R. Gordon, of Brookvale, Sydney sent this to SMH. He noticed a 'weird' sign at the Bund in Shanghai -
Any activity or action against social order, or repugnant to the eye, is prohibited.
It is a classic example that demonstrates linguistic representations and features in different cultural contexts constitute different forms and meanings. There are always discrepancies between the model of the world presented in the source text and that of the target culture’s conception of the world. We must always guard ourselves against interpreting other languages in terms of our own cultural framework, otherwise our translated works may violate theexpectation of the target readers, and create an adverse effect on the naturalness and readability of our translations.
Repugnant to the eye(s) 不雅观 is a literal translation from the Chinese expression describing something which is so offensive that it is repellent to the senses (our eyes). However, there is a different linquistic representation in the target language in expressing the same situation.
I strongly believe that a professsional and competent translator must possess a well-informed intercultural awareness besides a thorough and intimate knowledge of the target language. In the future, I will share information if I come across any similar examples as such or any typical phraseology of the target language which can enchance the naturalness and readability of our translations. Once again, your opinions and contributions are most welcomed.
Successful translation goes beyond a good command of the grammar and lexicon of the language, and it is not sufficient to rely on reference resources (bilingual dictionaries)which typically focus on the lexical part of lexicongrammmar.
In order to understand how meaning is generated in a particular cultural setting, we must have continuous interaction with the target readers. In another words, we must have a good understanding on how the language comes to function for its users, thus minimise miscommunication.
The information content of the above item is not entirely wrong, but the way it was written is not just "inscrutable", it also gives an overtone that the authority is blunt and money-grabbing. I think the message that the sign really wants to transmit is:
Your visit has come to an end. If you would like to visit again, please purchase a new ticket.
Mistranslation/Cultural Oversight Friday, March 03, 2006
As mentioned previously, translation equivalents are always relative and influenced by social and cultural environments. We must be cautious in trying to find translation equivalents which are not always semantically equivalent, and may result in miscommunication.
There are examples of some blatant mistranslations/cultural oversights below. (some are from Axtell , Do's and Taboos of Hosting international visitors. NY:Wiley:2 1990)
An Ad by General Motors
The body of the car was translated into corpse of the car (Flemish)
An ad by Pepsi
Come alive with Pepsi => Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave (Taiwan)
Instruction/description on food packages
Besmear [sic] a backing pan with a good tomato sauce and after, dispose the cannelloni, lightly distanced between them.
The product can be preserved within eighteen months...Put in a sunless spot. The selected quality black sesame was grown at a place of mild geology and bracing climate...Its superior quality is indeed the most sufficient and balanced nutrient sources for the aged and young children. Please rest assured to eat it. These dried products have also the peculiarity of sweet, smelling, appetite, crispness, tempting taste. Providing many nutritive facts, vitamins, mineral necessary for the body, avoid the extra glucosa [sic].
(This item was published in SMH 29-11-05)
"The clio coddle menswear store in Shanghai has the most surreal sign in English I've ever encountered," writes Denis Martin, of Woolloomooloo. "It reads: 'Eternal gram putting to the trouble of gram and reaching uniqlle [sic] grade'."
These mistranslations surely would create a negative impact on, rather than enchance, the products they are attempting to market in these countries!
An aquaintance took this photo of a sign in Hong Kong which says:
Anyone allowing their dog to foul in public place will risk prosecution.
In the first place, 'foul' - in my culture - is not the right choice of word to describe dogs doing their business. Come to think of it, I've never seen any signs prohibiting dogs from 'fouling'. Either it's 'dogs are not allowed in this area. Fines apply' or 'please clean up after your dog. Fines apply'. How could you possibly stop your dog from 'fouling' in the first place? That's cruelty to animals!
Welcome to my blog, I am a freelance interpreter and translator with a MA major in Interpreting and Translation. I was prompted to set up this blog after seeing the intense interest and response generated by an item published by SMH and the subsequent items. From the point of view of a translator, the readers’ reactions were caused by the differences in culture (besides the bad English factor of those items). It is not my objective to set up this blog in order to find fault with translation but to create a site for exchange of ideas and to promote constructive discussion.
Instruction for a ruler bought in KL: This product was easy to burning, aloof high temperature, please, because maybe beget any danger and the product’s definition distort. (Column 8 SMH 8-10-05)
The link between culture and language Culture is directly related to the way we perceive our world to which meaning shared by members of society have been attached. It is an ordered system, or a system of meanings and symbols (semiotics), in terms of which social interaction takes place.
Language provides an ‘ready-made’ vehicle to express this ordered system of values and beliefs shared by a particular culture.
Every culture has a culture-specific way of conceptualising the world with symbols; different cultural contexts constitute different forms and meanings. Consequently, there are always discrepancies between the model of the world presented in the source text and that of the target culture’s conception of the world and their expectation, which can result in the “strangeness” of these items.
I think the writer of the item above is just one of a large number of translators who cannot appreciate that SL (source language) and TL (target language) items rarely have the same meaning in the linguistic sense at the word-level. Equivalence is always relative and is influenced by a variety of linguistic and cultural factors. We must guard ourselves against interpreting other language in terms of our own cultural framework.
Translation should be done by looking at the overall meaning of the text, and assessing its significance and implication in the given context. By looking at every word in isolation and attempting to present them with a full linguistic account of its meaning will not only make the text very “unnatural”, but also distract the readers from comprehending the text itself.
Below is my reinterpreted-translation and your opinion is welcome
The product is highly-flammable; keep away from high temperatures. Do not expose the product to high heat as it may cause the product to warp and yield inaccurate measurements.
(My ideas are very much influenced by the authors Mona Baker, Christian M.I.M. Matthiessen, and Clifford Geertz).
Each language articulates or organises the
world differently because different cultures take on different
emotions and attitudes when they conceptualise their experiences
or ideas and these are transmitted through their languages.
We must be equipped with an intercultural awareness besides
the language itself because target readers’ expectations
differ by their linguistic conventions as well as their cultural
norms... read more about this blog
