1 Introduction

In recent years, the academic community has continuously deepened its research on the history of translation, with countries, governments, and official institutions as the main body, and the study of "national translation" and "translating countries" has continued to heat up. At the same time, translation practices initiated by non-state actors are closely related to national development, such as the case of Wu Liangping's translation of "Anti Durian Theory". These studies have expanded the focus of the history of national translation practice from national translation behavior to non-state actors' "translation for the country" behavior. Clarifying the concept of "translating for the country" can help deepen our understanding of the relationship between translation and the state, lay a clear discourse foundation for research in this field, and promote the development and improvement of the theoretical system of national translation practice.

The connotation of the concept of "translating for the country"

Deeply explored the connotation of the concept of "translating for the country" and emphasized its importance in the theoretical construction of national translation practice. The article points out that "translating for the country" is a subordinate concept alongside "national translation" and "translating the country", referring to different modes of national translation practice. Among them, "translating for the country" specifically refers to the act of translating for the purpose of national interests, and its core lies in the motivation and translation function of the translation act. The article further explains that "translating for the country" is a dynamic process that involves the emergence of individual consciousness, the assumption of translator roles, and the realization of translation functions. In Chinese history, the concept of "translating for the country" has a long history, which has been reflected in different historical periods from the Tang Dynasty to the late Qing Dynasty. The types of translators are refined into national institutional translators, objective national interest translators, and subjective national interest translators, among which the subjective national interest translator takes the national interest as the starting point and serves the national interest through translation work. The article emphasizes that the key to determining "translation for the country" lies in the national nature of the translation purpose and product function, rather than just the translator's subjective will.

3 types of "translation for the country"

Explored the three main types of "translating for the country": strategic intervention type, strategic empowerment type, and image maintenance type. Strategic intervention type "translation for the country" directly affects the progress of events through translation activities during times of national crisis or diplomatic tension, striving for immediate strategic advantages, such as the behavior of the Herd brothers in the negotiation of the Sino British Treaty on Tibet and India. Strategic empowerment oriented "translation for the country" focuses on the long term, enhancing national development capabilities by introducing external knowledge, technology, ideas, or obtaining key intelligence, such as the scientific translation practice of the China Science Society. Image maintenance oriented "translation for the country" promotes cross-cultural information flow, cultural understanding, and value dissemination through translation in a normalized environment, serving national image shaping, cultural soft power construction, etc., emphasizing the long-term role of translation in national governance and foreign relations construction.

4. The Evolution of Translator Roles and Ethical Choices

Explored the evolution of translators' roles and ethical choices in the practice of "translating for the country". Translators are not only language translators, but their roles are influenced by historical context, translation tasks, and personal conditions, and have diversity and dynamism. For example, translators at the China Science Society are not only translators of scientific literature, but also disseminators of knowledge and enlighteners of science. In the case of Xiao Sidangdong's translation of "Qing Dynasty Laws and Regulations", the translator's role shifted from a text analyst to a legal intelligence collector. In the case of the Hershey brothers, the translator role evolved from a translator appointed by the Qing government to a participant in the diplomatic game serving British interests. Translators face complex ethical considerations when undertaking and transitioning roles, with patriotic ethics often being given priority and possibly surpassing professional ethics. How translators choose among multiple ethical norms reflects individual agency, as well as the constraints of social structure, ideology, and national power in specific historical periods. To gain a deeper understanding of the phenomenon of "translating for the country", it is necessary to comprehensively examine how translators negotiate multiple roles and address ethical dilemmas in specific practices.

5 Conclusion

The importance and application of the concept of "translating for the country" were discussed, emphasizing its necessity in the research of national translation practice. The article points out that current research lacks a unified and effective terminology to refer to and analyze the translation activities of non-state actors and their connection with the fate of the country. The author proposes the concept of "translating for the country" and summarizes three types of practice based on the strategic function and intention of translation behavior. The proposal of this concept, based on the historical facts of Chinese and foreign translation, provides an inclusive conceptual tool and analytical perspective for research, which helps to deepen the understanding of the complex embedding of translation in national governance, power operation, knowledge dissemination, and cultural interaction. Future research should further explore historical cases and contemporary practices, conduct empirical analysis to test and improve the theoretical connotation of "translating for the country", and explore its differences in different cultures and historical periods.