Research on the Principles of Thai - Chinese Legal Translation Under the Theory of Pragmatics

Authors

  • Pan Lei Faculty of Humanities, Kasetsart University.
  • Chatuwit Kaewsuwan Faculty of Humanities, Kasetsart University.
  • Kanokporn Numtong Faculty of Humanities, Kasetsart University.

Keywords:

principles of translation, criminal law translation, Thai – Chinese translation, pragmatics

Abstract

Objectives: This research aims to study the principles of translating the criminal law of Thailand into Chinese with the theory of pragmatics in order to create some guidelines for legal translation from Thai to Chinese.

Methods: The researcher conducted a study on the translation of Thailand's criminal law into Chinese based on the study of concepts, theories, and related research, as well as translating the Criminal Code BE 2499 by using the theory of pragmatics as the main theory.

Results: The results showed that the translation of the criminal law of Thailand into Chinese has unique features. To optimize the translation and to promptly and accurately assist those involved in the process of justice, this article proposes five principles of translating criminal law from Thai into Chinese: 1) the principle of choosing unified technical terminology 2) the principle of maintaining correctness and accuracy of translation  3) the principle of clarifying the translation 4) the principle of maintaining the equality of the legal power of translation, and 5) the principle of the translators being the medium in the justice process. The results of this study can also be applied to other types of law. In legal translation, the translator needs to have specialized knowledge and must have good command of both the source and target language. The translator must constantly strengthen their legal vocabulary to ensure that the translation is of the highest quality.

Application of this study: The results of this study contribute to the body of knowledge on translating legal works from Thai to Chinese. There are not many studies on this topic. The findings from this research can be further developed and used as guidelines for studying and translating other legal works from Thai to Chinese.

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Published

29-08-2023

How to Cite

Lei, P., Kaewsuwan, C., & Numtong, K. (2023). Research on the Principles of Thai - Chinese Legal Translation Under the Theory of Pragmatics. Journal of Arts and Thai Studies, 45(2), E148. Retrieved from https://so08.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/artssu/article/view/148

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Section

Research Articles