Mediasi Epistemik dalam Penerjemahan Leksem Aji: Analisis Mikro-Leksikal pada Serat Ajisaka dan Serat Wedhatama

Abstract

Contemporary Translation Studies increasingly position translation as an epistemic practice that not only transfers linguistic meaning but also mediates cultural knowledge. This study aims to examine how the lexeme aji is mediated in translation practices when it appears in two Javanese manuscripts of different genres and functions, namely Serat Ajisaka and Serat Wedhatama. The study employs a qualitative–interpretive approach with manuscript-based micro-lexical analysis within the framework of Critical Translation Studies. The data consist of excerpts from Javanese texts containing the lexeme aji, accompanied by transliteration and translation, which are analyzed through contextual linguistic reading and a critical analytical circuit to reveal the mechanisms of epistemic mediation operating in translation. The findings show that aji undergoes asymmetric translation treatment: in Serat Ajisaka, aji is frozen through semantic closure as the political identity of “king,” whereas in Serat Wedhatama, aji undergoes epistemic simplification through moral abstraction that obscures its value force and ethical legitimacy. These findings affirm that translation plays an active role in shaping representations of cultural knowledge and demonstrate that micro-lexical analysis can uncover epistemic reductions that are often overlooked in macro-level studies. This research contributes to the development of Translation Studies by offering a reflective analytical model sensitive to the ecology of meaning and the distinctive Javanese epistemology.