汉英数字文化比较及其翻译[Abstract Numbers,as a special part in the science of linguistics,are words originally used toexpress quantity or sequence.Numbers serve the same calculating function in both Chinese andEnglish.But because of the cultural diversity found in the national psychology,religious beliefand mythology,numbers are endowed with abundant cultural connotations and associations.Andboth Chinese and English people show different cults,taboos and connotations towards thedifferent or identical numbers so as to generate their own numeral cultures.Therefore,in theprocess of translating numbers,especially ones in the folk language and literary works,translatorsshould make a relatively thorough study of the language and culture both in Chinese and English,and consider the discrepancy in the vagueness of numbers respectively before renderingsatisfactory translations.[Key Words]numbers;Chinese;English;comparison;translation【摘要】数字是语言科学中的一个特殊领域，是表示数量或顺序的词类。在汉英两种语言中，数字作为计算功能的意义是一致的。但由于受民族心理、宗教信仰、神话传说等文化差异的影响，数字被赋予了丰富的文化内涵。对不同或相同的数字，汉英有着不同的崇尚或禁忌习俗，以及不同的联想和意义，并由此而孕育出各自独特的数字文化。因此，在翻译数字，尤其在民间语言和文学作品中，要对汉英两种语言与文化有较全面的了解，并充分考虑到英汉数字的模糊语义的差异，灵活运用不同的翻译方法，才能译出形神兼备的作品。【关键词】数字：汉语：英语：对比：翻译1.Introduction:1.1 Language,culture and numbers1.1.1 The relationship between language and cultureCulture,a controversial and puzzling question,has been conceptualized from diverse perspectivesby generations of linguists and anthropologists.It has no completely standard definitions,however,"culture,in a broad sense,means the total way of life of a people including the pattems of belief,customs,objects,institutions,techniques,and language that characterizes the life of the humancommunity"[1].As culture is so inclusive,it permeates virtually every aspect of human life andinfluences predominantly people's behavior,including linguistic behavior.And language,"thecarrier and container of cultural information"[2],is commonly viewed as a means ofcommunications,means of expressing ideas and emotions of human beings.Language,as areflection of the culture and a mirror of the society,is strongly influenced and shaped by culture.And culture is influenced by many factors,such as language,beliefs,customs,social habits and soon.Thus,language and culture,intrinsically dependent on each other,cannot exist without eachother.The close relationship between language and culture is readily shown by the fact thatculture is transmitted from one generation to the next through language.1.1.2 The definition of numbersAs far as the relationship between elements of language and culture is concerned,the words relatemost tightly to the culture.And numbers,as an important part in language world,have aninformative function.But what is number?As Oxford Advanced Learner's English-ChineseDictionary defines,"A number is a word or symbol that represents an amount or a quantity"[3].Numbers are used widely in every aspect of life.Without numbers,nothing can get along well inthe world.As we know,numbers are grammatically divided into cardinal numbers,ordinalnumbers,multiples,fractions and approximate numbers in Chinese and English languageAnd the concept of numbers stems from the Nature,from human beings'observation andexploration to the objective world,from the realization and generalization to the physical world[4].A number is the abstract concept that can be considered not only as the word but also as thesymbol.1.2 The purpose of this paperNumbers are created from the interaction of humans'social and cultural behavior with their abilityto conceptualize their outside world.So numbers are not merely mathematical tools,but extendedas metaphors in the idiomatic usages with a series of connotations.Chinese people and Englishpeople show different appetites towards the numbers.So there exist different cultural connotationsand extensions between Chinese and English numbers.This paper,from diverse culturalbackgrounds of numbers in Chinese and English,discusses the discrepancy in the nationalpsychology,religious belief,mythology and so on,and generalizes several methods of translationin numbers,especially in literary works,so as to facilitate intercultural or cross-culturalcommunication.2.The cultural diversity between Chinese and English numbersAll human beings use numbers so that the culture of numbers has come into being.Numberspenetrate into every aspect of human life [5].Yet,numbers,which reflect the scales of thematerial world,have been endowed with rich cultural connotations due to the different culturalbackgrounds.As far as Chinese culture is concerned,it bears some similarities to the world culture,but it has been laying more stress on the usages of idioms.There are numerous Chinese idiomsand idiomatic usages with numbers,such as:说一不二，五湖四海，三教九流，一日不见，如隔三秋，三十六计走为上计，三句话不离本行，八九不离十，百战不殆，七零八落，九霄云外，九九归一，十万火急and so forth.In English-related culture,there are also a large quantity of idioms or idiomatic usages withnumbers,such as three sheets in the wind,the upper ten,second to none,two-by-four,four-letterman,catch-22,two-left feet,and so on.Besides,odd numbers except13,are favored and adomedby western people.For instance,number "seven"with marked religious colour is used frequentlyin the Scriptures to signify completeness.Similarly,multiples of seven are also used in a similarsense of completeness [6].But in Chinese,it is on the other way around.Although the discrepancyin the social tradition and the diversity in the numerical culture are universal,there exists a generalcult of numbers in both Chinese and English.The following part will focus on the cultural sourcesof number cult or worship from three aspects,that is,national psychology,religion,andmythology.2.1 Numbers and psychology of national cultureIn Chinese culture,heaven and earth produce everything by the interaction of two existential andpowerful forces of the universe,yin and yang."Since numbers were considered a mystical part ofthe universe,the ancient Chinese regarded odd numbers as yang or masculine and even numbersas yin or famine"[7]."Nine",as the largest single digit,took on the meaning of"ultimatemasculinity"and implied the loftiest reverence for heaven.Therefore,the number"nine"symbolized the supreme sovereignty of the emperor who was the Son of Heaven.And thenumber"nine"(or its multiples)is often employed in the Chinese ancient architecture,particularlyimperial buildings.Ancient palaces were usually designed as nine-section architectural complexesrelated to the number"nine"in the number or size.Take the Forbidden City,located in the centerof Beijing for example.It has a total of 9,999 bays,and the Gate Tower of Tian'anmen has nine bynine bays.Thus number "nine"or its multiple is ubiquitous in the architecture of the sacrificialtemple.And the Nine Dragon Screen near Beihai Park has also been connected with number nine.The Chinese people show preference to number "nine",not only on the construction of thebuilding,but also in other fields,such as:Annual festival feasts for the royal court of the Qingconsisted of 99 kinds of foods.And a division of ancient feudal govemment officials was"ninelevel".Besides,to celebrate an emperor's birthday,there were 81 forms of entertainment calledthe "nine-nine big celebration"to wish the emperor good luck and longevity [8].By and by,thenumber"nine"became exclusively reserved and adomed by Chinese people,even todayGenerally speaking,in Chinese culture,even numbers are regarded to be lucky and propitioussymbols,which can bring people good luck and fortune,while odd numbers are incomplete.Butas far as English people are concerned,this phenomenon is on the other way around.They preferodd numbers to even ones,,such as“three'”,“seven”,of course excluding number“thirteen”,asisknown to nearly most English-speaking people.When celebrating or sending flowers to friends orrelatives,people should take one,three,five,or even more (excluding 13),whereas,people sendtwo or four,six flowers or its multiple when condoling with deceased persons.But everything has its both sides.For instance,number"four"in Chinese has a bad and unluckyassociation and connotation,though it is an even number.Thus,another element that rendersnumbers good or bad in Chinese is the homophony and punning in a many-tone word.Number“four”has a similar sound with the Chinese character“死”，representing“death”.So a largenumber of people try every effort to avoid it.The possible omens associated with numbers andsounds of numbers by the Chinese are inexhaustible.In contrast,the number"eight"is fortunatebecause it sounds like“发”，namely,.making a fortune..When it comes to the cases like telephonenumbers,vehicle license numbers,door numbers,people show special preference to number“eight'”or something associated with number“eight”,such as 168(to make a fortune all theway(一路发)，5l8 I want to make a fortune)(我要发)and so forth[9].Number nine also has suchlucky association due to its sound and punning "etemity"().Therefore people favor to choosethe date related to number"nine"as the wedding day.The 21st Century once reported that on 9th,September 1999,165 pairs of people were married,in the hope of having everlasting love for eachother [10].But in contrast,English people worship number"four",which is the symbol of justice,righteousness,power,the fountain of creation,and the key of everything in the world [11].For