A Study On The English Translation Of Chinese Internet Buzzwords From The Perspective Of Communication Theories

In recent years, the prosperity of Web2.0leads to the popularity of social networks and the Chinese Internet buzzwords. Meanwhile, the rapid growth of the Internet also crosses the boundaries of space and time, turning the world into a global village. Consequently, some Chinese buzzwords came into fashion in media abroad, such as "dama"(大妈) and "tuhao"(土豪) in2013. In the two pieces of news, the English versions of these two buzzwords directly borrowed Chinese pinyin. In fact, it lacks standards and criteria in the current English translation of Chinese buzzwords, therefore, some faults, mistranslations, and simple translations which don’t convey the deep connotation or ironic implication appear. This phenomenon hinders the communication between China and foreign countries.The mass transmitting of Chinese Internet buzzwords is in nature a communication phenomenon, conforming to the communication process models and related theories. However, the current studies on C-E translation of Chinese buzzwords mainly treat them as plain texts, applying the traditional translation theories without considering their communication characteristics and properties. As a result, in order to tailor proper translation strategies and techniques to different kinds of buzzwords, it is necessary to fully understand the mechanism of buzzwords transmitting and the factors causing their prevalence from the perspective of communication theories.This thesis probes into the English translation strategies and techniques of Chinese Internet buzzwords from the perspective of communication theories. It consists of six parts. Introduction elaborates on the background information, the research purpose, the research significance and the detailed outline. Chapter Two Literature Review investigates the current researches on Chinese Internet buzzwords and on the C-E translation of them, and gives an overview of the communication theories. Chapter three selects out the target subjects and analyzes their sources, categories, causes, and characteristics. Based on this analysis, chapter four studies the mechanism, the underlying factors and the functions of Chinese Internet buzzwords communication, explaining how and why they are so popular. Then chapter five is the core of the thesis, in which translation strategies and techniques are put forward. Finally, the conclusions summarize the whole thesis, present the final results, and point out the limitations of this study.As an interdisciplinary study, this thesis combines communication theories with translation practice, trying to find the proper translation strategies and techniques for different kinds of Chinese Internet buzzwords. Certainly, this combination would not be perfect, but it at least suggests a new and valuable perspective to study the translation practice and inspires the later translators and scholars to study further.