TTLV: Structure and semantics of Chinese terms in the field of Labor Law and how to translate them into Vietnamese.

INFORMATION ABOUT THE MASTER'S THESIS

1. Student's full name: CAO JIA 2. Gender: Female

3. Date of birth: July 5, 1993

4. Place of birth: Yunnan, China

5. Decision on student admission No. 2750/QD-XHNV dated August 2, 2023, by the Rector of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi.

6. Changes in the training process:

7. Thesis Title: Structure and Semantics of Chinese Terms in the Field of Labor Law and How to Translate Them into Vietnamese

8. Major: Vietnamese Studies; Code: 8310630

9. Scientific Advisor: Dr. Pham Thuy Chi, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi

10. Summary of the thesis results:

This study systematically compares Chinese and Vietnamese labor law terminology, based on the analysis of 144 Chinese terms (extracted from 5 legal documents) and 125 Vietnamese terms. The results show that Chinese terminology primarily uses a four-syllable structure (“同工同酬”), featuring a central structure and a clear tendency towards nominalization; whereas Vietnamese terminology typically has a length of 4-7 syllables (“labor inspector”) and uses a central phrase preceding the term. To address translation challenges, including structural conflicts (the "fixed + middle" order in Chinese versus "movement + new" in Vietnamese), cultural gaps ("住房公积金" has no equivalent in Vietnamese), and differences in legal systems ("特殊工种" is not entirely synonymous with the corresponding concept in Vietnamese), the study proposed three hierarchical adaptation strategies: literal translation with completely equivalent terms ("劳动" → "labor"); syntactic order adjustment or cultural internalization for partially equivalent terms; and phonetic translation with annotations or functional explanations for terms without equivalents. The research results have established the first bilingual database of Chinese-Vietnamese labor law terminology, providing a foundation to support legal translation work.

11. Practical applications:

12. Future research directions:

13. Published works related to the thesis: None

INFORMATION ON MASTER'S THESIS

1. Full name: CAO JIA 2. Sex: Female

3. Date of birth: July 5, 1993 4. Place of birth: Yunnan, China

5. Admission decision number: 2750/QD-XHNV Dated August 2, 2023

6. Changes in academic process:

7. Official thesis title: The structure and semantics of Chinese terminology in the field of Labor Law and how to translate them into Vietnamese

8. Major: Vietnamese Studies 9. Code: 8310630

10. Supervisors: Dr. Pham Thuy Chi, VNU University of Social Sciences and Humanities

11. Summary of the findings of the thesis:

This scientific study compares Chinese and Vietnamese legal terms in the field of labor law, based on an analysis of 144 Chinese terms (extracted from five Chinese legal documents including the Labor Law) and 125 Vietnamese terms. The findings reveal that Chinese legal terms predominantly utilize four-character structures (“同工同酬”), feature a prominent modifier-head structure, and exhibit a high degree of nominalization. In contrast, Vietnamese legal terms typically range from 4 to 7 syllables in length (“labor inspector”) and follow a head-initial structure. In addressing translation challenges—including structural conflicts (the “modifier + head” order in Chinese versus the “verb + object” order in Vietnamese), cultural gaps (the absence of an equivalent term for “住房公积金”), and legal system differences (“特殊工种” not fully equivalent to the Vietnamese concept). The study proposes a three-tiered adaptive strategy: literal translation for fully equivalent terms (“劳动” → “labor” ); Word order adjustment or cultural localization for partially equivalent terms; Transliteration with annotation or functional paraphrasing for zero-equivalence terms. The outcome of this research includes the development of the first bilingual Chinese-Vietnamese labor law terminology database, providing a foundation to support legal translation. This contribution facilitates legal cooperation and sustainable development in the labor law domain between China and Vietnam.

12. Practical applicability

13. Further research directions:

14. Thesis-related publications: None