A Cultural Approach To The English Translation Of Chinese Dish Names

As a new and practical research in the field of translation, the English translation of Chinese dish names is an important part of Chinese cuisine culture, and meanwhile, it is also a window of Chinese culture to the outside world.In this paper, the cultural factors in the English translation of Chinese dish names are expounded from the cultural perspective, with the application of cultural translation theory including its major translation strategies—foreignization and domestication to support the thesis.The thesis not only reviews some previous studies about the English translation of Chinese dish names in the recent years, but also points out the problems in the course of translation. Then, cultural translation theory, foreignization and domestication as theoretical foundations are recounted in the thesis. In addition, their significance of cultural conveyance is elaborated in thesis. Subsequently, the thesis analyzes the types of dish names, their cultural connotations as well as the difficulties in translation. Moreover, the author points out that the existing problems and stresses the importance of cultural factors in translation. In response to these issues, literal translation, literal translation with explanation, free translation and transliteration are put forward to maintain the cultural characteristics.Aiming at the cultural conveyance in the English translation of Chinese dish names, such translation techniques derived from foreignization strategy as literal translation, literal translation with explanation etc. are regarded as the major effective means in the English translation of Chinese dish names. These solutions can not only keep the unique Chinese cultural features of the original text, but also help Chinese dishes be accepted by the world.