Untranslatable Flavours: Examining the Loss of Culinary and Cultural Nuance in Chinese-to-English Dish Name Translation

Lay Shi Ng, Ruey Shing Soo, Chun Keat Yeap

Abstract


As globalisation broadens culinary exposure, accurately translating Chinese food names into English has become crucial in bridging cultural and linguistic gaps for international diners. However, the translation of Chinese dish names into English often entails a significant loss of culinary and cultural nuance, resulting in a diminished representation of the original flavours, techniques, and heritage. This study explores the intricacies and limitations inherent in conveying the essence of Chinese cuisine to English-speaking audiences. The research aims to investigate the extent to which translation fails to capture essential cultural and culinary elements, thereby impacting international diners' understanding and appreciation of Chinese dishes. The primary objectives of this research are to explore how translation strategies such as literal translation, transliteration, and term translation affect the conveyance of culinary and cultural elements, and to evaluate the extent of nuance loss in translation. Methodologically, a corpus of English-translated Chinese dish names was compiled and analysed to examine the linguistic structures, cultural markers, and culinary terms to uncover patterns and identify translation limitations. This study adopts Cultural Translation Theory as its analytical framework to examine how cultural meanings are mediated and transformed across languages, with a focus on the interplay between language, culture, and identity in the context of culinary discourse. The analysis drew on established frameworks in translation studies and cultural semiotics to interpret how language choices influence the perception of the original dishes. By focusing exclusively on comparative analysis, this study provides insights into the complexities of culinary translation, highlighting the challenges of preserving cultural authenticity in cross-linguistic contexts. The study reveals that the translation of Chinese dish names into English is shaped less by cultural fidelity than by pragmatic considerations of clarity, accessibility, and marketability.

 

Keywords: Chinese dishes; translation; linguistic structures; cultural markers; culinary terms


Full Text:

PDF

References


Aixelá, J. F. (1996). Culture-Specific Items in Translation. In: Alvarez, R. and Vidal, M.C.-A., Eds., Translation, Power, Subversion. Topics in Translation, Vol. 8, Multilingual Matters, Bristol, 52–78. https://doi.org/10.21832/9781800417915-005

Bassnett, S., & Lefevere, A. (1990). Translation, History and Culture. London: Printer Publishers.

Chen, T. (2022). A brief comment on the translation of the names of Chinese dishes. Journal of Sociology and Ethnology, 4(4), 21-30. https://doi.org/10.23977/jsoce.2022.040405

Chew, M. E., Ng, L. S., Jaafar, N. M., & Yeap, C. K. (2024). Understanding Oriental and Western Dragons in a Globalised World: A Cross-linguistic Study of Dragon-based Metaphorical Expressions in Chinese and English. 3L, Language, Linguistics, Literature, 30(4), 1-15.

Chinese Learning. (2023). The eight major Chinese cuisines. Retrieved on 22 Jan 2025 from: https://www.chineselearning.com/chinese-food/the-eight-major-chinese-cuisines

Huo, C. Q., Du, X. M., & Gu, W. C. (2020). The metaphor and translation of the dish names in Chinese food culture. Open Journal of Modern Linguistics, 10(5), 423-428. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojml.2020.105025

Kang, Q. (2013). Chinese-English translation of Chinese dish names from the perspective of cultural differences. Cross-Cultural Communication, 9(6), 121-124. http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/j.ccc.1923670020130906.2970

Kress, G., & van Leeuwen, T. (2021). Reading images: The grammar of visual design (3rd ed.). Routledge.

Mission Connect Ltd. (2024). The Spice of Culinary Translation in Global Cuisine. Retrieved on 22 Jan 2025 from: https://missionconnect.co.uk/blogs/the-spice-of-culinary-translation-in

globalcuisine/#:~:text=Culinary%20translation%20bridges%20the%20gap,in%20the%20international%20business%20recipe

Mu, C., & Liu, L. (2010). English translation of Chinese dish names. Translation Journal, 14(4). https://translationjournal.net/journal/54dishes.htm

Yang, X. L. (2017). Study on the translation of Chinese food dishes. Open Journal of Modern Linguistics, 7(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojml.2017.71001

Zhang, Y., & Fu, Y. (2025). Innovative Development of Foshan Cuisine Culture in the Digital Age. Advances in Management and Intelligent Technologies, 1(2).

Zhang, Y., & O'Halloran, K. L. (2014). The construction of meaning in multimodal discourse: A social semiotic approach. Multimodal Communication, 3(1), 21-40. https://doi.org/10.1515/mc-2014-0003

Zhu, H., Ang, L. H., & Mansor, N. S. (2024). Are mouse noodles actually made from mice? Touring street food name translations. Humanities Social Sciences Communication, 11(531), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03041-1

Zhu, H., Ang, L. H., Rashid, S. M., & Mansor, N. S. (2021). Representing Chinese Malaysians culture in the street food through the Chinese-English translation techniques. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 11(4), 1395-1407.

https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v11-i4/9838

Zhuoma, Q. (2023). A corpus analysis on food-related borrowing words between English and Chinese and its influences on cultural implication and language development. British Journal of English Linguistics, 11(3), 33-45. https://doi.org/10.37745/bjel.2013/vol11n33345




DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/3L-2025-3103-30

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.


 

 

 

eISSN : 2550-2247

ISSN : 0128-5157