Research on Compensation for Losses in the Chinese-Spanish Translation of the Name of Chinese Dishes

Abstract

It is common knowledge that Chinese cuisine is among the best known of the world, and the simple fact of eating is an inseparable part of daily life. That is why Chinese food attracts tourists from different continents, who are interested in the millenary culture of China. However, due to the variety of ingredients and ways of cooking, as well as cultural and linguistic disparities, losses would inevitably arise during the process of translating the names of Chinese dishes. In order to keep the essence of Chinese dishes as real as possible, the translation of these deserves profound studies. This is a subject that we try to analyze translation from the Chinese-Spanish angle. This paper is divided into three parts. Firstly, some general theories of losses and translation compensations would be presented. The name of the Chinese dishes and the possible factors that cause translation losses would be addressed in the second part. The third part is developed around the compensations that could be applied in this process, illustrated with several examples.