The Translation Strategies on Public Signs

1、公示语的翻译策略the translation strategies on public signsabstract: names of public places and notices are called public signs. with the rapid development of chinas economy and the deepening of reform and opening-up policy, public signs as simple guide or information “carrier” are obviously useful to foreig

2、ners who travel, study, or do business in china. we have taken various measures to bring connections more and more closer, among which communication materials constitute an indispensable part. however, the problems in public signs translation cause lots of misunderstanding. therefore, we should pay

3、more attention to the problems. in this paper, the author attaches importance to public signs translation and discusses the translation strategies, namely, literal translation, free translation and adaptation.key words: public signs; strategies; functions; translation problems 摘 要：公共场所的标识，提醒语又称为公示语。

4、随着我国改革开放的深入和经济的快速发展，公示语作为标识信息的载体将对来华旅游，经商的外国人起着重要的作用。然而，公示语的翻译还是让人产生很多误解。本文将注重于公示语的翻译问题，从而提出直译，换译等一些有效的翻译策略来使公示语的翻译更加准确，有效。关键词：公示语；策略；功能；翻译问题；contentsi. introduction.1a. present status of public signs translation.1b. reasons for the research1c. methodology.2ii. an overview of public signs.2a. defini

5、tion of public signs.2b. functions of public signs.3c. features of public signs.5iii. problems in translating public signs.6a. linguistic problems.6b. cultural problems.91. cultural difference.92. cultural conflict.10iv. strategies to solve the problems10a. literal translation.11b. free translation1

6、1c. adaptation.12v. conclusion.13works cited15i. introductiona. present status of public signs translationwith chinas reform and opening up, entry into wto and economic rapid development, more and more foreigner stream into china. under such circumstances, english public signs will play a very impor

7、tant role, because these signs will help foreigner to find their way in a new environment and get the information easily they want. however, they often complain about poor translated signs in china. its true that here are lots of errors in the public signs in many cities. for example, china held the

8、 first symposium on china-english signs in a global context in 2005, which indicated that the quality of public sign translation has become a public concern. one year later, on the symposium for the celebration of international translation day, dai zhongxian, a professor of beijing international stu

9、dies university, an expert in translation of public signs, pointed out that the degree of civilization can be measured by the way languages are employed. “we are trying to build a harmonious society, while there are many inharmonious aspects, such as the erroneous way our native language is used and

10、 the misuse of foreign language” (zhang 23).up to now, the public sign translation has caught the attention of the public and the media. many papers and books on translation of signs have been published. from them we can draw a conclusion that is public sign translation has got its own status in chi

11、na today.b. reasons for the research public signs play an indispensable role in daily life. in the process of making china known to the outside world, translation of communication materials is of great importance, so do public signs, one of its indispensable aspects. although quite a lot of papers d

12、eal with problems and skills in chinese-english translation, not many are about public signs. it was in the early 1980s that more systematic studies on this field were carried out. some language workers have been making efforts in language in practical use and wrote some articles to give certain gui

13、dance on translation of public signs. here are the main reasons of this research:firstly, there are still spaces to improve the quality of public sign translation by improving the strategies. from the analysis of impropriate translation context, we can figure out a more suitable edition. for further

14、 studies on public sign translation, we need to present a better way to solve those problems. secondly, in the process of cross-cultural communication, english is viewed as the most convenient tool for international communication, therefore，the translation of public sign，to a certain extent, indicat

15、es the level of city management. proper translation of signs can promote the internationalization of a city and update its image. so the translation strategies on public sign have become an important field of research.c. methodologythis thesis employs the method of study, according to tourys descrip

16、tive translation studies (dts) and beyond, the following three-phase methodology for systematic dts: first, to situate the text within the target culture system, looking at its significance or acceptability; secondly, to compare the st and the tt for shifts, identifying relationships between “ coupl

17、ed pairs” of st and tt segments, and attempting generalizations about the underlying concept of translation; thirdly, to draw implications for decision-making in future translating (toury 253).in this thesis, most of the cases are typical public signs in our daily life, which can be found around the

18、 mall, supermarket and etc.ii. an overview of public signsa. definition of public signs sign is a notice that is publicly displayed giving information or instructions in a written or symbolic form. (oxford advanced learners english-chinese dictionary, 352). on the website: www. e-signs.info, public

19、signs( 公示语) is defined as the written message publicly displayed in the public place. the near-equivalents of “ 公示语” are “ 标识 ”,“ 标志语 ”,“ 标示 ”,“ 标语 ” in chinese. with the rapid development of chinas economy and the deepening of reform and opening-up policy, we have become closer with outside world.

20、we have taken various measures to strengthen the connections, among which communication materials constitute an indispensable part. public sign, which is an important way to let foreign guests know the places we live better and as a communicative medium. for the convenience of foreign tourists and b

21、usinessmen in china on the one hand, for the building an environment for chinas opening-up on the other hand, we should make them more reliable and convincible, therefore public sign translation should be put more attention to and here i will analyze the importance of public sign translating. as we

22、know, public sign is not only a symbol of civilization but a cultural expression, so from this angle of view, we have to mention the cultural shock and similarity in two different cultures, both of them exist and affect the translation. so many factors we should consider, and of course all of us wan

23、t to make it better. and public signs are a kind of practical style which, generally speaking, refers to some written materials, articles, and document, etc, in practical use. while in chinese, the expression of public signs is quite rough-and-tumble before. it is in recent years that the expression

24、 公示语 comes into our view. b. functions of public signshere are some typical signs that we can easily find around us.exit 安全出口no smoking 禁止吸烟notice! keep off 请不要靠近danger! high voltage 危险，高压电caution! falling rocks 小心，有滚石落下in newmarks a textbook of translation，text can be divided into three types: expr

25、essive text, informative text and vocative text. readers are the center of vocatives text and it mainly tries to attract their attention and to impress their memories. text expresses the message it hold, at the same time the readers can be warned or persuaded according to the message the sign takes

26、(newmark 45).therefore, public signs perform the following three functions: expressive (directing) function, informative (promoting) function and vocative (restricting and compelling) function. 1. expressive (directing) function public signs in directing show comprehensive service, such as guiding a

27、nd instructive information, and represent the most basic function of public signs. public sign with directing function, without any restriction or compelling meaning, aim to offer detailed information. they are prevailing in many places and can be found almost every public site. for example:r&d depa

28、rtment 研发部门 manager 经理办公室drinking water 饮用水ticket office 售票处bus stop 公交站underground 地铁站2. informative (promoting) function public sign in promoting are similar to those with directing function, but not the same; promoting is to remind people to pay considerable attention if they want to perform any

29、action. it has no clear boundary with directing except that promoting carries the tone of reminding. the public sign “caution: wet floor” is to remind people to mind the step. they bear no other connotation but are widely adopted. for example:reserved 预留位置wet paint 油漆未干on sale 廉价销售road closed 道路封闭3.

30、 vocative functionvocative function contains two categories: restricting and compelling functionsrestricting is to set limits and constraints on peoples conducts. it normally adopts direct and simple expressions but never leaves a rude or impolite impression on the readers. for example:staff only 游客

31、止步ticket only 凭票入场60km/h 限速60handicapped only 残疾人通道keep right 靠右行驶aa film 14岁以下禁看bus only 公交通道compelling function is in a very tough tune, giving the public strict restrictions so that the reader must do or cant do something. if someone does not abide by the requirement, he will cause trouble to the

32、 public order or damage public interest, so there is no possibility to make a comprise. and if the translation is too tough and forceful, it will make the readers uncomfortable. for example:no smoking 禁止吸烟no cameras 禁止拍照 no passing 禁止通行c. the features of public signs as a particular style, signs now

33、 have been applied in our daily life and have played indispensable role in every aspect of our lives. meanwhile, their structures are short and pithy. here i make a conclusion on the features of public sign, namely, simplicity, combination with pictures, present tense, and indigenity.1. simplicitysi

34、mple and brief are very crucial elements for the public signs because the eyes-taking or attractive signs give the readers a sharp impression. thus they should understand them at first sight. simple words and short phrases are the best choices since public signs are striking and can better convey th

35、e main points and make it easy for the readers to remember.public signs can be as short as possible, thats why most signs favor the nouns, verb and short phrase. for example:registration 注册登记tollgate 收费窗口international departure 国际出发camping equipment 露营装备self-service bank 自助银行closed 暂时关闭slow down 减速慢

36、行keep silence 保持安静2. combination with pictures in most public places, signs are used with pictures for attracting or giving the readers a deeper impression. in addition, a thing should be mentioned, that is some signs have already set a standard, for instance, “no smoking” sign will be usually added

37、 with a picture we are familiar with, so this will also make some people realize the smoking is forbidden in the public place.3. present tensefor english, one of the language functions of signs is to deliver information. since the information delivered is mostly told as the fact or truth, present te

38、nse is often used in public signs translation. for example:keep dry 保持干燥keep off the grass 勿踏草坪admission free 免票入场open now 正在营业4. indigenitysome of the public signs have indigenous meanings, and those specified signs can be seen only in some certain place. inevitably, different culture and social sy

39、stem make their own sign features. in china, we also have our indigenous signs, for example, “计划生育，人人有责”is a typical chinese sign for reducing the quantity of population and improving the sense of responsibility of its people. here i will show more examples.一家参军，全家光荣。one soldier, family honor.请讲普通话。

40、speak mandarin please!生男生女都一样，女儿也是传后人。boys or girls are the same, a son to future generation.these typical signs only for some specified purpose that is only happened in special area or time.iii. the problems in signs translatinga. linguistic problems1. lexical problemslexical problems contain the m

41、isuse of synonym, the misuse of hyponymy words, and neglecting the connotative meaning of words, etc.a. misuse of hyponymy wordshyponymy is a word of more specific meaning than a general or super-ordinate term applicable to it. for example, spoon is a hyponym of cutlery.example:厦门大学漳州校区 the zhang zh

42、ou area of xia men university the zhang zhou campus of xia men universityin this example, the word “area” means a region or part of a town, a country, or the world, and “campus” means the grounds and buildings of a university or college. “campus” is a hyponymy of “area”.b. misuse of synonymsynonym i

43、s a word or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word or phrase in the same language, for example shut is a synonym of close. example:交警管理支队第一支队 the first traffic management team of public security bureauthe first traffic management division of public security bureauhere the words

44、 “team” and “division” are synonym. team means a group of players forming one side in a competitive game or sport, but division means a major unit or section of an organization, typically one handling a particular kind of work. hence, the word “division” is more suitable in translating this sign.c.

45、neglecting the words connotative meaning example:宣传部 the department of propaganda the department of publicity the word “propaganda” is chief derogatory, it means “information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view.” bu

46、t “宣传部” is a department which try to publicize the positive information. in this example, publicity should be used.2. grammatical problems a. spelling mistakes we can see a sign in the highway from guangdong to fujian, the sign shows the “toll agte” is about 500m away from the sign, the spelling of

47、“agte” should be corrected as “gate”. we should be aware of the negative impact. also the author found the common translation spelling mistakes in china train system, including the train station sign and the train carriage sign, for example, “no occupation whiel stop” or “no occupate while stop” whi

48、ch shocked me. we usually dont care so much about the signs in the train because we feel tired a long time trip and we know exactly the rule in the train system. but i have no idea about whether the foreigners know this kind of rule or not, so the sign should play such a role to make the reader noti

49、ce the rules. i think carelessness is the root of the low-level mistake, which may be partly attributes to those nits in charge of making of public sign translations. in addition to their lack of caution and strong sense of responsibility, the translators in the sign-making division are possessed wi

50、th uneven english levels, which can explain how this stupid mistake happens to some extent. b. nouns number mistakesgenerally speaking, grammatical mistakes in public sign translation are caused by the negligence of the target languages grammar. nouns number mistakes also belong to the grammar mista

51、kes. its easy to find some nouns member mistakes in public signs. for example: wrong right 男装 mans clothing mens clothing都会仕女馆 ladys hall ladies hall3. pragmatic problemspragmatic translation refers to translations which pay attention not only to denotative meaning but also to “the way utterances ar

52、e used in communicative situations and the way we interpret them in context” (shuttle, mark and cowie 128).a. word-to-word translationin china we have a popular traffic sign that is used to warn our drivers for their drunken driving, “司机一滴酒，亲人两行泪” we can directly translate it into english “a drop of

53、 wine for the driver，two lines of tears for the family!” not from this translating way we can not express what the sign shows and it is lacking of emotion, instead we can translate it as follow “drink and drive costs your 1ife” ( ding 65).here is another example: chinese: 为了您的安全，请走人行道，勿在站场上随意穿梭。engl

54、ish: for your safety, please walk on the sidewalk. do not cross the bus lane at will.this sign is used in a bus station. its a common problem in the translation of signs to mechanically translate the chinese with their corresponding english translation. it seems that there are no errors in spelling,

55、 grammar and sentence structure. but it is not a qualified translation due to its lengthy wording as well as awkward expression, which dramatically go against idiomatic english and the conciseness of signs. a suggested translation is “for your safety, sideway. please!”there is a sign in a restaurant: “you are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid. (有事请找服务员) the translator misuses the verb phrase” take advantage of”. in oxford dictionary, “take advantage of” means “a condition or circumstance that puts one in a favorable or superior position