Oliver Simões Sep 26:

Filippe, I would love to see an authoritative reference confirming that lambedor is just an "old-fashioned" and a "pharmaceutical" term. My reference shows exactly the opposite: it's an informal word that was used in an article dated April 2020 by G1 (Globo.com). 2020 doesn't look "old-fashioned" to me, does it to you? (See "Lambedor" under "Summary of reference entries provided".) To the best of my knowledge, an enumeration is no evidence that all terms mentioned are formal/technical. It could be a mix of formal and informal, as in "Pot," DMT, STP": https://www.jstor.org/stable/1724176 I think we all agree that "pot" is informal for Cannabis whereas DMT (Dimethyltryptamine) and STP are both formal. For STP, see definition here: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/STP

Even if you are right in your assessment that register is not the issue here, the translation choice is between an archaic term (namely "electuaries", per Collins, largely unknown to most English speakers) and one that's understandable to all modern-day speakers (namely "home syrups"). The term "syrup" can be used in both formal and informal contexts, which would make it a smart choice.

Filippe Vasconcellos de Freitas Guimarães Sep 26:

Register is key—but is not the issue here 1) "Electuary" and "lambedor" are etymologically perfect cognates; both are of Latin origin, meaning a medicine that is "licked up" or "licked away".
2) "Lambedor" may seem informal, but it is *decidedly* not; just an old-fashioned pharmaceutical term, which happens to have *persisted into* informal, regional use in certain areas of Brazil.
3) That this follows "alcoolaturas" (a technical term that would require explanation to most Portuguese speakers) in the source text further suggests there is no register issue at play here. This does not strike me as a particularly informal text.

Oliver Simões Sep 25:

More on register The fact that a term appears in a textbook about medicinal plants does not make the term formal at all. Sometimes, plants are known by their formal (or scientifc) name as well as by their popular (read "informal") name(s). The popsickle example was for those who don't understand what register is all about! And judging by the sheer number of mistakes I see, I assure you that many folks in this forum don't. Hopefully, a basic example might shed some light on the subject. As to the meaning of "lambedores", Liz provided a couple of good references that speak for themselves. In regard to "electuary", it's an archaic word meaning "a paste taken orally, containing a drug mixed with syrup or honey" (Collins Dictionary). Clearly, "electuary" and "syrup" are not synonymous! https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/elec...

philgoddard Sep 25:

All very true Except this is from a textbook on growing medicinal plants, in which technical language is totally appropriate. But thank you for telling us what a popsicle is.

Electuary isn't just another word for syrup. Webster's says: 'a medicated paste prepared with a sweet (as honey), used in veterinary practice, and administered by smearing on the teeth, gums, or tongue.'

Oliver Simões Sep 25:

The register issue in translation Linguistic register is very important in translation and interpretation, even though some translators/interpreters don't give it the attention it deserves. The use of the wrong register would be marked as a translation error in a certification exam by ATA or Abrates. See "Register (R)" under Section 3 at https://n9.cl/yf6gj and "Critérios de Correção da Prova" at https://n9.cl/djezs

See also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Register_(sociolinguistics)

"Lambedores" is informal and non-technical. On the other hand, "electuário" (EN "electuary") is formal and technical. Therefore, they belong to different registers!

electuário: electuary
lambedor: homemade syrup

Other examples:
popsickle*: picolé https://n9.cl/ww518
ice lolly, icey pole, ice gola, ice candy: geladinho, flau, chupe-chupe, dindim (PT-Pt) etc.
https://n9.cl/twmp7
https://n9.cl/5nl3h

* Popsicle is a brand name for a sweet, fruit-flavored frozen dessert on a stick. Commonly used to refer to any frozen water-based dessert that is eaten by licking it while holding a stick.