Study on the Current Situation of Public Signs Translation

王雪霜 寧鳳

【Abstract】Public signs play an important role in the work of infrastructure construction. Error translations of public signs in Tianjin will not only cause foreigners inconvenience but also affect the external image of Tianjin. From this situation， this paper mainly focuses on studying the methods of translating public signs in Tianjin through analyzing the existing problems of it.

【Key words】Public signs in Tianjin; Existing problems; Translation strategies

【作者簡介】王雪霜（1979-），女，天津農學院人文學院，講師，碩士，翻譯理論與教學研究;寧鳳，天津農學院人文學院。

【基金項目】課題名稱：池州市旅游文化漢英翻譯——歸化與異化的動態選擇策略，課題編號：SK2017A0778。

Ι.Introduction

With the fast development of international trades and the quick spread of urbanization in Tianjin， the infrastructure of public signs， which can be seen everywhere in our daily life， has been a significant agenda on city construction in Tianjin in the new era （Yu Xudong 54）. Based on this， the current situation of public signs translation is greatly valued by the government， universities and scholars in Tianjin.

Ⅱ.Existing Problems on Public Signs Translation in Tianjin

1.Mixture of Chinese pinyin and English words

Pinyin is a special production and tool to express Chinese pronunciation. And it benefits the popularization of education. If pinyin doesnt be applied properly， translation will be meaningless and confusing. For example：

襄陽道——XIANGYANG DAO or XIANGYANG Rd

2.Spelling errors

Spelling errors mostly were discovered with missing or adding letters and wrong letters. For examples：

禁止攀登——NO CLIMDING → No Climbing

注意坡度——Notethatthesiopo → Mind the slope

3. Grammatical and lexical errors

The essential request for international communication is a right expression. Unluckily， there are still some expression problems in public signs translation.

Examples of grammatical errors：

寵物禁止入內——Banned pet → No Pet allowed

禁止亂扔垃圾——No Litter → No Littering

Example of lexical errors

將噴口對準火源根部——The nozzle on the fire source roots → The nozzle towards the roots of ignition source

4. Unclear Expression

Some translators are too eager to seek quick result and sometimes they even did not check it. For example：

連接水帶——connected to the water with

“Water” do not equal to “水帶”， so it should be translated into “water hoses”. And the complete sentence should be changed to “connect extinguisher with water hoses”.

5. Chinglish. Most Chinglish examples are carried out by unqualified translator. This term is commonly applied to ungrammatical or nonsensical English in Chinese contexts， and may have pejorative or deprecating connotations. For example：

請勿使用手推車——Push Chair not permitted

Ⅲ.Strategies for Public Signs Translation

1. Back-translation. Some translators are too eager to finish their translation， so they didnt check it clearly. Back-translation is the most basic and time-saving way for checking.

2. Negation. The Chinese and the English speaking people have lived so far apart for thousands of years that they often thick in different ways and have different custom. Negation in thought in expression and even in the mode of speaking is a great but often neglected difference. For examples：

顧客止步——Staff Only

油漆未干——Wet Paint

3. Addition of the culture awareness. Misunderstanding and confusion usually results from cultural difference. For example：

老人優先——Senior Citizen First

Ⅳ.Conclusion

Translation quality also reveals the development and internationalization of Tianjin （Huang Youyi 28）. On the one hand， it requires translator to improve language training and knowledge， knowing about the cultural convention and way of behavior in the English-speaking countries. On the other hand， many expressions are the conventions in different cultures， which is the principle of translation that cannot be ignored. Therefore， unnecessary mistakes can be avoided by borrowing foreign vocabulary.

References：

[1]黃友義.堅持“外宣三貼近”原則，處理好外宣翻譯中的難點問題[J].中國翻譯，2004.25（6）：27-28.