Translation Strategies of Tourist Attraction Names in Thailand to Chinese
Keywords:
translation strategies, tourist attraction names in Thailand, ChineseAbstract
This article aimed to examine translation strategies of tourist attraction names in Thailand to Chinese, to analyze distinctive points and weak points of translation strategies toward tourist attraction names in Thailand to Chinese and to examine Guidelines to translate name of places from Thai to Chinese. The sample used in this study consisted of 645 names that appeared in Thailand (《泰国》). Perter Newmark’s translation theory was used to analyze translation strategies that were divided into 2 types. There were SL emphasis and TL emphasis.
The result showed that Chinese translation strategies consisted of 4 types. There was a transcription, naming, free translation, and mixed strategies translation. In addition, these 4 strategies could be divided into sub-19 types that each had a different distinctive point and weak point, and the translation of the proper name from Thai to Chinese was prevalent.
Among these strategies used, transcription and literal translation were the highest at 51 percent. A transcription in syllables was 13.02 percent. The literal translation was 6.04 percent. A transcription without syllables together with literal translation was 4.80 percent and transcription in adding syllables with literal translation was the lowest at 4.50 percent. Regarding the quality of translation, the translator should understand the source language and the target language in terms of meaning and translators should be able to select strategies for translation appropriately, and correctly.
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