AN ANALYSIS OF LINGUISTIC ERRORS IN ARABIC SUBTITLING: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF PROFESSIONAL AND NON-PROFESSIONAL PLATFORMS

Abstract

ABSTRACT The study investigates linguistic errors in Arabic subtitles produced across professional and non-professional subtitling platforms, using a mixed-methods approach that combines quantitative error-frequency analysis with qualitative evaluation of the impact of errors on meaning and accessibility. The study is theoretically grounded in two theories, the first is Error Analysis theory, which was proposed by Corder (1967), and it helps provide a systematic framework for identifying and classifying linguistic inaccuracies, and the second theory is Pedersen’s FAR model for assessing the subtitle quality, which helps evaluate the errors depending on their functional effect on meaning transfer, accessibility, and readability. The corpus of the research consists of Arabic subtitles collected from both professional and fan-produced subtitling platforms, allowing direct comparison between platforms with strict guidelines and quality control practices for subtitling and those that rely on user-generated practices. Linguistic errors were manually identified and categorized into orthographic-typographical, morphological, structural, lexical, and semantic errors, and after their classification, there was an analysis of the frequency of these errors and the severity and effect of such inaccuracies. The quantitative results show that professional subtitles generally contain fewer errors, whereas non-professional subtitles exhibit more inaccuracies, particularly lexical and semantic errors. Qualitative analysis indicates that the platform with more meaning-affecting errors is the non-professional one, which often reduces subtitle clarity, readability, and viewer understanding, whereas the number of semantic errors that distort meaning is limited in professional platforms despite surface-level inaccuracies. The findings of the research highlight the importance of systematic quality control in subtitling production and the importance of strengthening Arabic linguistic knowledge, especially for Arabic native speakers. They also highlight the importance of having standardized subtitling guidelines, such as editing and proofreading, across both professional and non-professional subtitling platforms, as this is essential not only for accurate meaning transfer and viewer accessibility but also for preserving the integrity and quality of Modern Standard Arabic in contemporary digital media. Key Words: Audiovisual translation, Arabic subtitles, Error Analysis, FAR model, linguistic errors, subtitle quality, professional subtitling, non-professional subtitling.

Date of Award	2026
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	HBKU College of Humanities and Social Science