Translating cultures, adapting lives: the role of cultural translation in the acculturation of Polish migrants in the East Midlands
Publication Date
July 28, 2025
Creator
Abstract
This thesis explores the role of cultural translation in the acculturation and adaptation of Polish migrants in the East Midlands in the United Kingdom. It is a study of cultural interpretation and adaptation set in the migration context of the pre-Brexit United Kingdom. This mixed methods study is unique in that it focuses on migrants’ cultural background that underpins their sense of identity and impacts on their understanding of the host culture. Through an exploration of cultural aspects that individuals may find problematic within the UK context, the study challenges the participants’ views and offers an opportunity to reflect upon their life decisions.
Polish post-accession (post-2004) migration to the UK has been the largest immigration wave the country has experienced. Therefore, it provides enormous opportunities to explore the inevitable process of acculturation and its elements. The existing literature focuses mostly on the sociology of migration, often overlooking the vast premises of cultures and languages. Hence, using the theory of acculturation, together with Sarah Maitland’s (2017) and Nikos Papastergiadis’s (2011) stages of cultural translation, this research study explored the role of cultural translation in acculturation processes. The findings indicate that the process of cultural translation is embedded in and impacts on acculturative processes of migrant adaptation in the host cultures.
Establishing that migrants interpret and incorporate cultural elements of their cultures, which will eventually lead to their cultural transformation and emancipation, the thesis affirms that cultural translation can be used as a framework for an analysis of cultural meaning-making in the context of migration and adds to the two existing frameworks. The findings may be of interest to researchers in the fields of migration and acculturation, cross- and intercultural adaptation as well as for policy makers, language education providers and general public. Recommendations are made as to the provision of courses of language and culture that would aid migrants’ adaptation in the UK.
Item Type
ethesis
Thesis Type
MPhil
Supervisors
Subjects (LC)
Associated Schools / Departments
School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies
eprints ID
80715
UoN Repository URI
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