Medical Translation
Introduction
The medical terms to be translated are selected from three articles. Two articles deal with the posttraumatic stress disorder, a kind of mental disease and the other article is about the immune response in transplantation. Medical terms differ from that in daily use, and the same word can have different meanings within various contexts. In addition, many medical terms have roots and affixes which are mostly borrowed from Greek and Latin language, and as a result an analysis of the roots, prefixes and suffixes is necessary in order to translate the terms acutely and succinctly. Some terms can be transliterated into Chinese language while some need to be paraphrased into Chinese according to the context. The translation of medical terms should not only be accurate, but should also be concise, easy to understand and avoid being ambiguous.
Article One: Blockade of Lymphocyte Chemotaxis in Visceral Graft-versus-Host Disease
1. Graft-versus-host Disease: Graft means any transplanted or implanted organ or tissue in English, in Chinese language, graft can be translated as “移植器官”. The term “versus” in English means the situation in which two sides are against each other. In Chinese language, the term refers to “敌对”, but the term “敌对” is usually used in military area and it is not concise for the translation of “versus” in medical field. Comparatively, the term “抗” in Chinese is more suitable for the translation of “versus” as it is concise and it can reflect the condition in which one part is resistant toward another. “Host” means the body which accepts the transplantation. In Chinese, the character “宿主” means the body on which another animal or plant lives (cf. Oxford Advanced Learner’s English-Chinese Dictionary:854). In medical field, “宿主” can be referred to the body to which the organ or tissue is attached. Therefore, the disease Graft-versus-host can be translated as “移植器官抗宿主病”, a disease in which the transplanted organ is antagonistic towards the
The medical terms to be translated are selected from three articles. Two articles deal with the posttraumatic stress disorder, a kind of mental disease and the other article is about the immune response in transplantation. Medical terms differ from that in daily use, and the same word can have different meanings within various contexts. In addition, many medical terms have roots and affixes which are mostly borrowed from Greek and Latin language, and as a result an analysis of the roots, prefixes and suffixes is necessary in order to translate the terms acutely and succinctly. Some terms can be transliterated into Chinese language while some need to be paraphrased into Chinese according to the context. The translation of medical terms should not only be accurate, but should also be concise, easy to understand and avoid being ambiguous.
Article One: Blockade of Lymphocyte Chemotaxis in Visceral Graft-versus-Host Disease
1. Graft-versus-host Disease: Graft means any transplanted or implanted organ or tissue in English, in Chinese language, graft can be translated as “移植器官”. The term “versus” in English means the situation in which two sides are against each other. In Chinese language, the term refers to “敌对”, but the term “敌对” is usually used in military area and it is not concise for the translation of “versus” in medical field. Comparatively, the term “抗” in Chinese is more suitable for the translation of “versus” as it is concise and it can reflect the condition in which one part is resistant toward another. “Host” means the body which accepts the transplantation. In Chinese, the character “宿主” means the body on which another animal or plant lives (cf. Oxford Advanced Learner’s English-Chinese Dictionary:854). In medical field, “宿主” can be referred to the body to which the organ or tissue is attached. Therefore, the disease Graft-versus-host can be translated as “移植器官抗宿主病”, a disease in which the transplanted organ is antagonistic towards the