中文典籍外译的本质与意义——基于三部启蒙经典翻译的考察与思考

The Nature and Value of Translating Chinese Classics into Foreign Languages:Based on a Historical Interpretation of Multilingual Versions of Three Primers

自16世纪末叶欧洲耶稣会士将《三字经》等经典翻译为拉丁文,中文典籍便源源不断地被翻译为多种外语,中国思想文化也因此得以持续与世界各种语言文字的读者进行交流与互动,促进了人类文明不断融合与发展。本文拟在世界翻译历史的视阈中,考察《千字文》《三字经》与《弟子规》等三部中文启蒙经典翻译的历史,尤其是讨论其英语翻译的历史,采用比较研究的方法解读翻译策略与文本特征,藉此探讨中文典籍翻译的本质与意义。

Since European Jesuits first translated The Three-Character Primer and other canons into Latin in the last few decades of the 16th century,Chinese classics have been continually translated into numerous foreign languages,and therefore Chinese thoughts and culture could keep engaging with readers of other languages worldwide for exchanges and interaction,contributive to promote the mutual mergence and evolution of human civilizations.This article is intended to make a contextual study of the four-century history of translating The Thousand-Character Writing,The Three-Character Primer,and Canons for Disciples from Chinese into other languages,especially the history of their English versions,as it is contextualized in the world history of translation,and comparatively interpret their translation strategies and textual features,as a way of further discussing the nature and value of translating Chinese classics into foreign languages.