【正文】 being rejected by consumers. The renderings should create a sense of beauty either in form or in context to the same or similar extent to the original ones so as to achieve equivalence in aesthetic function. It is of no doubt that a brand name must not only provide information about the product, but also please people and help them to bring aesthetic feeling. Most brand names are carefully selected to perform their aesthetic function, which is mainly realized by creating phonetic beauty, semantic beauty and imaginary beauty. “CocaCola” (beverage) is a distinguished example. It is translated to “可口可樂” in Chinese. The version not only imitates alliteration like the original one, but also helps to arouse favorable associations of customers and also consider the phonetic beauty. Equivalence of Vocative FunctionSimply speaking, the vocative function means that brand name can arouse people’s interest and persuade them to make purchases. Brand name translation should not only inform people of the value of products, but also cater to the customers’ psychological need to achieve equivalence in vocative function. One example is “Mr. Muscle” (a detergent brand name). If it is translated as “肌肉先生”，Chinese people are likely to associate it with a person who merely has a simple brain and strong limbs without intelligence. Of course, such a translated version in Chinese will attract few people’s interest and its vocative function would be impossible. A revised version of “威猛先生” can fulfill its vocative function of inducing housewives to do some cleaning with this detergent.Besides the abovementioned equivalence in functions of brand names, a translator must also take into consideration simultaneously such elements as linguistic and cultural factors in order to achieve functional equivalence in brand name translation.Chapter 3Methods Employed in Brand Name TranslationAs discussed above, the successful observance of the principle of “functional equivalence” in translating source brand names into target ones depends on many factors, among which the most important is the flexible employment of translation techniques in practice. There are four kinds of translation techniques: literal translation, transliteration, bination of literal translation and transliteration and creative translation. Literal TranslationLiteral translation means translating meanings literally, namely, keeping both the original form and the original sense. It is often used when the brand names can find corresponding expressions in target language. As Chinese and English cultures share many similarities, many brand names can be translated into target language by literal translation, especially those brand names invented after the names of plants, animals, birds or precious things like gem, diamond and gold. （Murphy, 1987） For example, “梅花”(recorder) is translated as “Plum Blossom”。 it is also employed in a symbolic manner to identify a brand and its cultural origin. Today, wellknown brand names have bee cultural icons, and enjoy powerful advantages in the fierce petition. Brand names, as part of language, reflect the features of a certain nation, including the historical and cultural background, their attitudes towards life, and their life style and thinking pattern.Brand name translation is influenced by cultural elements which differentiate it from general translation. Brand name translation is of significance in the petitive market. Brand names mirror the culture of different countries, so cultural elements must not be ignored in the translating process. At present, with economic development and increasing international contact, the exchanges between different countries bee more and more frequent. And trade surplus bees an important part of our national economy. Proper translation of brand names also bees more and more important so as to promote the sales of goods and cultivate foreign markets. Chapter 1Overview of Brand Names Definition of Brand NamesA brand name refers to a specific name employed by a corporation to identify uniquely a product or its manufacturer, or a service and its provider. （Li Guisheng，1996） It is quite often used interchangeably within “brand name”, although it is more correctly used to specifically denote written or spoken linguistic elements of any product. A legally protected brand name is called a proprietary name. A powerful brand name embodies a unique set of values and hence personality. A successfully designed brand name can bring about enormous value in a real sense, which is invisible wealth of a pany. Therefore, brand name is of more and more importance in “global village” and the right and suitable meaning of a brand can be an enduring advantage. Formation of Brand Names From the perspective of the linguistic structures, brand names can be mainly divided into proper name brand names, the mon word brand names and the coined word brand names.(He Chuansheng,1997) However, there are some similarities and differences in the formation of Chinese and English cosmetic brand names. Proper Names Using a proper name especially a person’s name can create a sense of amicability between the product and the consumers. A good name will inspire the consumers to think about the image under that name. Take some brand names for example, “Charlie” in English has the longstanding image of being a confident but warm little girl。本文從商標名稱的相關知識入手，介紹了商標名稱的概念、特征及功能。 關鍵詞：功能對等；商標；翻譯AbstractA brand name is the part of brand that can be vocalized, and the sign of a product. This paper starts with the information of brand names to introduce the definition, characteristics and the functions of brand names. The brand name is a phenomenon of culture. We should pay more attention to the possibility of brand name translation, and take the Nada’s “Functional Equivalence” as a cardinal princi