On the Source and Translation of New English Buzzwords

Feng+Qing

【Abstract】Buzzwords are words or phrases that have become fashionable and popular. As a lexical phenomenon， buzzwords reflect issues of common concern of a particular country during a particular period. Different periods have different buzzwords which have witnessed the profound changes taking place in political， economical as well as cultural areas over the years. In fact， they are generally considered as the sensitive nerve of a given society. In light of this， this thesis focuses on the source and translation of new English buzzwords in four areas.

【Key words】new English buzzwords； source； translation

I. Introduction

A buzzword in Greek， meaning “new”， is a newly coined term， word or phrase that may be in the process of entering common use， but has not yet been accepted into mainstream language. As a lexical phenomenon， a buzzword reflects issue of common concern of a particular country during a particular period. Different periods have different buzzwords which have witnessed the profound changes taking place in political， economical as well as cultural areas over the years. This paper will take Political Field and Social Culture Field as examples.

II. Typical Examples in Political Field

In the last several years， the world political system and the regime of each country have changed a lot， and these all result in numerous new English buzzwords being created. There are some typical ones as below.

Eg. Source and Translation of “Chimerica”

1. Source

The term was first coined by historian Niall Ferguson and economist Moritz Schularick in 2007 who argue that saving by the Chinese and overspending by Americans led to an incredible period of wealth creation that contributed to the global financial crisis of 2008–2009. He suggests Chimerica would end if China were to decouple from the United States bringing with it a shift in global power and allowing China “to explore other spheres of global influence， from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization， of which Russia is also a member， to its own informal nascent empire in commodity-rich Africa.” （Niall Ferguson， 2007： 1-2）

2. Translation

ST1： Now that the age of leverage is over， ‘Chimerica — the relationship between the big saver and the big spender is key.

TT1： 現在杠桿時代已經結束， 美中經濟共生體——大儲蓄者和大消費者之間的關系才是關鍵。

The word-formation method used here is normal. The buzzword is a combination of “Chinese” and “American”， so when we translate it， the context in which it appears should be noticed.

III. Typical Examples in Social Culture Field

Every language implicates a different cultural connotation， and also faithfully reflects the spirit of the time of a society and culture. As the old saying goes—without language， there is no culture. Therefore， the changes of language are inevitable products of the society and culture. Now， I will give some examples below.

Eg. Source and Translation of “Linsanity”

1. Source

Lin Shuhao has triggered “Lin language boom”. An interview of Harvard University said that “Lin”of Lin Shuhao is easier than Yao to form collage words， and the words neednt to exist as compound words. Furthermore， Global Language Monitor will consider Linsanity as official English words.

Lindepth （javascript： void（0）Lin+indepth）， Lintriguing， Linsurgency， Linspiration， Lindomitable， Linsurgent. And surely many more， if the breadth of words beginning with the prefix “Lin-” can serve as guide. If Mr. Lins fame continues， hell become a part of the sub-Lin-in thoughts.

2. Translation

ST： The rage in Taiwan described in sports media as “Linsanity” has grown largely from the players comeback streak.

TT： 在臺灣體育媒體界很流行的林瘋狂這個詞， 從很大程度上是與林書豪勝利回歸有關。

Here， what we need to mention is that when translating buzzwords， the origin can be the basis of translating strategy. Lindomitable combines Lin and indomitable， so we can translate Lindomitable the same as indomitable.

IV. Conclusion

English buzzwords are an important part of the modern society. They reflect the pace of the world. However， translation might be the most anxiety-provoking for foreign language learners to study buzzwords.

After this empirical study， we can find that the key to buzzwords translation is to comprehend and seize the meaning of them. We can translate the words through analyzing word formation， reading the context or learning a wider range of background knowledge. So it is necessary for the translators to trace the origin of the new words. In fact， only by comprehending the new words correctly can the translators choose the proper ways to translate.

References：

[1]Barrett，Grant.The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English[Z].New York：McGraw-Hill，2006.