A set of fixed English translations for Chinese menus is set to
be published before the Spring Festival in February, the Beijing
Municipal Tourism Bureau said.
The final draft, which has been partially revised after
soliciting opinions from netizens and language experts, has been
sent to the printers and would soon be recommended to restaurants
across the country for their bilingual menus, said an official with
the bureau, who declined to give his name.
"The proper English translations will not only provide
convenience for foreigners coming to Beijing for the Olympics, but it will also improve the English
of Chinese people," said the official.
As a part of its preparations for the Olympic Games next year,
when at least 500,000 foreigners are expected to visit, the Beijing
municipal government have been working on erasing the often bizarre
English translations for Chinese dishes, backed by a committee of
20 language experts and catering service managers.
The municipal government also plans to launch a training program
to equip waiters and waitresses with knowledge of the dish names in
case customers demand explanations.
Beijing Tourism Bureau published a list of translations for
2,753 dishes and drinks online in August, seeking feedback.
Translators have divided the dish names into four categories:
ingredients, cooking method, taste, name of a person or a
place.
Misleading, and often hilarious, translations such as "chicken
without sexual life", "husband and wife's lung slice" or even "bean
curd made by a pock-marked woman" have been replaced with "Spring
chicken", "pork lungs in chili sauce" and "stir-fried tofu in hot
sauce".
"The names of Chinese dishes have long been part of our culture
and we hope we can share our culture with others through the
Beijing Olympics in a tasteful, and more importantly appropriate,
way," said Feng Dongming, the head of the translation program and
vice dean of the Tourism School of Beijing Union University.
The Beijing Tourism Group, to which famous brands like the
Beijing Hotel and Quanjude Roast Duck belong, welcomed the new
translations
"Though the translations are only recommended, the menus of the
hotels and restaurants in our group will adopt the new
translations," said an official with the group's public relations
department.
(Xinhua News Agency January 14, 2008)