In today’s multi-cultural society, translation, as an important device in the cross-cultural communication, is a mode of cultural transfer. Colour terms are closely connected with culture. As a part of language, colour terms are endowed with abundant cultural connotations. Moreover, colour terms’ lexical meaning and symbolic meaning reflect various cultures and cultural backgrounds. In order to promote the development of the multi-cultural society and cross-cultural communication, it is significant to understand and grasp colour terms and their functions in the cultural transfer.
This thesis, targeting at improving translation proficiency and promoting cross-cultural communication, makes a careful analysis of colour terms, including the definition, the history in English and Chinese, the translation difficulties and the translation techniques.
Abstract .............................................................................I
Key Words.............................................................................I
摘 要 ...............................................................................II
关键词 ...............................................................................II
Introduction .........................................................................1
Ⅰ. A Brief Introduction to Colour Terms .............................................2
A. The Definition of Colour Terms ....................................................2
1. Classification of Colour Terms............................................. .......2
2. Function of Colour Terms.......................................................... 2
B. Colour Terms’ History in English .................................................4
C. Colour Terms’ History in Chinese................................................. 5
Ⅱ. The Difficulties in Translating Colour Terms .....................................7
A. The Difficulties in Translating Basic Colour Terms ................................7
1. The Usages and Features of Basic Colour Terms .....................................7
2. Basic Colour Terms’ Cultural Connotation in Chinese and English ..................9
B. The Difficulties in Translating Object Colour Terms ...............................11
1. The Common Characteristics of Object Colour Terms in Chinese and English ..........11
2. The Different Characteristics of Object Colour Terms in Chinese and English....... 11
C. The Other Difficulties in Translating Colour Terms ................................12
1. Non-Equivalence in Referential Meaning ............................................12
2. Non-Equivalence in Pragmatic Meaning ..............................................12
3. The Various Concepts of Chinese Colour Terms ......................................13
Ⅲ. Translation Techniques for Colour Terms ..........................................14
A. Domestication .....................................................................14
1. Creative Translation ..............................................................14
2. Liberal Translation................................................................15
B. Foreignization.................................................................... 16
1. Literal Translation ...............................................................16
2. Annotation ........................................................................17
Conclusion ...........................................................................19
Acknowledgements..................................................................... 20
Bibliography................................................................. ........21
