Communications in Humanities Research ISSN: 2753-7072
Home> Volumes> Volume CHR Vol.58> Article
Research Article

The English Translation of Confucian Classics from the Perspective of Knowledge Translation Studies: A Study of Roger T. Ames' Translation Practice

Jiaxin LiuGuangdong University of Technology* Runze HanGuangdong University of Technology Jiaxing TangGuangdong University of Technology

* Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

This article examines how Roger T. Ames renders core Confucian concept terms for Anglophone readers and what trade-offs those choices entail. Working within a restrained Knowledge Translation Studies (KTS) framework, we operationalize the analysis in three steps: (i) identify the knowledge unit at stake (e.g., ren, yi, junzi as concept clusters rather than single glosses); (ii) record the operation performed by the translation (narrowing, broadening, or contextual anchoring through paraphrase and analogy); and (iii) track the role of paratext (prefaces, notes, and cross-references) in guiding interpretation. Drawing on representative passages from selected Confucian classics, we compare Ames’s solutions with earlier English renderings to show when his strategy increases accessibility for non Sinophone readers and when it compresses the semantic range. The study contributes a small, evidence-driven map of concept transfer, clarifying how annotation and explanatory definition function as scaffolds in the international reception of Confucian thought and offering a transparent procedure that can be replicated in other concept-heavy traditions.

Keywords: Confucian classics; Roger T. Ames; Knowledge Translation Studies; English translation of key concepts
Published: April 18, 2025
DOI: 10.54254/2753-7064/2025.22073
Volume: CHR Vol.58
pp. 1-6
Download PDF

References

  1. Xia, Y. (2022). Research on the English translation of Confucian classics in China (2001–2021). Journal of Nanjing University of Technology (Social Science Edition), 22(1), 16.
  2. Yang, F. (2023a). Translation between knowledge and knowledge beyond: Celebrating the second anniversary of the publication of “The Manifesto of Knowledge Translation”. Contemporary Foreign Language Studies, (5).
  3. Lan, H. J. (2022). Knowledge translation as theory and method. Contemporary Foreign Language Studies, (2).
  4. Yue, F., & Chen, Z. Y. (2022). On the true, good, and beautiful standards of knowledge translation and the English translation of its name. Contemporary Foreign Language Studies, (3), 65-73.
  5. Li, R. L. (2022). The epistemological interpretation of knowledge translation. Contemporary Foreign Language Studies, (1), 47-59+161.
  6. Yu, X. D., & Fu, J. M. (2022). A preliminary exploration of the triple forms of translation knowledge. Contemporary Foreign Language Studies, (5), 2230.
  7. Geng, L. (2011). Confucius’s thoughts on self-cultivation and their modern significance. Journal of Yuncheng College, 29(1), 48-51. https://doi.org/10.15967/j.cnki.cn14-1316/g4.2011.01.008
  8. Tan, X. L. (2012). The translation of Zhongyong by Ames and Hao Dawei and American pragmatism. Chinese Translation Journal, 33(4), 75-79.
  9. Yang, W. D., & Tang, J. M. (2023). A study on the English translation of core concepts in Chinese classical texts: A case study of Ames and Hao Dawei's translation of Zhongyong. Translation Studies and Teaching, (2), 17-23.
  10. Hou, J. (2016). Meeting on the bridge: Revisiting the English translation of Zhongyong by Ames and Hao Dawei. Foreign Languages (Shanghai International Studies University Journal), 39(1), 80-86.