‘To translate’ means ‘to exchange’?
- 31 December 2005
- journal article
- Published by John Benjamins Publishing Company in Target. International Journal of Translation Studies
- Vol. 17 (1), 27-48
- https://doi.org/10.1075/target.17.1.03che
Abstract
This paper analyzes several terms used in ancient China to refer to the activity/activities now called ‘fanyi’ in Chinese, or ‘translation’ in English. By tracing the pattern behind the semantic and ideological jogging amongst these terms, the paper offers a new interpretation of the earliest Chinese attempts to define translation (‘fanyi’). The purpose is to highlight the constructed nature of the prevailing notion of ‘fanyi’ and unsettle its established meaning, the better to provoke theoretical discussions on and about ‘fanyi’. The final purpose is to provide a response to the recent call for a non-Eurocentric, international Translation Studies by advocating for a concerted effort to study the conceptualisations of ‘translation’ as they evolved in different cultures, with the view to eventually developing a general theory of translation that truly has general relevance.Keywords
This publication has 3 references indexed in Scilit:
- Mapping MeaningsPublished by Brill ,2004
- ‘To Translate’ is (To Exchange’ 譯者言易也 — Linguistic Diversity and the Terms for Translation in Ancient ChinaPublished by Brill ,2004
- From ‘theory’ to ‘discourse’: the making of a translation anthologyBulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, 2003