Abstract：With the of globalization of today’s world economy and China’s entry into the World Trade Organization, products in our country are not limited to tangible ones but also include a variety of intangible ones. Commodity trading is no longer confined to our domestic market, and a wide range of products swarm into the world market. In such kind of market environment, brand name under certain conditions can have an impact on our businesses. Therefore, more and more enterprises realize that for their business brand names are huge intangible assets. Because brand names can represent their products and they also have economic, legal, reputable and artistic value. However, due to the reason that people communicate with each other in different languages; brand name translation plays a crucial role in commodity trading. How to translate a company's brand name correctly into the target language is of extreme importance to the sales of the product and has a pivotal role for an enterprise that is eager to make a profit in foreign countries. 

This paper is divided into five parts to introduce the translation of brand name. First, this paper gives introduction to some basic knowledge of the brand name, which includes the differences among brand name, trade name and brand and the history of translation studies and its significance. According to the information that has been introduced before, this paper continues to introduce the definition, characteristics, functions, language structures and the present status of brand name translation. The paper shows the core idea that Skopostheory is widely used and is very important in brand name translation. Then, the paper shows the development of translation theory of the functionalist, the basic content and translation methods. And it analyzes the effect that the functionalist translation theory has in the translation of brand name with examples in daily life. The core idea of functionalist translation theory is the Skopostheory. It focuses on how it works between the source language and the target language. What’s more, it tries to find out whether there is anything special in brand name translation. However, according to the functions and features of brand name translation that has introduced before, we will focuse on the similarities and differences of brand name translation at home and abroad and what enterprises should pay attention to while translating in order to gain more attraction. Lastly, translators could make the translation work better if they take Skopostheory into consideration.

Keywords: Functionalism; Skopostheory; brand name; translation

Contents

摘要

Abstract

Chapter 1 Introduction-1

1.1 Brief Introduction to Brand Name Translation-1

1.2 The Differences among Some Closely Related Terms-1

Chapter 2 Brand Name-3

2.1 the Definition of Brand Name-3

2.2 Features of Brand Name-3

2.2.1 Brevity-3

2.2.2 Novelty-4

2.2.3 Elegance-4

2.3 The Development of Brand Name Translation-4

Chapter 3 Skopostheory-6

3.1 The Development of Functionalist Theory-6

3.2 Basic Aspects of Skopostheory-7

3.3 Existing Problems in Brand Name Translation-8

3.3.1 Cultural difference-8

3.3.2 Political Misunderstanding-8

3.3. 3 Inelegant Brand Name Translation-9

3. 4 Skopostheory in Brand Name Translation-9

Chapter 4 general and special features-10

4.1Rules in Brand Name Translation-10

4.1.1 Phonetic Rule-10

4.1.2 Semantic Rule-10

4.1.3 Zero Translation-10

4.1.4 Shortening Rule-10

4. Featurs of Brand Name Translation-10

Chapter 5 Conclusion-12

References-13

Acknowledgements-14