On April 24, the Office of the Standardization of Tibetan Terminology Verification Committee of Qinghai Province in northwest China published the first issue of the Tibetan Terminology Bulletin of 2018. About 120 Chinese words and phrases were approved for standardization into Tibetan terminology.

Several Internet terms have become the focus of the current standardization of Tibetan terminology, such as "internet celebrity economy", "webcast", "go viral", "bar code", and "digital currency".

At the same time, certain political, economic, and cultural words and phrases commonly used in China today, such as "the merit does not have to be for me", "financial and taxation systems reform", "personal credit record", and "drone photography" have also been approved as standardized Tibetan terminologies.

According to Mei Cairang, director of the Language Office of the Qinghai Province Committee on Ethnic and Religious Affairs, Qinghai Province initiated the standardization of Tibetan terminology in the year 1999. At present, 56 issues of the Tibetan Terminology Bulletin have been published, and about 8,360 new words and phrases have been approved.

"Nowadays, more and more new words continue to emerge. We must promptly invite experts to review and approve new words in order to avoid confusion in translation of official documents, writings, news, and publications across different areas," Mei Cairang said.

"Right now, some translations are really confusing. When we come across vocabulary for technology, it is a bit difficult to translate," Dou Bengya, deputy secretary-general of the Tibetan Medicine Association of Qinghai Province said.

"Having experts approve the standardization of Tibetan terminology is very authoritative and will play a big role".

Editor: Tommy Tan.