歲末年初，一個最吸引眼球的新聞熱點就是異地高考，全國各地陸續公布了關于異地高考的實施方案。隨著大量城市流動人口和進城務工農民工在異地工作時間的推移，其子女在流入地參加高考的問題日益迫切。迄今為止，全國除西藏之外的省市都已出臺異地高考具體標準。異地高考踏上破冰之旅由此成為了2012年十大民生熱點之一，也引起了國外媒體的關注。那么，“異地高考”用英文怎么說呢？說起來，事情不是那么簡單。首先，“異地高考”屬于典型的縮略語，而縮略語的背后往往具有十分復雜的背景。其次，縮略語的英譯有著很多規律和原則需要重視和遵循。

語言始終隨著時代的發展而變化。在每一個社會發展階段，總會有一大批反映中國國情的時事新詞新語不斷涌現，極大地豐富了漢語詞匯，同時也進一步反映了我國社會發展的成就。其中，為了節省口頭表達的時間，或者節省書面表達的版面，在講究效率的當今社會，漢語中的縮略語數量在不斷增長。縮略語常常因為立意生動形象而使人難以忘記，或者因為其構造別致而迅速流傳，為讀者所喜聞樂見。

縮略語的翻譯更是個復雜問題。它不只是直譯和意譯的問題，還涉及縮略語使用頻率和譯文的可理解性和可接受性問題。縮略語翻譯成英語時很容易做到字面上的形式對等，但這種簡單的字面對等不能傳達縮略語所含的信息，因而不具有可理解性。所以，如何翻譯言簡意賅、內涵豐富、涵蓋面廣的縮略語，便是譯者需要注意的又一難題。在漢語中，縮略語包含了豐富的文化因素，其所指涉及多方面的社會文化知識，具有百科性詞語的性質，雖然短短的幾個字，但其中卻蘊涵了多層次的意思，所以作為譯者，切不可望文生義，淺嘗輒止，照著字面意思對等翻譯，而應在翻譯中吃透原文涵義，避免誤譯、漏譯錯誤甚至產生政治歧義。

由此可見，要翻譯好“異地高考”，顯然必須首先了解這一具有高度概括性的縮略語背后的復雜背景。眾所周知，隨著大量城市流動人口和進城務工農民工在異地工作時間的推移，其子女在流入地參加高考的問題日益迫切。從2008年有全國人大代表提出解決外來務工人員子女就地高考問題，到《國家中長期教育改革和發展規劃綱要》征求意見，再到《教育規劃綱要學習輔導百問》，“異地高考”這個議論了兩年多的問題，在2011年3月7日十一屆全國人大四次會議上頗有“撥云見日”的跡象。異地高考作為一個微觀改革，經常被認為與宏觀的戶籍制度相沖突，也正因為異地高考屬于社會系統性改革中的一環，所謂“牽一發而動全身”，盡管有人呼吁要以微觀變量促進宏觀變革，但由于諸多因素的掣肘，高考仍難與戶籍剝離開來。一些外來務工者的子女，從學前就在流入地接受教育，向所在地繳納了小學、初中、高中階段的贊助費、借讀費，卻在高考來臨時被打回原籍。

顯而易見，“異地高考”的英文表達，絕非college entrance examination in different places這樣的字面對應譯文所能說清楚的，這樣的譯文不能傳達縮略語所含的信息，因而不具有可理解性和可接受性。

下面讓我們來看看我國的一些官方英文門戶網站對“異地高考”是怎么說的。

中國國際廣播電臺（http://english.cri.cn）在報道“異地高考”破冰這一消息時用的新聞標題和導語分別是：

Migrant Students to Sit College Entrance Exam in Cities

Migrant students sitting for the National College Entrance Exam, or "gaokao," in where they live now or their hometowns has long been a topic of debate among the public. The Ministry of Education recently urged local education authorities to issue plans by the end of the year to enable the children of migrant workers to take the test in the city where they live.

新華網（http://news.xinhuanet.com/english）的相關報道的標題、導語和正文片段分別是：

"Migrant students" to be fairly treated when taking college entrance exam Household registration restrictions on "migrant students" to take the national college entrance exam (NCEE) should be eased beginning from the end of this year, according to an official guideline issued on Friday.

Provincial governments should publish measures which allow children of migrant workers to take the exam at places where they currently reside, instead of having to go back their birthplaces to take the exam, as what is stipulated at present, according to the document.

The ministry currently forbids high school graduates from taking the NCEE in places where they do not have local household registration, or "hukou," regardless of how long they or their family have lived there.

中國網（http://www.china.org.cn）相關報道的標題、導語和正文片段分別是：

Migrant children to sit gaokao in cities

Children who study in cities with their migrant worker parents will get fairer opportunities in the cutthroat college entrance exam, Minister of Education Yuan Guiren said on Thursday.

Yuan said the ministry is urging local education authorities to release plans by the end of this year to enable migrant workers' children to take the exam, also known as gaokao, in the city where they live.

So far, students can attend primary school and middle school in the city where their parents work and live, but they have to go back to their hometowns where they have hukou, or a permanent residence permit, to attend gaokao.

綜合上文，我們不難看出，實施“異地高考”方案的核心要素就是打破戶籍限制，允許農民工子女在他們父母的工作和生活所在地報名參加高考，而不是返回到他們的戶籍所在地參加高考，所以在英譯時必須譯出其核心含義。

由此說來，“異地高考”的英文表達可以囊括如下：

（1）a national policy to enable migrant workers' children to take the college entrance exam in the city where their parents work and live rather than going back to their hometowns to attend the exam because of the restrictions of household registration, or "hukou".

（2）measures released by regional governments in China to allow children of migrant workers to take the college entrance exam at places where they currently reside, instead of having to go back their birthplaces to take the exam, as what is stipulated in the past.

如果需要簡介一些，則可以表達為a national policy to enable migrant workers' children to take the college entrance exam in the city where their parents work and live，也就是說略去他們必須回到戶口所在地參加高考的這一背景介紹。

本文僅代表作者本人觀點，與本網立場無關。歡迎大家討論學術問題，尊重他人，禁止人身攻擊和發布一切違反國家現行法律法規的內容。

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（作者王銀泉 中國日報網英語點津 編輯陳丹妮）