Translation into other languages is explanatory, not authoritative
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Translation into Other Languages Is Explanatory, Not Authoritative
Category: Governance Principles Page status: Working
Statement
Translation into other languages is explanatory, not authoritative.
Purpose
To clarify that rendering law in another language helps understanding but does not determine meaning.
Explanation
Languages organize ideas differently. When law is translated, words may approximate but cannot fully reproduce the relationships carried in the original.
Explanation supports learning. Authority remains with the original legal order.
Function
This principle allows communication across communities and systems while preventing substitution of meaning.
What This Prevents
- translated wording becoming the new rule
- administrative reliance on simplified terms
- displacement of original concepts
- authority migrating away from knowledge holders
Relationship to Accessibility
Translation improves access and dialogue. Access does not create interpretive power.
Result
Understanding may expand while authority remains grounded.