History and development trend of audio description in Chinese

Wang Zou Ying

This article discusses the problem of the development of audio description in China: in particular, it is noted that the active development of audio description throughout the world, incl. and China, as well as the formation of this direction of linguistic translation (as a separate institution) began only at the end of the twentieth century. At the same time, it is indicated that the provision of audio description practically does not exist on the television channels of China; this type of translation of visual information for the visually impaired and in cinemas, museums and theaters is poorly developed. This issue is actively being worked out by various non-governmental organizations engaged in social activities in the country: The Hong Kong Society for the Blind, The Disabled Association Hong Kong, etc. On the basis of the analysis carried out, the author argues that, compared with Western countries, audio description in China is a relatively young direction of translation studies, which requires more detailed study.

Keywords:audio description; audiovisual translation; translation methodology; Chinese; direction of linguistic translations.