translate-english-and-chinese-names-and-their-cultural-connotation(英语专业论文)本科学位论文

PAGEPAGE29中国某某某某学校学生毕业设计(论文)题目：TranslateEnglishandChineseNamesandTheirCulturalConnotation姓名:0000班级、学号：000000000000系(部)：经济管理系专业：商务英语指导教师:0000000开题时间：2009-4-10完成时间：2009-10-29200目录毕业设计任务书…………………1毕业设计成绩评定表……………2答辩申请书……………………3-6正文……………6-32答辩委员会表决意见……………33答辩过程记录表…………………34课题TranslateEnglishandChineseNamesandTheirCulturalConnotation课题(论文)提纲1.引言2.姓名与文化的关联。3.比较研究中英两个姓名系统。3.1.1这种现象表明了姓名的文化内涵与原始的图腾崇拜有关。3.1.2姓名是一种意识寻根的表现3.1.3姓名的潜在意义3.2中英文姓名制度的差别3.2.1姓氏反映了不同国家的文化3.2.2姓氏反映的文化内涵3.2.3姓名中映射出父权制，儒家崇拜，宗教等社会文化。3.2.4姓名体现出的社会阶级3.2.5姓名的其他表现4．姓名的翻译4.1中英姓名翻译的基本规则4.1.1中文名译英文名4.2.2英文名译中文名5.结论二、内容摘要姓名，作为一种文化载体，蕴涵着极其丰富的文化内涵，英汉姓名因而存在着巨大的文化差异。姓名不仅仅是一种简单的区别于他人的符号，它同时也代表一种社会文化现象，被喻为“文化的镜像”。通过对英汉姓名的历史渊源，宗教信仰，价值观念等的对比研究，揭示出英汉姓名的深层文化内涵及社会文化因素的影响，进而对这种富载文化内涵的姓名的翻译提出翻译原则和翻译翻译方法。英汉文化的共性，如图腾崇拜，寻根意识，特指性，心理暗示等使英汉不同姓名的系统中出现一些类同的现象。英汉文化内涵的差异，如中国的宗教观念，崇儒思想，等级制度等文化因素都可以从中国人的姓名中反映出来。而英语民族的宗教信仰，个人取向，强调个性也在英语姓名中有所反映。由于英汉姓名的文化差异，在翻译英汉姓名时应遵循“名从主人原则”和“约定俗成原则”，采取音译法和释义法，或者两者相结合，使人名的真实内涵得到体现。

参考文献[1]吴芳.姓名的跨文化研究.广西大学,2002.P1;

[2]邓卫峰.姓名,透视文化的窗口—汉英姓名对比研究.河北师范大学,2002,P2;

[3]孙守玉,岳红丽.英语姓名文化渊源浅探[J].淄博学院学报,2001,9,第17卷第3期:P51;

[4]同[3],P51;

[5]龚爱华.英汉姓名文化内涵比较及其互译要领[J].南京审计学院学报,2005,5,第2卷第2期:P82;

[6]黄碧蓉.英汉姓名的文化底蕴及其翻译[J].安徽工业大学学报,2004,7,第27卷第4期:P81;

[7]同[1],P31;

[8]同[1],P6;

[9]任瑞.跨文化交际下的中英姓氏比较研究[J].苏州大学,2004.P9;

[10]同[9],P10;

[11]李世荣.英语姓名的文化阐释[J].延安教育学院学报,2002,第3期:P34;

[12]同[6],P80;

[13]饶小飞.汉英人名姓氏的文化心态来源与命名习俗探微[J].培陵师范学院学报,2003,7第17卷第3期:P58;

[14]同[2],P11;

[15]同[2],P16;

[16]同[11],P35;

[17]汪旭琴.从文化渊源看汉英姓名习俗[J].安徽电子信息职业技术学院,2004,第1期:P75;

[18]同[2],P44;

[19]同[2],P44;

[20]章辉.汉语姓名与汉民族文化心理特征[J].毕节师范高等专科学院学报,

2005,6,第23卷第2期:P14;

[21]任朝迎.中国人姓名的音译之探讨[J].有色金属设计,2003,第30卷第2期:P70;

[22]同[1],P39;

[23]同[4],P82;

[24]李庆云.英语姓名的来源及其翻译[J].大同职业技术学院学报,2002,9,第16卷第3期:P49;

[25]朱红梅.英语人名翻译初探[J].郑州轻工业学院学报，2002，3,第3卷第1期:P79;

[26]同[13],P49;

[27]隋荣谊.英汉翻译新教程[M].中国电力出版社，2004，5.P237.TranslateEnglishandChineseNamesandTheirCulturalConnotation000000[Abstract]Ascarriersofcultures,ChineseandEnglishnamesarefullofculturalconnotations,andresultinculturalgapbetweenEnglishandChinese.Personalnamesarenotonlysymbolsthatdistinguishonepersonfromothers,butalsosocialsymbols.Itis“amirrorofculture”.Throughcomparativestudyonanation’shistory,religion,conceptsofmoralandvalue,wecanseedifferentculturalconnotationsbetweenEnglishandChinesenames.Andthensuggestsometranslationprinciplesandmethods.TherearesomesimilaritiesbetweenEnglishandChinesenames,suchastotemism,consciousnessofroot-seeking,specializingpoints.InChinesenames,wecanfindthecultureofreligiousconcepts,Confucian-worship,hierarchy.Andthereligion,personal-orientation,individualismcanalsobefoundinEnglishnames.InthetranslationofChineseandEnglishnames,translatorsshouldfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’slanguageandadopttheestablishedpopulartranslatednames,usetransliterationandparaphrasesoastoreflecttherealmeaningofEnglishandChinesenames.

[KeyWords]EnglishnamesandChinesenames;culturalconnotation;translationprinciple;translationmethod1．Introduction

Namesareusedbyhumanbeingsandtheyarethesignsforpeopletodistinguishonepersonfromtheothers.Theyhavesomeparticularfunctionsthatnoothersignscanperform.Theyarenotonlylinguisticsymbols,butalsosocialsymbols,representingrelationshipinsocietiesandcultures.“Eachpersonhashisnamewhichdistinguisheshimselffromothermembersinthecommunity,andeachcountryhasitsownnamesystemowingtotheirdifferenthistoricalandculturalbackground”.[1]P1Inaword,personalnamesarewindowsforpeopletoseethroughdifferentculturesindifferentsocieties.Forthesereasons,thetranslationofChineseandEnglishnamesshouldfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’scountryandadopttheestablishedpopulartranslatednames,usetransliterationandparaphrasesoastoreflecttherealmeaningofChineseandEnglishnames.2．Relationbetweenpersonalnameandculture

Personalnamesaretheproductsofthehistoricaldevelopmentofhumansociety.Theyreflecttheancientcivilizationandsplendidculturesfromdifferentrespects.Thechoiceofnametellssomethingabouthumansocietyandreflectsthesocialculture.Therefore,thedevelopmentofpersonalnamescannotbeisolatedfromthesocialculturebackground.Namesaretheinseparablepartofcultureandtheinevitableoutcomeofculturalevolution.Likeotherlinguisticphenomenatheyplaytheroleofcarrierandpropagatorofcultures.

Cultureinfluenceseveryaspectofhumansociallifeandinfluencespeople’sbehavior.Personalnamesaretheoutcomeofpeople’sbehavior,sotheinfluenceofculturecanbeseenfromthechangingofpersonalnames.Forexample,“inancientChina,“龟”（gui,tortoise）wasoftenusedaspersonalnamewhichhadgoodconnotationoflongevity.However,afterMingDynasty,theconnotationofthecharacterchanged,whichindicatesamanwhosewifeisnotloyaltohim.Thenfewpeopleuse“龟”aspersonalnames”.[2]P2Inaddition,personalnamesarerestrictedbyculture,forinstance,ChinesepeoplearegreatlyinfluencedbyConfucianism,soobviousproprietiescanbeseeninChinesenames.“EnglishpeoplebelieveChristianandreligioussensecanbefoundintheirnames”.[3]P51Ontheotherhand,asakindofsocialreality,personalnamesexertitsinfluenceandactiononsocietiesandcultures.Forexample,thetabooonusingthepersonalnamesofemperorswasformedundertheinfluenceoffeudalhierardyculture.Onceithadbeenformeditbegantorestricteveryaspectofpeople’slife.Inshort,personalnamesandcultureinfluencerestricteachotherandactoneachother.Frompersonalnames,peoplecanseetheculturalsimilarityanddifferenceindifferentsociety.

3.Comparativestudybetweenthetwonamesystems

Everynationhasitsownhistory,duringwhichithasshapeditsownparticularcharacteristics.Asaspecialsocialandlinguisticphenomenon,namesrelatetoculturesextensivelyandprofoundly.Whenwelearnaforeignlanguageandtrytomakeeffectivecommunication,wemustunderstanditscultureandneedtoknowaboutnamesandnaming,justaswhenwestudyalanguageweneedtoknowitsvocabularyanditsgrammar.Inthissection,wearegoingtomakeacomparativestudyontheseaspectsbetweenChineseandEnglishnamesystems.

3.1SimilaritiesbetweentheTwoSystems

3.1.1Totemism

“Atbeginning,thebasicofpersonalnameistotemism.Totemismmaybeanimals,plantsorunlivingthings.Thegroupoftentakessometotemastheirancestor,andthenuseditastheirownnames”.[4]P51“Inancienttimes,thehumanbeingswerenotonlyafraidofnaturalpower,butalsorespectit.Therefore,bothinChineseandEnglishpersonalnames,wecanfindlotsofnamesfromplace,animal,plant,unlivingthingsinnatureornaturalphenomenon”.[5]P82Forexample,inChinesenames,YanEmperor（炎帝,oneancestorofChinesepeople）livednearJiangWater（姜水,anameofariver）,sohistribeusedjiang(姜)astheirtribename,HuangEmperor(黄帝,anotherancestorofChinesepeople)livednearJiWater(姬水,anameofariver)andusedji(姬)asthetribe’sname,andyao(姚)camefromtheplacecalledyaoxu(姚墟)whereShun(舜,anancestorofChinesepeople)lived.InEnglish,peopleusedthenaturalphenomenonasfamilynames,suchasFrost,Rain,andSnowetc.Andsomenamescomefromanimalnames,forexample,Bird,Bull,Lion,Fox,Wolfandsoon.Somecomefromplantnames,forinstance,Flower,Apple,Lily,Rose.Thisphenomenonreflectssimilarculturalconnotationthatnamesareassociatedwithprimitivetotemism.

3.1.2Consciousnessofroot-seeking

InChineseandEnglishnames,wecanfindnamestakenfromtheirbirth-placenames,suchasLiuZongyuan(柳宗元),afamouspoetinTangDynasty,wasbornatHeDong,sohehasanothernameLiuHedong(柳河东).InChina,nowadays,wealsohavenameslikeWangChangcheng(王长城),LiChangjiang(李长江),etc.ThesenamesarecloselyconnectedwithChineseplaces.InEnglishpeoplealsotakeplacesastheirpersonalnames.“Forexample,Washington(华盛顿)，Brook(溪流),Well(泉),Wood(林木)andsoon”.[6]P81Thesesimilaritiesshow,ashumanbeing,theyallhavetheconsciousnessofroot-seeking.

3.1.3Specializingcharacter

Mostnamesinliteraryworkshavespecialmeaning.“Theysymbolizesomeconnotationsthatgofarbeyondtheirliterarymeanings.Theybecomesomegeneraltermsindicatingcertainmeaning,symbolizingcertainpeople,orreferringparticularlytocertainsituationsoractions”.[7]P31

Forexample,Shylock,inShakespeare’scomedyTheMerchantofVeniceindicatessomeusurersandbusinessmenwhoaremeanandcruel.Itcanalsobeusedasverbreferringtotheactionofowingusury.Forinstance,“Hisincomederivedfromillicitactivities-bookmaking,gambling,shylocking,andquestionableunionactivities”.

TakethepersonalnameZhuGeliang（诸葛亮）asanotherexample.Itcanbeusednotonlytorefertothespecificpersonwhooncereallyexistedinhistory,butalsousedasacommonnoun.“诸葛亮”inthesaying“三个臭皮匠，顶个诸葛亮”（Workingtogether,threeordinarymencanbeaswiseasZhugeLiangwhowasaverywisemanintheThreeStatesPeriod）isnotspecificaperson,itreferstosamewisemenlikehim.InChineseliterature,wemayfindnameswithspeciallyimpliedmeaningchosebywriterswhotendtotakeadvantageofhomophone,whichactsasapun.Forexample,charactersinTheStoryofStonethatwrittenbyChaoXueqin.JiaYucun(贾雨村)，Jiahua(贾化)，ZhenShiyin(甄士隐)，whichpronouncethesameasjiayucun(假语存--liesexist),jiahua(假话--telllies)，zhenshiyin(真事隐--truthishidden).

BothinChineseandEnglish,therearealsonamesingreatauthors’writingswhicharetakenascurrentvocabulary.

HamletistheheroinShakespeare’stragedy“Hamlet”.Hisunclemurdershisfathersohewantstotakerevengesonhim.Buthehesitatessomuchinhisavengingplanthatintheendhehastopretendbeingmad.“Hamlet”inpresentEnglishisnotonlyoneofthecharactersinShakespeare’stragedy,butalsoconsideredasasynonymtoapersonwhoishesitatingindoingsomethingortoahesitatingaction.Ifpeoplethinksomeoneisveryhesitatingindoingsomething,theymaysay“YouareHamlet”.RipVanWinkleisoneoftheheroesintheworksoftheAmericanwriterWashingtonIrving.Heisahen-packedman.Oncebeingscoldedbyhiswife,herunsintotheCatskill,amountainnearhisvillage.Hefeelsrelaxedthereanddrinkstoomuchbeforefallingasleep.Whenhewakesup,itistoomanyyearslaterthateverythinginthevillagehasbeengreatlychanged.RipVanWinkleisnowreferringtosomepeoplewhoareold-fashioned,orwhosemindsandthoughtsaredroppedfarbehindfromthepresentsociety.Peoplemayexpresssomeone’sideathatisoutofdate,bysaying“ThisistheopinionofsameRipVanWinkle”.

3.2Differencesbetweenthetwonamesystems

Itissaidthateverycoinhasitstwosides.Wetalkedabouttheirsimilaritiesabove,andnow,wearegoingtotalkaboutthedifferencesbetweenChineseandEnglishnamesystemsandtheircultureconnotation

3.2.1Originoffamilynames

Familynamesreflectdifferentnationalculturesandancientcivilizationfromvariouspointsofview.Beingakindofsocialphenomenonandcomplicatedpsychologicalprocess,familynamesrevealsocialreality.Sothedevelopmentoffamilynamescannotbeseparatedfromthesocialandculturalbackgroundonwhichtheyrely.Theformanduseoffamilynamesaredevelopingprogressivelywiththeevolutionofhistoryandchangingofsociety.

(i)OriginofChinesefamilynames

“ThenumberoffamilynamesinChineseismuchsmallerthanthatofEnglishname.Sofar,wehavealltogetherlessthantenthousandfamilynames,inwhich6363familynamesarefromtheHannationality.Butinthewest,thereare156thousandfamilynames,amongwhichthirty-fivethousandarefrequentlyseenindailylife”.[8]P6“ItisthoughtthatChinesefamilynamescameaboutinmatriarchalclansociety.Atthattime,everyclangotthedistinctiveclannamebasedontheirtotemordwellingplaces.TheclannamesaretheearliestfamilynameswhichinChinesearecalled姓(xing)”.[9]P9Afterpopulationofaclanmultiplied,theclandividedintoseveralbranchesandmovedtodifferentplacestolive.Theneachbranchwouldgettheirownbranchnametodistinguishthisbranchfromtheothers.Thenameofeachbranchiscalled氏(shi).Thedifferencebetweenthemisthat,theformeroneisusedtotellapartdifferentfamiliesinranksoffamilyinthesociety.So“xing”isnotchangeable,but“shi”canbechanged.InancientChina,therewouldbethousandofpeoplesharedthesamefamilynames,theycamefromthesameclansandlivedinthesamevillages,someofthemmaymovetootherplaces,buttheycouldn’tchangetheirfamilynames.

Accordingtohistoricalrecords,inXia,ShangandZhouDynasties,“xing”and“shi”begantohaveclasscolorbesidestheiroriginalfunction.“Shi”,especially,wasbestownedbytheirruler.Asaresult,“shi”becamethemarkofthearistocracy.Onlythearistocratshad“shi”,andtheordinarypeoplehadno“shi”.Allthearistocratsweremenatthattime.Therefore,onlymenhad“shi”.“Thedistinctionbetween“xing”and“shi”disappearedinQinandHanDynasty.Theybecameonethatiscalled“xingshi”inChineseandreferstofamilynames”.[10]P10Thisphenomenonindicatesthattheoriginalfunctionanddistinctionof“xing”and“shi”wereofnosignificanceafterthecentralizedfeudalsocialsystemwasestablished.

(ii)OriginofEnglishfamilynames

“ThehistoryofEnglishfamilynamesismuchshorterthantheChineseones.ItcameaboutintheMiddleAges”.[11]P34Theyareinlargenumber.SocialculturalfactorsplayanimportantroleinthedevelopmentofEnglishfamilynames.TheyreflectacompletepictureofEnglishfeudalsociety.SotheyarethelivingfossilsforstudyingEnglishhistoryandculture.

EnglishfamilynamesarethehistoricalproductofEnglishsociety.Theyexperiencednearlythreecenturiesfromnonexistencetofulldevelopment.Therewasatimewhennoonehadahereditaryfamilyname.“WhentheancestorsofEnglishpeopleinvadedBritaininthe5thcentury,theyformedatribalsociety.Englishpeopledidn’tgetfamilynamesuntil1066whenNormansconqueredBritain.TheNormanscertainlydidn’thaveafullydevelopedfamilynamessystem”.[12]P80Itwasnotyettheirconsciouspolicytoidentifyafamilybyonename.Buttherewerenotenoughnamesfordistinction.Inacertainperiodmoreandmorenameswereduplicated.Thisphenomenonbroughtgreattroubletopeopleincommunication.Sowhenpeopleweretalkingaboutapersonwhowasabsent,theyoftenemployedadditionalphrasesforfurtheridentification.Forexample,whentheyreferredtoJohnwholivedunderthehill,theywouldadddescriptivephraseas“fromthehill”.ThenJohnbecame“Johnfromthehill”toindicatewhichJohntheyweretalkingabout.Althoughtheadditionalphrasescanplaytheroleforfurtheridentification,theyaretoocomplicated.Therefore,someunimportantwordsareoftenomitted.Then“Johnfromthehill”ischangedinto“JohnHill”.Withthedevelopmentoffeudalsociety,therewasanurgentneedforpeopletosolvetheproblemofpersonalidentification.Forthisreason,peoplecreatedanewwayforexpressionthattheybegantoaddtheirfather’sormanor’snamebehindtheirgivenname.Infact,theadditionalphraseswhicharecalled“bynames”aretheembryosofEnglishfamilynames.TheyplayedanimportanttransitionalpartinthedevelopmentofEnglishfamilynames.Gradually,thesebynameswereturnedintohereditaryfamilynames.

Fromthebeginningofthe15thcenturynearlyallEnglishpeopleinheritedfamilynamesatbirthandtheword“surname”wasusedwiththemeaningwegiveittoday.IthadbeenborrowedfromFrench“surnom”,derivingfromLatinsuper,andwasusedatfirsttomean“anextraname”or“anickname”.ModernFrenchtranslates“surname”asnomdefemile,soinEnglishsurnameisalsocalledfamilyname.

3.2.2Formsofnamesandculturalconnotation

(i)Formsofnames

InbothChineseandEnglish,thepersonalnamescanbedividedintosurnamesandgivennames.Aperson’sfamilynameisinherent.He/Shegothis/herfamilynamebeforehe/shewasborn.Thereforefamilynamesarenotselectable.Thecaseisdifferentingivennames.Givennamesarenotinherentbutselectable;onecanchoosehisgivennames.Butthewayinwhichthesenamesareusedvariesinthetwolanguages.Afundamentaldifferenceistheorderinwhichthesenamesoccur.InChinese,thefamilynamecomesfirstandthegivennameisplacedafterit.Andtherearetwokindsoffamilyname,oneissinglesurname,theotherisdoublesurname.Forexample,王国强(WangGuoqiang),司马相如(SimaXiangru).Here王(Wang)and司马(Sima)arefamilynames,国强(Guoqiang)and相如(Xiangru)aregivennames.

However,inEnglish,thefamilynameisattheend,andthegivennameisinthefront.“ThegivennamecouldbedividedintoChristianname(firstname)andmiddlename(secondname)”.[13]P58

Inwesterncounties,mostpeoplehavemiddlenames,thenumberofwhichcanbeone,two,threeorevenmorethantens,suchas“anAmericanwriterRobertPeterTristramCoffinandaBritishwriterOscarFingalO’FlahertieWillsWilde”.[14]P11HereRobertandOscararegivennames,PeterTristramandFingalO’FlahertieWillsaremiddlename,CoffinandWildearefamilynames.Middlenamesareonlyusedinveryformalsituationforofficialpurpose,suchasonadocument.Usuallypeopleomitthemorusethecapitallettersinstead.ThereforethewritermentionedaboveiscalledRobertCoffinandOscarWildeonmostoccasions.AsmostEnglish–speakingpeoplebelieveinChristianityorCatholic,accordingtothereligiouscustom,ababywhowasbornaroundoneweekshouldbebaptizedandnamedinthechurch.SothegivennamecanalsobecalledbaptizednameorChristianname.AlthoughgivennamesarefrequentlyreferredtoasChristiannames,thisdoesnotmeanthatthepersonisaChristianorthenamehasbeengivenbythechurch.Nowadays,itisusuallyusedasasynonymfor“givenname”.Manyparentstaketheirbabytochurchtobebaptized,butthegivennamesarechosenbytheirparentsbeforethis.Andevenifapersonhasneverbeenbaptized,theirnamescanstillbecalledChristiannames.

(ii)Culturalconnotation

TheoppositeordersofChineseandEnglishnamesarereflectionofdifferentculturesonpersonalnames.Chinesefamilynamesrepresenttherelationshipofclan,groupandconsanguinity;TraditionalChinesecultureemphasizesthegenerality.Therefore,inthiskindofcultureatmosphere,Chinesepeopleputtheirfamilynameswhichrepresenttheirancestors,clansandgroupsbeforetheirgivennames,whichsymbolspersonindividualitywhilethewesternpeoplenotonlyemphasizeindividualpersonandindividuality,butalsovaluetheindependentpersonalityandself-consciousness,theythinkthegivennamesarelifeandsoulofaperson,sotheyhighlyvaluethem.

Contrarytothehighesteemofgivennames,Englishpeoplethinkfamilynamesarenotveryimportant.Thereflectionofthissenseleadstothedifferentorderofname,i.e.givennamesareputbeforefamilynames.Andwecanalsofindthedifferentcultureconnotationinwomen’snames.Chinesewomenremaintheirfamilynamesandgivennames,eveninthepast.However,inmostwesterncountries,thewomenoncemarried,theyshouldchangetheirfamilynametothatoftheirhusbands’accordingtothecustom.Forexample,whenMaryWhitemarredJohnBrown,hernameshouldbechangedintoMaryBrown.

Incidentally,asmentionedabove,thegivennamesinEnglish-speakingcountriesarealsocalledChristiannames.Thephenomenonreflectstheimportantroleinpeople’slife.

3.2.3Patriarchy,Confucian-worship,religion

“WiththeinfluenceofPatriarchy,Chinesepeopleoftenusebirthordersortheirfatherorgrandfather’sgivennamesasshi(氏).InZhouDynasty,peopleusedthecharacters孟（meng）,伯（bo）,仲（zhong）,叔(shu),季(ji)toindicatethebirthorderofchildren.Andtheywereusuallyusedasshi”.[15]P16AccordingtotheruleofPatriarchy,theemperor’ssonwascalled王子(wangzi,sonofanemperor),sonof王子iscalled王孙，（wangsun,grandsonofanemperor）,andthesonof王孙mustusethisgrandfather’sgivennameashis“shi”.ChinesenamearenotonlyinfluencedbyPatriarchy,butalsoinfluencedbyConfucian-worship.Anobviousfeatureistheuseofgenerationcharacter.Thatismembersofeachgenerationofapatriarchalfamilyusethesamecharacterintheirgivenname,differentgenerationusedifferentcharacter.Thusthenamecanshowtheirbearer’spositioninthefamilyhierarchy.However,thegenerationcharacterisgraduallydisappearingwiththedisappearanceofclanfamiliesandthefulfillmentoftheone-childpolicyinChina.Today,religioninfluencecanalsobefoundinEnglishpersonalnames.“Religion,especiallyChristianityplaysagreatimportantroleinthedevelopmentofEnglishpersonalnames.NotonlytheChristians,butalsocommonpeopleareinfluencedbyit.Therefore,theirnameshaveconnectionswiththereligion,theyreflectEnglishnationalcultures.InEnglish-speakingcountries,“John”isaverypopularnameusedbymen,whichcomesfromHebrew,Yohananmeansing“thegiftfromgod”.“John”isanameofbelieverinBible,soitbecomessopopularonpersonalnames”.[16]P35Inthe16thand17thcentury,Puritansshowgreatbeliefsinreligion.Theygavetheirchildrenslogannames,suchasBe-courteous,Fight-the-good-fight-of-faith,the-lord-is-near.Suchnamesweremuchlaughedatbythepublic.Themoresensiblepuritanshadinthemeantimemanagedtodisplaytheirreligiousbeliefsinlesseccentricwaysandcreatedagroupofnames,whichhavesurvivedtothepresentday.Thisnaminggroupfeaturedthe“virtues”anditincludessuchnamesasCharity,Faith,Grace,Honor,Joy,Hope,Patience,PrudenceandFelieity.

3.2.4Hierarchyandequality

“Confuciusemphasizedthedistinctionbetweenupperclassandlowerclass,thesuperiorgenerationandinferiorgeneration.Thehierarchyruleswerestrictlyobeyed”.[17]P75Infeudalsociety,whenpeoplecameacrossthegivennamesoftheemperor,theyhadtoavoidthem.Ifaperson’sowngivennamewasthesameastheemperor’sincoincidence,hehadtochangehisowngivennameevenfamilyname.Forinstance,“theemperorineastHanDynastywasnamed刘庄(LiuZhuang),when庄忌（ZhuangJi）inWestHanwenttoEastHan,hehadtochangehisnameinto严忌(YanJi)Notonlytheemperor’snamesweretaboos,thenamesoftheordergenerationwerealsotaboosfortheyoungergeneration.Therefore,inChinaasonneverusedhisfather’sgivennameashisownnames”.[18]P44

Whatishighlyvaluedinthewestisindividualismandasaresultequalrelationshipamongpeopleishighlyvalued.Andthereforewhatisadvocatedisnottheobligationsandresponsibilitiesascribedtoeachmemberofthesocietyaccordingtohisorhersocialpositionbuthumanitarianismandhumanrights.Thewayofusingtheirfatherorgrandfather’snamesastheirownnamesisapracticalwayofnaming.Forexample,“BritishpoliticianWilliamPittandhissonWilliamPitt,AmericanartistGeorgeInnessandhissonsharedthesamename”.[19]P44Thatisbecausebeforetheappearanceoffamilynames,theconsanguinityoffamilywasmainlymanifestedthroughduplicationofnamesandalliteration.Andduplicationofnamesisthesimplestway.Latterfamilynamesappeared,butthetraditionofusingfatherorgrandfather’snametonameababysurvived.Forthepurposeofidentification,“theelderandtheyounger”or“senior”or“junior”arerespectivelyputbehindthefatherandson’snames.Suchas,JamesEarlCarter,Sr,andhissonJamesEarlCarter,Jr,usuallyinBritainpeopleuse“theelderandtheyounger”,inAmerica,peopleuse“senior”,and“junior”.

3.2.5Otheraspects

“Chinesepeoplenotonlyhaveformalnameandcourtesyname(字),butalsohaveliteraryname(hao号),whichisnotuniquephenomenainChinesenames.Westernpeoplealsohavenickname,butitisnotascommonasChinese”.[20]P14ZiandHaoaretheproductsofancientChineseculture.“Zi”isusedbythepersonofinferiorpositiontoaddressthepersonofsuperiorposition.ThisreflectstheworshipofgivennamesandhierarchyinancientChina.“Hao”,whichiskindoflaudatorytitle,usuallyshowsaperson’sinterests,hopeorspiritualsustenance.Although“hao”hascomeaboutveryearly,itprevailedafterTangandSongDynastiesandreacheditsclimaxinMingandQingDynasties.ThisistheresultoftheprosperityofliteraturesinceTangandSongDynasties,butitisnotusednowanymore.

InbothsystemsofChinesenamesandEnglishnames,therearediminutivesorhypocoristicnames.ThesenamesareuseddifferentlyinBritainorAmericaandChina.Chinesediminutivescanonlybeaddressedbythefamilymembersorveryclosefriends.Theyoungergenerationandotherpeoplecannotaddressapersonwithhisdiminutives.WhileEnglishdiminutivesareassociatedwiththegivennamesandusuallyarethevariantsofgivennames.Andaperson’sdiminutivesareusedinhiswholelifeandcanbeaddressedbyotherpeoplebesideshisfamilymembersandfriends.4.TranslationofNames

4.1Basicrulesinthetranslationofnames

Namesareusedtoindicateoneindividualinordertodifferhimfromotherpersonsinthecommunity.Therefore,themethodsandprinciplesintranslatingnameseitherfromChinesetoEnglishorEnglishtoChinesearehighlyregardedinthetranslationfield.Thetranslationofgeneralnamesshouldfollowtwobasicrulers:namelyfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’slanguageandadoptestablishedpopulartranslatednames.Besides,themethodsofannotatingtransliterationandparaphraseandothersarenecessaryintranslationinmanycasesso