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Cultural-loaded Information Transfer in Shaanxi ICH Short-video Translation

Author(s)

Yingni Shi

Affiliation(s)

Xi’an Fanyi University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China

Abstract

As a mainstream new media carrier, short videos greatly facilitate the international dissemination of Chinese intangible cultural heritage (ICH). Shaanxi’s representative ICH resources, including shadow puppetry and Qinqiang opera, rely heavily on subtitle translation for overseas communication, yet face prominent cross-cultural translation challenges. Restricted by limited screen space and fragmented audience viewing habits, short-video subtitles often fail to accurately transmit diverse culture-loaded information, causing cultural distortion and loss. Adopting a qualitative case study method, this paper selects typical subtitle cases of Shaanxi ICH short videos to summarize three core translation problems: blind literal translation, excessive cultural simplification and insufficient contextual supplementation. Combined with domestication and foreignization theories, this study proposes targeted optimization strategies with concise contextual supplementation, aiming to balance cultural authenticity and audience acceptability. It provides practical references for the external translation and international communication of regional ICH short videos.

Keywords

Audiovisual Translation; Cultural-Loaded Information; Short-Video Subtitle Translation; Shaanxi Intangible Cultural Heritage; Cross-Cultural Communication.

References

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