On Characteristics of Business English Translation

晏乔

1. Introduction.

Nowadays， the standard of English translation is multiple and disputable. As business English become more and more universal and important now， the translation characteristics of business English also has become a hot issue. Whether we should translate business English according to the old translation standard or use some practical rules？Whether the characteristics are unique for business English or common in all the English translation？ In past years， we find that many scholars had found their own approaches， but one thing they often ignore is the importance of practical translation when faced with different ESP （English for Specific Purposes） nowadays.

2. Characteristics of business English translation

Its necessary for us to translate business English according to its feature. Talking about the characteristics of business English is also this thesiss crucial point.

2.1 Faithfulness

In business English translation， translators must translate all the business information with serious， faithful attitude. Firstly， faithfulness is the basic requirement. Secondly， faithfulness is the responsibility. Any mistake even a number may lead to a fatal loss to business and the translator may be charged with great legal responsibility. Thirdly， faithfulness is moral. Whoever you do business with and what business language you translate， faithfulness is admired morality among international business.

2.2 Expressiveness

On one hand， translators should readily grasp what lies in business fixed terms and sentences and be objective about what being translated. Take this example：

（1）The new assault on NAFTA rests on a single premise： exports are good， imports are bad. （From Language Culture and Translation）

At first， the translator should know exactly what NAFTA is. This fixed term is known as North American Free Trade Agreement， and then the word “premise” is a key word to translate. So translator can get that this is only a condition supposed to be true， not a precondition. On the other hand， expressiveness means the texts or conversations been translated should be communicated.

2.3 Accuracy

Business English must obtain accuracy， for business depends on all the facts in authentic materials such as numbers， diagrams， times， firm offers and orders， thus， faced with extensive information， the translator should remember accurately about all the important details and sum up the idea.