Translation of Chinese Four-character Idiomson Basis of Equivalence Theory

Abstract

Chinese idioms, as a national culture of concentrated essence, have the nation’s unique cultural connotation. With the growing number of western and eastern cultural connections, the idiom translation has become more and more important between communications. Thanks to the different expressions between Chinese and English, especially in terms of history, geography, religious beliefs, and customs and so on, there are many significant differences in several aspects, therefore, how to make the English national readers appreciate Chinese idioms and feel the same way with native readers is the key to translate Chinese idioms. This thesis attempts to explore the English translation of four-character idioms under the guidance of Nida’s equivalent translation theory, and make an analysis of idioms translation through the different methods.