A Study of Thai-to-Chinese Translation Strategies for Cultural Terms and Phrases Appearing in Thai Geographical Indication (GI) Product Promotional Videos

Abstract

This qualitative study investigated the types of cultural words and phrases and analyzed the translation strategies used in translating them from Thai into Chinese in 14 promotional videos featuring Thai Geographical Indication (GI) products. The study employed Nida’s framework of cultural classification and Newmark’s translation strategies as the principal analytical frameworks. The findings identified a total of 77 cultural words and phrases, which were classified into four categories: ecological terms, representing the largest proportion (41.56%); social culture (31.17%); material culture (25.97%); and linguistic culture (1.30%). Notably, no cultural terms related to religion or belief were found in the corpus. The high proportion of ecological terms emphasized the distinctive identity of GI products, which are inherently connected to their geographical origins and natural resources. With regard to translation strategies, transference was the most frequently employed strategy (31.16%), followed by couplets (23.37%) and through-translation (18.17%), whereas recognized translation was the least frequently used (1.30%). The analysis revealed that translators generally preferred strategies that maintained the cultural identity of the source text, particularly through the transference of proper names. At the same time, strategic flexibility was evident in the use of couplets to enhance communicative clarity and fulfill functional purposes, including information delivery, persuasion, and product branding. However, several limitations were also observed, including inconsistencies in transference and cultural inaccuracies resulting from insufficient specialized knowledge. Therefore, translators require a comprehensive understanding of both cultural contexts and specialized knowledge to enhance communicative effectiveness and minimize contextual errors.