This study investigates the similarities and differences between human translation and machine translation, namely Google Translate in translating cohesion elements, which have semantic relations with another element in a text. The type of cohesion elements chosen in this study is Reference. Reference includes pronoun, demonstrative nouns, and comparative nouns, as stated by Halliday and Hasan (1976). The reference elements are extracted from the first chapter of the Malay novel ‘Ustaz’ to identify the reference elements that exist in the text. This study adopted a comparative analysis method to compare between human translation (HT) and Google Translate (GT). It is found that the similarities and differences between the two translations are divided into three categories: 1) Perfect similarities, 2) Imperfect similarities and 3) Differences. The study also found that there are more similarities than differences between HT and GT. The differences that are found are acceptable in terms of preserving the cohesion of the text. However, there is one sub-category of the differences that affects the cohesion of the text that is, the differences in pronouns. This difference is considered as common mistakes done by Google Translate as it sometimes fails to identify the referent of the pronoun, resulting in confusion for the reader. It can be concluded that Google Translate is capable to translate cohesion to some extent, but it still needs a post editing by human translator to achieve total cohesion in a text.

Translation shift is essential in the translation process to ensure that the translation result is equivalent to the original work. It can preserve the quality of meaning which the original author tends to convey and the impact of the source text can be felt by readers of the target text. It is undeniable that the translation of literary texts from Malay to Arabic is very challenging due to the difficulty of obtaining appropriate translation techniques. This is due to the differences in grammatical functions and systems between the two languages. This study aims to identify the most often occurred type of translation shift according to Catford (1965) and Mona Baker (1992) frameworks in the novel of Ustaz by S. Othman Kelantan (1991) which was translated into Arabic by Sultan Ahmad bin Abdur Rahman and Mujahid Mustafa Bahjat (2010) as well as to study the factors that lead to this translation shift and the impacts of translation shift on the novel Ustaz in Arabic version. In this study, the researcher employed the theory of category translation shift founded by Catford which is divided into four types of shifts namely structural shift, class shift, unit shift and intra-system shift, as well as Mona Baker’s shift theory known as grammatical shift. This study is a descriptive qualitative research using content analysis method based on an interactive data analysis model by Miles, Huberman, and Saldana (2013). The findings indicated that 377 shifts were identified in 96 dialogues. All types of translation shift were employed in the novel and the most often occurred type of category translation shift is class shift. The factors that lead to these shifts are the differences of linguistic structure between the source language and the target language as well as the translator’s choice of achieving equivalence in translation according to the context of the text. The researcher found that the impact of translation shifts on the translated novel is addition and omission which are adding information in the target text and deleting information specified in the source text.

The importance of preserving the meaning of the source text and producing an appropriate translation in the target language is particularly relevant in translating classical literature from Arabic to Malay. In the process of translating classic literary works, especially from different cultures and language structures, an equivalence of meaning is important to ensure that the message and cultural values of the original text can be retained and well understood by the target language readers. The use of adjustments techniques, including additions, subtraction, and alteration, is a key step in achieving an accurate match of meaning in dealing with the linguistic and cultural challenges that arise in the translation process. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify the translation method used in the novel Kalila wa Dimnah according to Nida's theory (1964). In addition, this study also identifies the factors that cause adaptation, and the effects of the adaptation techniques. The researcher used a qualitative descriptive method and adopted content analysis method to study the research material. The results of the study show that translators use addition techniques more often than amendments and reductions. In addition, there are several factors that cause such adjustments such as structural differences, clarifying ambiguity in sentences, and avoiding repetition. In addition, the study also found that there are some effects from the adjustments such as, the translation becomes more accurate and provides readability to the target reader. However, there are also some adjustments that lead to inaccuracies and undertranslation in transferring the original meaning of the novel.