Well, I disagree with the implications here. At least with Chinese names the new transliterations are MUCH closer than the old British ones. If you read 'Beijing' in english, it sounds very near to what Chinese have always called that city (the old British names were an attempt, I believe, to anglo-cize and cover-up the native culture). Likewise with Mao Zedong, though if you don't know the proper 'key' for pronouncing the pinyin transliterations (Yale is much better), then you get this one a little wrong (I think Yale would have written it Mao Dz Dong).
-TD
From: "Kevin S. Van Horn" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: Harmon Seaver <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Trials for those undermining the war effort? Date: Thu, 03 Apr 2003 10:12:53 -0600
Harmon Seaver wrote:
Translate/transliterate is irrelevant -- you don't change people's names,Ever hear of King Ferdinand of Spain? His real name was, of course, Fernando -- Ferdinand is merely the English equivalent. Likewise, English and Spanish speakers use different names for the same explorer -- "Christopher Columbus" vs. "Cristobal Colon". We have the Greek Odysseus, who the Romans called Ulysses, and the Greek god Zeus, who the Romans called Jupiter. In modern times we have the names of Chinese people and cities changing as different methods of transcribing Chines to English gain favor -- Peking became Beijing, and Mao Tse Tung became Mao Zedong.
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