Pre-Bastille day we outlined what we thought were some reasons why translation rates might not be where we, as translation professionals, might like or expect them to be.
Now here are some facts on what professional translators actually do charge for their services in a market that we can identify in-house.
The Association of Translators and Interpreters of Ontario (ATIO – in Canada’s most populous province and home to the Capital) conducted a survey of independent (freelance) translators in 2005, and another of salaried translators in 2007.
Seeing as Canada has 2 official languages (French and English), we’ll only look at those freelancers who self-identified as working in ‘foreign’ languages as that seems more likely to reflect a general translation-market trend.
[The rates we are identifying here are all in $CDN; while it’s worth less than $U.S. (althoug barely right about now) or the €, it is relative – by that I mean that while Canadian translators are charging $CDN they are also spending them, and not a currency that goes further in the global market. The rates are therefore easily comparable to the United States or to the € zone. If you’re making €, £, or $U.S. while living somewhere they are worth many times the local currency then…well…maybe you don’t care either way.]
Here is some of the information gleaned:
49% of respondents stated translation as their full-time employment; 47% said it was a part-time occupation.
The respondents identified ‘individuals’ as their largest client base, followed by translation agencies, companies and finally government.
Rates:
60% of respondents charge between 15¢ and 20¢ per word, 13% said they charge more than that rate and 17% said less. These figures are consistent with prior ATIO surveys conducted in 1996 and in 2000.
67% of respondents said they charge more for rush jobs, which they generally results in a percentage premium. While the percentages varied as widely as 5% to 62%, the most common premiums fell between 10% and 20%.
Flat Fees:
59% of respondents said they had a flat fee for documents such as certificates and diplomas.
79% of respondents had a minimum fee for small jobs, fairly evenly split between 15$, 20$, 25$ and 35$.
Revision:
62% of respondents said they had a revision rate, although they were split between charging per word or per hour.
Per word rates varied greatly, although 4 or 5 cents were the most common.
Per hour the rates varied from 25$ to 55$ per hour with 40$ being the most commonly charged.
7/24/2009
7/13/2009
Translation Rates. Part 1
It’s easy to understand why translation rates are an often-debated subject in the world of translation, maybe now more so as ‘La crise’ certainly hasn’t been helping anyone’s bottom line. Professional translators and translation companies:
1. know what they need to charge in order to make a profit/living; and
2. understand that they are trained professionals with a skill that is both in demand and valuable.
Clients who don’t understand point number 2 and are content to settle for poor translations (for want of money or indifference to quality) are themselves poor professionals, as I’m sure they take their own services quite seriously.
However, regardless of my opinion on the professional practices of some, the fact remains that there are translators (accredited or not) and agencies (or sometimes ‘factories’ for that matter) able to put translations out for very low rates; and clients who are willing to bypass translation professionals altogether.
Reasons for this?
Access to Automatic Translation software. Google translate, reverso, babelfish, wordlingo and a preinstalled ‘widget’ in our macbooks: you know them, have used them and it’s very hard to argue against them absolutely. Maybe the small restaurant owner in a touristed locale would have offered a free meal to someone who was willing to sit down with a menu and work it out for them. Now you have the aforementioned AT tools and maybe cork listed on a Turkish menu instead of mushrooms (according to a friend trying hard to learn the language in the country).
Someone translating in a country with a very low cost of living. They might be able to shave several cents per word off of a rate that would be an absolute minimum in Western Europe or North America;
Bilingual or multiple language speakers offering translations and charging less than a translator with proper training. A client who sees the bottom line first and who maybe won’t understand the final product anyway might be inclined to take the cheaper rate over one that reflects the work of a professional;
Agencies employing an army of people in a country with a low cost of living or very low minimum wage standards. With many people dedicated to translating texts and therefore working on quantity, the business can charge lower rates and rely on volume to turn a profit.
Are we overreacting? Are there a plethora of reasons we're ignorant towards? Let us know what you think.
In the next instalment of the translation rate saga we'll outline some rates in Canada as identified in a survey conducted by an association of professional translators.
1. know what they need to charge in order to make a profit/living; and
2. understand that they are trained professionals with a skill that is both in demand and valuable.
Clients who don’t understand point number 2 and are content to settle for poor translations (for want of money or indifference to quality) are themselves poor professionals, as I’m sure they take their own services quite seriously.
However, regardless of my opinion on the professional practices of some, the fact remains that there are translators (accredited or not) and agencies (or sometimes ‘factories’ for that matter) able to put translations out for very low rates; and clients who are willing to bypass translation professionals altogether.
Reasons for this?
Access to Automatic Translation software. Google translate, reverso, babelfish, wordlingo and a preinstalled ‘widget’ in our macbooks: you know them, have used them and it’s very hard to argue against them absolutely. Maybe the small restaurant owner in a touristed locale would have offered a free meal to someone who was willing to sit down with a menu and work it out for them. Now you have the aforementioned AT tools and maybe cork listed on a Turkish menu instead of mushrooms (according to a friend trying hard to learn the language in the country).
Someone translating in a country with a very low cost of living. They might be able to shave several cents per word off of a rate that would be an absolute minimum in Western Europe or North America;
Bilingual or multiple language speakers offering translations and charging less than a translator with proper training. A client who sees the bottom line first and who maybe won’t understand the final product anyway might be inclined to take the cheaper rate over one that reflects the work of a professional;
Agencies employing an army of people in a country with a low cost of living or very low minimum wage standards. With many people dedicated to translating texts and therefore working on quantity, the business can charge lower rates and rely on volume to turn a profit.
Are we overreacting? Are there a plethora of reasons we're ignorant towards? Let us know what you think.
In the next instalment of the translation rate saga we'll outline some rates in Canada as identified in a survey conducted by an association of professional translators.
7/07/2009
Translation blogs: Self-Expression, Self-Promotion and Professional Catharsis
Is there a list of blogs you read somewhat faithfully? (Here's hoping that ours will become one of them). Maybe only blogs of a certain genre or about certain subject matter(s)? When we look at blogs on the job we're mostly interested in what other translators are using as tools, what they’re working on or how they handle problems or professional issues that we can relate to. Personal opinion and insight are also much appreciated. So we've looked around at some translation and translator's blogs out there and here's a sampling that we thought we'd share. You might already know all about them from the 'Translation Blogs' link on the right, or maybe be one of the authors, but if you're lazy or have a grudge that maybe we can dispel then this is good for everyone; we generally only publish things that we can be positive about. If however, you'd like to know a little something about Parisian driving school car-rental clowns, PLEASE! Ask us. No, really.
The Masked Translator is written in a casual style and deals with aspects of translation personal and professional, above all where the two intersect (see 'Rate Myths'). One great entry from last month has the idea of searching out equipment diagrams and maybe even youtube videos for help when working on technical translations and the client hasn't provided any resources.
Naked Translations is a blog on language observations and problems from a translator working above all from English into French. There's a solid archive and some really interesting cultural observations and professional subjects addressed. A Franco-Britannic point of view makes this blog of special interest for those working in Europe.
Favourite line: “France et sa millefeuille administrative”.
Translating is an Art is 'a weblog about translation and language'. Dually in English and Dutch, the blog addresses professional translation issues, such as common misconceptions about translations and translators, what does it mean to be bilingual? etc. It is also a great read for interesting sociological language issues (just what are the 1000 funniest English words?), though not only concerning English and Dutch.
Interesting Read: An article posted in February linking to an opinion piece entitled 'Language Martyrs'.
The Greener Word: 'Dispatches from the desk of a German-English environmental translator'. The author nicely blends in professional organizations as part of her work and her network. The blog is a great resource for freelance translators specializing in or working with environmental texts, or anyone curious about a corner of the translation market they might not be familiar with.
Impressive: List of (linked-to) translation publications.
fidus interpres is a trilingual Portuguese/English/German translation blog with some great information concerning professional development, including web-based translation courses, language courses and translation conferences or seminars. There are also a few articles perhaps for the newer translators out there about the benefits and drawbacks of freelancing, working for an agency, or the ideal relationship between translators and clients.
Post I identified with this week: 'Feeling lazy'. Yes, yes I was. Thanks for not letting me hang there by myself.
Translation Times: 'The entrepreneurial linguists and translating twins blog about the business of translation from Las Vegas and Vienna’'. So they’ve got that going for them. The trilingual twins provide some great insight into marketing your skills or your business from 2 continents and have a great post about 3 possible public relation techniques. The translator as entrepreneur and businessperson is an evident main theme and therefore provides a good forum for those getting started or looking for ideas or support.
Highlight: Anyone who rips on Criss Angel I commend.
Blogging Translator: 'Translation, Linguistics and Freelancing in the 21st Century'. The author, specializing in law, international development, media and marketing, provides pertinent and professional advice and opinions about working as a freelancer and with social media. She has some good entries about professional seminars or conferences recently attended or that she’s tuned into.
Good article: (For those of us who would rather do a 3000 word rush-job for peanuts instead of speak in public) 'Engaging with Speakers when you're doing a presentation'.
About Translation is a blog of 'information, news and opinions about professional translation'. The author covers a variety of items, like the importance of knowing unit conversions or how to differentiate yourself from other agencies or translation companies. Some great information is provided from the Colorado Translators Association seminar held in April.
Favourite entry every translation professor or potential project partner would appreciate: 'How not to create dictionary entries'.
Thoughts on Translation: '…the translation industry and becoming a translator'. The author provides insight about freelancing, translating and being a mom, client relationships (a bit of 'how to' as well as a nice appreciation story). Some well-written overall professional advice and there is a good rush-job section.
Good link: Story about Arab Linguist Lt. Dan Choi’s dismissal from the U.S. military because of his sexual orientation. I hope you find this dismissal ridiculous, whether on personal, professional or 'I'm simply a reasonable individual' grounds.
Let us know what you think about what we think (maybe about you).
6/25/2009
French in English
Writing a terrible paragraph like this:
Did you hear the news à propos the coup d’état against the ancien regime? It turns out the revolutionary was a real artiste with a brunette girlfriend who was herself quite the belle esprit. Apparently he would lead his troops café au lait in hand and had a penchant for delivering the coup de grace to fallen enemies in person.
is pretty easy for the generally educated Anglophone. All of the Gallicized terms in that paragraph are in (relatively) common use, depending on the circumstance and the subject of a particular conversation.
So I’ve decided to do some academic sampling from my good friend Oxford about ‘la belle langue’ in ‘the language of business’. Maybe you can use some of this yourself in a party conversation this weekend if you want to sound like you dabbled in a field of linguistics until you got bored and decided to become a commercial diver or a communications manager or an eye doctor type. Or blog. I mean, whatever.
If the conversation is maybe sounding something like this:
“…that’s why romance languages are so much more attractive than English…”
or better yet:
“…yeah! why is it that there are so many kinda French words in English? Huh? Of course I’ve heard of the Bayeux Tapestry, who hasn’t, but what does that have to do with anything?!”
then maybe some of this can help you fill some void.
Medieval loans from French have given English much of the look of a Romance language. The movement of French words into English was facilitated by cognates already present in Old English. Words like munt, nefa, prud, rice, warian paved the way for mount, nephew, proud, rich, beware from Old French.
Because of its Geographical Position and Historical Cultural Prestige (accept it or not), France has exported many words to its neighbours in the form of linguistic borrowings. English has been the single greatest recipient of these. As a result, hundreds of words have the same spellings in both languages, which also share a series of Latin affixes.
Many words borrowed into French from other Romance languages (especially Italian) have also entered English in a more or less French form. For example: artisan, caprice, frigate, orange, picturesque, stance, tirade.
In addition to borrowings, Gallicized English words have also been a result of Bisociation. This is the occurrence in a language of pairs of words with similar meanings, one member of each pair being native to a different language. In English, the vernacular members of pairs are mainly Germanic (usually from Old English or Old Norse), and the loanwords are mainly classical (usually from Latin, often mediated by French). Examples include: freedom/liberty, hearty/cordial, go up/ascend, go down/descend.
English has also taken many words through French by way of Doublets: when one of two or more words is derived from one source. Examples include: fragile/frail, from Latin fragilis, the first directly, the second through Old French frele.
The ancient closeness of the two languages has had peculiar effects: a young English hare is a French leveret, a young English swan a French cygnet, and a small English axe is a French hatchet. An Old English stem can be used with a French suffix (eatable, hindrance) or vice versa (faithful, gentleness). The English stool, originally a chair (Old English stol), gave way to the Norman French chair, and was demoted in size and usage. Animals tended by Saxon peasantry retained English names like calf and sheep, while their meat when eaten in Norman castles became French veal and mutton.
Because of the long presence of French in England, many French fossils survive in the strata of English as well: for example, an s lost by French is preserved in bastard, beast, cost, custom, escape, establish, (e)state, false, honest, hostage, interest, master, paste, priest, scout, tempest. Because of that connection, English is sometimes a twofold language in which people can answer or respond and begin or commence to seek freedom or liberty. Such pairs are near-synonyms, sometimes expressing stylistic differences like kingdom/realm, sight/vision, and snake/serpent. Others still are further apart in meaning, such as ask/demand, bit/morsel, heel/talon, and illegible/unreadable.
Beware of faux amis (false friends): words that have the same origin and general appearance as a word in another language, and so can easily be mistaken to have the same meanings and uses: English deceive is to trick while French décevoir is to disappoint.
I’ve got a 17-page document of French words and terms in current use in English. If you read it you’d recognize most, if not all of them. Putting together the list from scratch? Much more difficult; That's how entrenched these two languages are.
You might have bored a few people to tears or driven some partygoers to other conversation circles (about what? the Yankees? as if I know where you hang out), but you probably attracted some heads too, and maybe there’s that intellectual, attractive language professional who wants to go for coffee now. Ok, maybe that’s a stretch…
Did you hear the news à propos the coup d’état against the ancien regime? It turns out the revolutionary was a real artiste with a brunette girlfriend who was herself quite the belle esprit. Apparently he would lead his troops café au lait in hand and had a penchant for delivering the coup de grace to fallen enemies in person.
is pretty easy for the generally educated Anglophone. All of the Gallicized terms in that paragraph are in (relatively) common use, depending on the circumstance and the subject of a particular conversation.
So I’ve decided to do some academic sampling from my good friend Oxford about ‘la belle langue’ in ‘the language of business’. Maybe you can use some of this yourself in a party conversation this weekend if you want to sound like you dabbled in a field of linguistics until you got bored and decided to become a commercial diver or a communications manager or an eye doctor type. Or blog. I mean, whatever.
If the conversation is maybe sounding something like this:
“…that’s why romance languages are so much more attractive than English…”
or better yet:
“…yeah! why is it that there are so many kinda French words in English? Huh? Of course I’ve heard of the Bayeux Tapestry, who hasn’t, but what does that have to do with anything?!”
then maybe some of this can help you fill some void.
Medieval loans from French have given English much of the look of a Romance language. The movement of French words into English was facilitated by cognates already present in Old English. Words like munt, nefa, prud, rice, warian paved the way for mount, nephew, proud, rich, beware from Old French.
Because of its Geographical Position and Historical Cultural Prestige (accept it or not), France has exported many words to its neighbours in the form of linguistic borrowings. English has been the single greatest recipient of these. As a result, hundreds of words have the same spellings in both languages, which also share a series of Latin affixes.
Many words borrowed into French from other Romance languages (especially Italian) have also entered English in a more or less French form. For example: artisan, caprice, frigate, orange, picturesque, stance, tirade.
In addition to borrowings, Gallicized English words have also been a result of Bisociation. This is the occurrence in a language of pairs of words with similar meanings, one member of each pair being native to a different language. In English, the vernacular members of pairs are mainly Germanic (usually from Old English or Old Norse), and the loanwords are mainly classical (usually from Latin, often mediated by French). Examples include: freedom/liberty, hearty/cordial, go up/ascend, go down/descend.
English has also taken many words through French by way of Doublets: when one of two or more words is derived from one source. Examples include: fragile/frail, from Latin fragilis, the first directly, the second through Old French frele.
The ancient closeness of the two languages has had peculiar effects: a young English hare is a French leveret, a young English swan a French cygnet, and a small English axe is a French hatchet. An Old English stem can be used with a French suffix (eatable, hindrance) or vice versa (faithful, gentleness). The English stool, originally a chair (Old English stol), gave way to the Norman French chair, and was demoted in size and usage. Animals tended by Saxon peasantry retained English names like calf and sheep, while their meat when eaten in Norman castles became French veal and mutton.
Because of the long presence of French in England, many French fossils survive in the strata of English as well: for example, an s lost by French is preserved in bastard, beast, cost, custom, escape, establish, (e)state, false, honest, hostage, interest, master, paste, priest, scout, tempest. Because of that connection, English is sometimes a twofold language in which people can answer or respond and begin or commence to seek freedom or liberty. Such pairs are near-synonyms, sometimes expressing stylistic differences like kingdom/realm, sight/vision, and snake/serpent. Others still are further apart in meaning, such as ask/demand, bit/morsel, heel/talon, and illegible/unreadable.
Beware of faux amis (false friends): words that have the same origin and general appearance as a word in another language, and so can easily be mistaken to have the same meanings and uses: English deceive is to trick while French décevoir is to disappoint.
I’ve got a 17-page document of French words and terms in current use in English. If you read it you’d recognize most, if not all of them. Putting together the list from scratch? Much more difficult; That's how entrenched these two languages are.
You might have bored a few people to tears or driven some partygoers to other conversation circles (about what? the Yankees? as if I know where you hang out), but you probably attracted some heads too, and maybe there’s that intellectual, attractive language professional who wants to go for coffee now. Ok, maybe that’s a stretch…
Technical Translation: Problems and Solutions
Version Française
What is Technical Translation?
In the world of European translation, a technical text is one that is subject-specific and lands outside of the literary genre. Often when we hear the words technical translation our minds might jump immediately to a user’s manual for a neutron microscope or an elevator service repair guide; but the term can just as easily pertain to an employment contract or the minutes of a judicial proceeding. For the purposes of this post however, we’re mostly referring technical fields (IT, environmental engineering, electronics etc.).
Three pitfalls to avoid when working on a technical translation
• Having an Engineer Write Directly into a Target Language
Technical manuals are often written directly into English in order to avoid translation costs. Engineers are engineers, not linguists; a Japanese engineer with a strong knowledge of English will not be as precise as they would be in their own language.
• Failing to Translate Neologisms
There can be an impulse (that many submit to) to keep specific words from the source language in order to avoid having to create jargon in the target language. If a word is sometimes accepted from English, it rarely works from Swedish, French and even less so from Japanese.
• Hashing out the Translation Internally
Specialized tech companies (nanotechnology or electrical or mechanical engineering firms) might hesitate to hire external translators in the belief that few people outside of their profession or even their company understand their terminology. This even more apparent when it comes to new and innovative technologies. Merely having a bilingual employee translate the document can be disastrous; translation is a profession unto itself with a unique and specific skill set.
Four Solutions for Suitable High Quality Translations
• Hire a Technical Translator
The vast majority of translators actually are technical translators. That doesn’t mean that each of them is an encyclopaedic genius. However, do we really need to have worked on an oilrig to translate a document about hydrocarbons? Or need we a degree in Pharmacology to translate a prescription? Of course those would be beneficial experiences, but a translator is first and foremost a linguist who possesses strong research skills in addition to their knowledge of two or more languages. As such, many translators tend to specialize in subject-fields that they are familiar with. Where LinguaSpirit excels is in our ability to hunt down those subject-field specialists if the request falls outside of our in-house capabilities and to find you the perfect translator for the job.
• In Cutting-Edge Fields, Hire a Translation Terminologist
Using any relevant documents a client is able to supply, terminologists work with technical engineers and concept designers (for example) to establish field-specific neologisms for the translation. The collaboration is an important step (facilitated by a face-to-face meeting) that allows the translation terminologist to understand the field and to clear up any questions they might have.
• Create a Glossary
This is exactly something terminologists can do very, very well. For clients, there are two advantages to creating a glossary:
1. It provides for consistency and saves time for all future translations, even when changing translation agencies.
2. The glossary can be forwarded to any partners, sub-contractors or clients in order to guarantee consistency throughout the working group.
• Employ a Bilingual Technical Reviser.
Bilingual technical revisers are also a great resource because they can serve as a language bridge.
A final word: Above all, demand in your translations the quality and the precision you expect in your own field.
What is Technical Translation?
In the world of European translation, a technical text is one that is subject-specific and lands outside of the literary genre. Often when we hear the words technical translation our minds might jump immediately to a user’s manual for a neutron microscope or an elevator service repair guide; but the term can just as easily pertain to an employment contract or the minutes of a judicial proceeding. For the purposes of this post however, we’re mostly referring technical fields (IT, environmental engineering, electronics etc.).
Three pitfalls to avoid when working on a technical translation
• Having an Engineer Write Directly into a Target Language
Technical manuals are often written directly into English in order to avoid translation costs. Engineers are engineers, not linguists; a Japanese engineer with a strong knowledge of English will not be as precise as they would be in their own language.
• Failing to Translate Neologisms
There can be an impulse (that many submit to) to keep specific words from the source language in order to avoid having to create jargon in the target language. If a word is sometimes accepted from English, it rarely works from Swedish, French and even less so from Japanese.
• Hashing out the Translation Internally
Specialized tech companies (nanotechnology or electrical or mechanical engineering firms) might hesitate to hire external translators in the belief that few people outside of their profession or even their company understand their terminology. This even more apparent when it comes to new and innovative technologies. Merely having a bilingual employee translate the document can be disastrous; translation is a profession unto itself with a unique and specific skill set.
Four Solutions for Suitable High Quality Translations
• Hire a Technical Translator
The vast majority of translators actually are technical translators. That doesn’t mean that each of them is an encyclopaedic genius. However, do we really need to have worked on an oilrig to translate a document about hydrocarbons? Or need we a degree in Pharmacology to translate a prescription? Of course those would be beneficial experiences, but a translator is first and foremost a linguist who possesses strong research skills in addition to their knowledge of two or more languages. As such, many translators tend to specialize in subject-fields that they are familiar with. Where LinguaSpirit excels is in our ability to hunt down those subject-field specialists if the request falls outside of our in-house capabilities and to find you the perfect translator for the job.
• In Cutting-Edge Fields, Hire a Translation Terminologist
Using any relevant documents a client is able to supply, terminologists work with technical engineers and concept designers (for example) to establish field-specific neologisms for the translation. The collaboration is an important step (facilitated by a face-to-face meeting) that allows the translation terminologist to understand the field and to clear up any questions they might have.
• Create a Glossary
This is exactly something terminologists can do very, very well. For clients, there are two advantages to creating a glossary:
1. It provides for consistency and saves time for all future translations, even when changing translation agencies.
2. The glossary can be forwarded to any partners, sub-contractors or clients in order to guarantee consistency throughout the working group.
• Employ a Bilingual Technical Reviser.
Bilingual technical revisers are also a great resource because they can serve as a language bridge.
A final word: Above all, demand in your translations the quality and the precision you expect in your own field.
6/17/2009
Thinking Outside the Box
‘Engins publics’. Public works trucks; had to be. Of course it wasn’t; it means a variety of public works machinery, like lifts (don’t even get me started on detailing my mining/construction-experience explanation to my French colleagues) and semis (or should I say articulated lorries) and specific public works-y ‘mobiles that cost taxpayers fortunes (apparently Volvo churns out a pretty good product).
What is a ‘garage mort’? How about defining a ‘mobile home’? The first might bring to mind some sort of cadaver closet. Where I come from the other means a trailer, not a motor home or a camper, or even a caravan—and not a gypsy caravan—and brings to mind a trailer park, which brings to mind low class lowbrow welfare recipients.
Obviously this is not the case. I lived in a trailer for some years as a kid and both of my parents considered themselves middle class; it was our first house. As for the garage of death, in France it actually just means a short-term garage space rental while you leave the campground for a few days to go on a hike, or a boat ride or whatever else it is you and your family might be interested in doing while on vacation.
Do you see where I’m going with this?
My general language box is North American English; maybe some of the loose language I’ve already used has given me away. In English-French translation school we’re taught to use European and Québécois term banks (for example), but in the end, as a translator with limited experience, I often find myself trying to bring it back to what I know and what I can understand in order to make the words make sense.
But your employers box might be different, and the English-language box of the banking conglomerate for which I helped translate an annual report seemed almost an internal language when it came to some of the terminology they used in the glossary they forwarded to us. I’m no financial wizard, and to me banking means deposits and withdrawals (preferably more of the former than of the latter, but I’m an intern in Europe so maybe that’s best left for another, more personal post. Just kidding boss).
But I was sure that based on what I know of North American banking terms and after consultation of EU term records, whatever that bank network was talking about was to be understood only by those who had previous experience saying and hearing it, in their own box. Box inside a box even, but lets not get carried away in layers of trans-philo; I’m just looking for some vocabularic catharsis here.
Would that my ‘box’ be as expansive as I believe my travelling ability to be, but even that has to get called out now and again (have you ever tried to play out a confrontation in a Haitian street, in Kréyol, at night, while pretending like you know what you’re doing? I’m white and was only a month in, trust me it doesn’t work).
So I’m learning. I give, I take, I make notes and I try to remember. I guess what I’m saying is that we shouldn’t get discouraged, because even when we think we have an idea about what we’re doing in a box we feel somewhat comfortable in, things don’t always go smoothly.
If it’s important to you that you learn new places or skills or languages or even new bus routes or recipes, it might perhaps be intimidating at first and probably result in a little bit of ‘am I smart enough?’, but it will be well worth the effort somewhere down the line.
Right?
Because this financial glossary had better come in handy next semester…
Feel like telling us about your box?
What is a ‘garage mort’? How about defining a ‘mobile home’? The first might bring to mind some sort of cadaver closet. Where I come from the other means a trailer, not a motor home or a camper, or even a caravan—and not a gypsy caravan—and brings to mind a trailer park, which brings to mind low class lowbrow welfare recipients.
Obviously this is not the case. I lived in a trailer for some years as a kid and both of my parents considered themselves middle class; it was our first house. As for the garage of death, in France it actually just means a short-term garage space rental while you leave the campground for a few days to go on a hike, or a boat ride or whatever else it is you and your family might be interested in doing while on vacation.
Do you see where I’m going with this?
My general language box is North American English; maybe some of the loose language I’ve already used has given me away. In English-French translation school we’re taught to use European and Québécois term banks (for example), but in the end, as a translator with limited experience, I often find myself trying to bring it back to what I know and what I can understand in order to make the words make sense.
But your employers box might be different, and the English-language box of the banking conglomerate for which I helped translate an annual report seemed almost an internal language when it came to some of the terminology they used in the glossary they forwarded to us. I’m no financial wizard, and to me banking means deposits and withdrawals (preferably more of the former than of the latter, but I’m an intern in Europe so maybe that’s best left for another, more personal post. Just kidding boss).
But I was sure that based on what I know of North American banking terms and after consultation of EU term records, whatever that bank network was talking about was to be understood only by those who had previous experience saying and hearing it, in their own box. Box inside a box even, but lets not get carried away in layers of trans-philo; I’m just looking for some vocabularic catharsis here.
Would that my ‘box’ be as expansive as I believe my travelling ability to be, but even that has to get called out now and again (have you ever tried to play out a confrontation in a Haitian street, in Kréyol, at night, while pretending like you know what you’re doing? I’m white and was only a month in, trust me it doesn’t work).
So I’m learning. I give, I take, I make notes and I try to remember. I guess what I’m saying is that we shouldn’t get discouraged, because even when we think we have an idea about what we’re doing in a box we feel somewhat comfortable in, things don’t always go smoothly.
If it’s important to you that you learn new places or skills or languages or even new bus routes or recipes, it might perhaps be intimidating at first and probably result in a little bit of ‘am I smart enough?’, but it will be well worth the effort somewhere down the line.
Right?
Because this financial glossary had better come in handy next semester…
Feel like telling us about your box?
Translating Culture in French
The neo-immigrant population in my neck of the woods includes strong Francophone, Vietnamese, Filipino, Somali and Caribbean representation. As mainstream as I might be (in North American standards), as an 18-35 year old white Anglophone male, I think where I live is a multicultural, multilingual city trying hard to shake the lengthy racist, colonial North American hangover and move forward for the benefit of all citizens, no matter how they might identify.
It was an interest in diversity and a curiosity about the translation market in Europe that brought me over here to France for a mandatory practicum in translation as part of my program in North America (where I live collectively with great people in a crooked Chinatown duplex).
Having travelled and lived in France before now, but only ever passed through Paris to catch planes or trains, I considered myself lucky to land at LinguaSpirit, a small agency in the city that was actually at the top of my list. Those previous short trips in the capital consisted mainly of time spent wandering aimlessly for 12 or 16-hour sessions without a clue as to neighbourhood history or ethnic makeup.
Friends, past colleagues, really anyone with a bit of ‘been there, done that’ in them had offered me opinions on the city ranging anywhere from “Paris is France” to “Paris is very different from anywhere else in the country.” When I finally ended up in the city, in my apartment in the 5ième and ready for my first week on the job, I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I got there; probably not the predominantly Anglophone/Francophone/Spanish speaking mélange that is the majority population of translators ‘back home’.
A handful of metro stops later and a week-long to meet all of my co-workers painted a picture about the people I work with and where we are:
Maylis, a Parisian with Martiniquais ancestry;
Marième, Senegalese, lived in Saudi Arabia and has been in France since her early teens;
Ignacio, from the Autonomous Community of Aragon, with an extensive Hispanic social circle;
Nils, a French/Swedish Parisian de banlieue;
Sylvia, Sardinian with Italian ancestry;
Kamilla, from the Russian Republic of Dagestan; and
Agata, Polish with a history here in France.
And we all work in a diverse, multicultural neighbourhood just south of the péripherique.
Chinatown residential it isn’t. What is it then? It’s a slice of Paris. What is Paris? Paris is Paris; and it’s all just what I was looking for.
Tell us about your workplace…
It was an interest in diversity and a curiosity about the translation market in Europe that brought me over here to France for a mandatory practicum in translation as part of my program in North America (where I live collectively with great people in a crooked Chinatown duplex).
Having travelled and lived in France before now, but only ever passed through Paris to catch planes or trains, I considered myself lucky to land at LinguaSpirit, a small agency in the city that was actually at the top of my list. Those previous short trips in the capital consisted mainly of time spent wandering aimlessly for 12 or 16-hour sessions without a clue as to neighbourhood history or ethnic makeup.
Friends, past colleagues, really anyone with a bit of ‘been there, done that’ in them had offered me opinions on the city ranging anywhere from “Paris is France” to “Paris is very different from anywhere else in the country.” When I finally ended up in the city, in my apartment in the 5ième and ready for my first week on the job, I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I got there; probably not the predominantly Anglophone/Francophone/Spanish speaking mélange that is the majority population of translators ‘back home’.
A handful of metro stops later and a week-long to meet all of my co-workers painted a picture about the people I work with and where we are:
Maylis, a Parisian with Martiniquais ancestry;
Marième, Senegalese, lived in Saudi Arabia and has been in France since her early teens;
Ignacio, from the Autonomous Community of Aragon, with an extensive Hispanic social circle;
Nils, a French/Swedish Parisian de banlieue;
Sylvia, Sardinian with Italian ancestry;
Kamilla, from the Russian Republic of Dagestan; and
Agata, Polish with a history here in France.
And we all work in a diverse, multicultural neighbourhood just south of the péripherique.
Chinatown residential it isn’t. What is it then? It’s a slice of Paris. What is Paris? Paris is Paris; and it’s all just what I was looking for.
Tell us about your workplace…
Which CAT tool works for you?
Version Française
In a previous article, we wrote about Trados™, one of the most commonly used (computer assisted translation) CAT tools.
There are definitely other translation memory (TM) tools on the market that are more user-friendly than Trados (also one of the most expensive). Here we’ve identified several others that you might find useful. As we haven’t tested every system out there, our list is by no means exhaustive, so please feel free to post your own opinions or tell us about your experiences with these, or any other systems that you may have used or be familiar with.
Wordfast
www.wordfast.net
Wordfast is probably the one of the most straightforward CAT tools out there. Created by Yves Champollion, an independent translator with a strong background in computer science, Wordfast was, for a long time a free tool that was improved through various user-based contributions. In 2002, Wordfast was re-established as a subscription-based tool, but still remains the least expensive translation memory on the market.
Features:
- Compatible with PC and Macs
- Real-time glossary generation
- External dictionary links
- Built-in personalized glossaries
- Compatible with market standards, such as Trados 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and TMX formats.
- Compatible with MultiTerm segmentation; transferable memories and glossaries.
- Translation possible in Excel, PowerPoint and Access
- Translation of tagged RWS Rainbow or Trados Stagger documents
- Wordfast can connect to automatic translation tools such as PowerTranslator™, Systran™, Reverso™, etc.
- Wordfast can be downloaded and shared via personal or professional networks
OmegaT
www.omegat.org
OmegaT is a free, open-source translation memory written in JavaScript.
Features:
- Establish your own between exact and fuzzy matches
- Ability to work on multiple projects at once
- Simultaneous use of various translation memory systems
- External glossaries
- Compatibility with multiple document formats: Text, HTML, OpenSource.org/StarOffice (latest version has excellent conversion filters for MS Word. Excel, rtf).
- Works in Unicode (UTF-8), allowing for the use of non Latin-based character alphabets
- Compatibility with other translation memory tools (TMX level 1 and up)
Déjà Vu
www.atril.com
Déjà Vu X is a simple and powerful CAT tool; a translation memory (TM) system combined with Example-Based Machine Translation (EBMT). Like other CAT tools, Déjà Vu saves you time by improving consistency and increasing productivity.
For project managers, Déjà Vu provides all the tools necessary to analyse, prepare and manage translations into and from any two languages supported by Windows.
Features:
- Integrated: Single software package provides all necessary functions for translation and project management needs
- Simple: User-friendly interface provides step-by-step guidance
- Flexible: Freedom to maintain personal style preferences, whether working with technical texts, marketing texts, etc.
- Compatible: Supports all conventional file formats; compatible with other CAT tools
- Detailed Display of existing translations within database: Information provided (date, author, project name, etc.) assures consistent terminology use and increases efficiency
- Quality Controlled: Verification of filters (coherence), terminology, figures, etc. optimizes first-run translations.
- Secure: Database management system automatically saves projects; password protection also available with up to 9 levels of access to eliminate overwriting
Other available CAT tools include Similis™, Across™, and TStream™, which we’ll address in a future article. If you still can’t decide which tool is the best for you, we recommend Véronique Sauron’s article: “Wordfast™ et Trados™, le combat de David contre Goliath” (available only in French), comparing the advantages and disadvantages of each tool. www.tradulex.org/Hieronymus/Sauron.pdf
Similis™
www.similis.org
Similis is a translation software tool for professional translators, whether they work freelance, for a Language Service Provider, or in the Translation department of a large corporation. The interface is simple, and a professional translator will master Similis after a one-day training session.
Similis is a Translation Memory, giving translators immediate access to a database of all the past translations generated by an individual or an entire company. It can handle all existing memory formats (Trados, TMX, etc.), and recover previously developed memories and glossaries.
During a translation, Similis analyzes previous translations, generates a translator memory and applies it to the current project. This saves time when translating recurrent segments, terms, and word groups, and provides consistency across different documents.
Similis is a second-generation translation memory (more powerful than the first-generation memories). It includes a linguistic analysis engine, uses text-chunking technology to break down segments into intelligent terminological groups (chunks), and automatically generates specific glossaries.
Available in both server (Windows) and standalone versions, Similis meets the needs of large corporations and institutions wanting to better management of their in-house and outsourced translation projects, as well as translation professionals seeking to develop customer loyalty.
Across™
www.across.net
Across Language Server is the basic product from Across™. It offers several functions to organize, coordinate and efficiently manage all your translation projects.
Across™ provides a working environment in which all stakeholders can remain in contact; editors, project managers, service providers and freelance translators.
Across™ provides access to previously stored segments, allows for successful project administration and integration of its various functions. Content quickly accessible in target languages considerably reduces project costs.
In an era of globalisation and ever-expanding international markets, the use of language resources make up an essential component in the market value of international businesses. Across Language Server enables the integration of these priorities into business workflows and for export market infrastructures.
Transit
A computer-assisted translation tool from STAR Group
As a translation manager, are you challenged by the following?
• How to translate your text & reuse old translations to save money?
• How to translate different file formats and maintain file layout to minimise desktop publishing work afterwards?
• How to eliminate file conversion issues as a result?
• How to manage language consistency in all translation projects?
• Can you manage a single project instead of many files?
• Can you get suggestions for translations as you work?
The Benefit of a Translation Memory
A key challenge in translation today is managing both costs and volumes of translation. Transit NXT manages your projects by allowing you to import your file for translation, translate the files with suggestions from your previous projects and then export your translated files, delivering consistent results time and again.
Transit gives your project managers the ability to manage translation projects and to produce accurate word counts and costing. It gives your translators a single tool to translate all the leading file formats: FrameMaker, XML, HTML, MS Word, Powerpoint, Adobe Indesign, etc.
Features:
• Automatic project price calculations—based on your pricing
• Manage just one project instead of many files
• Automatic translation (Translation Memory) and terminology suggestions
• Speed
• Easy to use
• Accepts all major source files
• Management and updating of translation memory data
• Navigate, search/replace, check spelling and format through a project as one virtual file—project files are loaded at once
• Progress indicator (how much has been translated and how much remains)
• Context lookup for fuzzy matches: data always remain in original context
• Wizards shorten the learning curve
Compatibility:
• Compatible with other translation memory systems, including TMX and Martif
• Unicode support for all languages
• Open system: integrates with many authoring and DTP systems
• Alignment function for reuse of previous translations
In a previous article, we wrote about Trados™, one of the most commonly used (computer assisted translation) CAT tools.
There are definitely other translation memory (TM) tools on the market that are more user-friendly than Trados (also one of the most expensive). Here we’ve identified several others that you might find useful. As we haven’t tested every system out there, our list is by no means exhaustive, so please feel free to post your own opinions or tell us about your experiences with these, or any other systems that you may have used or be familiar with.
Wordfast
www.wordfast.net
Wordfast is probably the one of the most straightforward CAT tools out there. Created by Yves Champollion, an independent translator with a strong background in computer science, Wordfast was, for a long time a free tool that was improved through various user-based contributions. In 2002, Wordfast was re-established as a subscription-based tool, but still remains the least expensive translation memory on the market.
Features:
- Compatible with PC and Macs
- Real-time glossary generation
- External dictionary links
- Built-in personalized glossaries
- Compatible with market standards, such as Trados 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and TMX formats.
- Compatible with MultiTerm segmentation; transferable memories and glossaries.
- Translation possible in Excel, PowerPoint and Access
- Translation of tagged RWS Rainbow or Trados Stagger documents
- Wordfast can connect to automatic translation tools such as PowerTranslator™, Systran™, Reverso™, etc.
- Wordfast can be downloaded and shared via personal or professional networks
OmegaT
www.omegat.org
OmegaT is a free, open-source translation memory written in JavaScript.
Features:
- Establish your own between exact and fuzzy matches
- Ability to work on multiple projects at once
- Simultaneous use of various translation memory systems
- External glossaries
- Compatibility with multiple document formats: Text, HTML, OpenSource.org/StarOffice (latest version has excellent conversion filters for MS Word. Excel, rtf).
- Works in Unicode (UTF-8), allowing for the use of non Latin-based character alphabets
- Compatibility with other translation memory tools (TMX level 1 and up)
Déjà Vu
www.atril.com
Déjà Vu X is a simple and powerful CAT tool; a translation memory (TM) system combined with Example-Based Machine Translation (EBMT). Like other CAT tools, Déjà Vu saves you time by improving consistency and increasing productivity.
For project managers, Déjà Vu provides all the tools necessary to analyse, prepare and manage translations into and from any two languages supported by Windows.
Features:
- Integrated: Single software package provides all necessary functions for translation and project management needs
- Simple: User-friendly interface provides step-by-step guidance
- Flexible: Freedom to maintain personal style preferences, whether working with technical texts, marketing texts, etc.
- Compatible: Supports all conventional file formats; compatible with other CAT tools
- Detailed Display of existing translations within database: Information provided (date, author, project name, etc.) assures consistent terminology use and increases efficiency
- Quality Controlled: Verification of filters (coherence), terminology, figures, etc. optimizes first-run translations.
- Secure: Database management system automatically saves projects; password protection also available with up to 9 levels of access to eliminate overwriting
Other available CAT tools include Similis™, Across™, and TStream™, which we’ll address in a future article. If you still can’t decide which tool is the best for you, we recommend Véronique Sauron’s article: “Wordfast™ et Trados™, le combat de David contre Goliath” (available only in French), comparing the advantages and disadvantages of each tool. www.tradulex.org/Hieronymus/Sauron.pdf
Similis™
www.similis.org
Similis is a translation software tool for professional translators, whether they work freelance, for a Language Service Provider, or in the Translation department of a large corporation. The interface is simple, and a professional translator will master Similis after a one-day training session.
Similis is a Translation Memory, giving translators immediate access to a database of all the past translations generated by an individual or an entire company. It can handle all existing memory formats (Trados, TMX, etc.), and recover previously developed memories and glossaries.
During a translation, Similis analyzes previous translations, generates a translator memory and applies it to the current project. This saves time when translating recurrent segments, terms, and word groups, and provides consistency across different documents.
Similis is a second-generation translation memory (more powerful than the first-generation memories). It includes a linguistic analysis engine, uses text-chunking technology to break down segments into intelligent terminological groups (chunks), and automatically generates specific glossaries.
Available in both server (Windows) and standalone versions, Similis meets the needs of large corporations and institutions wanting to better management of their in-house and outsourced translation projects, as well as translation professionals seeking to develop customer loyalty.
Across™
www.across.net
Across Language Server is the basic product from Across™. It offers several functions to organize, coordinate and efficiently manage all your translation projects.
Across™ provides a working environment in which all stakeholders can remain in contact; editors, project managers, service providers and freelance translators.
Across™ provides access to previously stored segments, allows for successful project administration and integration of its various functions. Content quickly accessible in target languages considerably reduces project costs.
In an era of globalisation and ever-expanding international markets, the use of language resources make up an essential component in the market value of international businesses. Across Language Server enables the integration of these priorities into business workflows and for export market infrastructures.
Transit
A computer-assisted translation tool from STAR Group
As a translation manager, are you challenged by the following?
• How to translate your text & reuse old translations to save money?
• How to translate different file formats and maintain file layout to minimise desktop publishing work afterwards?
• How to eliminate file conversion issues as a result?
• How to manage language consistency in all translation projects?
• Can you manage a single project instead of many files?
• Can you get suggestions for translations as you work?
The Benefit of a Translation Memory
A key challenge in translation today is managing both costs and volumes of translation. Transit NXT manages your projects by allowing you to import your file for translation, translate the files with suggestions from your previous projects and then export your translated files, delivering consistent results time and again.
Transit gives your project managers the ability to manage translation projects and to produce accurate word counts and costing. It gives your translators a single tool to translate all the leading file formats: FrameMaker, XML, HTML, MS Word, Powerpoint, Adobe Indesign, etc.
Features:
• Automatic project price calculations—based on your pricing
• Manage just one project instead of many files
• Automatic translation (Translation Memory) and terminology suggestions
• Speed
• Easy to use
• Accepts all major source files
• Management and updating of translation memory data
• Navigate, search/replace, check spelling and format through a project as one virtual file—project files are loaded at once
• Progress indicator (how much has been translated and how much remains)
• Context lookup for fuzzy matches: data always remain in original context
• Wizards shorten the learning curve
Compatibility:
• Compatible with other translation memory systems, including TMX and Martif
• Unicode support for all languages
• Open system: integrates with many authoring and DTP systems
• Alignment function for reuse of previous translations
6/11/2009
TRANSLATING FOR FREE?
Several months ago LinguaSpirit launched FreeSpirit, an international network of volunteer translators. FreeSpirit brings together translators who are willing to contribute their knowledge and particular language pair(s) in support of organizations and associations promoting equitable and principled causes.
We were overwhelmed by the enthusiasm that our initiative generated. Applications poured in from people with a variety of qualifications and professional experiences: young translators seeking practical experience early in their careers; established translators supportive of the ideals behind the idea; bilingual professionals outside of translation offering their language skills to help the organisations we support.
Why Join a Network of Volunteer Translators?
As a member of a translation network, working on a project is much easier when there are others to help and rely on when necessary. If paid work comes along in the middle of a volunteer project, you need not worry (or feel guilty) about handing the translation over to someone else to finish. As professionals working alone, there will always be that moral obligation to finish the work we’ve already started.
Why Network Through a Translation Agency?
Because we are a professional translation agency, we have the resources and the practical skills to manage urgent projects in numerous language combinations. Just because a translation is free doesn’t mean that it should be rushed or published without being edited or polished. We organize 2 translators and 2 editors into teams of 4 for every project we work on, so that if a translator or an editor is interrupted due to other work, the other members of the team are there to take over.
In order to ensure translation quality, all of the documents we work on are edited as thoroughly as possible, time permitting, and we try to ensure that translators work only into their dominant language.
Our Goal
We’re already working with large groups like ACT UP-Paris, an organization committed to ending the AIDS crisis. More than this though, our goal is to encourage the international self-promotion of small groups and organizations unknown to a large public by translating their information and communiqués into relevant languages on the Internet.
Languages and Subject Fields
Within the framework of FreeSpirit, we can effectively handle translations in 20 languages in any combination; this includes English, French, Spanish (Iberian and Latin-American), Portuguese, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Arabic, Russian, Hebrew etc.
Organizations
Any not-for-profit NGO (non-governmental organization) is welcome to join FreeSpirit, to request and to benefit from free translation and editing services. FreeSpirit prioritizes organizations committed to fighting poverty, malnutrition and disease (AIDS, malaria etc.); promoting Human Rights, access to health care and literacy; free trade products; and cultural associations.
Other Volunteer Networks
We encourage you to read this article (in French) on the Another Word translation blog; it can give you a good indication of organizations that are looking for volunteer translators.
If you know of other groups, associations or organizations that might be in need FreeSpirit’s services, or if you want to join our network, please don’t hesitate to contact us at freespirit@linguaspirit.com
Is Automatic Translation Defensible?
Admittedly, the question is somewhat contentious; but because we’re translators (and a fortiori a translation agency), criticizing the array of dubious automatic translation websites out there that take themselves seriously seems appropriate.
It’s also fair though to admit once and for all that automatic translation does have its uses in certain cases. Say an employee is surfing the web for their job. What’s more annoying than coming across a foreign language website and not knowing what it has to say? Should one hire a translator, pay them a fee and wait several days for the translation to come back so they can look at the information and finally decide that it isn’t useful after all?
In a case like this one, automatic translations can obviously be beneficial. The employee who doesn’t speak Korean, Swedish or Icelandic would certainly be happy to have some sort of translation available, even an approximate and grammatically butchered one, that at least gives them some sort of idea about the subject, however vague.
Another example might be when two people are chatting online but don’t speak the same language. How do you have a conversation with someone in China if you don’t know a single word of Mandarin? Automatic translation is clearly the easiest way. Sure it’s tedious, but would that stop the determined among us?
It’s easy to see that automatic online translators can be pretty useful for the capable Internet user who refuses to let language pose barriers in the only place that anyone can visit without a passport (censorship-afflicted countries excepted).
We also need to recognize in automatic online translation that its unique quality is at once its greatest hazard: it’s instantaneous!
And how could we not finish this entry up without mentioning human translation. We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: inimitable, irreplaceable. The “machine” will never capture the irony, the subtext, the wordplay, the cultural references and hundreds of other linguistic subtleties; much less competently translate them into a target language. Any individuals or businesses wanting to address a foreign public have every interest in engaging a professional translator or agency; it’s an assurance of candour and respect that will always be valued for its benefits.
One last piece of advice: don’t forget that you can never properly judge the quality of a translation unless you yourself are bilingual. Not that bilingualism alone will guarantee quality; translation is a skill unto itself.
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