Lexical Coherence

This study investigates whether complementary oppositions (COs) in the Glorious Qur’ān have been accurately translated from Arabic into English. The research is based on Halliday and Hasan's (1976) theory of lexical cohesion, focusing on lexical cohesive devices in three selected translations of COs in Surah Al-An'aam. COs are defined as paired semantic opposites, where the negation of one reinforces the meaning of the other. This qualitative study employs an analytical-documentary method to evaluate the translations. Translators often face challenges, particularly with collocations, as they strive to preserve both meaning and form. The selected theoretical framework by Halliday and Hasan (1976) examines lexical cohesive devices such as repetition, collocations, and sense relations. The primary objective is to assess the lexical coherence of the selected translations and analyze the lexical relationships between English CO equivalents, which function as key cohesive devices. The study uses Arabic CO examples from Seyyedi and Baghojary (2020) alongside their English translations by Arberry (1955), Pickthall (1930), and Qaraa'i (2005), sourced from the online Tanzil Qur’ān Navigator. Findings indicate that Arberry’s translation demonstrates the highest lexical coherence due to its alignment with the Qur’ānic style and frequent use of collocations and contrasting repetition.