A Report Of C-E Translation Of Signage In Heritage Preservation Sites Along The Grand Canal (Hangzhou Section)

This report serves as part of the research project entitled Construction of Heritage Interpretation System in the Cultural Belt of the Grand Canal from International Tourists Perspective commissioned by the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal(Hangzhou Section)Comprehensive Protection Center.Being the southern end of the world heritage,the Grand Canal is situated in Hangzhou.The heritage sites along the Grand Canal hold significant roles in promoting Hangzhou?s image as an international city.Heritage interpretation serves as a bridge between tourists and cultural heritage.Focusing on the on-site interpretative panels of 14 heritage sites along the Grand Canal(Hangzhou Section),the study analysed the English translation of the interpretation texts from a cross-cultural communication approach.The analysis will focus on the language provision to international tourists and the existing translation from both linguistic and cultural aspects.The result shows that only 8 out of 14 sites provided all signage with translation.The translation contains multiple language errors and poor effects of cross-cultural communication.Thus,it has to be improved by making sure that all signage displays English translations,correcting the errors in grammar,syntax,mechanic and format,and fixing the loss of cultural memory in both the translated names of heritage and the interpretive texts.However,the translation methods and strategies discussed in this study could not fully fix the addressed cross-cultural communication problems because the interpretative texts were translated from the Chinese interpretation designed for the local tourists.The proposed way to solve this case was to redo the interpretive planning of these heritage sites with the translator as part of the planning team.This study presents a few steps for a more comprehensive improvement of the interpretive signage: 1)build an interpretive planning team identify the purposes of the interpretation;2)set a clear target audience for the interpretation;3)design good quality interpretations;4)translate,proofread and design panel layout;5)perform pilot studies and print.