“是”or“存在”——论西方哲学术语being的汉译

On Translation of the Philosophical Term"Being"

being是西方哲学中的核心范畴,但是究竟是翻译成“是”还是“存在”学界一直存在争论。对being的汉译概况进行梳理会发现,源语内涵、中西语言差异、中西思维差异等是导致being汉译争论的深层次原因,而对being的翻译应遵循两条原则:一是有助于理解西方哲学思想,二是有助于促进中西哲学的交流和沟通。

"Being"is the core notion in western philosophy.It has mainly two Chinese versions:"是"and"存在",but there has not been agreement on which should be the most appropriate version yet.This paper reviews the history of Chinese translations of"Being",and finds that the argument is mainly caused by three factors:the connotation in original texts,differences between Chinese and English languages,differences between Chinese and western thinking patterns.It is suggested that in translating"Being"into Chinese we should abide by two principles:for a clear understanding of western philosophy,for communication between Chinese and western philosophical fields.