We see the disciplines of linguistics and translation as mutually defining and research in both as cross-beneficial.
City University of Hong Kong is an acknowledged world leader in linguistics and translation thanks to the synergistic combination of expertise of researchers with a shared commitment to upholding the three basic principles of collaboration, eclecticism and application.
Acknowledging the complex interplay between language, culture and the human mind has prompted researchers to think outside the linguistic box, drawing from research undertaken in translation, neurology, sociology, psychology, media and communication, etc. Those working in natural language processing, for example, have made significant advances in such areas as example-based machine translation, automatic summarization, and word segmentation.
The eclectic inclusion of both formal and functional theoretical frameworks in linguistics has continued to advance along two trajectories – general linguistics and intelligent linguistic applications. There is a shared interest, on the one hand, in exploring the complex interplay between various linguistic components (such as syntax, semantics, morphology, phonology, discourse); and, on the other hand, building an empirical collection of language data (i.e. language resource construction), including translated texts and language learner corpora.
Bridging the two main world languages, Chinese and English, Hong Kong is a very special sociolinguistic situation, which provides fertile ground for conducting research leading to the establishment of CityU as an internationally recognized leader in areas of application-oriented linguistic research, including translation, language pedagogy, and forensic linguistics.
As the two programs, Linguistics and Translation, are mutually beneficial, students are allowed to take free electives from either track to expand the scope of their academic exposure and engage themselves in more innovative learning and research. A Translation/Interpretation major will benefit from a solid training in linguistics to identify the areas of linguistic problems in translation/interpeation practice. Similarly, a linguistic major can benefit from understanding the basic concerns of translation to enhance their analytical skills. This inter-disciplinary synergy allows our students to be innovative and pioneering in professional and academic pursuits.
Enquiry: LTenquiry@cityu.edu.hk
Page last updated: 14 January 2019
