旅游景点的介绍---以杭州为例(二)

1.1.1Necessity of precise translation of scenic spots’ introduction

China is an ancient civilized country which has inherited innumerable cultural relics from our ancestors. With a vast territory, it embraces a lot of awesome scenic spots that have brought into China millions of foreigners to enjoy themselves. As globalization deepens, the scale of the tourists from abroad is on a sharp increase.  

Owing to the cultural differences between China and western countries, there are many difficulties in the translation process. Many translators are accustomed to translate scenic-spot introductions based on Chinese mindset and ways of expression. As a result, inaccuracies and mistake can often be seen in the translated texts. In today’s China, the translation quality of scenic-spot introductions is far from satisfaction due to countless spelling mistake, and cultural misinterpretations, etc. Therefore, the translation of scenic-spot introductions and research on it is necessary and urgent.

Hence, the development of our sunrise industry necessitates the precise translation of scenic spots’ introduction.

2.　Existing problems and causes of translation of scenic spots’ translation 

2.1 Existing problems

The scenic-spot introductions specially provide service for foreign tourists. The large cultural gap between China and the western countries makes the translation of Chinese scenic-spot introductions, which contains a lot of cultural elements, a hard nut for the translating job. The translators not only have to have a good command of both Chinese and English, but also be highly proficient in intercultural transfer. The readers of scenic-spot translation are a group of special audience who know little about Chinese culture and language, so translation plays a significant in publicizing China. Although increasing attention has been paid to this field, the quality of translation is still far from satisfactory. So in this part, we are going to look into some cases of inappropriate and even false translation, so as to have an analysis of the existing problems in the English translation of Chinese scenic-spot introductions. In this way we may know more about the linguistic style, cultural features and expressional skills about appropriate English introductions of scenic spots.

“黄龙吐翠”（西湖十景之一）

“Yellow Dragon Spits Green”

The Chinese name “黄龙吐翠” has two meanings: On the one hand, it means that a clear spring is flowing out from the Yellow Dragon Cave; on the other hand, it infers that the whole scenic spot(Yellow Dragon Cave) is surrounded by green trees. The character “吐” here means present or look, when it is translated into “spit” in English, the meaning has completely been changed. Because “spit” often means “spitting saliva”, which gives us an unpleasant impression.

 

2.2 Causes of unsatisfied translation

     Language capacity of a translator is the fundamental element which influences the quality of translated version directly. A good master of listening, speaking, reading, and writing of a foreign language and mother tongue is only the first step to make a satisfied translation; furthermore, the translator should strive to grasp the essence of two different cultures. According to Wang Zuoliang: A translator must be a cultured man; that is to say “Learning a language is a kind of learning the culture and habit of the country where the language is spoken”.

Culture is the core, the source and energy of tourism’s prosperity. And it is just the cultural elements contained in tourism materials bring about big different to tourism materials’ translation, since the difference in the culture of Chinese and English are inevitably reflected in the process of language translation. Language is the carrier of culture, different geographical environments, historical conditions, religious beliefs, and social customs of different countries give birth to different cultures and languages. Culture is what the society thinks about and do, in turn language is expression of thoughts. The close relationship between culture and language are tightly associated with translation. However, translation is not merely the transformation on the linguistic surface layer, but the communication and transplant of two different cultures. “For truly successful translating, biculturalism is even more important than bilingualism, since words only have meanings in terms of the cultures in which they function.”