功能对等理论指导下中医病因病机类文化负载词英译对比研究

A Comparative Study on the English Translation of Culture-Loaded Terms of Etiology and Pathogenesis in Traditional Chinese Medicine under the Guidance of Functional Equivalence Theory

摘要: 中医病因病机类文化负载词承载着深厚的中医哲学思想与文化内涵，其英译质量直接关系到中医国际传播的成效。本文以奈达功能对等理论为指导，选取《伤寒论》《金匮要略》等中医经典典籍中的典型病因病机术语作为研究对象，对比分析李照国译本、罗希文译本、WHO西太区标准及文树德(Paul Unschuld)译本等多个代表性英译版本的异同。研究发现，不同译者在处理此类文化负载词时，呈现出“异化为主、归化为辅”与“归化为主、异化为辅”两种核心取向：前者侧重保留中医文化本真特色，后者注重提升目标语读者的接受度。本文提出，在功能对等理论框架下，病因病机类文化负载词的英译应追求“文化传真”与“读者反应”的动态平衡——既要通过音译加注、语义再生等策略传递中医文化的独特性，又要借助功能对等实现医学概念的跨文化精准理解。研究建议，中外合作翻译模式的推行与术语国际标准的统一，是破解当前翻译困境、推动中医术语英译规范化发展的有效路径。

Abstract: Culture-loaded terms of etiology and pathogenesis in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) carry profound philosophical thoughts and cultural connotations, and the quality of their English translation directly affects the effectiveness of TCM international communication. Guided by Nida’s functional equivalence theory, this paper selects typical terms of etiology and pathogenesis from TCM classics such as Shanghan Lun (Treatise on Febrile Diseases) and Jingui Yaolue (Synopsis of the Golden Chamber) as research objects, and conducts a comparative analysis of multiple English versions, including those translated by Li Zhaoguo, Luo Xiwen, the standards of WHO Western Pacific Region, and Paul Unschuld. The study reveals that different translators exhibit two main approaches in handling such culture-loaded terms: “foreignization-oriented with domestication as auxiliary” and “domestication-oriented with foreignization as auxiliary”. The former emphasizes preserving the cultural characteristics of TCM, while the latter focuses on the acceptability of target language readers. This paper proposes that, within the framework of functional equivalence theory, the English translation of culture-loaded terms of etiology and pathogenesis should pursue a dynamic balance between “cultural fidelity” and “reader response”—conveying the uniqueness of TCM culture through strategies such as transliteration with annotations and semantic regeneration, while achieving cross-cultural understanding of concepts through functional equivalence. The study suggests that the sino-foreign cooperative translation model and the unification of international terminology standards are effective paths to address current translation difficulties.