Mistranslations in the Chinese Edition of Kessler's K'ang-hsi and the Consolidation of Ch'ing Rule
The Institute of Qing History at Renmin University of China did something pretty absurd: when translating someone else’s book, it gave the book a new main title to play up the “High Qing golden age.” The American sinologist Lawrence Kessler wrote K’ang-hsi and the Consolidation of Ch’ing Rule, 1661–1684. Translated directly, that’s 《康熙与清朝统治的巩固》. But when Dong Jianzhong (董建中), an associate professor at the Institute, translated it, he added the main title 盛世的奠基, “The Foundations of a Golden Age.” Now some people refer to the book by this made-up title. ...