Class Transposition in Russian-to-Chinese Translation

Last month, I studied the extension of word meaning, which involves using methods such as transliteration, concretization, and abstraction to extend the original word or phrase, making the translation conform to Chinese expression. In addition to extending word meanings (semantic translation), class transposition is also a common translation technique. Typically, nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs can be converted. Due to space limitations, this article will only discuss the transposition techniques of nouns.

Original Text: Итак—общность языка, как одна из характерных черт нации.

Initial Translation: In short, the commonality of language is one of the nation's distinctive features.

This passage is excerpted from Stalin's quotations. Although "общность" is a noun and should be directly translated as "commonality," a nation is a group of people who speak the same language. Therefore, the nation's feature should be "a common language" rather than "the commonality of language," translating the noun "общность" into the adjective "common." A more accurate translation should be, "In short, a common language is one of the nation's distinctive features."

Apart from translating nouns into adjectives, they can also be translated into adverbs. The following example illustrates this:

Original Text: Своеобразная обстановка определила сравнительную легкость победы Октябрьской революции.

Initial Translation: The unique environment determined the relative ease of victory of the October Revolution.

Upon reading the translation, it is evident that "determined the relative ease of victory" disrupts the sentence structure of the translation. Here, the noun should be translated as an adverb, rendering it as "The unique environment determined that the October Revolution achieved victory with relative ease."

Nouns can also be translated into verbs. This kind of transpositional technique is most commonly seen in diplomatic documents. Taking Putin's annual state-of-the-nation address as an example:

Original Text: Наши общие проекты в рамках Евразийского экономического союза нацелены на то, чтобы обеспечить рост экономики и благосостояния граждан.

Translation: Our joint projects within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union are aimed at ensuring economic growth and improving citizens' well-being.

Although the original term "рост" is a noun, when translated into Chinese, it needs to be transformed into a verb and placed after, translating "提升人民的生活水平" as "improving citizens' well-being."

Nouns translated into auxiliary verbs are also quite common:

Original Text: Съезд особо указал на необходимости участия профессиональных союзов в хозяйственном строительстве.

Initial Translation: The congress particularly emphasized the necessity of trade unions participating in economic construction.

This sentence describes the policy of socialist economic development in the Soviet Union in the 1920s and 1930s, where the congress's content was "for trade unions to participate in economic construction." Therefore, translating it as "The congress particularly emphasized the necessity of trade unions participating in economic construction" or "The congress specifically noted the need for trade unions to participate in economic construction" both work.

Of course, nouns can be transposed into other parts of speech, and vice versa. The process is similar.

Exercise:

Translation Exercise:

1. Original: Ночью на землю пала обильная роса—верный знак, что будет хорошая погода.

Translation: At night, heavy dew fell on the ground—a reliable sign that there will be good weather.

Transposition: 夜间地上的露水很重，是预示将会有好天气的可靠标志。

2. Original: Я обязан думать иначе.

Translation: I must think differently.

Transposition: 我应该有不同的想法。

3. Original: Мысль о великой Родине вселяет в нас огромную уверенность и прилив неиссякаемых сил.

Translation: Thoughts of the great Motherland fill us with tremendous confidence and an endless surge of strength.

Transposition: 一想到伟大的祖国，我们就信心百倍，力量无穷。

◀️：Audience Awareness in Translation

▶️：Chinese-style expressions in translation