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[Abstract]Ascarriersofcultures,ChineseandEnglishnamesarefullofculturalconnotations,andresultinculturalgapbetweenEnglishandChinese.Personalnamesarenotonlysymbolsthatdistinguishonepersonfromothers,butalsosocialsymbols.Itis“amirrorofculture”.Throughcomparativestudyona

nation’shistory,religion,conceptsofmoralandvalue,wecanseedifferentculturalconnotationsbetweenEnglishandChinesenames.Andthensuggestsometranslationprinciplesandmethods.TherearesomesimilaritiesbetweenEnglishandChinesenames,suchastotemism,consciousnessofroot-seeking,specializingpoints.InChinesenames,wecanfindthecultureofreligiousconcepts,Confucian-worship,hierarchy.Andthereligion,personal-orientation,individualismcanalsobefoundinEnglishnames.InthetranslationofChineseandEnglishnames,translatorsshouldfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’slanguageandadopttheestablishedpopulartranslatednames,usetransliterationandparaphrasesoastoreflecttherealmeaningofEnglishandChinesenames.

[KeyWords]EnglishnamesandChinesenames;culturalconnotation;translationprinciple;translationmethod

[摘要]姓名，作為一種文化載體，蘊涵著極其豐富的文化內(nèi)涵，英漢姓名因而存在著巨大的文化差異。姓名不僅僅是一種簡單的區(qū)別于他人的符號，它同時也代表一種社會文化現(xiàn)象，被喻為“文化的鏡像”。通過對英漢姓名的歷史淵源，宗教信仰，價值觀念等的對比研究，揭示出英漢姓名的深層文化內(nèi)涵及社會文化因素的影響，進而對這種富載文化內(nèi)涵的姓名的翻譯提出翻譯原則和翻譯翻譯方法。英漢文化的共性，如圖騰崇拜，尋根意識，特指性，心理暗示等使英漢不同姓名的系統(tǒng)中出現(xiàn)一些類同的現(xiàn)象。英漢文化內(nèi)涵的差異，如中國的宗教觀念，崇儒思想，等級制度等文化因素都可以從中國人的姓名中反映出來。而英語民族的宗教信仰，個人取向，強調(diào)個性也在英語姓名中有所反映。由于英漢姓名的文化差異，在翻譯英漢姓名時應遵循“名從主人原則”和“約定俗成原則”，采取音譯法和釋義法，或者兩者相結(jié)合，使人名的真實內(nèi)涵得到體現(xiàn)。

[關鍵詞]英漢姓名；文化內(nèi)涵；翻譯原則；翻譯方法

1．Introduction

Namesareusedbyhumanbeingsandtheyarethesignsforpeopletodistinguishonepersonfromtheothers.Theyhavesomeparticularfunctionsthatnoothersignscanperform.Theyarenotonlylinguisticsymbols,butalsosocialsymbols,representingrelationshipinsocietiesandcultures.“Eachpersonhashisnamewhichdistinguisheshimselffromothermembersinthecommunity,andeachcountryhasitsownnamesystemowingtotheirdifferenthistoricalandculturalbackground”.[1]P1Inaword,personalnamesarewindowsforpeopletoseethroughdifferentculturesindifferentsocieties.Forthesereasons,thetranslationofChineseandEnglishnamesshouldfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’scountryandadopttheestablishedpopulartranslatednames,usetransliterationandparaphrasesoastoreflecttherealmeaningofChineseandEnglishnames.

2．Relationbetweenpersonalnameandculture

Personalnamesaretheproductsofthehistoricaldevelopmentofhumansociety.Theyreflecttheancientcivilizationandsplendidculturesfromdifferentrespects.Thechoiceofnametellssomethingabouthumansocietyandreflectsthesocialculture.Therefore,thedevelopmentofpersonalnamescannotbeisolatedfromthesocialculturebackground.Namesaretheinseparablepartofcul集tureandtheinevitableoutcomeofculturalevolution.Likeotherlinguisticphenomenatheyplaytheroleofcarrierandpropagatorofcultures.

Cultureinfluenceseveryaspectofhumansociallifeandinfluencespeople’sbehavior.Personalnamesaretheoutcomeofpeople’sbehavior,sotheinfluenceofculturecanbeseenfromthechangingofpersonalnames.Forexample,“inancientChina,“龜”（gui,tortoise）wasoftenusedaspersonalnamewhichhadgoodconnotationoflongevity.However,afterMingDynasty,theconnotationofthecharacterchanged,whichindicatesamanwhosewifeisnotloyaltohim.Thenfewpeopleuse“龜”aspersonalnames”.[2]P2Inaddition,personalnamesarerestrictedbyculture,forinstance,ChinesepeoplearegreatlyinfluencedbyConfucianism,soobviousproprietiescanbeseeninChinesenames.“EnglishpeoplebelieveChristianandreligioussensecanbefoundintheirnames”.[3]P51Ontheotherhand,asakindofsocialreality,personalnamesexertitsinfluenceandactiononsocietiesandcultures.Forexample,thetabooonusingthepersonalnamesofemperorswasformedundertheinfluenceoffeudalhierardyculture.Onceithadbeenformeditbegantorestricteveryaspectofpeople’slife.Inshort,personalnamesandcultureinfluencerestricteachotherandactoneachother.Frompersonalnames,peoplecanseetheculturalsimilarityanddifferenceindifferentsociety.

parativestudybetweenthetwonamesystems

Everynationhasitsownhistory,duringwhichithasshapeditsownparticularcharacteristics.Asaspecialsocialandlinguisticphenomenon,namesrelatetoculturesextensivelyandprofoundly.Whenwelearnaforeignlanguageandtrytomakeeffectivecommunication,wemustunderstanditscultureandneedtoknowaboutnamesandnaming,justaswhenwestudyalanguageweneedtoknowitsvocabularyanditsgrammar.Inthissection,wearegoingtomakeacomparativestudyontheseaspectsbetweenChineseandEnglishnamesystems.

3.1SimilaritiesbetweentheTwoSystems

3.1.1Totemism

“Atbeginning,thebasicofpersonalnameistotemism.Totemismmaybeanimals,plantsorunlivingthings.Thegroupoftentakessometotemastheirancestor,andthenuseditastheirownnames”.[4]P51“Inancienttimes,thehumanbeingswerenotonlyafraidofnaturalpower,butalsorespectit.Therefore,bothinChineseandEnglishpersonalnames,wecanfindlotsofnamesfromplace,animal,plant,unlivingthingsinnatureornaturalphenomenon”.[5]P82Forexample,inChinesenames,YanEmperor（炎帝,oneancestorofChinesepeople）livednearJiangWater（姜水,anameofariver）,sohistribeusedjiang(姜)astheirtribename,HuangEmperor(黃帝,anotherancestorofChinesepeople)livednearJiWater(姬水,anameofariver)andusedji(姬)asthetribe’sname,andyao(姚)camefromtheplacecalledyaoxu(姚墟)whereShun(舜,anancestorofChinesepeople)lived.InEnglish,peopleusedthenaturalphenomenonasfamilynames,suchasFrost,Rain,andSnowetc.Andsomenamescomefromanimalnames,forexample,Bird,Bull,Lion,Fox,Wolfandsoon.Somecomefromplantnames,forinstance,Flower,Apple,Lily,Rose.Thisphenomenonreflectssimilarculturalconnotationthatnamesareassociatedwithprimitivetotemism.

3.1.2Consciousnessofroot-seeking

InChineseandEnglishnames,wecanfindnamestakenfromtheirbirth-placenames,suchasLiuZongyuan(柳宗元),afamouspoetinTangDynasty,wasbornatHeDong,sohehasanothernameLiuHedong(柳河東).InChina,nowadays,wealsohavenameslikeWangChangcheng(王長城),LiChangjiang(李長江),etc.ThesenamesarecloselyconnectedwithChineseplaces.InEnglishpeoplealsotakeplacesastheirpersonalnames.“Forexample,Washington(華盛頓)，Brook(溪流),Well(泉),Wood(林木)andsoon”.[6]P81Thesesimilaritiesshow,ashumanbeing,theyallhavetheconsciousnessofroot-seeking.

3.1.3Specializingcharacter

Mostnamesinliteraryworkshavespecialmeaning.“Theysymbolizesomeconnotationsthatgofarbeyondtheirliterarymeanings.Theybecomesomegeneraltermsindicatingcertainmeaning,symbolizingcertainpeople,orreferringparticularlytocertainsituationsoractions”.[7]P31

Forexample,Shylock,inShakespeare’scomedyTheMerchantofVeniceindicatessomeusurersandbusinessmenwhoaremeanandcruel.Itcanalsobeusedasverbreferringtotheactionofowingusury.Forinstance,“Hisincomederivedfromillicitactivities-bookmaking,gambling,shylocking,andquestionableunionactivities”.

TakethepersonalnameZhuGeliang（諸葛亮）asanotherexample.Itcanbeusednotonlytorefertothespecificpersonwhooncereallyexistedinhistory,butalsousedasacommonnoun.“諸葛亮”inthesaying“三個臭皮匠，頂個諸葛亮”（Workingtogether,threeordinarymencanbeaswiseasZhugeLiangwhowasaverywisemanintheThreeStatesPeriod）isnotspecificaperson,itreferstosamewisemenlikehim.InChineseliterature,wemayfindnameswithspeciallyimpliedmeaningchosebywriterswhotendtotakeadvantageofhomophone,whichactsasapun.Forexample,charactersinTheStoryofStonethatwrittenbyChaoXueqin.JiaYucun(賈雨村)，Jiahua(賈化)，ZhenShiyin(甄士隱)，whichpronouncethesameasjiayucun(假語存--liesexist),jiahua(假話--telllies)，zhenshiyin(真事隱--truthishidden).

BothinChineseandEnglish,therearealsonamesingreatauthors’writingswhicharetakenascurrentvocabulary.

HamletistheheroinShakespeare’stragedy“Hamlet”.Hisunclemurdershisfathersohewantstotakerevengesonhim.Buthehesitatessomuchinhisavengingplanthatintheendhehastopretendbeingmad.“Hamlet”inpresentEnglishisnotonlyoneofthecharactersinShakespeare’stragedy,butalsoconsideredasasynonymtoapersonwhoishesitatingindoingsomethingortoahesitatingaction.Ifpeoplethinksomeoneisveryhesitatingindoingsomething,theymaysay“YouareHamlet”.RipVanWinkleisoneoftheheroesintheworksoftheAmericanwriterWashingtonIrving.Heisahen-packedman.Oncebeingscoldedbyhiswife,herunsintotheCatskill,amountainnearhisvillage.Hefeelsrelaxedthereanddrinkstoomuchbeforefallingasleep.Whenhewakesup,itistoomanyyearslaterthateverythinginthevillagehasbeengreatlychanged.RipVanWinkleisnowreferringtosomepeoplewhoareold-fashioned,orwhosemindsandthoughtsaredroppedfarbehindfromthepresentsociety.Peoplemayexpresssomeone’sideathatisoutofdate,bysaying“ThisistheopinionofsameRipVanWinkle”.

3.2Differencesbetweenthetwonamesystems

Itissaidthateverycoinhasitstwosides.Wetalkedabouttheirsimilaritiesabove,andnow,wearegoingtotalkaboutthedifferencesbetweenChineseandEnglishnamesystemsandtheircultureconnotation

3.2.1Originoffamilynames

Familynamesreflectdifferentnationalculturesandancientcivilizationfromvariouspointsofview.Beingakindofsocialphenomenonandcomplicatedpsychologicalprocess,familynamesrevealsocialreality.Sothedevelopmentoffamilynamescannotbeseparatedfromthesocialandculturalbackgroundonwhichtheyrely.Theformanduseoffamilynamesaredevelopingprogressivelywiththeevolutionofhistoryandchangingofsociety.

(i)OriginofChinesefamilynames

“ThenumberoffamilynamesinChineseismuchsmallerthanthatofEnglishname.Sofar,wehavealltogetherlessthantenthousandfamilynames,inwhich6363familynamesarefromtheHannationality.Butinthewest,thereare156thousandfamilynames,amongwhichthirty-fivethousandarefrequentlyseenindailylife”.[8]P6“ItisthoughtthatChinesefamilynamescameaboutinmatriarchalclansociety.Atthattime,everyclangotthedistinctiveclannamebasedontheirtotemordwellingplaces.TheclannamesaretheearliestfamilynameswhichinChinesearecalled姓(xing)”.[9]P9Afterpopulationofaclanmultiplied,theclandividedintoseveralbranchesandmovedtodifferentplacestolive.Theneachbranchwouldgettheirownbranchnametodistinguishthisbranchfromtheothers.Thenameofeachbranchiscalled氏(shi).Thedifferencebetweenthemisthat,theformeroneisusedtotellapartdifferentfamiliesinranksoffamilyinthesociety.So“xing”isnotchangeable,but“shi”canbechanged.InancientChina,therewouldbethousandofpeoplesharedthesamefamilynames,theycamefromthesameclansandlivedinthesamevillages,someofthemmaymovetootherplaces,buttheycouldn’tchangetheirfamilynames.

Accordingtohistoricalrecords,inXia,ShangandZhouDynasties,“xing”and“shi”begantohaveclasscolorbesidestheiroriginalfunction.“Shi”,especially,wasbestownedbytheirruler.Asaresult,“shi”becamethemarkofthearistocracy.Onlythearistocratshad“shi”,andtheordinarypeoplehadno“shi”.Allthearistocratsweremenatthattime.Therefore,onlymenhad“shi”.“Thedistinctionbetween“xing”and“shi”disappearedinQinandHanDynasty.Theybecameonethatiscalled“xingshi”inChineseandreferstofamilynames”.[10]P10Thisphenomenonindicatesthattheoriginalfunctionanddistinctionof“xing”and“shi”wereofnosignificanceafterthecentralizedfeudalsocialsystemwasestablished.

(ii)OriginofEnglishfamilynames

“ThehistoryofEnglishfamilynamesismuchshorterthantheChineseones.ItcameaboutintheMiddleAges”.[11]P34Theyareinlargenumber.SocialculturalfactorsplayanimportantroleinthedevelopmentofEnglishfamilynames.TheyreflectacompletepictureofEnglishfeudalsociety.SotheyarethelivingfossilsforstudyingEnglishhistoryandculture.

EnglishfamilynamesarethehistoricalproductofEnglishsociety.Theyexperiencednearlythreecenturiesfromnonexistencetofulldevelopment.Therewasatimewhennoonehadahereditaryfamilyname.“WhentheancestorsofEnglishpeopleinvadedBritaininthe5thcentury,theyformedatribalsociety.Englishpeopledidn’tgetfamilynamesuntil1066whenNormansconqueredBritain.TheNormanscertainlydidn’thaveafullydevelopedfamilynamessystem”.[12]P80Itwasnotyettheirconsciouspolicytoidentifyafamilybyonename.Buttherewerenotenoughnamesfordistinction.Inacertainperiodmoreandmorenameswereduplicated.Thisphenomenonbroughtgreattroubletopeopleincommunication.Sowhenpeopleweretalkingaboutapersonwhowasabsent,theyoftenemployedadditionalphrasesforfurtheridentification.Forexample,whentheyreferredtoJohnwholivedunderthehill,theywouldadddescriptivephraseas“fromthehill”.ThenJohnbecame“Johnfromthehill”toindicatewhichJohntheyweretalkingabout.Althoughtheadditionalphrasescanplaytheroleforfurtheridentification,theyaretoocomplicated.Therefore,someunimportantwordsareoftenomitted.Then“Johnfromthehill”ischangedinto“JohnHill”.Withthedevelopmentoffeudalsociety,therewasanurgentneedforpeopletosolvetheproblemofpersonalidentification.Forthisreason,peoplecreatedanewwayforexpressionthattheybegantoaddtheirfather’sormanor’snamebehindtheirgivenname.Infact,theadditionalphraseswhicharecalled“bynames”aretheembryosofEnglishfamilynames.TheyplayedanimportanttransitionalpartinthedevelopmentofEnglishfamilynames.Gradually,thesebynameswereturnedintohereditaryfamilynames.

Fromthebeginningofthe15thcenturynearlyallEnglishpeopleinheritedfamilynamesatbirthandtheword“surname”wasusedwiththemeaningwegiveittoday.IthadbeenborrowedfromFrench“surnom”,derivingfromLatinsuper,andwasusedatfirsttomean“anextraname”or“anickname”.ModernFrenchtranslates“surname”asnomdefemile,soinEnglishsurnameisalsocalledfamilyname.

3.2.2Formsofnamesandculturalconnotation

(i)Formsofnames

InbothChineseandEnglish,thepersonalnamescanbedividedintosurnamesandgivennames.Aperson’sfamilynameisinherent.He/Shegothis/herfamilynamebeforehe/shewasborn.Thereforefamilynamesarenotselectable.Thecaseisdifferentingivennames.Givennamesarenotinherentbutselectable;onecanchoosehisgivennames.Butthewayinwhichthesenamesareusedvariesinthetwolanguages.Afundamentaldifferenceistheorderinwhichthesenamesoccur.InChinese,thefamilynamecomesfirstandthegivennameisplacedafterit.Andtherearetwokindsoffamilyname,oneissinglesurname,theotherisdoublesurname.Forexample,王國強(WangGuoqiang),司馬相如(SimaXiangru).Here王(Wang)and司馬(Sima)arefamilynames,國強(Guoqiang)and相如(Xiangru)aregivennames.

However,inEnglish,thefamilynameisattheend,andthegivennameisinthefront.“ThegivennamecouldbedividedintoChristianname(firstname)andmiddlename(secondname)”.[13]P58

Inwesterncounties,mostpeoplehavemiddlenames,thenumberofwhichcanbeone,two,threeorevenmorethantens,suchas“anAmericanwriterRobertPeterTristramCoffinandaBritishwriterOscarFingalO’FlahertieWillsWilde”.[14]P11HereRobertandOscararegivennames,PeterTristramandFingalO’FlahertieWillsaremiddlename,CoffinandWildearefamilynames.Middlenamesareonlyusedinveryformalsituationforofficialpurpose,suchasonadocument.Usuallypeopleomitthemorusethecapitallettersinstead.ThereforethewritermentionedaboveiscalledRobertCoffinandOscarWildeonmostoccasions.AsmostEnglish–speakingpeoplebelieveinChristianityorCatholic,accordingtothereligiouscustom,ababywhowasbornaroundoneweekshouldbebaptizedandnamedinthechurch.SothegivennamecanalsobecalledbaptizednameorChristianname.AlthoughgivennamesarefrequentlyreferredtoasChristiannames,thisdoesnotmeanthatthepersonisaChristianorthenamehasbeengivenbythechurch.Nowadays,itisusuallyusedasasynonymfor“givenname”.Manyparentstaketheirbabytochurchtobebaptized,butthegivennamesarechosenbytheirparentsbeforethis.Andevenifapersonhasneverbeenbaptized,theirnamescanstillbecalledChristiannames.

(ii)Culturalconnotation

TheoppositeordersofChineseandEnglishnamesarereflectionofdifferentculturesonpersonalnames.Chinesefamilynamesrepresenttherelationshipofclan,groupandconsanguinity;TraditionalChinesecultureemphasizesthegenerality.Therefore,inthiskindofcultureatmosphere,Chinesepeopleputtheirfamilynameswhichrepresenttheirancestors,clansandgroupsbeforetheirgivennames,whichsymbolspersonindividualitywhilethewesternpeoplenotonlyemphasizeindividualpersonandindividuality,butalsovaluetheindependentpersonalityandself-consciousness,theythinkthegivennamesarelifeandsoulofaperson,sotheyhighlyvaluethem.

Contrarytothehighesteemofgivennames,Englishpeoplethinkfamilynamesarenotveryimportant.Thereflectionofthissenseleadstothedifferentorderofname,i.e.givennamesareputbeforefamilynames.Andwecanalsofindthedifferentcultureconnotationinwomen’snames.Chinesewomenremaintheirfamilynamesandgivennames,eveninthepast.However,inmostwesterncountries,thewomenoncemarried,theyshouldchangetheirfamilynametothatoftheirhusbands’accordingtothecustom.Forexample,whenMaryWhitemarredJohnBrown,hernameshouldbechangedintoMaryBrown.

Incidentally,asmentionedabove,thegivennamesinEnglish-speakingcountriesarealsocalledChristiannames.Thephenomenonreflectstheimportantroleinpeople’slife.

3.2.3Patriarchy,Confucian-worship,religion

“WiththeinfluenceofPatriarchy,Chinesepeopleoftenusebirthordersortheirfatherorgrandfather’sgivennamesasshi(氏).InZhouDynasty,peopleusedthecharacters孟（meng）,伯（bo）,仲（zhong）,叔(shu),季(ji)toindicatethebirthorderofchildren.Andtheywereusuallyusedasshi”.[15]P16AccordingtotheruleofPatriarchy,theemperor’ssonwascalled王子(wangzi,sonofanemperor),sonof王子iscalled王孫，（wangsun,grandsonofanemperor）,andthesonof王孫mustusethisgrandfather’sgivennameashis“shi”.ChinesenamearenotonlyinfluencedbyPatriarchy,butalsoinfluencedbyConfucian-worship.Anobviousfeatureistheuseofgenerationcharacter.Thatismembersofeachgenerationofapatriarchalfamilyusethesamecharacterintheirgivenname,differentgenerationusedifferentcharacter.Thusthenamecanshowtheirbearer’spositioninthefamilyhierarchy.However,thegenerationcharacterisgraduallydisappearingwiththedisappearanceofclanfamiliesandthefulfillmentoftheone-childpolicyinChina.Today,religioninfluencecanalsobefoundinEnglishpersonalnames.“Religion,especiallyChristianityplaysagreatimportantroleinthedevelopmentofEnglishpersonalnames.NotonlytheChristians,butalsocommonpeopleareinfluencedbyit.Therefore,theirnameshaveconnectionswiththereligion,theyreflectEnglishnationalcultures.InEnglish-speakingcountries,“John”isaverypopularnameusedbymen,whichcomesfromHebrew,Yohananmeansing“thegiftfromgod”.“John”isanameofbelieverinBible,soitbecomessopopularonpersonalnames”.[16]P35Inthe16thand17thcentury,Puritansshowgreatbeliefsinreligion.Theygavetheirchildrenslogannames,suchasBe-courteous,Fight-the-good-fight-of-faith,the-lord-is-near.Suchnamesweremuchlaughedatbythepublic.Themoresensiblepuritanshadinthemeantimemanagedtodisplaytheirreligiousbeliefsinlesseccentricwaysandcreatedagroupofnames,whichhavesurvivedtothepresentday.Thisnaminggroupfeaturedthe“virtues”anditincludessuchnamesasCharity,Faith,Grace,Honor,Joy,Hope,Patience,PrudenceandFelieity.

3.2.4Hierarchyandequality

“Confuciusemphasizedthedistinctionbetweenupperclassandlowerclass,thesuperiorgenerationandinferiorgeneration.Thehierarchyruleswerestrictlyobeyed”.[17]P75Infeudalsociety,whenpeoplecameacrossthegivennamesoftheemperor,theyhadtoavoidthem.Ifaperson’sowngivennamewasthesameastheemperor’sincoincidence,hehadtochangehisowngivennameevenfamilyname.Forinstance,“theemperorineastHanDynastywasnamed劉莊(LiuZhuang),when莊忌（ZhuangJi）inWestHanwenttoEastHan,hehadtochangehisnameinto嚴忌(YanJi)Notonlytheemperor’snamesweretaboos,thenamesoftheordergenerationwerealsotaboosfortheyoungergeneration.Therefore,inChinaasonneverusedhisfather’sgivennameashisownnames”.[18]P44

Whatishighlyvaluedinthewestisindividualismandasaresultequalrelationshipamongpeopleishighlyvalued.Andthereforewhatisadvocatedisnottheobligationsandresponsibilitiesascribedtoeachmemberofthesocietyaccordingtohisorhersocialpositionbuthumanitarianismandhumanrights.Thewayofusingtheirfatherorgrandfather’snamesastheirownnamesisapracticalwayofnaming.Forexample,“BritishpoliticianWilliamPittandhissonWilliamPitt,AmericanartistGeorgeInnessandhissonsharedthesamename”.[19]P44Thatisbecausebeforetheappearanceoffamilynames,theconsanguinityoffamilywasmainlymanifestedthroughduplicationofnamesandalliteration.Andduplicationofnamesisthesimplestway.Latterfamilynamesappeared,butthetraditionofusingfatherorgrandfather’snametonameababysurvived.Forthepurposeofidentification,“theelderandtheyounger”or“senior”or“junior”arerespectivelyputbehindthefatherandson’snames.Suchas,JamesEarlCarter,Sr,andhissonJamesEarlCarter,Jr,usuallyinBritainpeopleuse“theelderandtheyounger”,inAmerica,peopleuse“senior”,and“junior”.

3.2.5Otheraspects

“Chinesepeoplenotonlyhaveformalnameandcourtesyname(字),butalsohaveliteraryname(hao號),whichisnotuniquephenomenainChinesenames.Westernpeoplealsohavenickname,butitisnotascommonasChinese”.[20]P14ZiandHaoaretheproductsofancientChineseculture.“Zi”isusedbythepersonofinferiorpositiontoaddressthepersonofsuperiorposition.ThisreflectstheworshipofgivennamesandhierarchyinancientChina.“Hao”,whichiskindoflaudatorytitle,usuallyshowsaperson’sinterests,hopeorspiritualsustenance.Although“hao”hascomeaboutveryearly,itprevailedafterTangandSongDynastiesandreacheditsclimaxinMingandQingDynasties.ThisistheresultoftheprosperityofliteraturesinceTangandSongDynasties,butitisnotusednowanymore.

InbothsystemsofChinesenamesandEnglishnames,therearediminutivesorhypocoristicnames.ThesenamesareuseddifferentlyinBritainorAmericaandChina.Chinesediminutivescanonlybeaddressedbythefamilymembersorveryclosefriends.Theyoungergenerationandotherpeoplecannotaddressapersonwithhisdiminutives.WhileEnglishdiminutivesareassociatedwiththegivennamesandusuallyarethevariantsofgivennames.Andaperson’sdiminutivesareusedinhiswholelifeandcanbeaddressedbyotherpeoplebesideshisfamilymembersandfriends.

4.TranslationofNames

4.1Basicrulesinthetranslationofnames

Namesareusedtoindicateoneindividualinordertodifferhimfromotherpersonsinthecommunity.Therefore,themethodsandprinciplesintranslatingnameseitherfromChinesetoEnglishorEnglishtoChinesearehighlyregardedinthetranslationfield.Thetranslationofgeneralnamesshouldfollowtwobasicrulers:namelyfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’slanguageandadoptestablishedpopulartranslatednames.Besides,themethodsofannotatingtransliterationandparaphraseandothersarenecessaryintranslationinmanycasessoastoreflecttherealmeaningofthenames.

4.1.1ChinesenamesintoEnglish

“Followingthepronunciationoftheowner’slanguagemeanswhentranslatingpersonalnames,oneshouldfollowthepronunciationoftheowner’slanguage.Accordingtothisprinciple,thenamesofChinesepeopleshouldbetranslatedaccordingtoChinesePhoneticAlphabet”,[21]P70whichalsocalledtransliteration.However,ChinesenamesarequitedifferentwiththatofEnglishnames,greatconfusionappearsinspellings.Ifone’snameisZhangJianhua,theremaybeeightwaysofspelling.

ZhangJianhuaZhangJian-huaZHANGJianhuaZHANGJian-hua

JianhuaZhangJian-huaZhangZhangJianHuaJianHuaZhang

“Thesedifficultiesarecausedbythedifferencebetweentwonamingsystems.Thebasicsolutiontothemisculturetransmission”.[22]P39Inordertoletpeoplewhocomefromdifferentcountriesgetfullunderstandingofeachother’sculture,weneedsomeprinciplestostandardizethesenamingspelling.

(a)Toputfamilynameaheadofgivenname.Forexample,“張健”shouldbetransliterateinto“ZhangJian”,butno“JianZhang”.

(b)“Familynameandgivennameshouldbedeparted.Thereshouldbenotanyspaceormarkslikehyphenorpointbetweendifferentcharactersinthegivenname.Andthefirstletterofthemmustbecapitalized”.[23]P82Forexample,“鄧小平”shouldbetranslatedinto“DengXiaoping”.

SomenamesofChinesepeoplearenottranslatedaccordingtoChinesePhoneticAlphabet.Theyadopttheestablishedpopulartranslatednames.ForexampleConfucius(孔子)，Sunyat-sen(孫中山)，SoongChingLing(宋慶齡)，TanKahKee(陳嘉庚)，YuanShi-Kai(袁世凱),ChouEn-Lai()andsoon.

4.1.2EnglishnamesintoChinese

OwingtothedifferencesbetweenChineseandEnglishnamingsystems,therearedifficultiesandconfusioninthetranslationofnames,principlesarealsoneededtostandardizethetransliteration.

(a)Toputthefamilynameatlast

Asweallknow,Englishnameshavetheirownforms:firstname+middlename+familyname.Accordingtotheirtraditionalculture,weshouldputtheirChristiannamesatfirstandthenmiddlenames,andfamilynamesintheend.

(b)Thereshouldbeapointamongthefirstname,themiddlenameandthefamilyname

Inthethirdpartofthisdissertation,wehavemadeacomparativestudybetweenthetwosystems.Chinesegivennamesmaycontaintwocharactersbutthesetwocharactersareconsideredasone.InEnglish,firstnameisdifferentfrommiddlename;theyhavedifferentfunctionsandareusedrespectively.Therefore,intransliterationEnglishfirstnameandmiddlename,thereshouldbea“.”betweenthem.And“.”isalsoneededbetweenfamilynameandgivenname.Forexample,“JohnF.Kennedy”shouldbetransliterationinto“約翰.F.肯尼迪”.Astotheshortformofmiddlename,wecanremainitinthetransliteration.

(c)TokeepthenationalcharacteristicsofEnglishnames

“TranslatorsshouldtrytokeepthenationalcharacteristicsofEnglishnamesintransliteration”.[24]P49Forexample,“Smith”into“史密斯”，“F.R.LeavisintoF.R.利維斯，J.Edgar.HooverintoJ.埃德加.胡佛”.[25]P79

AlthoughthesetransliterationsofnameskeepthenationalcharacteristicsofEnglishnames,theyaretoolongforChinesepeopletorememberthem.SosomepeopletranslateEnglishnamesaccordingtoChinesecustom.“Suchas‘VirginiaPenn’into‘潘美今’,‘MargaretFung’into‘馮美琪’,and‘HenryLewisStimson’into‘史仃生’andetc”.[26]P49Actually,thesearetheChinesenamesratherthantranslationoftheirEnglishnames.WhenfacingthesenamesChinesepeoplewillbemuchconfusedbywonderingwhethertheyareChineseorforeigners.

TherearesometranslationofEnglishnamesadopttheestablishedpopulartranslatednames.“Forexample,‘Wilde’(awriterofEngland)into‘王爾德’,butnot‘懷爾德’,‘Holmes’into‘福爾摩斯’,butnot‘霍姆斯’,‘BernardShow’(awriterofEngland)into‘肖伯納’，butnot‘肖納得.肖’,’Caesar’into‘愷撒’,butnot‘西澤’,‘Shelley’(apoemofEngland)into‘雪萊’,butnot‘謝利’”.[27]P237

4.2Translationofliterarynames

Astocharactersinliteraryworks,wehavetwomethodsfortranslation.Thefirstoneisthattheycanbetranslatedaccordingtotheirpronunciation.Thereasonwhywetranslateliterarynamesinthiswayisthatsomenamesplaylessimportanceintheliteraryworks,themainfunctionofthemistodistinguishthemfromothercharactersintheliteraryworks.Theotherisparticularnamesinliteraryworkswithconnotation.Inmostcases,thesenameslosttheiroriginaldistinguishingfunctionbutbecomegeneralwordsreferringtosomepersonsoractionsorsituations.Iftranslatorsdisregardtheirconnotationbytranslatingthemdirectly,thismayresultinthemisunderstandingandconfusion.

Intheabovechapter,wehavementionedthefurtherconnotationofthename“Hamlet”.Nowlet’stakeupthefollowing:“IamHamlet”.Inthissentence,theEnglishreadersorsomeoftheChinesepeoplewhoknowsomethingabouttheprinceinShakespeare’stragedywillhavenodifficultyinunderstandingthespeaker’srealmeaning.ButtothosepeoplewhodonotknowwhoisHamlet,itisimpossibleforthemtounderstandtherealmeaningwhenfacingtheChinesesentence“我不是哈姆雷特”.Ifwetranslatethissentenceinto“我決不猶豫”,thereadersmayloseachancetoknowtheculturalinformationofHamlet.Soweshouldtranslateitbycompoundingthetransliterationandtheparaphraseofconnotation.Accordingtothisprinciple,“IamnotHamlet”wouldbebesttranslatedinto“我不是哈姆雷特，決不猶豫”.

5.Conclusion

Thephenomenaofpersonalnamesareputinthescaleofcultureandrevealthedeep-goingcultureconnotationindifferentcultures.Fromtheanalysis,wecanseetherolesofvarioussocialfactorsplayedinnaming:patriarchysystem,hierarchyandConfucian-worshiparethekeyfactorswiththeinfluenceonChinesepersonalnames;religionandtheemphasisofindividualismarethekeyfactorsfunctionedinEnglishnamingprocess.TheChinesenamesystemisquitedifferentfromthatofEnglish,notonlyintheformsandnamingprinciplesandculturalbackground,butalsointhetranslation.Allthesedifferencesplayanimportantroleincommunication.Intranslationofpersonalnames,translatorsshouldbefullyawareofthesedifferences.

ThestudyofChineseandEnglishnamesandtheircultureconnotationsandtheirtranslationhelpustohaveabetterunderstandingofChinesecultureandChinesepeopleaswellasEnglishlanguageandEnglishpeople.Thusintheinterculturalcommunicationwecancommunicatemoreeffectivelyandsuccessfully.

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[4]同[3],P51

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[7]同[1],P31.

[8]同[1],P6.

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[10]同[9],P10

[11]李世榮.英語姓名的文化闡釋[J].延安教育學院學報,2002,第3期:P34

[12]同[6],P80

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[14]同[2],P11

[15]同[2],P16

[16]同[11],P35.

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[18]同[2],P44

[19]同[2],P44

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[21]任朝迎.中國人姓名的音譯之探討[J].有色金屬設計,2003,第30卷第2期:

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[22]同[1],P39.

[23]同[4],P82.

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[25]朱紅梅.英語人名翻譯初探[J].鄭州輕工業(yè)學院學報，2002，3,第3卷第1期:P79.

[26]同[13],P49.

[27]隋榮誼.英漢翻譯新教程[M].中國電力出版社，2004，5.P237