薦文 | 耶倫訪華，CNN筆下的“見手青外交”
昨天，CNN發(fā)了一篇關(guān)于耶倫訪華的文章，不談?wù)?，只聊云南菜。罕見的非常正面?/p>
文章先是講述耶倫一行人下飛機(jī)后的第一頓飯（first post-flight meal）都點(diǎn)了什么菜，接著被網(wǎng)友發(fā)現(xiàn)，沖上熱搜，意外帶火了“見手青”。接著文章用大量篇幅介紹了見手青：
Jian shou qing, which translates literally as “see hand blue,” gets its Chinese name from one of its?defining characteristics?– the inner surfaces of the mushrooms bruise and turn blue when you apply pressure on them, including during the slicing process.
Defining characteristics, 獨(dú)特特征，也可以用來形容人：The courage to take risks is often a?defining characteristic?of great leaders.
當(dāng)我們說某事物是defining時，意味著它是該事物的一個重要特征或決定性的因素。這個詞也可以用來形容某個事件、經(jīng)歷或時刻對一個人或事物的重大影響或決定性作用。
比如，我們寫某項(xiàng)發(fā)明深刻改變了后來的人類歷史：The discovery/invention of electricity/Internet was?a defining moment?in human history.
和見手青一起受外媒關(guān)注的還有云南名菜過橋米線：
Perhaps the most popular dish to come out of the province is Yunnan Guoqiaomixian (translated as “crossing-the-bridge rice noodles”).
CNN這篇文章在提到過橋米線之后，緊接著就解釋了這道菜名的由來：
Why the name? Legend has it that cross-the-bridge rice noodles were invented many years ago by a loving wife. Her husband studied on an island, so the wife would travel across a bridge to deliver him his daily lunches.
從見手青和過橋米線的譯法，我們或許可以窺見一些帶有歷史文化屬性的名菜或食材的翻譯規(guī)律。
事實(shí)上，北京市政府外事辦曾出版《美食譯苑——中文菜單英文譯法》，里面一共規(guī)范了3102個中西餐飲食名稱，其中包括2158個中餐，并向北京市各大餐館推廣。在這份譯法規(guī)范中，明確指出：
“體現(xiàn)中國餐飲文化，使用漢語拼音命名或音譯的翻譯原則?！?/strong>
“如果中文菜肴名稱無法體現(xiàn)其做法及主配料的，使用漢語拼音，并在后標(biāo)注英文注釋。”
再舉幾個類似的名菜譯法作為例子：佛跳墻 Fotiaoqiang (Steamed Abalone with Shark’s Fin and Fish Maw in Broth)
驢打滾兒 Lǘdagunr (Glutinous Rice Rolls Stuffed with Red Bean Paste)
咕嚕肉 Gulaorou (Sweet and Sour Pork)
文章最后一段還肯定了云南美食對于推動中國兩國關(guān)系的意義：
So say what you like about whether Yellen’s Beijing visit had any impact on relations between the world’s two biggest economies. When it comes to Chinese cuisine, it’s clear the treasury secretary’s team made all the right moves.
文章值得一看，有梯子的友友們可以直接搜索標(biāo)題看原文，也可以私信添加guanguan6366，獲取全文原文（純英文，無翻譯無筆記）。
公眾號：自由翻譯日記
