For the Target or for the Market? Translation of TV Show Titles from the Perspective of Skopos Theory

Whether it is a book or a media product, the title is the first parameter that catches the eye, attracts attention, or leads to an overlook due to dislike. In the same sense, the translation of titles plays a pivotal role in promoting products and revealing their content by appealing to the audience. Developed by Hans Vermeer, the skopos theory is a functionalist theory that moves from linguistic equivalency to the functional suitability of the target text. This study analyzes the translation of TV show titles from the perspective of skopos theory, focusing on how commercial imperatives influence the translation choices in the title translation process. A corpus of 50 English-language TV show titles and their officially recognized Turkish translations was gathered from two mainstream television channels (TLC and DMAX) in Turkiye. Each title was analyzed to identify its primary translation aim and categorized according to Reiss’s functional text types model, aligning with the overarching skopos theory. Then, an in-depth clarification of Vermeer’s skopos theory is put forward. In the following section, the TV show titles are handled in Newmark’s (1988) framework for translation methods. The study’s findings demonstrate a tendency to translate English titles that are more target culture-oriented and incorporate local language characteristics rather than to provide a conservative, direct translation. The reasons for these specific choices can be attributed to the commercial value of the TV shows, which is influenced by audience demand and cultural context, as the main aim of the title translation is to make the show appeal to the target audience. Overall, the results reveal that the translation of TV show titles, in terms of the translation methods applied, is directly affected by the translation task’s skopos.