@InProceedings{shi-he:2026:NeTTIT,
  author    = {SHI, Jiawei  and  HE, Sihui},
  title     = {Punctuation Patterns in Translated and Original Chinese-English Literary Texts: A Weibull Distribution Analysis},
  booktitle      = {Proceedings of the Conference on New Trends in Translation and Interpreting Technology 2026},
  month          = {June},
  year           = {2026},
  address        = {Dubrovnik, Croatia},
  publisher      = {INCOMA Ltd., Shoumen, Bulgaria},
  pages     = {34--40},
  abstract  = {Recent research reveals that punctuation patterns exhibit cross-linguistic universal features, as the intervals between consecutive punctuation marks follow a discrete Weibull distribution. While this mathematical regularity provides a valuable tool for quantitative linguistics, its application to translated texts remains underexplored. Translation alters punctuation through the tension between preserving source text style and adhering to target language structural rules. To investigate this, we constructed a bidirectional corpus of twenty-eight classic twentieth-century novels and their authoritative translations, comprising Original Chinese (OC), Original English (OE), English-to-Chinese (TC), and Chinese-to-English (TE). We modeled punctuation intervals across these subcorpora using the discrete Weibull distribution. Results confirm a good fit across all subcorpora, reinforcing cross-linguistic universality. Parameter analysis reveals distinct signatures. Chinese texts exhibit lower punctuation frequency and higher rhythmic regularity, whereas English texts show the inverse. Crucially, translation effects are directionally asymmetric. English-to-Chinese translations exceed target language baselines, while Chinese-to-English texts settle at intermediate values between the source and target. Despite this asymmetry, both directions converge toward target language conventions, supporting the normalization hypothesis. Alongside these findings, the lightweight and interpretable parameters can serve as metrics for automatic translationese detection, bridging quantitative linguistics and practical translation technology.},
  url       = {https://aclanthology.org/2026.nettit-1.5}
}