摘 要

当人类文明发展到一定阶段的时候，语言和文化就应运而生了。语言文字是人类文化的重要组成部分，随着人类文化的发展而发展，也正因为这样，语言文字的发展变化也体现出了一个社会，一个文明的传承，发展和扩散。正是基于语言跟社会文化的紧密联系，才让人们对于语言文字的研究变得尤为重要。深入探究语言文字，对其产生、发展以及在社会中的具体应用、价值等问题进行发掘阐释，可以从更深层次上了解一个民族的传统文化和精神。
各国家各民族的语言都有着久远的历史渊源，但是无论是在西方，还是在中国，在任何一种文化，任何一个社会当中，都存在着这么一种语言现象，那就是语言禁忌，在众多的语言禁忌之中，最典型，最普遍的就是关于死亡的了。由于人们死亡自身的神秘感，人类对死亡现象研究的有限，对死亡的恐惧以及死亡本身给人们带来的痛苦，使得死亡变成了一种禁忌，人们不愿意直言死亡，而往往选择一种更为委婉，更为间接的方式表达死亡，于是，便产生了各种各样的死亡委婉语。
委婉语是一个民族语言文化的集中体现。其主要特征就是运用比较抽象、模棱两可的概念或比喻、褒义化等各种语言手法，使谈话的双方能够采用一种比较间接的方式来谈论不宜直说的事，也就是禁忌的事情，从而不必为谈论这些事感到窘迫。
死亡委婉语由于其自身的特点，具有委婉语的典型性和代表性。本文旨在通过阐释这种语言现象,以揭示中英两国“死亡”委婉语中暗含的文化异同,深入研究两种语言的内在联系,为加强中国与西方国家之间的交流发挥作用。本文试图从宗教体系和文化价值两个方面对现代汉语和英语中死亡委婉语进行比较全面深入的探究论述，分析中西方对“死亡”认识上的异同，在此基础上，探索一套更为完善的翻译策略进行支撑，以便中西方消除不必要的误会，从而进行更好的交流与沟通。

关键词：死亡；委婉语；文化；相似；差异

Abstract

Language and culture came into being when human beings’ civilization developed to a certain phase. Language is a significant composition in culture, and it develops as culture develops. Because of this, the development of language can reflect the succeeding, development and spread of a society and a certain kind of civilization. Due to the close relationship between culture and language, people’s research on language and word became very important. A deep research on language and word can be very helpful to explain its function in a society and help people have a better and deeper understanding on one nation’s traditional culture and its spirit.
Languages of any country and nationality have a very long history. However, no matter in western countries or China, no matter in which society and civilization, a language phenomenon exists, that is language taboo. Among all kinds of taboos, the most typical one should be death euphemism. Since death itself is a very mysterious phenomenon, people’s research on it is very limited. People are scared about that, and at the same time, because of the pain it brings to human beings, people are not willing to speak of death in a direct way. People prefer to choose a more flexible way, which is death euphemism.
Language is a reflection of a nation’s culture. People tend to use a more flexible and abstract way to speak of a scaring thing using some kind of techniques like simile to avoid embarrassment of talking about it straightforwardly.
Death euphemism is typical because of its own features, this thesis aims at explaining this language phenomenon in order to unveil the cultural difference 
between China and western countries, thus plays an active role in the communication between the two sides. This thesis tries to compare death euphemism in both Chinese and English from the perspective of religion and cultural values and explore better translation methods based on the comparison, and finally provides a better way for communication between the two.

Key words: death, euphemism, culture, similarities, differences