Chinese translation theory
Mandarin Chinese Translation Xuanzang (600-664AD)Xuanzang’s theory is the Five Untranslatables (五種不翻), or five instances where one should transliterate: Polysemy: bhaga (as in the Bhagavad Gita) 薄伽, which means comfortable, flourishing, dignity, name, lucky, esteemed. Deference to the past: the translation for anuttara-samyak-sambodhi is already established as Anouputi 阿耨菩提. Secrets: Dharani 陀羅尼, Sanskrit ritual speech or incantations, which includes mantras. None in China: jambu tree 閻浮樹, which does not grow in China. To inspire respect and righteousness: Prajna 般若 instead of “wisdom” (智慧). Yan Fu (1898)Yan Fu is famous for his three-facet theory of translation; namely, faithfulness (信 xìn), be true to the original in spirit; expressiveness (達 dá), be accessible to the target reader; and elegance (雅 yǎ), be in the language the target reader accepts as being educated. Daoxuan (596-667AD) This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. Chinese translation services Of the three facets, the second is the most important one. If the meaning of the translated text is not accessible to the reader, there is no difference between having translated the text and not having translated the text at all. In order to facilitate comprehension, word order should be changed, Chinese examples may replace original ones, and even people’s names should be rendered Chinese. Yan Fu’s theory of translation is based on his experience with translating works of social sciences from English into Chinese. The typical misapplication of the theory is to extend it to the translation of literary works. The two typical misinterpretations of the theory are: (a) interpreting accessibility as clarity or expressiveness, (b) overgeneralizing Yan Fu’s specific readership to general readership. According to Yan Fu, good translation is one that is true to the original in spirit, accessible to the target reader in meaning, and attractive to the target reader in style. Source: wikipedia.org