中医典籍中概念隐喻的英译研究——以《中藏经》为例

A Study on the English Translation of Conceptual Metaphors in Traditional Chinese Medical Classic—A Case Study of Master Hua’s Classic of the Central Viscera

摘要: 《中藏经》是中医理论早期成型的重要典籍，其语言兼具医学性、哲学性与高度隐喻性，集中体现了中医“取象比类”的认知基础。隐喻在中医典籍种并非单纯的修辞手段，而是组织脏腑理论、阐释病机演变、建构诊疗知识的重要认知机制。本文基于概念隐喻理论，以《中藏经》及杨守忠英译本为研究对象，识别出典籍中的典型隐喻类型，包括自然隐喻、官职隐喻、空间隐喻、战争隐喻等，并进一步探讨其在英译中的认知转换过程。研究发现，《中藏经》中的隐喻表达具有系统性、文化性以及知识建构性，其翻译难点主要体现在源域文化负载较重、概念映射不对称以及目标语读者认知经验缺失等方面。针对不同类型的隐喻，译者主要采取保留原文喻体特征、喻体替代和隐喻省略三种策略。总的来说，本研究认为，中医典籍英译应在忠实传达医学内涵的基础上，兼顾概念结构重构与文化意象传递，以提升译文的可理解性、可接受性和中医文化的国际传播效果。

Abstract: Master Hua’s Classic of the Central Viscera is an important medical classic formed during the early development of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) theory. Its language is characterized by medical, philosophical and highly metaphorical features, which vividly reflect the cognitive foundation of TCM. In TCM classics, metaphor is not merely a rhetorical device, but an essential cognitive mechanism for organizing zang-fu theory, explaining the evolution of pathogenesis, and constructing diagnostic and therapeutic knowledge. Based on Conceptual Metaphor Theory (CMT), this study takes Master Hua’s Classic of the Central Viscera and its Yang shouzhong’s English translation as its research objects, identifying several typical metaphors in the text, including natural metaphors, bureaucratic metaphors, spatial metaphors, and war metaphors. It further explores the process of cognitive transformation involved in their English translation. The study finds that metaphorical expressions in the classic are systematic, culturally embedded, and constructive of medical knowledge. The major difficulties in translation are the heavy cultural load of the source domain, the asymmetry of conceptual mappings, and the lack of relevant cognitive experience on the part of target readers. To deal with different types of metaphors, the translator mainly adopts three strategies: preserving the original metaphorical vehicle, replacing the metaphorical vehicle, and omitting the metaphor. Overall, this study argues that the English translation of TCM classics should faithfully convey medical connotations while also taking into account the reconstruction of conceptual structures and the transmission of cultural imagery, so as to enhance the comprehensibility and acceptability of the translation and to promote the international dissemination of TCM culture.