User-based parameters for the training of subtitlers in South Africa

This article attempts to define a set of parameters for the training of subtitlers in South Africa to meet the diverse needs of the different potential user groups. In order to arrive at a description of these parameters, we first define the different groups in terms of their distinct needs. The main user groups that are identified in the article are users with hearing impairment (including users with pre-lingual deafness, users with post-lingual deafness and hard-of-hearing viewers), illiterate users, and literate non-L1 users. The needs description of these groups is then used to formulate user-based parameters for the training of subtitlers in South Africa. These parameters centre on reading speed, vocabulary, access to non-linguistic audio elements and knowledge of the source language. The article further shows that, although there are overlaps in terms of the needs of different user groups, the groups are sufficiently unique to make any combination of groups for the purpose of subtitles highly problematic. Nevertheless, the common ground that does exist should be exploited to ensure that subtitling in South Africa will be done optimally to ensure maximum benefit to target groups in the way that specific language-related problems are addressed. Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies 2004, 22(3&4): 111–12