Analysis on the English - Translayion Errors of Public Signs

4489 Words18 Pages
ISSN 1799-2591 Theory and Practice in Language Studies, Vol. 2, No. 6, pp. 1214-1219, June 2012 © 2012 ACADEMY PUBLISHER Manufactured in Finland. doi:10.4304/tpls.2.6.1214-1219 Analysis on the English-translation Errors of Public Signs Minghe Guo School of Foreign Languages, Changchun University of Science and Technology, Changchun 130022, China Email: cwkerbao@sina.com Abstract—With the rapid progress of economy, the intensification of China’s reform and opening-up policy, as well as the successful celebration of a number of great global events, China is attracting more attention worldwide and myriad foreign visitors stream into China. An increasing number of public signs are presented in both Chinese and English which are regarded as a symbol of a city’s internationalization degree. However, the frequent problems in the translation of public signs degrade China’s international status as a major role on the global platform. Mistranslation of public signs is an emergent issue that needs immediate attention. Index Terms—public signs, English translation, functions, mistranslation I. INTRODUCTION In the past 30 years of the implementation of opening and reform policy, the outside world has witnessed China’s great progress in the economic, scientific, technological and cultural fields. The rapid elevation in the economic and international status of china results in a steady influx of foreigners to take participate in various activities in China, such as the 6th Asian Winter Games in our city Changchun, 29th Olympic Games held in Beijing, the World Exposition in Shanghai, etc. With more people from overseas travelling, working or studying in China, the significance of providing English public signs in big cities of China has become increasingly prominent. Bilingual public signs are not uncommon in the public places like streets, stations, parks and tourist

More about Analysis on the English - Translayion Errors of Public Signs

Open Document