Abstract

Language is a very important part of culture. As a special part in the vocabulary, color words have many cultural connotations which other types of words can not match. Due to differences in culture, history and natural environments, color words have many differences in the cultural aspects such as color preference, social values, custom and so on. English color words can be used in various parts of speech and can be expressed in different ways. Chinese color words can also be expressed in various ways, and the main characteristic of Chinese color words is to display colors by means of real things. Therefore, it is of great significance to pay attention to the cultural connotations of color words.

This article mainly focuses on the cultural connotations of the Chinese and English color words and some methods of translation. By comparing the analysis, we can explore the reasons of the differences of Chinese and English color words so that we push forward the development of Chinese and English. Therefore, the analysis is very helpful to increase cultural adaptation and communicate more effectively.

Keywords: color words; translation; cultural connotations

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction-1

2. Literature Review-2

3. Different Cultural Connotations of Color Words-3

3.1 Red-3

3.2 Black-3

3.3 Green-4

3.4 Yellow-4

3.5 Blue-5

4. Reasons for Different Cultural Connotations between English and Chinese Color Words-5

4.1 Natural environments-6

4.2 Historical backgrounds-6

4.3 Religions-7

5. English Translation of Color Words-7

5.1 Literal translation-7

5.2 Free translation-8

6. Conclusion-10

Works Cited-11