A Study Of English Chinese Translation Of Cosmetics Brand Name From The Perspective Of Skopos Thoery

Based on functional skopos theory, this paper aims to explore better methods andstrategies from the perspective of the translator’s subjectivity with the ways of exampleexplanation and quantity analysis by an emphasis on scrutinizing the influence ofculture. With the theoretical essence of skopos rules——“skopos rule”,“coherencerule” and “fidelity rule” and the theoretical judgment that “the purpose of translationdecides the methods and strategies chosen”, this research probes how the translatormakes a choice in the process of cosmetic band name translation to a good outcomethrough the existing translation method employing the examples of more260translatedChinese brand names, so as to fall into the targeted consumers’ acception. The researchshows that a popular Chinese targeted cosmetic brand name is bound to be beautiful insound, short in form and profound in meaning. It is also a perfect integration of itscommercial purpose and Chinese culture.This paper can be divided into six parts. This first part is introduction, whichdiscuss the significance and necessity of the research of translating cosmetic brandname into Chinese, the research questions, the research methods, the innovation of thisstudy and the structure of this paper.The second part is literature review, which contains the theoretical one and theresearch one. The former is mainly about the history of skopos theory, its core contentand the role of culture in it as well as the definition of brand name. Besides, twotheoretical concepts have been introduced, that is, reception aesthetics and culturalidentity. The latter is about the researches of Chinese targeted cosmetic brand nametranslation at home and abroad.The third part analyzes the impact of culture on the translation of cosmetic brandname into Chinese. This research has chosen more than260translated cosmetic brandname from at least2000ones by the frequency of the employment of characterscharacterized in Chinese traditional culture. Of the chosen examples, top ten is rankedby their high using frequency, and classification and meaning explanation is givenafterwards, from which a conclusion of the features of the Cosmetic brand names andhow the translator makes a selection in the process of translation is made.The fourth part makes an exploration of the methods and strategies of translatingforeign Cosmetic brand names into Chinese. There are four common methods:transliteration, literal translation, the combination of the two and coinage. Based onthese four methods and with the260chosen examples, an analysis is made about howthe translator plays his or her subjectivity. From the above research, three tentativeprinciples of cosmetic brand name translation targeted in Chinese are concluded asbeautiful sound, short form and profound meaning.The fifth part discusses the application of skopos theory in translating cosmeticbrand names into Chinese. This part mainly explores how the “three rules” of skopos theory and appellative text function on the translator making a choice of methods andstrategies as well as how skopos theory judges the translation outcome. And also thelimitation of skopos theory’s guidance on cosmetic brand name translation targeted inChinese is put forward.The last part is the conclusion of the paper. It is found in the research that a goodChinese translated version of cosmetic brand name is always the embody of Chineseculture by being characterized in the integrity of beautiful sound, short form andprofound meaning.