| Nowadays computer has become one of the essential tools in our work and life and computer-related industry has become the fastest growing industry in the world. However, due to various reasons, China lags far behind developed countries in the field of computer technology. Therefore, it is necessary to learn from foreign countries. As the translation of computer terminologies will have a direct influence on the understanding of new technology, terminology translation becomes the primary concern of this thesis, which makes an analysis of the influence that the translation exerts on the computer terminological development based on the theoretical framework of the "language contact theory". Language contact has been an important factor in the historical development of language. the overwhelming influx of English borrowings, especially for computer terminology, started at the end of the19th century and has lasted until the present, which is an important period of English-Chinese contact history. After reform and opening up policy, China communicates with the outside world more frequently and closely, science and technology in China has undergone faster development ever since. However, with the development of computer science, computer terminologies play a more and more important role in the understanding of computer English, which is a study of computer terminological English-Chinese translation from various aspects including characteristics of computer terminology, contrasts in word formation between English and Chinese, principles and methods of translation, etc. This thesis consists of the following parts:Chapter One introduces the definition and characteristics of computer terminology in this thesis, a contrastive study on English and Chinese word formation, current situation of English-Chinese terminology translation. The general characteristics of English computer terminology are discussed with examples. Through the short development history of computer and its wide application, computer terminology has its own characteristics, which produces lots of new words through penetration, derivation, transformation and so on, which is an essential feature of computer terminology.Chapter Two presents principles of computer terminological translation and word formations from the perspective of language contact. Language contact has been an important factor in the historical development of the Chinese language. Language contact is the basic content to study language variation and language change. It can be divided into direct language contact and indirect language contact, intimate contact and cultural contact. Chapter Three proposes some methods for computer terminology translation from the macrocosmic and microcosmic perspectives of language contact. Translation is a highly-individualized and creative job. The English-Chinese translation of computer terminology can ask for help from literal translation, free translation, transliteration, borrowing, compounding, transformation and acronym etc, using them flexibly based on the actual situation.Chapter Four points out several contradictions critical in terminology translation from eight aspects:nominalized modifier vs. adjective modifier, direct order vs. indirect order, monosemy vs. conciseness, conciseness vs. motivation, Chinese characteristics vs. conciseness, transliteration vs. free translation, analogy vs. flexibility and translatability vs. intranslatability, etc. Contradiction exists in the developing process of all things, and penetrates in the beginning and end of their development. That is to say that the two aspects of one kind of things are mutually exclusive and battling but mutually formed a whole at the same time. Therefore, contradictions are characterized by the identity and the struggle which interpenetrate and are interdependent between them, and may be transformed to each other under certain condition. Generally speaking, the existence of any contradictions is relative rather than absolute. It must deal well with these contradictions if one wants to translate the technical terminology well. Therefore the author comes to the following three conclusions according to these analysis:(1) Terminologies of science and technology must change according to the change of time and the development of science and technology.(2) Terminologies of science and technology must adopt according to the situation of acceptors willing.(3) The English-Chinese translation of science and technological terminologies need to adopt the combination of transliteration and free translation to better express the content of terminologies. |
