Han Ximin
A SET of books containing English translations of public signs in Shenzhen was released at a news conference yesterday by the Shenzhen Foreign Affairs Office.
The collection of books contain a total of 1.3 million words and includes a guidebook and 13 instruction books covering 13 categories such as traffic, place names, organizations, tourist spots, sports, cultural and health facilities, schools, ports, business and financial services, the news conference was told.
The office is considering publishing a simplified version by the end of October, Shenzhen Public Sign Bilingual Dictionary, to make the books more convenient for users.
The books were compiled by the Shenzhen Translators’ Association and reviewed by a panel of 21 language experts headed by Guo Jiading and Shi Yanhua, veteran translators for the Foreign Ministry.
“The completion of the books marks the establishment of the city’s bilingual public sign system, which is expected to end the chaotic naming situation,” said Xie Chengliang, deputy chief of the Shenzhen People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.
“Misleading translations cause inconvenience for tourists coming to Shenzhen and also mar the city’s image on the way to becoming international,” Xie said.
Yet it was just the beginning of a big project. There were hundreds of thousands of public signs that should be standardized and it involved a lot of manpower and money input.
“Before the 2011 Universiade, new signs will be installed, replaced, improved and standardized on major city roads and in public areas,” Xie said.
There are about 4 million foreigners coming to Shenzhen as tourists, to work or live every year and about 160 million people cross city checkpoints on the border with Hong Kong.
There is so far no national standard for translations of public signs although Beijing published bilingual public sign books in 2008 before the Olympic Games.
Those seeking more information can log onto the official Web site at www. szfao.gov.cn for details.
Source： Shenzhen Daily Editor： 洪志科
