吐蕃译语人考

Ancient Tibetan translator and interpreter of Tibetan language

在西藏历史上被称为“世间眼”的翻译人一般指的是笔译者。从吐蕃中晚期开始,笔译者或被尊称为译师的翻译人备受西藏史家的青睐,每一部教法史著作中都留有一份历代译师的名录表,但纵观吐蕃对外交流史,我们发现被传统史籍所抛弃的口译者或译语人同样具有该称号。吐蕃不仅在王庭设有译语人官吏,还对边缘军政机构和在外征战的领军大臣也配有大量的译语人,他们能够在藏语与汉语、梵语、回鹘语等不同语种之间传导以使吐蕃政治、军事以及文化等方面的对外交流更加方便和畅通。

Translators are commonly referred to as the"eyes of the world"in Tibet history.From the middle and late Ancient Tibet period onwards,translators honored as experts were highly favored by Tibetan historians,and every work on the history of teachings and dharma contains a list of interpreters of all times,but when we look at the history of Ancient Tibet’s foreign exchanges,we find that interpreters or translators,who have been discard⁃ed by the traditional history,were also given the same title.Not only did Ancient Tibet have interpreters in the royal court,but it also had many interpreters for the marginal military and political organizations,as well as for the leading ministers in foreign wars,who were able to exchange messages between Tibetan and other languages such as Chinese,Sanskrit,and ancient Uighur to make Ancient Tibet's foreign exchanges in the political,mili⁃tary,and cultural fields more convenient and smoother.