An Analysis on Translation Problems and Their Countermeasures of International Electronic Commerce Contracts

萬麗

【Abstract】This study aims to analyze the problems encountered in the process of translating business contracts.The study object of this article is international electronic commerce contracts. Through a series of analysis，the countermeasures responded to the related problems are made for providing some useful reference for the translation practice of business contracts.

【Key words】Business Contracts； Translation； Cultural Difference

1. Introduction

International business contracts belong to a kind of legal documents，clearly stipulating the rights and obligations of both parties of signing contracts.If a translator could not correctly translate these legally binding normative terms，which could cause deviations in understanding of the contracts，it is inevitable to produce contract disputes which would influence normal performance of the contracts （Li Jinzhu & Bai Long，2012）. Therefore，it is necessary to know the translation problems and their countermeasures of international electronic commerce contracts.

2.Three problems appeared in translation of international e-commerce contracts

In order to reduce mistakes in translation，the reasons of making mistakes must be carefully analyzed by research and exploration. Only by identifying the causes of making problems can the translators reduce errors in the process of translation e-commerce contracts.

2.1 Problems caused by cultural differences

In the process of translating international business contracts，it is hard to avoid some unnecessary mistakes caused by cultural background differences.Because a translator can not clearly know the different culture and even customs of other countries，it is common to make some misunderstanding of international business contracts when a translator try to understand the contract he or she will translate.

2.2 Improper use of professional vocabulary

Ambiguities will be caused by wrong expression of specialized vocabulary in understanding the contract content.Different people from different professions and regions may have different way of thinking and traditional concepts，which will cause non-equivalence understanding of English and Chinese meaning of the same contract.

2.3 Inaccurate comprehension of the original meaning

In the process of translating international business contracts，it is easy to just translate the surface meaning of some words，which will cause immeasurable consequences. Therefore，a translator must pay attention to the metaphorical meaning of a word or a sentence in the contract.Understanding a contract must be combined with the relevant legal documents and the context of the contract.

3. Countermeasures

Through a series of research，the author finds out that there are three main countermeasures in responding to the above three problems.

3.1 When in Rome，do as the Romans do

The clients involved a international business contract have different cultural background which is mainly reflected in different way of thinking，different language habits. Therefore，it is very important to improve the accuracy of translation text of a contract by properly converting different cultural connotation.

3.2 Specifying language

As Qin Xiubai（2002，P.57）said，terminology has accurate meaning without emotion，neutral，and almost no associative meaning.For example，construe is a terminology in legal English instead of begin. Mo Zaishu（2003） stated that terminology could effectively avoid misunderstanding of both parties because of different understanding.

3.3 Understanding the context

Context refers to the specific environment which language used. The rich connotation contained by context decides the meaning of words. Therefore，only by fully considering the context factors can the translator truly understand the meaning of the original text and achieve equivalence of the original text and the translated text.

4. Conclusion

Business contracts of translation as a kind of very professional text translation，makes stricter requirements on the accuracy of the translation. A translator ought to accumulate professional knowledge and improving their professional quality，combining with the specific context，strengthening the quality of different cultural conversion，constantly improving the accuracy of business contract translation by practices，so as to promote the smooth progress of Chinese international business cooperation and exchanges.

References：

[1]Li Jinzhu，Bai Long.An Analysis on Translation of Foreign Trade Contracts in International Trade[J].Journal of International Business Trade.2012（1）.