试谈文化差异对商务英语翻译的影响

2021年1月19日发(作者：不耻下问造句)

Influences of Cultural Differences upon Business English
Translation
试谈文化差异对商务英语翻译的影响

Acknowledgements
It was really a laborious task to accomplish a B.A thesis. Many
people gave me support and help in the process of writing the paper.
Upon the completion of this paper, I would like to give my gratitude to
all those who have granted me help on the paper and on my four-year
study in this school.
First, I’d like to give my gratitude to my dear teacher,
supervisor Mr Lin Zhiyuan, who generously gave me his kindly help
and instructions during the whole process of my paper-writing. I also
owe a special debt of gratitude to the other teachers of mine, as they
have given me valuable suggestions on my chosen of topic and essay
structure of the dissertation.
Very special thanks also go to those reference books and
websites. They have provided me with valuable materials and
information and given me some good suggestions.
Then I’d like to give my many thanks to my classmates who
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helped me a lot with my information collecting and paper- polishing.
Most important of all, I want to give my thanks to my mother
university and all the teachers in the college.

摘要
随着世界经 济全球化趋势的发展，中西方国家之间的贸易往
来日益频繁，商务活动所展现出的不仅是一种经济活动， 而且还
是一种文化上的交流。商务英语翻译作为不同语言的人们之间进
行商业交流的交际过程和 交际工具就显得尤为重要。自跨文化交
流活动以来，翻译实践就与文化产生了不可分割的联系。文化加< br>速了翻译的发展，而翻译又促进了文化的传播，文化与翻译的发
展相得益彰。随着全球经济一体化 时代的到来，地域不再局限人
们的交流空间，跨文化交流愈加频繁。频繁的跨文化交流加速了
文 化碰撞的呈现，商务英语翻译中出现的文化因素也越来越多。
这对于译者来说是个挑战，因为英语和汉语 有诸多差异之处，所
以很难把地道的英语译成能为大多数中国商务者所接受的汉语；
同样，让普 通的英语国家的商务者通过译文来理解地道的汉语也
不容易。如何克服这些由文化差异所引起的翻译障碍 是译者需要
面对的一个大问题。本文将分析文化差异与商务英语翻译实践的
关系以及文化差异对 商务英语翻译造成的影响，通过举出充分的
II

例子来分析文化差异对商务英语翻 译造成的影响并提出如何克服
由文化差异引起的翻译障碍的方法。本文目的是借助商务英语翻
译 使人们能更了解文化对语言的影响并有效地进行商务交流。
关键字：商务英语；文化差异；翻译实践
Abstract
With the development of the economic globalization, business
activities are being carried more and more frequently between China
and other English-speaking countries. Business English Translation is
not only displayed in economic activities, but also a kind of cultural
exchange. Since the moment cross-cultural communication exists,
Business English translation practice has close relationship with
culture. Culture speeds up the development of translation, while
translation helps to spread culture. With the age of globalization
coming, communication across cultures happens more and more
frequently. This is a challenge for translators, because there are many
discrepancies between English culture and Chinese culture, it is hard
to translate idiomatic English into Chinese that can be accepted by
most Chinese traders. Also, how to let average English traders
understand idiomatic Chinese is not easy. How to overcome the
barriers caused by culture is a big problem that translators need to
III

face．This thesis is to analyze the relationship between cultural
differences and Business English translation practice and the influence
of cultural differences on Business English translation. By giving
plenty of examples the thesis analyzes the influence of cultural
differences on Business English translation and tries to offer some
approaches to overcome the barriers caused by cultural differences in
Business English translation practice, so as to help people
communicate more effectively.
Keywords: Business English; Cultural difference; translation practice







IV


TABLE OF CONTENT
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………… ………………...….
…………….……..…. I
摘
要………………………… …………………………………………….
…...…….……...…II
ABSTRACT ………………………………………………………….
………..……..…..…...III
TABLE OF
CONTENTS……………………………………………..…….………
……..….IV
INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………
……………….….. .......1
PART ONE SURVEY OF CULTURAL DIFFERENCES AND
BET....................................... 2
1.1

DEFINITION

OF

CULTURAL

V

DIFFERENCES………………… ….............................2
1.2

IMPORTANCE

OF

BUSINESS

ENGLISH

TRANSLATION

….

……….....................

.2
1.3

INTERACTION

OF

CULTURAL

DIFFERENCES

AND

BET.………………………...3
PART TWO A DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE INFLUENCES OF
CULTURAL
DIFFERENCES…………………………………………
………………….…….4
2.1

TRADEMARK…………………………………………..…..………< br>………..…..….....4
2.1.1 Ambiguity of
Trademark…………………………………………………….…..
….4
2.1.2 Inelegance of
Trademark............. .................................................. .....................….
...5
2.1.3 Misunderstanding of
Trademark……………………………..……………...….......5
VI

2.2

ADVERTISEMENTS………………………….…….… ……………
……….…..…..…6
2.2.1 Different Cultural
Values………………………………..….……………….……...7
2.2.2 Different Thought
Patterns…………………………………………………….…....7
2.2.3 Different Aesthetic
Standards…………………………….…………………..….…9
2.3

COMMERCIAL

ACTIVITIES……………………………………………………..….
9
2.3.1 Difference in Business
Negotiation……………………………..…................….. 10
2.3.2 Difference in Business
Notion…………..……….…………….…..………….…..10
2.3.3 Difference in Business
Etiquette……………………………….…………….……11
PART THREE PROPER STRETAGIES TO DEAL WITH THE
CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
VII
IN

BET…………………………………………………
…13
3.1

REQUIREMENTS

FOR

TRANSLATORS.. .................................................. ................13
3.2

TREATING

CULTURAL

DIFFERENCES

CORRECTLY…………………..

…...…..13
3.3

REINFORCING

CULTURAL

EXCHANGE………………………………………..14
CONCLUSION ……………………………………………………...
……..………..…........15
WORKS
CITED…………………………………….…………………….……
… .……....…16






VIII

Introduction
International corporation and communication are gaining
increasing development since China entered into World Trade
Organization. Business English as a bridge linking China and foreign
countries is playing a more crucial role, and is gaining increasing
popularity.
Business English Translation involves the conversion of two
different cultures. Although culture is very complicated, we can
roughly classify it into three categories in scope: (a) material culture
which refers to the natural environment (b) instituted culture which
refers to social system, religious system, customs and national
psychological etc;(c) mental culture which refers to people’s
mentalities and behaviors, their beliefs, perceptions, concepts of value,
thought patterns etc. The cultural differences have greatly affected the
various aspects of business activities, and determine the success or
failure of business activities. Unsuccessful business translation will
not only bring significant economic losses, but will also affect the
image of the enterprise and even the country. From home and abroad
Business English Translation Research, although the translator noted
the impact of the cultural differences for translation between East and
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West, it is still a lack of systematic attention to cultural differences,
there is also a unilateral cognition, Which will make the readers get
unnecessary misunderstandings. To do an excellent translation work,
it is even more important to grasp two cultures than to master two
languages, because the word will materialize its meanings only in a
particular culture. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to understand
the cultural difference in the background of globalization. In order to
master English and successfully complete the task of Business English
translation from English into Chinese, successful know about the
cultural differences is essential. Therefore, in this paper, the author
attempts to discuss the problem of translation of business English
from the cultural perspective in detail.


Part One Survey of Cultural Differences and Business English
Translation
Now, the economy is becoming more and more globalized and
the culture is becoming more and more integrated. People need
communicate between different national cultures, geography,
characteristics of the times, while, during the process of exchange
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translation is very important. The translation’s origin is the
exchanging of culture, while, communication and cultural exchanges
result the translation.
1.1 Definition of Cultural Differences
Over the years, different scholars have different opinions
towards the definition of cultural differences, and it has been defined
in many ways. However, most of these definitions put emphasis on
different aspects of cultural differences．
According to the definition put forth by Nida, cultural
differences refer to the differences between historical heritage, social
customs and cultural tradition between different countries and
religions, which are the reflection of the history developing. From the
above explanation, we may have an understanding about the culture
on the whole. Cultural differences is broad and it involves many
aspects, so it is very difficult to give an accurate definition. Generally
speaking, we can consider that, Cultural differences refers to the
different cultural values, different thought pattern, different social
norms and different communication styles among different people
from different countries and cultural backgrounds.
1.2 Importance of Business English Translation
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In the background of economic globalization, business
activities have becoming more and more frequently. It is said that
there are almost 1.6 billion people who use English as their first
language or second language and most of them use business English
everyday in the world. Therefore, the business English translation
plays an important role in the progress of communication.
In 2010, Shanghai Expo will be held in Shanghai China. At
that time, many enterprises and economic organization will come to
invest in China, thus Chinese enterprises may get lots of opportunities
to grow and develop. Therefore, when communicating with foreign
investors, the business English is very important..
However, during the progress of communication, someone
who is not familiar with English may counter lots of trouble. On this
condition, the business English translation is in badly needed for them.
1.3 The Interaction of Cultural Differences and Business English
Translation
With Chinese reform and opening-up policy are pushing
forward continuously, the business activities between China and the
world are becoming intensive and frequent. Thus, business English
translation is marked with strong cultural consciousness. Someone
4

believes that anyone who is competent in English is able to deal with
the translation. That is just the wrong attitude result in the failure of
translation.
For example, “six” is an unpopular figure, and people regard it
as an unlucky number in western culture. However, in China, people
often use the number “6” as the trademark of commodities which they
think it can bring good fortune, such as “666”, “金六福” and so on.
When these products are exported to the western countries, they will
receive a cold welcome. The reason is that six is also a symbol of
devil in the western culture.
The above example shows how important cultural differences
mean to business English translation. So, it is critical to pay special
attention to cultural differences for the translator. Thus, the failure of
translation will be reduced and avoided on a certain degree.






5

Part Two A Detailed Analysis of the influences of Cultural
Differences
Nowadays, a number of products have been exporting to the
international market. However, most of them fail to capture the market.
The reason for that mainly lies in the improper marketing strategies
and advertising campaigns. In other words, the neglect or unawareness
of cultural differences can result in the failure.
2.1 Trademark
Trademark is the sign of product, which plays an important
role in sale. It is the concentration of commodities’ distinct
characteristics, the core of commodities’ culture, and the powerful
weapon for an enterprise to participate in international competitions. It
is not only a logo, also a lure, the final goal of which is to attract
customers and sell commodities. The well-known trademark often
guarantees the products’ quality, which is a symbol of the reasonable
price and good service. Trademark translation conforms to the
conception of semi logy. Trademark translation is the process from
decoding to coding and the process of re- creating and further
processing. That is to say, trademark translation is the transplantation
of two kinds of cultures. A good trademark translation may bring an
6

enterprise huge wealth, whereas a bad one may let an enterprise suffer
great loss. Therefore, an enterprise’s future is closely linked with
trademark translation. At the same time, trademark translation can
widen the linguistic research field, enrich the connotation of
linguistics, and accelerate the combination of linguistic theoretic
research and its practical application.
2.1.1 Ambiguity of Trademark
When we export products to foreign countries, we always
overlook the culture shocks. As a result, these neglects make the
trademarks unpopular and affect the sales of products.
Sprite is the meaning of wizard and goblin in English. At the
eve of Halloween, children often dress themselves up as wizards or
monsters, and ask for candy from house to house. However, in China,
the wizard and the fairy is symbol of evil. That will not be acceptable
to consumers by the literal translation. Therefore, the trademark of “雪
碧” can be accepted by consumers easily in China, which makes the
consumers have a cool feeling. Another translation happens to be
politically inappropriate. When introduced to foreign countries, the
Chinese trademark of canvas shoes“大鹏”is rendered as “ROC”,
which is a sort of giant bird in Arabic fables. However, “ROC”
7

happens to be the abbreviation of “Republic of China”. Obviously, the
translation stirs up inappropriate political associations.
2.1.2 Inelegance of Trademark
As we all know, the same words in different backgrounds may
have different meanings. However, many translators usually overlook
this problem during the process of translation of the logos.
For example：Translation by using Chinese phonetic letters
coincides with English words with derogatory sense. The typical
example is“马戏扑克”.The version “Maxi Puke” reminds the
English consumers of something revolting and unpleasant, for
means big in English and “puke” indicates vomited food or drink.
As we all know, “雄鸡” is a trademark name for a clock in
China, this trademark is not only indicates the function of the clock
but also fits for Chinese culture. Moreover, cocks are mascots in
ancient China, and they are always used on ceremonial occasions. But
for the westerners, the word “cock” contains obscene meaning, and it
is usually avoided in formal English. If the producers in China use
“cock” as the trademark name, the image of the product may be
damaged. When exporting to the western market, the original English
trademark name for the“雄鸡”was “Golden Cock”，but changed into
8

“Golden Rooster” latterly . This trademark name is more suitable and
attractive for the westerners.
So, we should pay more attention to the translation of the
elegant name of trademarks on condition that we understand the
cultural differences.
2.1.3 Misunderstanding of Trademark
It is not enough for advertising translators only to know the
literal meaning of an ad, for it may be endowed with extended
meaning and cultural implication. Fully competent advertising
translators are supposed to have a good command of religions,
traditions, ethnic attitudes, the spirit of community, and purchasing
habits of the target countries. Otherwise, the translated ads might go
against the original intention of the producers.
In the western culture, peacock is considered as an unlucky
animal. It is often used to describe a person who is walking on air. So,
in western countries, if we use the word peacock as the trademark, the
misunderstanding may occur. so, the“孔雀” TV set does not use the
trademark “Peacock” but “Uranus”, which is a name of a star. On the
contrary, peacock is an auspicious animal for the Chinese, because
people believe it is a good sign that peacock spreads its tail. Therefore
9