Integration Of Cultural Information Of Animal Idioms Into English-chinese Learners’ Dictionaries

This thesis focuses on the cultural information of English animal idioms. The research involves the cultural differences between English animal idioms and Chinese animal idioms, the noticeable deficiencies in representing cultural information discovered in the current ECLDs and tentative pattern to represent cultural information.Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Conceptual Blending Theory are adopted to find the cultural difference between animal images in English and Chinese. Cultural differences between English animal idioms and Chinese animal idioms can be classified into three types: same animal image with commendatory or derogatory meaning in English and Chinese, animal image with cultural vacancy in another language, and different animal images with similar symbolic meanings.In consideration of the vast differences between English animal idioms and Chinese animal idioms and the necessity of representation of cultural information in ECLDs, an investigation on representation of cultural information of English animal idioms becomes essential current ECLDs. The result of this investigation suggests that definitions, equivalents, labels, and notes are four major means adopted to represent cultural information in current ECLDs, but there still exist inconsistency and disorder in terms of the representation of cultural information.The representation of cultural information of English animal idioms in ECLDs can be improved systematically and specifically with the help of representation pattern. The new pattern will conform to culture-based principle and the meaning-oriented principle.