Malay-English Translation Competencies Among Future Global Da’ies

Demands for a greater number of preachers or Da’ies who are capable in delivering the Islamic teachings clearly and confidently are anticipated to increase. Besides knowledge on Islam and its teachings that they possess, these Da’ies are expected to have a good command of English language to convey the Islamic teachings to a wider global audience. Malaysia has many capable Da’ies who can disseminate Islam in the Malay language but many lack the ability to communicate well in English. Ignoring this problem will produce incompetent Da’ies who may miss critical issues, resulting in lost knowledge, and inadept understanding of Islam. Thus, it is vital for these Da’ies to have the ability to translate Islamic terms, concepts and worldview correctly, to ensure better coverage of da’wah. The objective of this paper is to investigate students’ English proficiency by looking at their ability to translate. This paper examines the translation competence of 71 students from various faculties from a Malaysian Islamic-based public university. A test was used as the research instrument which was later examined via document analysis approach. Students were asked to translate basic Islamic religious terms and the translated work were marked based on a set of acceptable answers determined by the researchers. Findings indicate that their translation competencies are influenced by three elements: language, textual/subject and cultural competences. However, the participants have poor translation qualities indicating lack of translation abilities. Future recommendations regarding translation competencies, and Islamic religious terms translation issues are discussed.