从目的论角度分析中文景点名称的翻译

学科分类号：050201 湖南****学院本科生毕业论文题目（中文）：从目的论角度分析中文景点名称的翻译（英文）：Analysis of Translation of ChineseScenic Spots Names from thePerspective of Skopos Theory学生姓名：*** 学号*****系部：外语系专业年级：英语翻译专业指导教师（姓名）：* *（职称）：教授Analysis of Translation of Chinese Scenic SpotsNames from the Perspective of Skopos Theory内容摘要20世纪70年代，功能派翻译理论兴起于德国。

功能派学者弗米尔和诺德提出了目的论，其指出翻译是以原文为基础的有目的和有结果的行为，翻译必须遵循一系列原则。

目的论有三个重要的原则：目的原则，连贯原则和忠实原则，其中，目的原则居于首位。

这些原则为中国旅游景点名称的翻译提供了充分的理论指导。

当前，跨境旅游日趋兴盛，大量的外国游客涌入中国。

在阅读旅游资料时，景点名称是最先跃入眼帘的信息，能否抓住游客的眼球，第一印象非常重要。

然而，目前的中文景点名称翻译存在诸多问题，如单一的音译或意译，拼写错误，忽略旅游背景信息而误译等。

景点名称翻译存在的问题会给国外游客带来不便，阻碍旅游业的发展，所以必须立即改善其翻译的现状。

在目的论指导下，译者可以运用目的论三原则来指导翻译实践，准确地译出中文景点名称所蕴含的信息，从而向国外传播独特的中国文化。

此外，从目的论角度分析景点名称翻译，运用相关的翻译方法，如直译、意译、音译加解释、词语美化和信息删减法，能解决当前景名翻译存在的一些问题，增强旅游译文的可读性，最终达到沟通交流的目的。

这样不仅能让外国游客了解中国的旅游景点，品味其独特的文化魅力，还能更好地促进中国旅游业国际化的发展，为中国经济增添活力。

关键词：中文景点名称翻译；目的论；翻译原则；翻译方法AbstractIn 1970s, functionalist translation theory arose in Germany. Functional scholars Vermeer and Nord proposed the Skopos Theory, which pointed out that translation has its own purpose and result based on the original text and should follow a set of rules. There are three important rules: purpose rule, coherence rule and fidelity rule, but the purpose rule is the most significant. All of these rules provide sufficient theoretical guidance for translation of Chinese scenic spots names.Nowadays, cross-border tourism is increasingly flourishing and a large number of foreign tourists are crowding into China. When foreign tourists read tourist information, the first information jumps into their eyes is the scenic spot name. Therefore, the first impression is very important in order to catch the attention of visitors. However, the current translation of Chinese scenic spots names has many problems, such as single transliteration or onefold free translation, spelling errors, mistranslation due to the neglect of tourism background information, and so on. The problems existing in translation would confuse foreign visitors and hinder development of tourism industry, so the current situation of the translation must be improved soon.Under the guidance of Skopos Theory, the translator can apply its three rules to guide the translation practice and accurately translate the information in Chinese scenic spots names so as to spread the unique and charming Chinese culture to foreigners. And through the analysis of scenic spots names from the perspective of Skopos Theory, the relevant translation methods, such as literal translation, free translation, transliteration plus explanation, word embellishment and cancellation of excessive information can be implemented to address current problems in translation of sites names so as to enhance the readability of tourist translation and ultimately to achieve the purpose of communication and exchange. It will not only allow foreigners to understand China’s tourist attractions and taste its unique cultural charm, but also to better promote the international development of China’s tourism industry and augment new vigor to economy growth.Key Words：translation of Chinese scenic spots names; Skopos Theory; translation rules; translation methodsContentsIntroduction (5)1. Notions of Skopos Theory ............................................................................................... .81.1 The Development of Skopos Theory (9)1.2 Three Basic Rules of Skopos Theory (11)2. Overview of Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots Names (12)2.1 Current Problems in Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots Names (12)2.2 Causes of Existing Problems in Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots Names (15)3. Application of Skopos Theory in Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots Names (17)3.1 Three Basic Rules of Skopos Theory in Translation of Scenic Spots Names (18)3.1.1 Purpose Rule (18)3.1.2 Coherence Rule (21)3.1.3 Fidelity Rule (23)3.2 Translation Methods of Scenic Names under Guidance of Skopos Theory (25)3.2.1 Literal Translation for Keeping Content and Structure of Original Text (26)3.2.2 Free Translation for Remaining Meaning and Spirit of Original Text (28)3.2.3 Transliteration plus Explanation for Extension of Chinese Culture (31)3.2.4 Word Embellishment for Idyllic Scenic Spots Names (33)3.2.5 Cancellation of Excessive Information of Translation (35)Conclusion (38)Notes (40)References (41)IntroductionIn 1970s, functionalist translation theory arose in Germany. Functional scholars Vermeer and Nord proposed the Skopos Theory, which has freed translation studies from the bondage of original text. According to Skopos Theory, translation has its own purpose and result based on the original text and should follow a set of rules. There are three important rules: purpose rule, coherent rule and fidelity rule, but the purpose rule is the most significant and the purpose of translation determines the translation strategies and methods.[1] Skopos Theory has been introduced into China since 1987, the relevant research is involved in translation teaching, literary translation, tourism translation, business translation and in other fields. In 1997, Chinese scholar Xue Siliang introduced the Skopos Theory of translation in academic journals to make Chinese readers understand the theory and its importance in translation. In 2004, Jia Wenbo pointed out that the term “Skopos Theory” itself means “the purpose of target text”. From his view point, translator can combine communicative function of translation and social background of target readers to determine the specific translation approach of target language.[2]With the rapid development of tourism, scholars both at home and abroad pay more and more attention to translation of scenic spots names and the relevant academic works also emerge endlessly. In 1996, Graham M.S.Dann first analyzed the tourism language and tourist text from sociolinguistic perspective in his book The Language of Tourism: A Sociolinguistic Perspective and indicated that tourism language and its translation were used to attract more potential tourists.[3] Then in 1998, Peter Newmark classified translational text into three types in his book A Text Book of Translation, namely expressive text, informative text and vocative text.[4]Tourism translation belongs to vocative text and includes introduction of names and background of tourist attractions, advertisement of tourism, and tourist signs, etc. In 2002, Erik Castello analyzed the language structure of travel brochures, travel magazines, tourist websites and tour-guide in his book Tourist-information Text: A Corpus-based Study of Four Related Genre, and carried out a comparative study.While in China Lai Shaohua po inted out in “Translation of Culture in Tourism Materials” that the readers’ background should be given the priority in translation of tourism materials and original information should be kept in translation to a large extent. Jia Xiuhai said in “Translation Skills of Terminology in Cultural Scenic Spots” that the translation of tourist attraction names should not simply adopt transliteration, which is lack of novelty and of introduction about tourism culture. And he suggested that relevant information should be consulted before translation and the ways of literal translation, free translation and transliteration plus explanation can be used to improve translation of scenic spots names.[5] Besides, Chen Gang expressed inhis book Tourism Translation and Guide-Interpreting Studies that tourism translation is a professional practice for tourism activities and tourism industry. The translation of scenic spots names and materials is a complex, cross-language and cross- society activity, which is more outstanding and comprehensive than other translations.[6]But for now, present translation of scenic spots names in China is unsatisfying and disappointing. There are often three or four translation versions of the same tourist attraction, which makes foreigners uneasy to comprehend, besides, the translator just adopts single transliteration or free translation while ignoring the background information behind the scenic name, which is hard to embody the unique charm of scenic spots. All these problems in translation should be immediately addressed. Scholars at home and abroad have a more in-depth discussion about Skopos Theory, which emphasizes that the purpose of translation determines the whole process of translation and the results determine translational methods. While the purpose of translation of scenic spots names is to precisely and cleverly transmit tourist information and attract foreign tourists, and the purpose determines that translation activities should regard it as the starting point and destination. Therefore, the combination of Skopos Theory and tourism translation is a perfect match.With Skopos Theory as the theoretical guidance, the deficiency of translation of scenic spots names can be lessened and a lot of troubles caused by the language differences can be removed. Besides, to interpret thetranslation of scenic spots names from the perspective of Skopos Theory will not only allow foreigners to understand China’s tourist attractions and taste its unique cultural charm, but also to better promote Chinese tourism, especially its international development. The coupling of Skopos Theory and translation of scenic spots names can effectively solve the current problems existing in translation, enhance the translation’s readability and reader’s acceptance, offer a new guideline for tourism translation teaching and showcase China’s tour-industry to other parts of the world at same time.1. Notions of Skopos TheorySkopos Theory was first put forward by Vermeer, who tried to liberate the translation from the confinement of source text and aimed to explain the translation activity from the viewpoint of target language. “Skopos” means purpose or intention in Greek. The core concept of Skopos Theory is that the purpose of the whole translation determines the process of translation. In the frame of V ermeer’s Skopos Theory, the audience is the most important factor to shape the translation purpose. They have their own cultural background and their own demand and expectation for translation. Therefore each translation directs at a certain audience and it is generated with a particular purpose. Vermeer once said that any action has an aim, a purpose and the word “Skopos” is a technical term for the aim or purpose of a translation. And anaction leads to a result, a new situation or event.[7] In other words, each text is produced for a given purpose and should serve this purpose.1.1 The Development of Skopos TheorySince Skopos Theory didn’t come out within a short time, a brief introduction of early functionalist views is needed so as to outline the whole situation. There are four people who have devoted much to the development of modern functionalism in translation studies, and they are Katharina Reiss, Hans Vermeer, Justa Holz-Manttari and Christina Nord.Katharina Reiss first introduced the functional category into translation criticism and connected language function, text type with translation strategy. Her book Possibilities and Limits of Translation Criticism may be perceived as the starting point for the scholarly analysis of translation in Germany. On the basis of equivalence, Reiss developed translation criticism on the relationship between the source and target texts. As she said that ideal translation would be one in which the aim in the target language is equivalence as regards the conceptual content, linguistic form and communicative function of a source- language text.[8] According to Reiss, translation methods have connection with the particular target audience, special purpose intended for the translation and the type of text. Her viewpoints offer a beacon for the following people.Later, Hans Vermeer, one of Reiss’s students, founded Skopos Theory on the foundation of Reiss’s viewpoint and had gone further in trying to bridge the gap between theory and practice. He regarded the translation as a kind of behavior full of intention and purpose and tried to liberate the translation from the confinement of the source text. Translation should follow a series of rules, of which the purpose rule is in the first place. That is to say, translation depends on its purpose, and the translator should adopt corresponding translation strategies according to different purposes and should decide what can be remained and what needs to be adjusted or modified. According to Vermeer’s remarks, each translation is directed at an intended audience, since to translate means to produce a text in a target setting for a target purpose and target addressees in target circumstances.[9]Then, Justa Holz-Manttari drew on the communicative and behavioral theory and came up with theory of translation action so as to further develop the functionalist translation theory. In her theory, translation is defined as “a complex action designed to achieve a particul ar purpose.”[10] The generic term for this phenomenon is “translational action”, whose purpose is to transfer messages across language and culture barriers by means of message transmitters produced by experts in order to coordinate communicative and actional cooperation. The theory and Vermeer’s theory have a lot in common, and later Vermeer integrated the two theories.Subsequently, Christina Nord comprehensively summarized and combedfunctionalist theories, and suggested that translators should follow the model of “functionality-plus-loyalty”, which perfected the Skopos Theory. That’s the growth of Skopos Theory.1.2 Three Basic Rules of Skopos TheoryFrom Skopos Theory, translation should follow a series of rules, namely the purpose rule, coherence rule and fidelity rule. Among them, purpose rule is in the first place and purpose of translation determines the translation strategies and methods.[11]Purpose rule can be divided into three categories: the basic purpose of translator (such as earning a living), the communication purpose of translation (such as enlightening readers), and the use of a particular translation means to achieve the purpose (such as using literal translation).[12]But generally speaking, “purpose” refers to the communicative purpose of translation, namely “the translation has a communicative function on target readers in target social and c ultural context”.Coherence rule refers that translation should meet the coherent standard, which is readable and acceptable to readers and can make them understand the culture and context of target language.[13] Translation is successful only when people think that translational information conforms to their environment and background.Fidelity rule deals with the link between translation and original text, that is to say the translation should be faithful to original text. Besides, fidelity rule chiefly focuses on the relationship between translator and original author, customer and receiver. In a word, the three rules constitute the basic aspects of Skopos Theory, and coherence rule and fidelity rule must obey the purpose rule.2.Overview of Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots NamesScenic spots names, as an indispensable and special part of tourism materials, aim at attracting potential tourists to pay a visit and diffusing tourist information to others. While for foreign visitors, the first information about China’s scenery is the translation of scenic spots names, which contains the unique and distinctive charm and rich culture of China. The successful and outstanding translation of scenic spots names can brilliantly show characters of China’s tourist attractions to foreigners and stimulate their infinite desire to visit the attractions. Besides, it can further promote the international development of China’s touris m industry and add vitality to the development of national economy. However, there are still numerous problems in translation of scenic spots names in China.2.1 Current Problems in Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots NamesNow, the current translation of scenic spots names in China is far from satisfactory and plenty of problems can be detected in translation, which hinders the promotion of Chinese history, famous mountains and great rivers, and rich culture to foreign tourists. And the problems in translation have been analyzed and listed as follows.Firstly, multi-versions of the same attraction name. People frequently perceive that a proper name tends to have several translational versions and the same travel place may be translated in a wide variety of names in different tourist books, maps or brochure, and other public materials as well. It may confuse or mislead the understanding of foreigners and lead them to think whether the translated names refer to the same place or other places, which would affect the effectiveness of advocating scenic spots. Meanwhile, it could damp the whole image of the scenic spot.Numerous beautiful parks could be discovered in Guangxi Province where they have no uniformed names in translation. For example,“鱼峰公园”has four renderings like Standing Fish Park, Standing-fish Hill Park, Yufeng Park and Yufeng Scenery District.“鹅山公园”has three translation editions such as: E Shan Park, Ershan Hill Park and Ershan Youth Park. The same problem can be picked out in“雨花石博物馆”without a standard translation version. It has been translated as Rain Flower Stone Museum in guide map, as Yuhua Pebbles Museum in statues and as Rain Flower Pebbles Museum intourist signs. All the three versions refer to the same museum, but different versions may bewilder overseas tourists.Secondly, spelling errors can be beheld in multiple tourist spots when you make an attempt to go on a trip. Though quite obvious and striking, those errors have no connection with translators’ ability and competence but with their or printers’ carelessness and perfunctoriness, which can be removed and addressed in time. Examples are as follows: the Chinese name of “古五松园” is carved as Garden of Ancient Five Pine Tress near entrance, which should be corrected as Garden of Ancient Five Pine Tre es. “圆沙城门遗址” in northwest part of China is labeled as Gate of Y uansh Sites, where Yuansh should be rectified as Yuansha. Another sample is “儿童游乐场” in Changsha, whose translation is Children’ A musement Pavr and we all know that the Pavr needs to be changed into the correct word Park.Thirdly, the ignorance of the cultural information. Plenty difficulties occur in translation process due to the cultural differences between China and foreign countries. A large amount of translators are accustomed to translate scenic spots names within Chinese mindset and expression. A translator who ignores target readers’ background information is very likely to generate insufficient versions or neglect essential elements．If only translating the scenic spots names from the literal meaning without concerning background information and cultural contents, translator may lead to a wrong way.“寒山寺” is a famous tourist spot in Jiangsu Province, which is simply translatedinto Cold Mountain Temple. Actually speaking, “寒山”isn’t the name of a mountain, but the name of a monk. So the name of this temple should be explained as Hanshan Temple. Let’s take another example, located in the West Lake,“三老石室”is misunderstood as Three Old Men by local tour-guide, while “三老”refers to three venerables who are famous for the art of seal-engraving. Combining the background information of this tourist spot, it should be translated as the Stone Chamber of Three Venerables.In addition, misunderstanding of tourist spots and misuse of translation methods can also contribute to problematic translation. Beyond doubt, existing problems in translation of scenic spots names could twist the information in tourist spots and the quality of translation would influence the potential foreign tourists. Therefore, in order to play an irreplaceable and significant role of scenic spots names in China and to advocate Chinese culture and traditions to other parts of the world, it is transparent and urgent to improve the present situation of translation of scenic spots names and much more attentions should be paid into this field. Fortunately, the causes of those problematic translation will be analyzed in next part.2.2 Causes of Existing Problems in Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots NamesThe causes of present situation in translation of scenic spots names arecomplicated and various, and are not aroused just by one person or community. There are mainly 3 causes of the above translation problems.In the first place, the administrative authorities haven’t pa id much attention to the supervision in process of translation. The multi-versions of the same scenic spot will cause confusion to foreign tourists who may think multi-translations refer to different places in China, and the error spellings of English words could also cloud tourists and damage image of scenery. Problematic translations caused by nonchalance or irresponsibility of administrative authorities can be adapted and corrected soon if attached importance during the course of translation.In the second place, the producer of tourist brochures and signs knows nothing about English or has no idea of inviting a professional translator to design the English name of tourist spots so as to reduce the cost. Besides, the producer may think that there is no necessary to proofread the translational version of tourist spots names because Chinese travelers won’t give a glimpse at it and the foreigners can just guess its meaning or experience the attractions by themselves.In the third place, many natural and cultural terms unique in Chin a’s tourist spots pose a great difficulty for translators in translation. The translator may treat the name with natural and cultural terms in their own ways, whose translation may be considered as insufficiency and deficiency and cannot fully express the cultural connotation of the original text. What’s more, theforeigners can’t seize the useful and helpful information they need to enjoy the whole scenic spots.From above analysis of problems in translation of scenic spots names, the current mistakes can be cleared out and avoided because they mainly occur due to the translator’s negligence and incapability and manager’s carelessness. Relatively speaking, the problematic translation seriously or senselessly breaches the three rules of Skopos Theory, namely the purpose rule, coherence rule, and fidelity rule in translation and a comprehensive implementation of these rules can cast the problems in translation away.3.Application of Skopos Theory in Translation of Chinese Scenic Spots NamesVermeer argued that any form of translation, including translation itself, can be regarded as a form of behavior and any behavior has a given goal or purpose.Translation of scenic spots names belongs to the translation of practical writings, which has a real purpose. In general, the purpose of translation of scenic spots names mainly involves three aspects: first, let tourists know related situation of scenic attractions through the translation, such as cultural background, historical origin and so on; second, arouse the curiosity of foreign tourists through the description of attractions and engage them to have a trip; third, motivate tourists emotion through vivid text.Therefore, it’s easy to find that Skopos Theory is important and significant in guiding the practical translation of scenic spots names.3.1 Three Basic Rules of Skopos Theory in Translation of Scenic Spots NamesVermeer brought forward that translation is full of purpose and intention, and is viewed as cross-cultural transfer and communicational action. Hence, Vermeer provided Skopos Theory to usher translation practice and said quality of translation isn’t determined by the source texts, but by the purpose of translation, that is “the end justifies the means”.[14] However, this newly invented theory has triggered criticism from scholars who support equivalence theory and believe that Skopos Theory excessively emphasizes on purpose of translation, which should be faithful to the source text. Faced with these doubts, V ermeer and other representatives of functionalism put forward three rules of Skopos Theory: the purpose rule, the coherence rule and the fidelity rule. It is apparent that the purpose of translation of tourist attractions names is to engage foreigners to visit that place, so the application of three rules in translation can be a good way to develop the particular function of scenic spot names.3.1.1 Purpose RuleThe purpose rule, among the top in Skopos Theory, is to help translators realize the function of translation. Purpose rule deals with that each text is produced for a given purpose and should serve this purpose. Therefore, the purpose rul e reads as follows, “translate in a way that enables your translation to function in the situation in which it is used and with the people who want to use it and precisely in the way they want it to function.”[15] That is to say, the purpose is related with the client who needs a text for a particular purpose and calls upon the translator for a translation, and the translator should be able to justify their choice of a particular purpose in a given translational situation.This rule is intended to solve the eternal dilemmas of free vs faithful translation, dynamic vs formal equivalence, good interpreters vs slavish translators, and so on. It means that the purpose of a particular translation task may require a free or faithful translation, depending on the purpose for which the translation is needed.As a decision-maker, the translator should know that a particular purpose is the most important for him in translational process. And the purpose rule gives the translator a new perspective in translation of scenic spots names and a new guideline to decide which strategy will be employed in the whole process of translation, so as to realize the purpose of providing appealing information and attracting tourists.Example: “杜甫草堂”is written in English as Du Fu’s Thatched Cottage,which is the poet-and-historian Du Fu’s former residence where he with his family lived there to flee from political rebellions. This travel-site is noted for its beautiful scenery, solemnity and elegance.From its English name, foreigners could acquire the basic information about the tourist spot and feel curious about the origin and history of this cottage in China and then would attempt to visit the scene and learn about the amazing stories of Du Fu. Therefore, the English version of “杜甫草堂”as Du Fu’s Thatched Cottage, instead of Du Fu’s Residence, fulfills the purpose of offering useful information about the shape and style of this tourist spot and attracting foreign visitors, which conforms to the purpose rule.Example:“十里荷花”is translated into multiple versions, such as Ten-li Lotus Flowers, Ten Li of Lotus Flowers, Ten Kilometers of Lotus Flowers. All these translations are lack of novelty and creation and are awkward to explain “十里” into ten li or ten kilometers, which could make foreign tourists feel bored and tired. However, it would catch visitors’ attention when the version is changed into Lotus in Bloom for Miles and Miles, which is more appealing and attracting than the previous translations. It could stimulate foreign tourists to imagine the gorgeous views of lotus in bloom and to pay a nice visit there, which, of course, complies with the purpose rule in translation of scenic spots names.From above analysis, we know that the purpose in tourism translation determines which translated text is more proper and which one is。