On the afternoon of April 13th, at the joint invitation of the College of Foreign Studies at NJAU and the Academic Research Center of Classics Translation and Overseas Sinology, Professor Zhao Yanchun presented a wonderful academic lecture entitled "The Expectation of Chinese Classics Translation" in the lecture hall. The lecture was hosted by Professor Wang Yinquan, vice-dean of the College of Foreign Studies..
Professor Zhao Yanchun first pointed out the necessity and importance of Classics Translation. With the rise ofChinaon the world stage, the cultural "input" should be changed into "output". To keep up with time, it’s necessary to enhance the cultural soft power, and classics translation is one of the important economic and cultural ways of producing “output”.
Next, Professor Zhao Yanchun discussed translation methodologies from the perspective of linguistics and philosophy. Classics translation is quite difficult. He used a paper cup as an example to explain in simple terms the relationship between the world of ideas, drawings and material. In short, the form is the pilot, and the starting point for a successful translation of poetry and to the fundamental guarantee, which constrains “Not Moving Flying Arrow” and the rigid “Translation Inviolable Principle”.
Subsequently, Professor Zhao Yanchun also took his English translation version of the "Three Character Classic", "Thousand Character Classic" and "Tao Te Chi" as an illustration, and analyzed the characteristics and phonological associations, discussed the importance of form for translation.
Finally, Professor Zhao Yanchun noted that students should take advantage of the platform and resources provided by the Academic Research Center of Classics Translation and Overseas Sinology, comply with the time requirements of promoting Chinese culture, and help Chinese culture spread to the world. He also showed the audience the journal that he edited ,"Translating China", and encouraged people to contribute actively.
Professor Zhao Yanchun’s informative but easily understandable lecture won warm applause from teachers and students. The lecture was a good guide to the work of the Academic Research Center of Classics Translation and Overseas Sinology of NJAU, but also inspired the faculty and students of our college to promote Chinese culture, and devote themselves to external translation practices.
Attachment: Prof. Zhao Yanchun is now the director of Humanities and Social Sciences Key Research Base of Tianjin Ordinary High Education Colleges, the Foreign Language and Literature Research Center of Cultural Tianjin Foreign Studies University, Tianjin Distinguished Professor, and the editor of "World Poetry" and "World Languages". His areas of research include language theory, cognitive lexicography, the philosophy of language, and translation studies, and is committed to "the Book of Songs" and other classic historical and contemporary poetry studies.
Professor Zhao Yanchun is the honorary president of Chinese Poetry Association, Vice-President of Chinese Language Education Research, Vice President of Australia Quality & Life Publishing, a member of India MERI College of Engineering & Technology Committee (MERICET) Academic Committee, the education technology expert of Blue Pigeon Group Limited, the honorary editor of "Dongpo wind", and an adjunct professor at Zhongshan University, China Agricultural University, and Tianjin University of Technology.
"Three Character Classic in British Rhyme", published in 2014 is the first translation version ever in rhyme of this Chinese classic. It was widely reported on by Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, Guangming Daily, China Daily, Twenty-first Century English Newspaper, the Bohai Daily Newspaper, Evening News, Tianjin Radio, Headlines Today, Netease and other major media outlets, and was known as the "best ever English translation", and "translation of God."
