Abstract

With the progress of the world economic globalization, China has witnessed its rapid development in foreign business especially after its entry into WTO. English Business Contract (EBC) is thus playing an increasingly important role, so is its translation. Under such circumstances, numerous researches concerning the translation of EBC have been done by many scholars from different perspectives and some translation principles as well as strategies have also been put forth.
However, this paper makes a study on EBC translation from another perspective, i.e. Skopos theory. Under the guidance of it, the macro requirement of translation is stressed instead of the literal equivalence in a micro sense. Besides, the application of Skopos theory to EBC translation is also analyzed, on the basis of which corresponding translation principles and strategies are proposed. In that case, the translation quality therefore can be greatly improved and more business can be concluded.

Keywords:  English business contract  Skopos theory  translation principle

摘要

中国加入世界贸易组织以及全球化的加剧使得国际经济贸易越来越频繁，这也使英语商务合同翻译变得尤为重要。不少学者从多角度对其翻译做了相关的研究，也提出了许多指导性的翻译原则和翻译策略，取得了一定成果。
本文从目的论角度出发探讨英语商务合同的翻译，不拘泥于字面上对等的微观层面，而将重点放在翻译要求的宏观层面上，分析目的论在英语商务合同中的应用，探讨英语商务合同的翻译原则，并在此基础上找出实用的翻译策略，以提高其翻译质量，促进贸易的达成。

关键词: 英语商务合同；目的论；翻译原则

Chapter One Introduction
1.1 Background and Purpose of the Research
China’s foreign business has been more attached to the world especially after its entry into WTO. In the process of foreign business, after reaching an agreement through correspondence, the parties concerned also need sign a formal written agreement and that is contract. As an important means of communication in business, English business contract undoubtedly means a lot in the day-to-day operations of enterprises.
    Skopos theory has sparked a volley of debate all over the world since its appearance in 1970s. It is a concept which provides an insight into the nature of translation as a purposeful and intentional activity and comprises the idea that translating and interpreting should primarily take into account the function of both the source and target text.
    It has been many years since Skopos theory was introduced into China by the scholar Gui Qianyuan in 1987. Many people have dedicated themselves to studying Skopos theory and many books have been published and made known home and abroad.