Jurnal Bahasa dan Sastra
Vol 14, No 2 (2026)

Swearing and Subtitling Strategies in Penyalin Cahaya: A Qualitative Case Study

Yuniar Ayu Andini (Universitas Dian Nusantara)
Todo Sibuea (Universitas Dian Nusantara)



Article Info

Publish Date
03 Aug 2026

Abstract

Indonesian swear words frequently appear in everyday communication and serve various functions, such as expressing anger, stress, humor, or familiarity. In film subtitling, translating swear words can be challenging due to cultural differences that affect how emotional expressions are understood. This study aims to identify the types of Indonesian swear words and the subtitling strategies used to translate them into English in the Netflix film Penyalin Cahaya. This research employs a descriptive qualitative method by analyzing all sixteen  instances of swear words identified in the film's dialogue. The data are classified based on types of swearing and subtitling strategies. The findings reveal that the swear words fall into three categories: cathartic, abusive, and idiomatic swearing, with cathartic swearing being the most frequent. In terms of translation, three strategies are identified: direct translation, omission, and substitution. Substitution is the most commonly used strategy, indicating that the subtitler tends to adapt Indonesian swear words into culturally acceptable English expressions while maintaining the emotional meaning and communicative effect of the original dialogue. These findings offer a framework for understanding how cultural and pragmatic constraints shape subtitling decisions, with practical implications for subtitle editors working across culturally distant language pairs in the streaming industry.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

ibs

Publisher

Subject

Arts Humanities Languange, Linguistic, Communication & Media Social Sciences

Description

Language and Literature which including review of comparative literature, modern literature, creative expressions, new literary history, practice and theory of creative writing literature and language, methodologies of literature and language, Theories and practice of literary studies, linguistics, ...