Chinese-English Translation Of Legal Terms Based On Reiss’ Functionalist Translation Approach

In order to improve the translation quality of the legal text, legal term translationplays an important role in the study of legal text translation. Quite a few peopleresearch on the translation of legal terms. However, it is found that no papers or thesesprobe into the translation methods of legal terms based on the FunctionalistTranslation Theory of Katharina Reiss.The present study aims at finding out the answers to the following questions: inaccordance with the Functionalist Translation Theory of Katharina Reiss regards as thetranslation of legal terms, what methods can we apply to the translation of legal terms?Based on Reiss’ Functionalist Translation Theory, the study of the translation methodof legal terms is conducted through a case study of legal terms in the English Versionof The Criminal Law of People’s Republic of China. The main findings are as follows:First, direct translation is the most appropriate and proper method and borrowing is thesignificant supplement to direct translation; Second, due to the terminologicalincongruency, the denotation and connotation of a term both in English and in Chineseand even in different departments should be considered with great care when direct orborrowing translation method is applied, or else improper application will result in thenegative effect on translation quality, not achieving the anticipated effect as well.Therefore, direct translation and borrowing cannot be mechanically applied but shouldbe applied in accordance with a certain translation practice.Although the Functionalist Translation Theory of Katharina Reiss applied in legalterm translation is at the initial stage, and therefore it is not thorough orcomprehensive and it may not reflect all the respects relative to the research, it iscertain that the guidance of the theory in legal term translation will be more ripen andmore telling with the further study in the academia and by the author.