"Chinese Food Label Translations: A Perpetual Challenge, due to the Inherent Complexities"
Inching up the global culinary stage, China's unique dishes captivate travelers with amusing (and occasionally alarming) translations. With more accessible tourist visas, these quirky eats will inevitably meet hungry foreigners.
But don't blame the translators or apps for serving up strange dishes, mate. According to Isaac Yue, associate professor of translation at the University of Hong Kong and scholar of Chinese gastronomy literature, translating Chinese food names into English is achievable, but it's utterly impossible[2].
For example, shizitou, a popular dish from around eastern China and Shanghai, begs for an English translation. Figuratively, it could be "Chinese meatball" or literally "braised lion." But none of these fully captures its essence or soul[3].
Yue ain't bullshitting. He's all about researching Chinese gastronomy in English, but his teaching sticks to the theory - translating Chinese food names is a no-go[3].
"I nearly dove into the arena of translating Chinese food, but in the end, all I could say about that is: well, it's overall untranslatable," he admits[3].
To understand the translation struggle, check China's lengthy culinary history, shrouded in tales and imagery that seep into dishes' very selves.
Author Fuchsia Dunlop, a British food writer specializing in Chinese cuisine for over two decades, believes the issue lies in certain words that don’t even comprehendable in English.
"China's culinary culture is mind-bogglingly complex, and we simply don’t have equivalent foods, cooking methods, concepts, and food shapes in English," she says[4].
Dunlop recommends borrowing Chinese terms, much like how we use French words like "chef" and "omelet." Perhaps this path leads to better understanding and less translational pain.
Chinese languages like Mandarin and Cantonese might be harder to grasp due to their multitonal nature. But with education, it ain't an insurmountable task[4].
On the translation front, recent years have revealed improvements, but don’t expect perfection. Dunlop still encounters head-scratching mix-ups in her Chinese travels.
Among her favorites, stir-fried cabbage is hysterically labeled "handbag food," because the Chinese term for cabbage is baocai, which translates to "bag" and "dish/food/vegetables."
In a dilemma? Give a few famous dishes a whirl.
Xiaolongbao, the soup-filled dumplings, blur categories with their name. Literally, it means "little basket bao," signifying the bamboo steamer they are cooked in. With its thin wrapper, it's a bao and jiao hybrid[5].
The notorious "husband-and-wife lung slices" stand out for their inaccurate translation. Despite the name, it contains neither romance nor lungs. A Sichuan appetizer, it consists of thinly sliced beef offal, soaked in chili oil[6].
Stumped by takeout menus? Look no further.
- The unique gastronomy of Shandong, known for its complex culinary history and intricate translation challenges, offers a fascinating examination into the limitations of food-and-drink translations.
- Despite advancements in translation, scholar Isaac Yue argues that precisely translating certain Chinese food names into English is exactly unachievable, a notion supported by food writer Fuchsia Dunlop.
- In her travels, Dunlop has noticed that occasionally, the English translations of Chinese dishes can lead to amusing, if not alarming, outcomes, such as a dish known as 'baocai' being labeled as 'handbag food'.
- As language barriers persist, it may be deemed more practical to incorporate Chinese terms into the general-news, entertainment, and lifestyle discourse, much like the use of French terms in English for food and cooking.
