姫路城をめぐる観光コミュニケーションの分析－翻訳、文体、異文化理解の視点から－

抄録

The current study is a part of project aiming to improve tourism communication in Japan, in particular for foreign visitors to the country. In this paper, we investigate how (in)appropriately Himeji Castle, a World Heritage Site in Japan and one of the country’s most famous cultural and historical sites, is represented as an attractive sightseeing spot. The research is based on a field study that gathered authentic data in Himeji Castle and the surrounding area. The current study simulates a foreign visitor’s trip and, as preparation for the field work, we also examined the website. In this paper, the ‘original’ Japanese and ‘translated’ English texts (verbatim translations by DeepL, and the Tourist Guide & Map authorized by Himeji City) describing Himeji Castle are comparatively analyzed from the perspectives of stylistics and translation (Boase-Beier 2014; Boase-Beier et al. 2018), as well as that of cross-cultural understanding, to examine whether and to what extent the original Japanese messages are retained, modified, or even deleted in the foreign language. By focusing on the representation of Japanese culture, history, and customs in tourist communication, we explore the relationship between the value of Himeji Castle as a cultural heritage site and stylistic choices.