Ut interpres: Linguistic convergence between orators and interpreters in the European Parliament

This paper combines a theoretical and an empirical approach to the analysis of converging linguistic features in speeches held by Members of the European Parliament and interpretations in the same Parliament. The theoretical approach seeks to determine which group has more seniority and therefore more expertise in the linguistic genre of the Parliament. The empirical analysis concentrates on key 3- and 4-grams used in speeches and interpretations to determine which group’s usage is more expert and can be considered the dominant group shaping the linguistic features of the genre. The two-pronged approach reveals that interpreters are the expert group and that for the items considered the case can be made that Members adopt interpreters’ lexical patterns. The study thus provides complementary evidence for Pöchhacker’s (2005) idea that in an interpreter-mediated encounter all interactants influence each other’s communicative behaviour