人名翻译：意识形态与香港殖民史 (Week 6)

Topic: Governors and Horses and Others - Translations and Ideology

• The central theme revolves around the translation of names, particularly in the context of Hong Kong's colonial history and its impact on cultural identity.
• The text emphasizes that the act of translation, especially of proper nouns, is laden with ideological implications, reflecting power dynamics and cultural values.

What's in a Name?

• Scholars have differing views on proper nouns; some see them as mere labels without intrinsic meaning beyond denotation, while others consider them to hold cultural and symbolic significance.
• Proper nouns have individual meanings that differ from the general meanings of ordinary nouns, which is still a form of meaning.
• Holger Steen Sørensen proposed a formula to define the operation of proper nouns: "P" = "the x that..."
• "P" represents the changeable part of a proper noun, while "x" is a variable stem that has a calling function, plus a singular inflection.
• Sørensen concludes that proper nouns are similar to common nouns, except that the former can only refer to a single entity, while the latter can refer to multiple entities.
• The significance of phonetics and pronunciation in name creation is highlighted, noting the importance of rhythm and euphony.

The Nuances of Name Translation

• Linguistic devices like homonyms and approximants contribute to the connotative meanings of names.
• Puns and wordplay are frequently employed in naming conventions, often drawing associations from polysemy and homophony.
• In the translation of proper nouns, factors like pronunciation, avoidance of taboos, and cultural sensitivity play a pivotal role.
• Names serve as a means of characterizing individuals or entities, with associative meanings derived from phonetics becoming intrinsic traits.

Cultural and Historical Context

• Peter Newmark states that proper nouns accrue layers of cultural, historical, and social significance through accumulation and interaction across various contexts.
• Many place names have traceable etymologies, while personal names can indicate nationality, ethnicity, lineage, gender, and era.

The Translator's Role as a Manipulator

• The translator grapples with balancing linguistic accuracy, cultural relevance, and ideological considerations, often requiring deliberation and compromise.
• The consumption of translated names carries cultural and social implications, making the translator crucial in navigating conditions and choices.

Taking Christopher Patten as an example

• Christopher Francis Patten, the last Governor of Hong Kong, was officially translated as Peng Dingkang, but the standardized transliteration was Patton.
• The choice of "Peng Dingkang" was premeditated, predating his appointment as Governor, influenced by Chinese naming conventions and local customs.
• The objective was to create a Sinicized name that would be easily adopted and remembered by the local population.
• Factors such as auspiciousness and positive connotations were considered, in line with Chinese cultural norms.
• The standard translation "Patton" was considered incongruent with Hong Kong's cultural landscape and likely to alienate the local population.
• The selection of "Peng Dingkang" incorporated linguistic elements to conform to local naming models while conveying positive associations.
• The official translation of the Governor's wife, Lavender, as Lin Yingtong, demonstrates a preference for euphony and cultural resonance.

Evolving Naming Conventions

• The practice of translating governors' names evolved into a delicate task, laden with socio-political implications.
• The naming controversy surrounding Governor Sir David Wilson is used as an example.
• Concerns over negative connotations led to the adoption of "Wei Yixing" as the official translation, praised for its euphony and auspiciousness.
• Semantic and phonetic considerations, along with auspiciousness, were key factors in shaping the translation of Governor Wilson's name.

Shifting Naming Patterns across Governors

• Earlier governors' names, translated with little regard for phonetics or modern sensibilities, underwent revisions for practical purposes.
• A trend towards prioritizing semantics in governor's name translations emerged, reflecting an emphasis on statesmanship and good governance.
• Naming patterns shifted towards greater Sinicization, with exotic translations becoming less common.

Cultural and Political influences

• The push for greater localization was intertwined with the emergence of local consciousness, the officialization of Chinese, and growing economic independence.
• The superior attitude of the British gradually faded in the Hong Kong population's view.
• Colonial overtones in Hong Kong's governance waned, with "Colony" replaced by "Territory" in official documents.

Mimicry and Reverse Mimicry: The colonial dialectic

• Homi Bhabha's concept of mimicry highlights how colonial power structures seek to replicate a recognizable yet distinct Others.
• The translation choices exemplify a case of "reverse mimicry", as colonial rulers adopt traits of the colonized to facilitate governance.
• An intent to create a modified, identifiable, and pseudo (almost the same/not quite) replica of the Other.

The Dual Strategies of naming

• In the early period, translations had foreign flavors, highlighting the superiority of the non-self rulers, but this strategy is already out of date.

Dragon Pool Rats and Long Time No See: Linguistic Transformations

• Colonial strategies involve mimicry, with institutions like the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club serving as examples.
• The Jockey Club served as a form of mimicry of British horse racing traditions.

Syncretism in Horse Racing Culture

• The Jockey Club successfully "appropriated" British horse racing customs and paraphernalia, ruling over Hong Kong citizens.
• Horse racing has become synonymous with Hong Kong, with society wide impacts
• Chinese people were influenced by western customs, even though horse racing didn't originally impact them.

Translation of Horse Names

• In early horse races, only English names were used, causing problems for Chinese readers.
• The first Chinese horse names appeared during the Japanese occupation (1941-1945) and set a precedent.
• The Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club had dual naming systems starting in 1948
• Most horses are imported from Europe, America, Australia, and New Zealand with both the option to retain original names as well as select new names.
• Translations are equivalent with restrictions, for example: Cannot reuse famous historical horse names, limits on length, and cannot use proper nouns to play on words.

Cultural Integration through Names

• Since the mid-1970s, Hong Kong's local popular culture has emerged, so slang and Hong Kong-style Cantonese have gradually appeared in Chinese horse names, which can be said to be colorful. Horse racing is a community activity, and the naming and translation of horses cannot be divorced from the social atmosphere and fashion of the time.

Name Translation Techniques

• The methods of horse name translation can be divided into transliteration, literal translation, and a combination of transliteration and literal translation.
• Transliteration primarily uses homophones or near-homophones in the target language to form a meaningful word group. Most Chinese horse names are auspicious, while English horse names are imaginative, with meanings depending on the phonetics, but mostly without derogatory meanings.
• Often used to make the effect of equivalence stronger; for this reason, emphasis relies on the causal relationship of the names. The meaning is close with humorous expression.
• Key values for the effect of horse naming are the interesting, and good fun of the activity, surrounding an amusing atmosphere and consciousness.

Brands Names

• Brand Names are created according to product effectiveness or characteristics.
• Local consumers cause external companies to increase emphasis on name selection.

Brand Name Examples

• "Good Jetso" is a mixed language: Jetso is a transliteration of the Cantonese language, which is the meaning of "benefits", but there is no such word in English.
• As can be seen, the Jockey Club has completely non-resistance to the penetration of popular culture.

From Zhuang Sheng to Johnson

• Brand names serve to identify products while also representing the product's personality and gestalt. Brand naming often focuses on the perceived value of a consumable item.
• These names need persuasive power to make customers need and want to buy them, but also to provide information, illustrate the properties and uses of the product, increase awareness, and thus foster brand loyalty among customers.

The Rise of Local consumerism and localisation

• Recently, Hong Kong's local consumption has increased, and foreign companies' attention to the Hong Kong consumer market is increasing. A lot of companies are trying to print Chinese characters on product packaging, and also deliberately translate their brand names into Chinese in order to cater to the mentality of customers and achieve the above-mentioned persuasive and informational purposes. Name adaptation was barely done in the past.

Translation Examples and the Role of Context

• A brand name is not really a word to start with. When looked at closely, recent product name translations are found to have different strategies, and each strategy is affected by different market factors.
• Several strategies are explained. First, those that emphasized the effectiveness and application of the object, like everyday products.

Strategic Considerations

• Those that are often emphasized by name include the likes of: Soap (Dove, Zest), Food and beverage (Smedley's).
• A lot of this is intentional, providing information on product use and strengthening their intention to buy the object.
• They generally emphasize those from the field of cleaning products and pharmaceuticals.

Value of Product and Brand

• A second strategy is to consider how their brand products are used.
• These typically project messages that cater to some subjects the mentality of the object, namely, niche marketing and make the customers satisfied.
• Brand names for cosmetics mostly emphasized words that would satisfy women's needs.

Translating Products

• Products that do not really emphasized or value the product, with most advertising emphasis often put of those who would consume said product and their current social standing and wealth with proper and elevated usage.
• It typically also hires accurate translation to translate the origin text which also makes the text easier to read. (Such as the name Rolex).
• Often more applied in higher end products.
• It's difficult to fully translate the names, and often emphasize their non-ethnic nature.

Market Positioning and Target Audiences

• Some products and brand advertisements directly target adults.
• Therefore, there are a few names that were fully translated on purpose, though most often, they are used to advertise a certain type product.
• Market and social situations will determine the nature of the product.
• As a form of community engagement that can easily draw in youths, the brands themselves will often utilize roman character naming schemes.
• As a capitalist community, Hong Kong has developed a great understanding of market promotional tactics and will promote itself as a middle ground