This study investigates the quality of the English translation of Ali Al-Muqri’s novel Adeni Incense (bukhūr adanī) (2014), published by Dar Al Saqi and subsequently translated into English by Christiaan James and released by Dar Arab in 2023 using the House (2015) model for Translation Quality Assessment. The House model is adopted because of its employment of the cultural filter and the concepts of overt and covert translations. A mixed method, combining qualitative and quantitative approaches, is used to elucidate and simplify the House Model. Additionally, a glossary of recommended alternate translations by the researcher is provided for the TT extracts found to be insufficient in terms of cultural relevancy. These are categorized according to Newmark’s cultural categories. The study further highlightes the cultural context of the ST and the implications of its overt and covert translation on the representation on the Yemeni global identity. This is examined in light of House’s discussion of globalization, ideology, and power dynamics. The study concludes that the novel was translated overtly. Yet, some covertly translated sections demonstrate that a translation of a text rich in cultural elements can be adjusted to enhance the transference of the source-text culture. Mindful essentialism techniques, including paratextual explication, can be used to facilitate cultural domestication and transference, safeguarding the source-text culture’s integrity. The research found the House (2015) model valuable in the assessment of the translation of a cultural text especially in illuminating the relationship between language, power, and ideology and the significant role translation plays in globalizing the world.
