Translation Equivalence of Tourism Website Content: A Comparison Between Google Translate and DeepL Translate
Keywords:
DeepL Translate, Google Translate, Translation Equivalence, Tourism Website
Abstract
Translation serves as a bridge to overcome language barriers. This research compares the types of equivalence produced by Google Translate (GT) and DeepL Translate (DT) using Koller’s equivalence framework. Employing a qualitative approach, the study follows data condensation, data presentation, and conclusion verification procedures. The translations generated by GT and DT were analyzed in the context of Kampung Kopi Camp, a tourism website being developed as a bilingual platform. The findings reveal two key classifications: (1) the same type of equivalence, where both GT and DT produce denotative, pragmatic, and text-normative equivalence for certain data, and (2) different types of equivalence, where the two tools generate varying results for the same data. Additionally, GT demonstrates a broader application of equivalence types, with a higher occurrence of pragmatic and connotative equivalence, making its translations more engaging. In contrast, DT adopts a more formal approach. These differences suggest that GT may be more effective in capturing contextual and expressive nuances, while DT maintains a stricter adherence to formal structures. By identifying the characteristics of these translation tools, this study provides insights into their effectiveness in producing equivalent translations, particularly in the tourism field. Understanding these variations can guide users in selecting the most suitable machine translation tool based on their specific needs, whether for formal communication or more engaging, context-driven translation. Ultimately, this research highlights the strengths and limitations of GT and DT, contributing to a broader understanding of machine translation in cross-linguistic communication.
References
Alhaj, A. A. M. (2024). The Impact of Machine Translation on the Development of Tourism Translation from the Perspectives of Translators and Experts in Saudi Arabia. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 14(4), 1274–1283. https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1404.35
AlSaeed, A. A. M., & Abdulwahab, M. M. (2023). Citation: AlSaeed AAM and Abdulwahab MM (2023) Functional Equivalence in Legal Translation: Legal Contracts as a Case Study. Global Journal of Politics and Law Research, 11(3), 72–150. https://doi.org/10.37745/gjplr.2013/vol11n372150
Anzani, A. R., Saputri, S. W., & Qona’atun, A. (2021). A Translation Equivalence Analysis Of Abstract Translation In Faculty Of Computer Science University Of Banten Jaya 2019. Journal of English Language Teaching and Literature.
Ardianto, A. (2021). Translating That: An Ideational Correspondence Analysis of Machine Translation. Jurnal Ilmu Sosial Dan Humaniora, 10(1), 11. https://doi.org/10.23887/jish-undiksha.v10i1.23140
Aulia, D. (2022). Assessing Google Translate Quality. Thesis.
Aw, S., Agustinova, D. E., Fitriana, K. N., Arif, N., & Wulansari, N. L. T. (2023). E-tourism: A communication strategy of Yogyakarta’s tourism potential marketing in industrial revolution 4.0 era. Informasi, 53(2), 189–196. https://doi.org/10.21831/informasi.v53i2.54019
Azer, H. S., & Aghayi, M. B. (2015). An Evaluation of Output Quality of Machine Translation (Padideh Software vs. Google Translate). Advances in Language and Literary Studies, 6(4). https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.alls.v.6n.4p.226
Basriana, E., Junining, E., & Tabiati, E. (2022). Equivalence And Translation Quality Assessment Towards News Translation: Vice Indonesia Youtube Channel. Journal of English Language and Pedagogy. 5(2), 256–269.
Budiharjo, B., Nuraeni, A., Saptaningsih, N., Murti, B. D., & Rusjayanti, A. (2022). Persuasion in Tourism Promotion Bilingual Texts: The Importance of Syntactic Forms and Choices. Leksema: Jurnal Bahasa Dan Sastra, 7(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.22515/ljbs.v7i1.4419
Budiningtyas, R., Hartono, R., Mujiyanto, J., Laut, J., Kendal, K., Kendal, K., & Tengah, J. (2020c). The Equivalence of Verbal Humor in English-Indonesian Translation of Harry Potter Novel Entitled the Goblet of Fire". The Journal of Educational Development JED, 8(2), 91–101. http://journal.unnes.ac.id/sju/index.php/jed
Fadhillah, S., & Sinaga, L. S. M. (2015). English-Indonesian Translation Equivalence of Verbs Found in Despicable Me Movie.
Fitria, T. N. (2021). A Review of Machine Translation Tools: The Translation’s Ability. Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1), 162–176.
Gusti Ayu Mahatma Agung, I., Gede Budiartha, P., & Wayan Suryani, N. (2023). Translation Performance of Google Translate and Deepl in Translating Indonesian Short Stories into English. LITERATES: Linguistics, Literature, Culure, and Arts.
Hisasmaria. (2022). Analysis of Verbs Equivalence In English-Indonesian Translation Of The Short Story The Bogey-Beast. Madani: Jurnal Politik Dan Sosial Kemasyarakatan.
Ismailia, T. (2023). Analysis of Machine Translation Performance on Translating Informative Text from English into Indonesian. EBONY: Journal of English Language Teaching, Linguistics, and Literature, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.37304/ebony.v3i2.9809
Jayantini, I. G. A. S. R., Sulatra, I. K., Darso, D., & Suwastini, N. K. A. (2021). Translation of English-Indonesian Noun Phrases: Identification of Loss, Addition and Skewing. International Journal of Humanity Studies (IJHS), 5(1), 73–86. https://doi.org/10.24071/ijhs.v5i1.3711
Jayantini, S. R. (2016). The Art of Translating: Theory and Analysis. Cakra Press.
Julian, H. P. (2023). Equivalence Relations of Cultural Jokes in Indonesian Subtitles Of Four Lions. Thesis.
Kamaluddin, M. I., Rasyid, Moch. W. K., Abqoriyyah, F. H., & Saehu, A. (2024). Accuracy Analysis of DeepL: Breakthroughs in Machine Translation Technology. Journal of English Education Forum (JEEF), 4(2), 122–126. https://doi.org/10.29303/jeef.v4i2.681
Karabayeva, I., & Kalizhanova, A. (2024). Evaluating machine translation of literature through rhetorical analysis. Journal of Translation and Language Studies, 5(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.48185/jtls.v5i1.962
Kembaren, F. R. W., Hasibuan, A. K., & Natasya, A. (2023). Technology Trends in Translation: A Comparative Analysis of Machine and Human Translation. Absorbent Mind, 3(2), 169–183. https://doi.org/10.37680/absorbent_mind.v3i2.4486
Koller, W. (1979). Einführung in die Übersetzungswissenschaft. Quelle and Meyer.
Latief, M. R. A., Khaerana, A. S. T. A., & Soraya, A. I. (2022). Translation Analysis: Syntactic, Semantic, and Pragmatic Strategies Used in Translating a Website of an Academic Institution. ELS Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities, 5(3), 524–531.
Margono. (2002). Essentials of Theory and Practice of Translation. Fakultas Sastra Universitas Udayana.
Melliana, Fitriani, N., & Pratama, Y. (2021). Translation Equivalence And Strategies In “Laut Bercerita (The Sea Speaks His Name)” Novel By Leila S. Chudori. Getsempena English Education Journal (GEEJ, 8(2), 243.
Miles, M. B., Huberman, M., & Saldana, J. (2013). Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook. Sage.
Moorkens, J., Castilho, S., Gaspari, F., & Doherty, S. (2018). Translation Quality Assessment from Principles to Practice Machine Translation: Technologies and Applications Series Editor: Andy Way. http://www.springer.com/series/15798
Nasution, D. K. (2022). Machine Translation in Website Localization: Assessing its Translation Quality. Jurnal Pendidikan, 14(2), 1879–1886. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v14i1.1308
Ningsih, R., Pulungan, A. H., & Zainuddin. (2020). The Assessment of Translation Quality in Bound Novel. Jurnal Linguistik Terapan Pascasarjana, 17(3), 268-263.
Panou, D. (2013a). Equivalence in translation theories: A critical evaluation. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 3(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.4304/tpls.3.1.1-6
Pham, A. T., Nguyen, Y. N. N., Tran, L. T., Huynh, K. D., Le, N. T. K., & Huynh, P. T. (2022). University Students’ Perceptions on the Use of Google Translate: Problems and Solutions. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 17(4), 79–94. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i04.28179
Putri, R. S., Sofyan, R., & Nasution, E. H. (2022). Translation Quality Assessment on Medan City Tourism Official Web Pages. In LingPoet: Journal of Linguistics and Literary Research (Vol. 2, Issue 3). http://talenta.usu.ac.id/lingpoet
Putri, S. A., & Dewi, H. D. (2021). The Translation of Entertainment News from English To Indonesian With Machine Translation. Journal of English Language and Culture, 11(2), 153–168. http://journal.ubm.ac.id/
Rahmawati, A. D. N. (2021). Creating Bilingual Instagram Content to Promote Nuansa Wisata Tour and Travel Jember.
Rizqi, G. (2019). Vivid: Journal of Language and Literature Translation Equivalence in English-Indonesia Text. Vivid: Journal Of Language and Literature, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.25077/vj.8.2.35-37.2019
Septarani, E. P. (2022). Translation Procedures and Equivalence in Children Bilingual Short Story. International Journal of English and Applied Linguistics (IJEAL), 2(2), 226–233. https://doi.org/10.47709/ijeal.v2i2.1576
Septarina, A. A., Rahutomo, F., & Sarosa, M. (2019). Machine translation of Indonesian: A review. Communications in Science and Technology, 4(1), 12–19. https://doi.org/10.21924/cst.4.1.2019.104
Setiawan, A. (2017). Perancangan Website Sebagai Media Promosi Brand Rolarala. 153.
Shaikhli, M. Al. (2022). Problems of Machine Translation Systems in Arabic. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 13(4), 755–762. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1304.08
Sumaia Afren. (2024). The role of digital marketing promoting tourism business: A study of use of the social media in promoting travel. World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 21(1), 272–287. https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2024.21.1.2668
Telaumbanua, Y. A., Marpaung, A., Putri, C., Gulo, D., Kardo, D., Waruwu, W., Zalukhu, E., & Zai, N. P. (2024). An Analysis of Two Translation Applications: Why is DeepL Translate more accurate than Google Translate? Journal of Artificial Intelligence and Engineering Applications, 4(1), 2808–4519.
Ummami, D. A. (2019). Translation Equivalence in English-Indonesia Text. Vivid: Journal of Language and Literature, 8(2), 35–37.
Urooj, M. S. (2023). Promoting Tourism Through Digital Marketing. The American Journal of Management and Economics Innovations, 05(10), 62–85.
Wang, J., & Ke, X. (2022). Integrating Machine Translation into EFL Writing Instruction: Process, Product and Perception. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 13(1), 125–137. https://doi.org/10.17507/JLTR.1301.15
Xu, Z. (2016). Translation Equivalence and the Reader’s Response. International Review of Social Sciences and Humanities, 10(2), 98–109. www.irssh.com
AlSaeed, A. A. M., & Abdulwahab, M. M. (2023). Citation: AlSaeed AAM and Abdulwahab MM (2023) Functional Equivalence in Legal Translation: Legal Contracts as a Case Study. Global Journal of Politics and Law Research, 11(3), 72–150. https://doi.org/10.37745/gjplr.2013/vol11n372150
Anzani, A. R., Saputri, S. W., & Qona’atun, A. (2021). A Translation Equivalence Analysis Of Abstract Translation In Faculty Of Computer Science University Of Banten Jaya 2019. Journal of English Language Teaching and Literature.
Ardianto, A. (2021). Translating That: An Ideational Correspondence Analysis of Machine Translation. Jurnal Ilmu Sosial Dan Humaniora, 10(1), 11. https://doi.org/10.23887/jish-undiksha.v10i1.23140
Aulia, D. (2022). Assessing Google Translate Quality. Thesis.
Aw, S., Agustinova, D. E., Fitriana, K. N., Arif, N., & Wulansari, N. L. T. (2023). E-tourism: A communication strategy of Yogyakarta’s tourism potential marketing in industrial revolution 4.0 era. Informasi, 53(2), 189–196. https://doi.org/10.21831/informasi.v53i2.54019
Azer, H. S., & Aghayi, M. B. (2015). An Evaluation of Output Quality of Machine Translation (Padideh Software vs. Google Translate). Advances in Language and Literary Studies, 6(4). https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.alls.v.6n.4p.226
Basriana, E., Junining, E., & Tabiati, E. (2022). Equivalence And Translation Quality Assessment Towards News Translation: Vice Indonesia Youtube Channel. Journal of English Language and Pedagogy. 5(2), 256–269.
Budiharjo, B., Nuraeni, A., Saptaningsih, N., Murti, B. D., & Rusjayanti, A. (2022). Persuasion in Tourism Promotion Bilingual Texts: The Importance of Syntactic Forms and Choices. Leksema: Jurnal Bahasa Dan Sastra, 7(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.22515/ljbs.v7i1.4419
Budiningtyas, R., Hartono, R., Mujiyanto, J., Laut, J., Kendal, K., Kendal, K., & Tengah, J. (2020c). The Equivalence of Verbal Humor in English-Indonesian Translation of Harry Potter Novel Entitled the Goblet of Fire". The Journal of Educational Development JED, 8(2), 91–101. http://journal.unnes.ac.id/sju/index.php/jed
Fadhillah, S., & Sinaga, L. S. M. (2015). English-Indonesian Translation Equivalence of Verbs Found in Despicable Me Movie.
Fitria, T. N. (2021). A Review of Machine Translation Tools: The Translation’s Ability. Journal of Language and Literature, 16(1), 162–176.
Gusti Ayu Mahatma Agung, I., Gede Budiartha, P., & Wayan Suryani, N. (2023). Translation Performance of Google Translate and Deepl in Translating Indonesian Short Stories into English. LITERATES: Linguistics, Literature, Culure, and Arts.
Hisasmaria. (2022). Analysis of Verbs Equivalence In English-Indonesian Translation Of The Short Story The Bogey-Beast. Madani: Jurnal Politik Dan Sosial Kemasyarakatan.
Ismailia, T. (2023). Analysis of Machine Translation Performance on Translating Informative Text from English into Indonesian. EBONY: Journal of English Language Teaching, Linguistics, and Literature, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.37304/ebony.v3i2.9809
Jayantini, I. G. A. S. R., Sulatra, I. K., Darso, D., & Suwastini, N. K. A. (2021). Translation of English-Indonesian Noun Phrases: Identification of Loss, Addition and Skewing. International Journal of Humanity Studies (IJHS), 5(1), 73–86. https://doi.org/10.24071/ijhs.v5i1.3711
Jayantini, S. R. (2016). The Art of Translating: Theory and Analysis. Cakra Press.
Julian, H. P. (2023). Equivalence Relations of Cultural Jokes in Indonesian Subtitles Of Four Lions. Thesis.
Kamaluddin, M. I., Rasyid, Moch. W. K., Abqoriyyah, F. H., & Saehu, A. (2024). Accuracy Analysis of DeepL: Breakthroughs in Machine Translation Technology. Journal of English Education Forum (JEEF), 4(2), 122–126. https://doi.org/10.29303/jeef.v4i2.681
Karabayeva, I., & Kalizhanova, A. (2024). Evaluating machine translation of literature through rhetorical analysis. Journal of Translation and Language Studies, 5(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.48185/jtls.v5i1.962
Kembaren, F. R. W., Hasibuan, A. K., & Natasya, A. (2023). Technology Trends in Translation: A Comparative Analysis of Machine and Human Translation. Absorbent Mind, 3(2), 169–183. https://doi.org/10.37680/absorbent_mind.v3i2.4486
Koller, W. (1979). Einführung in die Übersetzungswissenschaft. Quelle and Meyer.
Latief, M. R. A., Khaerana, A. S. T. A., & Soraya, A. I. (2022). Translation Analysis: Syntactic, Semantic, and Pragmatic Strategies Used in Translating a Website of an Academic Institution. ELS Journal on Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities, 5(3), 524–531.
Margono. (2002). Essentials of Theory and Practice of Translation. Fakultas Sastra Universitas Udayana.
Melliana, Fitriani, N., & Pratama, Y. (2021). Translation Equivalence And Strategies In “Laut Bercerita (The Sea Speaks His Name)” Novel By Leila S. Chudori. Getsempena English Education Journal (GEEJ, 8(2), 243.
Miles, M. B., Huberman, M., & Saldana, J. (2013). Qualitative Data Analysis: A Methods Sourcebook. Sage.
Moorkens, J., Castilho, S., Gaspari, F., & Doherty, S. (2018). Translation Quality Assessment from Principles to Practice Machine Translation: Technologies and Applications Series Editor: Andy Way. http://www.springer.com/series/15798
Nasution, D. K. (2022). Machine Translation in Website Localization: Assessing its Translation Quality. Jurnal Pendidikan, 14(2), 1879–1886. https://doi.org/10.35445/alishlah.v14i1.1308
Ningsih, R., Pulungan, A. H., & Zainuddin. (2020). The Assessment of Translation Quality in Bound Novel. Jurnal Linguistik Terapan Pascasarjana, 17(3), 268-263.
Panou, D. (2013a). Equivalence in translation theories: A critical evaluation. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 3(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.4304/tpls.3.1.1-6
Pham, A. T., Nguyen, Y. N. N., Tran, L. T., Huynh, K. D., Le, N. T. K., & Huynh, P. T. (2022). University Students’ Perceptions on the Use of Google Translate: Problems and Solutions. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning, 17(4), 79–94. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i04.28179
Putri, R. S., Sofyan, R., & Nasution, E. H. (2022). Translation Quality Assessment on Medan City Tourism Official Web Pages. In LingPoet: Journal of Linguistics and Literary Research (Vol. 2, Issue 3). http://talenta.usu.ac.id/lingpoet
Putri, S. A., & Dewi, H. D. (2021). The Translation of Entertainment News from English To Indonesian With Machine Translation. Journal of English Language and Culture, 11(2), 153–168. http://journal.ubm.ac.id/
Rahmawati, A. D. N. (2021). Creating Bilingual Instagram Content to Promote Nuansa Wisata Tour and Travel Jember.
Rizqi, G. (2019). Vivid: Journal of Language and Literature Translation Equivalence in English-Indonesia Text. Vivid: Journal Of Language and Literature, 8(2). https://doi.org/10.25077/vj.8.2.35-37.2019
Septarani, E. P. (2022). Translation Procedures and Equivalence in Children Bilingual Short Story. International Journal of English and Applied Linguistics (IJEAL), 2(2), 226–233. https://doi.org/10.47709/ijeal.v2i2.1576
Septarina, A. A., Rahutomo, F., & Sarosa, M. (2019). Machine translation of Indonesian: A review. Communications in Science and Technology, 4(1), 12–19. https://doi.org/10.21924/cst.4.1.2019.104
Setiawan, A. (2017). Perancangan Website Sebagai Media Promosi Brand Rolarala. 153.
Shaikhli, M. Al. (2022). Problems of Machine Translation Systems in Arabic. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 13(4), 755–762. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1304.08
Sumaia Afren. (2024). The role of digital marketing promoting tourism business: A study of use of the social media in promoting travel. World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 21(1), 272–287. https://doi.org/10.30574/wjarr.2024.21.1.2668
Telaumbanua, Y. A., Marpaung, A., Putri, C., Gulo, D., Kardo, D., Waruwu, W., Zalukhu, E., & Zai, N. P. (2024). An Analysis of Two Translation Applications: Why is DeepL Translate more accurate than Google Translate? Journal of Artificial Intelligence and Engineering Applications, 4(1), 2808–4519.
Ummami, D. A. (2019). Translation Equivalence in English-Indonesia Text. Vivid: Journal of Language and Literature, 8(2), 35–37.
Urooj, M. S. (2023). Promoting Tourism Through Digital Marketing. The American Journal of Management and Economics Innovations, 05(10), 62–85.
Wang, J., & Ke, X. (2022). Integrating Machine Translation into EFL Writing Instruction: Process, Product and Perception. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 13(1), 125–137. https://doi.org/10.17507/JLTR.1301.15
Xu, Z. (2016). Translation Equivalence and the Reader’s Response. International Review of Social Sciences and Humanities, 10(2), 98–109. www.irssh.com
Published
2025-05-01
How to Cite
Freskila, E., & Jayantini, I. G. A. S. R. (2025). Translation Equivalence of Tourism Website Content: A Comparison Between Google Translate and DeepL Translate. Indonesian Journal of EFL and Linguistics, 10(1), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.21462/ijefl.v10i1.835
Section
Articles
Copyright (c) 2025 Indonesian Journal of EFL and Linguistics
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
