020: 187) can be
challenging, as mos e ms o igina e om he legal sys ems o EU Mem-
be S a es (Fische 2010b: 26; S e aniak 2013: 64). On he o he hand,
new EU concep s can in luence na ional legal language, demons a ing
he in e ac ion be ween EU and na ional legal languages. Many au ho s
(Klaudy 2007: 260; Rádai-Ko ács 2009: 88; Fische 2010a: 160; Schä ne ,
Adab 2001; Somssich e alii 2010: 66; Be gomi 2023) emphasise he hyb id
na u e o EU law, blending uni e sal, EU-speci ic, and coun y-speci ic
concep s and e ms. Based on Fische (2010a: 165), igu e 1 illus a es ha
o icial languages desc ibe he EU and Membe S a es’ concep sys ems.
In a-lingual compa a i e e minology wo k is he e o e key o limi in e -
e ence be ween na ional and EU concep s. This is especially impo an o
languages ha a e o icial in mul iple Membe S a es.
Figu e 1. The coexis ence o se e al concep sys ems in selec ed languages, based on Fische (2010a: 165)
101Te minologija | 2024 | 31
Gi en he au onomy o EU concep s, any e m may become EU-speci -
ic when de ined in an EU legisla i e ac . Fo example, he e m ‘p ima y
ene gy consump ion’ is de ined in Di ec i e 2012/27/EU on ene gy e -
iciency as “g oss consump ion o p ima y ene gy o he pu pose o p o id-
ing seconda y ene gy o consume s”, making i an EU-speci ic concep wi h
an EU o igin in IATE (en y 3549696). Meanwhile, a b oade uni e sal
e m ha includes ene gy used o non-ene gy pu poses is ‘p ima y ene gy
consump ion’ (IATE 48366). Likewise, he e m ‘ on ie wo ke ’ has wo
en ies in IATE: he uni e sal e m ‘ on ie wo ke ’ (IATE 3550291), i.e.
“a pe son who wo ks in one S a e bu esides in a neighbou ing S a e, o which
he o she e u ns on a egula basis” and ‘ on ie wo ke ’ (IATE 865809), as
EU-speci ic e m, de ined in Regula ion (EC) No 883/2004 as “any pe son
pu suing an ac i i y as an employed o sel -employed pe son in a Membe S a e
and who esides in ano he Membe S a e o which he o she e u ns as a ule
daily o a leas once a week”.
In many cases, he e is no only a concep ual bu also a linguis ic di -
e ence be ween he co esponding e ms (see he Spanish e m ‘ aba-
jado ans on e izo’ in en y 3550291 s. ‘ abajado on e izo’ in en y
865809). I is he e o e he job o he ansla o o co ec ly iden i y he
ele an e minology en y, which equi es an unde s anding o he con-
cep ual amewo k and he o igin o he e m.
2.1. The Co-occu ence o Te ms Belonging o Di e en Concep Sys ems
Coun y-speci ic epo s and ecommenda ions a e ypical examples o hy-
b id EU ex s in which uni e sal (‘employmen a e’, ‘unemploymen ’, ‘la-
bou ma ke ’, e c.), EU-speci ic (‘Social Sco eboa d’, ‘Eu opean Pilla o So-
cial Righ s’) and coun y-speci ic e ms (‘Public Wo ks Scheme’) co-occu :
“Hunga y pe o ms ela i ely well on some indica o s o he Social Sco eboa d sup-
po ing he Eu opean Pilla o Social Righ s, bu signi ican challenges emain.
The employmen a e is sligh ly abo e he EU a e age and unemploymen well be-
low. Inequali y is lowe han in many o he Membe S a es, al hough i is inc easing.
Gaps in employmen and pay be ween gende s and skills g oups emain wide com-
pa ed wi h he es o he EU. Labou ma ke ou comes o women and ulne able
g oups, including Roma and people wi h disabili ies, a e weak. The Public Wo ks
Scheme has dec eased ma kedly, bu is s ill o e sized and no e ec i e in leading
pa icipan s o jobs in he p ima y labou ma ke .”
Sou ce: COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT: Coun y Repo Hun-
ga y 2020, SWD/2020/516 inal.

O solya Hed ig Ka dos102 Concep ual Equi alence in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
We ca ego ise hese e ms acco ding o hei concep ual speci ici y o
uni e sali y as ollows:4
a) Uni e sal e ms a e domain-speci ic bu no bound o any commu-
ni y o o ganisa ion (Fische 2010a: 67). Examples include e ms
co e ing b oad local eali ies, such as ‘ eache ’, ‘ ibunal’ o ‘local
au ho i y’. Some de i e om in e na ional law, such as he ‘uni e -
sali y p inciple’, while o he s, such as he concep o ‘sus ainable
de elopmen ’ lack in e na ionally accep ed de ini ions (Somssich e
alii 2010: 112).
b) Conce ning EU-speci ic concep s, he e a e wo app oaches (Rá-
dai-Ko ács 2009: 85–90; Fische 2010a: 155–160; Fische 2010b:
28). In he na owe sense, only e ms ha o igina e in he basic
legal and ins i u ional amewo k o he Eu opean Union can be
conside ed EU e ms. The b oade app oach includes all e ms ha
appea in EU ex s. A balanced app oach (Biel, Doczekalska 2020:
185–189) conside s ‘EU sup ana ional e ms’ a special ca ego y o
legal e minology wi h cha ac e is ics such as au onomy, mul ilin-
gualism and con inui y. They include e ms c ea ed by he EU, such
as he ‘pandemic eme gency pu chase p og amme’ (IATE 3589188)
and exis ing uni e sal e ms ede ined by he EU o i s pu pos-
es, such as ‘ emo al’ (IATE 778629) as de ined in Di ec i e No
2008/115/EC s. ‘ emo al’ as a uni e sal e m (IATE 3584070).
EU-speci ic e ms in IATE a e iden i ied by he ‘Eu opean Union’
domain and/o o igin and include legal and adminis a i e e ms,
and e ms belonging o di e en policy a eas unde EU compe-
ence.
c) Coun y-speci ic e ms o igina e om speci ic coun ies and a e
linked o hei social s uc u es, cul u e, o adi ions. These e ms
do no ha e an equi alen in he TL and pose he highes di icul y
o ansla o s as poin ed ou , o example, by P ie o Ramos and
Ce u i (2021: 166).
In he nex sec ions, we will see why unde s anding he na u e o he
e m (uni e sal, EU-speci ic, o coun y-speci ic) is c ucial o he ansla-
o o ind he co ec e m in he TL.
4 Fo a simila ca ego isa ion o e ms based on hei ‘discou se ea u es’, see P ie o Ramos, Ce u i (2021:
160).
103Te minologija | 2024 | 31
2.2. Compa a i e Te minology Wo k
T ansla o s use di e en s a egies, depending on whe he a e m indica es
a uni e sal, EU-speci ic o coun y-speci ic concep .
a) Fo uni e sal e ms, ansla o s need o es ablish he concep ual
equi alence be ween he SL e m and he TL e m. Fische (2010a:
173) e e s o his in e lingual compa ison as ho izon al compa a-
i e e minology wo k. Ideally, uni e sal SL e ms ha e hei exac
equi alen in he TL. Howe e , some uni e sal e ms do no ha e
an exac equi alen in he TL, bu only an inexac o pa ial equi -
alen , o no equi alen a all. In his case, ansla o s can ei he : i.
use an inexac o pa ial equi alen (a ‘ unc ional’ equi alen ), i.e.
a TL e m ha desc ibes a TL concep wi h he same unc ion as
he SL concep , o ii. hey can use a ‘ ansla ion equi alen , i.e. a
TL e m c ea ed o desc ibe he SL concep (Fische 2010a: 86–88).
The choice be ween unc ional and ansla ion equi alen s in e -
minology depends on he deg ee o simila i y be ween he SL and
TL concep s and he con ex . A unc ional equi alen is selec ed,
i.e. a domes ica ion s a egy is employed, when he e’s signi ican
o e lap, while a ansla ion equi alen , i.e. a o eignisa ion s a egy,
is p e e ed when he di e ence is signi ican . The con ex may also
in luence he choice, wi h a domes ica ion s a egy some imes be-
ing p e e ed o make he e m mo e amilia .
b) Fo EU-speci ic e ms, due o he au onomy o he EU concep
sys em, no only in e -lingual equi alence bu also in a-lingual
equi alence plays a ole. T ansla o s check he equi alence be ween
he EU-speci ic concep and possible exis ing TL concep s. This
in a-lingual compa a i e p ocess is e e ed o by Fische (2010a:
177) as e ical compa a i e e minology wo k. Due o he au ono-
my o he EU concep sys em, ansla ion equi alen s a e egula -
ly chosen o e unc ional equi alen s (also e e ed o as ‘na ional
e ms’ in S e aniak 2013: 63), as he use o na ional e ms could
dis o he message o he EU ex and i would no be clea ha he
e m co e s an EU concep . This necessi y implies ha EU ex s
o en ha e an un amilia and non-na i e cha ac e , as many au ho s
ha e poin ed ou (e.g. in Koskinen 2000: 90).
c) Te ms ha a e speci ic o one coun y o o ganisa ion do no
ha e an exac equi alen in o he languages unless he coun y o
O solya Hed ig Ka dos104 Concep ual Equi alence in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
o ganisa ion in ques ion has se e al o icial languages. Again, ans-
la o s can ei he i. adop a domes ica ion s a egy by choosing a
unc ional equi alen , o ii. op o o eignisa ion and c ea e a ans-
la ion equi alen .
The possible deg ees o equi alence o each ype o e m desc ibed
abo e, and he co esponding s a egies ha can be used o ansla e e ms
in o he TL, a e summa ised in he able below:
Table 1. Types o SL e ms wi h deg ee o equi alence and possible s a egies o ind/c ea e hei TL equi alen
TYPE OF
SL TERM
TERMS INDICATING
UNIVERSAL CONCEPTS
TERMS IN-
DICATING
EU-SPECIFIC
CONCEPTS
TERMS INDI-
CATING COUN-
TRY-SPECIFIC
CONCEPTS
Deg ee o
equi a-
lence
exac
equi a-
lence
nea /pa ial/no
equi alence
exac equi a-
lence
nea /pa ial/no
equi alence
T ansla-
ion s a -
egies o
TL e ms
use ex-
is ing TL
e m
c ea e
ans-
la ion
equi a-
len
use unc-
ional
equi a-
len
c ea e
ans-
la ion
equi a-
len
use
unc-
ional
equi a-
len
c ea e
ans-
la ion
equi a-
len
use
unc-
ional
equi a-
len
3. CONCEPT-ORIENTATION IN IATE
The EU’s e minology da abase, IATE (In e ac i e Te minology o Eu-
ope: www.ia e.eu opa.eu), is concep -o ien ed like mos o he s. Wi h
mo e han 650,000 en ies and almos 7 million e ms in 24 EU languag-
es and some o he s, i is one o he la ges mul ilingual da abases in he
wo ld. I has been in use o he managemen o EU-speci ic e minology
since 2004. As IATE is highly mul ilingual, all e ms in an en y mus be
ela ed o he same concep . This is ensu ed, in e alia, by he s uc u e o
an en y and he key da a ields ha i con ains, as we will see below.
3.1. Language-Independen Le el (LIL)
This le el con ains da a o he en i e en y, including adminis a i e me a-
da a and concep - ela ed in o ma ion such as domain, o igin, and c oss- e -
e ences. IATE’s domains a e aligned wi h Eu oVoc, he EU’s mul ilingual
hesau us. The o igin ield indica es a concep ’s geog aphical o ins i u-
ional (e.g. EU o UN) o igin. c oss- e e ences link ela ed en ies.
105Te minologija | 2024 | 31
Figu e 2. Language-independen le el o IATE en y 853538
Ideally, de ini ions should be language-independen wi h equi alen s
in each language sec ion. Howe e , due o he absence o a non-language
sys em o de ining concep s, each language sec ion de ines he concep
independen ly. This leads o a spli o concep ual in o ma ion be ween
language-independen and language-speci ic le els, causing po en ial dis-
c epancies in de ini ions ac oss languages (Ka dos, Rádai-Ko ács 2014:
168).
3.2. Language Le el (LL)
This le el e e s o he concep and is w i en in a speci ic language and ap-
plies o all e ms in ha language. De ini ions in di e en languages appea
he e. IATE uses an ancho language as a e e ence o all o he languages
o ensu e ha de ini ions e e o he same concep . This key p inciple
ensu es ha “each en y co esponds o a single concep , which applies ‘ho i-
zon ally’ ac oss all languages and ‘ e ically’ o all he e ms in each language”
(IATE Handbook, 81). The ancho language, ypically English o F ench,
is usually he sou ce language o he ex in which he e m i s appea s.
Howe e , o coun y-speci ic concep s he ancho language should be he
o icial language o he coun y o ins i u ions conce ned and he ele an
coun y/ins i u ion should be indica ed in he o igin ield. Addi ional in-
o ma ion ela ed o he concep is p o ided in he no es ield. A missing
ancho language o di e en concep s de ined by di e en languages can
make an en y po en ially co up . The e o e all language sec ions mus
e e o he same concep as de ined by he ancho language.
O solya Hed ig Ka dos112 Concep ual Equi alence in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
4.3. Coun y-Speci ic Te ms
As explained in sec ion 3.1 abo e, he main ool o iden i ying coun-
y-speci ic (o ins i u ion-speci ic) e ms in IATE is he o igin ield, which
is easonably placed a he language-independen le el (LIL) o he en ies.
The sys ema ic comple ion o his ield, and i s e i ica ion by ansla o s, is
c ucial o he co ec selec ion o e ms. Ano he impo an ea u e is ha
in he case o coun y-speci ic e ms, he ancho language is always he/an
o icial language o he coun y/o ganisa ion o which he e m is speci ic.
Exac equi alence is in p inciple impossible in he case o coun y-spe-
ci ic e ms, which exis in only ce ain coun ies and he e o e ha e no
exac equi alen s in o he languages. They may be exp essed by inexac
o pa ial ( unc ional) equi alen s o , in he absence o equi alence, by
ansla ion equi alen s. As shown abo e, i is no uncommon o EU legal
ex s o e e o coun y-speci ic concep s. I is he e o e o he u mos im-
po ance o dis inguish hese concep s om o he uni e sal o EU-speci ic
concep s, also a he e m le el. T ansla o s a e he e o e encou aged o use
ansla ion equi alen s.
Among EU ex s, coun y-speci ic e ms a e pe haps mos common in
he case law o he Cou o Jus ice. Fo example, he e m ‘Co e di Cas-
sazione’ (IATE 3585131) is speci ic o I aly, so he ancho language is I al-
ian. The coun y-speci ic na u e o he e m is also made clea by he o i-
gin ield in he LIL, and he de ini ion and he no es explain i s ole in he
I alian legal sys em. The English e m is a ansla ion equi alen , which is
made clea by he TL no e: “O igin o he e e ence: In e nal documen o he
English Language Uni , Di ec o a e-Gene al o Mul ilingualism, Cou o Jus-
ice o he Eu opean Union, 2019 (Fo mula ion IT > EN)”. This in o ma ion
on he “o igin o he e m” is used in IATE en ies o he Cou o Jus ice,
when he concep does no exis in he TL.8 Gi en he di e si y o he legal
sys ems o he 27 Membe S a es, he lack o concep ual equi alence is a
daily challenge o he Cou ’s ansla o s. The sys ema ic indica ion o he
absence o concep ually equi alen e ms in he TL is aluable in o ma ion
o ansla o s. Howe e , as we ha e seen, he en ies o o he ins i u ions
may be p epa ed wi h a di e en app oach and may show unc ional and
ansla ion equi alen s as exac equi alen s o he ancho language e m.
8 As s a ed by he Cou o Jus ice’s lea le on legal e minology in IATE (Compa a i e mul ilingual legal
ocabula y. A s uc u ed collec ion o e minological da a, 2020).

113Te minologija | 2024 | 31
Fo example, he e m ‘Ams ge ich ’ (IATE 889426), he cou o i s
ins ance o o dina y ju isdic ion in Ge many, is ende ed in F ench wi h
a unc ional equi alen belonging o he Swiss ju isdic ion: ‘T ibunal can-
onal (“Am sge ich ”)’ and a no e in he LL cla i ies ha he concep is
speci ic o he Ge man con ex , while in English a ansla ion equi alen
is p oposed: ‘Local Cou ’, e en hough he English de ini ion does no
men ion ha his concep is speci ic o Ge many.
5. HOW THE TERMINOLOGY DATABASE CAN HELP
TRANSLATORS FIND THEIR WAY AROUND
As we ha e seen, he i s s ep in choosing he igh e m is o iden i y how
sys emic he e m is. This equi es de e mining whe he he e m is uni-
e sal, EU o coun y-speci ic. The app op ia e IATE en y can hen be
selec ed. I has been ound ha he lack o exac equi alence is no only a
p oblem o coun y/ins i u ion-speci ic e ms bu also o uni e sal e ms
ha may ha e coun y-speci ic dimensions. On he o he hand, in he
absence o exac equi alence, he e appea s o be no sys ema ic indica ion
o whe he a gi en e m is a ansla ion o a unc ional equi alen (excep
he Cou o Jus ice’s IATE en ies). To add ess his, e minologis s o en
inse no es a he language o e m le el o he en y. In o he cases, i is
only h ough ca e ul s udy o he e e ences o concep ual analysis ha we
can de e mine he le el o equi alence and whe he he p oposed e m is
a ansla ion o a unc ional equi alen . Some imes e m e alua ion labels
such as ‘p e e ed’, ‘accep ed’ o ‘dep eca ed’ a e used, al hough in p inci-
ple his ield should p o ide an indica ion o he app op ia eness o a e m
in he EU con ex and no o equi alence ela ionships.
To add ess he challenges and o p omo e he sys ema ic indica ion o
equi alence ela ionships, especially in he absence o an exac equi alen ,
we p opose o:
a) Sys ema ically indica e he EU- o coun y-speci ic na u e o a e m
by including he ele an coun y/o ganisa ion in he o igin ield
o coun y-speci ic e ms. An emp y o igin ield would indica e
ha he concep is no linked o any coun y o o ganisa ion and
can he e o e be conside ed uni e sal. Language le el no es could
also be used o explain speci ici ies o he concep in ques ion.
b) In oduce a new op ional da a ield: he ans e commen ield,
i.e. a “no e in a e minological da a collec ion p o iding in o ma ion on
O solya Hed ig Ka dos114 Concep ual Equi alence in Mul ilingual EU Te minology –
Challenges and Possible Solu ions
he deg ee o equi alence, di ec ionali y o o he special ea u es a ec ing
equi alence be ween a designa ion in one language and ano he designa ion
in a second language” (ISO 12616-1:2021). This op ional ield would
indica e whe he a e m is unc ional o ansla ion equi alen .
The use o an equi alence ield is common in mul ilingual e minol-
ogy da abases. WIPO Pea l, he da abase o he Wo ld In ellec ual P op-
e y O ganisa ion, includes a ans e commen ield ha indica es he
deg ee o equi alence be ween e ms in di e en languages (Valen ini
e al. 2016: 197; WIPO Pea l Use Guide). Likewise, Te mium Plus, he
Go e nmen o Canada’s e minology da abase, uses speci ic labels (i.e.
‘seman ic pa ame e s’, such as ‘gene ic’ and ‘speci ic’) o indica e ha he
en y e m has a b oade /na owe meaning han ha o i s equi alen
in ano he language. Simila ly, IUSTe m, he da abase o he Hunga ian
O ice o T ansla ion and A es a ion includes an equi alence ield ha
ca ego ises e ms as pe ec , unc ional, o ansla ion equi alen s (Tamás
e alii 2020: 126).
6. CONCLUSION
As we ha e seen, in many cases he di icul y o he ansla o is ha
he sou ce ex con ains a combina ion o uni e sal concep s, cul u e-spe-
ci ic concep s (belonging o a na ional cul u e o legal sys em) and ho-
mogenised concep s (belonging o he EU concep sys em). The e o e,
ansla o s mus be able o iden i y he uni e sal, EU-o coun y-speci ic
na u e o a concep indica ed by a gi en e m o be able o place i in he
app op ia e concep sys em. Fu he mo e, IATE, he main e minology
managemen ool o EU ins i u ions does no sys ema ically indica e he
uni e sal, EU- o coun y-speci ic na u e o a e m, no does i p esen
equi alence ela ionships in a o malised way. A p esen , he o igin ield,
language and e m le el no es, e alua ion labels, e m, and con ex e -
e ences help ansla o s o make in o med e minological decisions. The
dedica ed o igin ield is he mos app op ia e ield o p o ide in o ma-
ion on he sys em-bound na u e o e ms, and he e o e i s sys ema ic
comple ion is essen ial o ins i u ion/coun y-speci ic e ms. Mo eo e ,
o cla i y he equi alence condi ions, we p opose he inclusion o a new
op ional ans e commen da a ield, he comple ion o which would be
ecommended especially in he case o e ms ha do no ha e exac equi -
alen s. I could speci y whe he he indica ed e m is pe ec , unc ional o
115Te minologija | 2024 | 31
ansla ion equi alen . P o iding his kind o in o ma ion on concep ual
equi alence ela ionships may help ansla o s in making in o med e mi-
nological decisions acco ding o he con ex .
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KONCEPTUALUSIS LYGIAVERTIŠKUMAS DAUGIAKALBĖJE ES TERMINIJOJE:
IŠŠŪKIAI IR GALIMI SPRENDIMAI
San auka
Są okų analizė y a pag indinė e minijos da bo dalis, ypač daugiakalbiuose i į e i-
mą o ien uo uose kon eks uose. Šiame s aipsnyje nag inėjama o ien a imosi į są okas
eikšmė į e imą o ien uo ame e minologijos da be Eu opos Sąjungoje. Eu opos
Teisingumo Teismo p ipažin a ES eisės sis emos au onomija eiškia, kad eisės e -
minai ES eisėje i nacionalinėje eisėje gali u ė i ski ingas eikšmes. Te minų ipų
į ai o ė ES eks uose eikalauja, kad e ėjai su ok ų uni e salų, speci inį ES a kon-
k ečiai šaliai e minų pobūdį, kad pa ink ų ge iausią konk ečios kalbos a i ikmenį.
S aipsnyje ap ašomos s a egijos, ku ias e ėjai gali naudo i di bdami su į ai ių ipų
e minais (uni e saliais, būdingais ES a būdingais konk ečiai šaliai). Nag inėjami
sunkumai e čian uni e salius e minus, u inčius konk ečiai šaliai būdingų aspek ų.
S aipsnyje pa odoma, kaip in o macijos apie lygia e iškumą ūkumas i uni e salių
bei konk ečiai šaliai būdingų e minų painiojimas gali susilpnin i e minų į ašus. Taip
pa akcen uojami speci inių ES e minų pe kėlimo į nacionalinės eisės kalbą iššūkiai.
Pab ėžiama, kad kalban apie konk ečiai šaliai būdingus e minus, nesan a i inkamo
e mino e imo kalboje, gali ek i a o i ne ikslius a dalinius a i ikmenis. ES e -
minologijos duomenų bazėje IATE pa eikiama (no s ne isada sis emingai) am ik a
in o macija apie e minų kilmę i lygia e iškumo san ykius. Dažnai ją galima gau i
ik nuodugniai išnag inėjus kelis duomenų laukus. Kad bū ų išsp ęs os šios p oblemos,
s aipsnyje ekomenduojama sis emingai nu ody i są okos kilmę i į es i naują nep i-
alomą duomenų lauką PERKĖLIMO KOMENTARAS, ku iame bū ų paaiškin i kon-
cep ualiojo lygia e iškumo san ykiai. Teigiama, kad šis nep i alomas duomenų laukas
galė ų bū i naudingas e ėjams, nes padė ų jiems su ok i lygia e iškumo san ykius i
p iim i pag įs us sp endimus pa enkan e imo kalbos e minus.
Gau a 2024-01-30
O solya Hed ig Ka dos
Rue de la Loi/We s aa 175. B-1048 B uxelles/B ussel. Belgique/België
E-mail ka doso [email protected]