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    Exploring the isiZulu translation process of medical content at University of kwaZulu Natal Medical School.
    (2024) Dlamini, Sinethemba.; Gokool, Roshni.; Dlamini, Phindile.
    Communication is essential for healthcare practitioners who intend to understand their patients. KwaZulu-Natal has the largest isiZulu-speaking population in South Africa. In some parts of KwaZulu-Natal, especially in the rural areas, many patients are monolingual. Therefore, it is vital that isiZulu and/or other African indigenous languages be integrated into health sciences curricula across the country. At UKZN (University of KwaZulu-Natal), isiZulu has made significant inroads into the MBChB (i.e. Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) curriculum. However, more research and further integration of isiZulu is urgently needed. This study explores the isiZulu translation process of medical content used to develop a web-based learning tool at the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine to assist non-isiZulu-speaking students in enhancing isiZulu for clinical communication. Translation is a way of building a language communication relationship between patients who are native speakers of isiZulu language and non-isiZulu-speaking medical students. This study intends to generate new knowledge on the isiZulu translation process of medical content by addressing the problem of translating English medical content into the isiZulu language. Specifically, it relates to medical terminology that is non-existent in isiZulu. The main objectives of this study are to review language policies on the use of isiZulu in a medical context, to explore the isiZulu translation process of medical content to improve clinical communication in a clinical setting and to understand the influence of social aspects during the translation process. The study is based on two theoretical frameworks: Nord’s Functionalist theories (1992) and Vinay and Darbelnet’s translation approach (1995). This is a textual study; thus, it uses textual analysis of information from the ongoing UKZN medical school project of medical translated content. This study reflects on the translator's challenges and process when translating medical content from English into isiZulu. Moreover, it reflects on how the translator employs theories to guide the translation process. The study suggests that the isiZulu translation process of medical content for a communicative context is influenced by the social factors attached to language use and the differences in the grammatical nature of writing the languages involved in translation. The steps undertaken in the study highlight that the value of the isiZulu language to AmaZulu impacts the value of isiZulu and how isiZulu is used for communication purposes. The isiZulu language semantically dictates that certain terms should be avoided because of the derogatory status they carry on their social use, which affects the choice of terms during translation.
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    Matters of the mind: analysing the depictions of mental health issues in three contemporary African novels.
    (2024) Oumar, Tasmiyah.; Malaba, Mbongeni Zikhethele.
    This dissertation is a literary analysis, and the selected texts have been examined through the theoretical lenses of postcolonialism, spiritual realism, and liminality. Although issues such as identity, race, and culture are examined in postcolonial literature, not many texts focus on the mental health effects of these issues from an African viewpoint. To better understand the postcolonial experience in terms of mental health, it is important to not use a Western model as a universal measure for mental disorders (Nwoye, 2015). This is because different worldviews influence how mental health is viewed. For example, in the West, mental health issues are largely examined through a “bio-psycho-social” approach (Nwoye, 2015:306), with a distinct focus on the self, whereas the African approach also includes a spiritual element (Laher, 2014; Nwoye, 2015). This spiritual element can be seen in Akwaeke Emezi’s debut novel, Freshwater, which incorporates Igbo cosmology, thus adding a supernatural element to the novel. Irenosen Okojie’s debut novel, Butterfly Fish, also encompasses the supernatural, and this brings up the concept of spiritual realism. The mental health struggles of the characters in these novels are interpreted from both a literal African viewpoint as well as a metaphorical lens which sees the spiritual elements in the novels as representations of the mental health issues faced by the characters. Although Yaa Gyasi’s Transcendent Kingdom does not comprise a mystical element, it does examine mental health struggles that stem from postcolonial issues like identity and racism. All three novels therefore offer an explanation of mental health that is relevant not only to Africans living in the West but also to other Neocolonial populations, including those in Africa.