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On Translation of Public Signs from Chinese to English

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Submitted By lucyliying
Words 381
Pages 2
Under the context of globalization, and with the economic development and increasing national power, lots of international activities are held in China. More and more people from all over the world have come to China to travel, study, and do business, etc. All these international practices make the public signs essential to all the foreign people, from government officials to entrepreneurs, from scientists to overseas students, from artists to sportsman. Under such a circumstance, public signs become a mirror reflecting the international image of China.
The present paper has discussed the following aspects of C-E translation of public signs: the range and classification, the characteristics, issues in the course of translation, applicable principles and special requirements for translators for a better regulation of Chinese public signs into English.
Generally speaking, the C-E translation of public signs is a challenging work, demanding a great deal of practice and broad knowledge about the English-speaking countries’ culture, custom, pattern of thought, etc. Huang Shouyi, the Secretary of the Translators Association of China and the vice president of the International Federation of Translators, pointed out that the publicity-oriented C-E translation should follow the principle of “three closeness”, specifically, to be close to the reality of the development of China, to be close to oversea receptors’ need, and to be close to the foreigners’ way of thinking. Therefore, much attention should be paid not only to linguistic competence but also to cross-cultural awareness.
Nowadays, in a world of globalization, public signs are vital for international communication. Though a series of problems do exist, the official agencies have showed great concern and have made apparent progress in this aspect in recent years. In the year of 2008, the 18th World Congress of FIT will be held in Shanghai, which is a magnificent meeting for China’s translating community as well as a rare occasion to exchange views with the foreign colleagues. Still it is an opportunity to refine the C-E translation of public signs and finally to produce faithful, expressive and elegant translated work. The present paper sincerely hopes that by that time with the advent of 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and 2010 World Fair in Shanghai, the translation enterprise in China will stride forward to a new stage.

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