An Empirical Study On Application Of Parallel Texts In The Chinese&English Translation Of Museum Introductory Texts In Xi’an

Tourism texts make it possible for tourism attractions, travel agencies, hotels,and restaurants to reach their potential clients regardless of the locations of theirresidence. With an increasing number of international tourists visiting China annually,the demand for quality tourism translation is on the rise. Much has been done inresearching translation of hotels and tourism attractions, but studies on the large groupof museums which could educate and entertain the public have long beenunderrepresented in academic literatures. This thesis probes into the question of thetranslation of museum introductory texts, using Skopos theory and the concept of“parallel text” as theoretical framework. The author conducts a parallel text analysisof three museum introductory texts in Xi’an, and three American museumintroductory texts, summarizing linguistic, aesthetic, and cultural differences betweenChinese and English museum introductions. Three procedures to apply parallel textsin tourism translation that entail “reading, restructuring, and rewriting” are proposedfinally. This study is of importance to further investigating museum introductory textstranslation in other cities across China, and preparing public museums in Xi’an forreceiving international visitors.