- www.goihata.com
Once I had to work on an editing project where the document had been previously translated from Spanish to English… it was difficult to understand but not because of the subject – philosophy – but for the inappropriate wording and the lack of structure and order in the choice of those words.
As I have mentioned in several occasions before, the final translation must not seem a translation. On the contrary, it must be rendered in a professional manner, written by a certified and trained person who has great command of the language, uses excellent grammar and style, fully understands the topic in order to offer an impeccable work and is humble enough to accept that even the shortest text requires revision by a second person and subsequent editing applied when needed. When in doubt, we have to research at length in order to use the appropriate terminology as to not neglect the quality of our work relying on the idea that the editor will correct all of our errors… That, in my opinion, would be a symptom of mediocrity. If the translation is poor, a good editor could get it better but the final result would never be as good as when the editor works on a good translation.
Also remember about concordance between the information on the text and its style, e.g., a press release would use different style and wording than the one needed for a business proposal or marketing material. The translation must obviously have the correct meaning and it should also reflect the tone of the original, as in the case of a business letter in which the tone shows a sign of irritation as immediate payment of a long due invoice is requested; our translation should reflect that tone but maintaining good manners all the time.
Paulina Torres De Witt
- www.goihata.com
Archive for May, 2008
Translation mediocrity
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008A whole new world
Tuesday, May 27th, 2008- www.goihata.com
I remember being a little girl and attending English classes. What must have meant to me back then, I wonder? Having a good time as I sang along with the rest of the class, I guess. Or maybe listening to some tape completely unaware that while I was enjoying myself so much I was also learning a language that later in life would open doors to a whole new world.
Little did I know that some day I would come to learn that language even more than I learn my own. Since that is what translation is all about: the process of learning a whole new world. Whether you decide to do legal, technical or any other type of translation, you will surely enter a world that was probably unknown to you before. And from that moment on, I’m sure that with every single document you’ll have to translate you will learn more than you could possibly dream of. Whether it’s technical terminology or a particular jargon, every translation will teach you something new. Every text will give you an enriching new experience.
Never in a million years would I have imagined any of that when I was a kid. But one thing I know for sure: learning English must have been fun for me back then, but I still get a kick out of it. Translation is an entertaining process, an activity that will surely get you hooked. I love having the chance of researching, of getting to know new vocabulary and feeling wiser as I go on. From the moment I discover there are words in a text I’m not familiar with, I know that several doors will be open for me. I know that soon I will enter a never-ending process of learning … I will enter a whole new world.
Clarisa Attademo
- www.goihata.com
Loro con perfecto dominio del japonés
Thursday, May 22nd, 2008- www.goihata.com
En el pueblo de Nagareyama-Provincia de Chiba-Japón, se extravió un loro de la especie “Psittacus erithacus”, que en inglés se denomina Loro gris (Grey Parrot), que respondía por el nombre de Yosuke-kun., (Equivalente a Joselito en Español) Gracias a que el citado loro hablaba con soltura y repetía sin cesar su nombre y su dirección pudo ser devuelto a su cuidador sano y salvo. Y digo cuidador, porque un loro así no puede tener dueño.
El día 6 de este mes, se encontraba posado el loro en una verja particular y fue apresada por la policía de Nagareyama. Al principio guardó un férreo silencio, a pesar del intenso interrogatorio policial. Una vez supo de las buenas intenciones de los agentes, les empezó saludando con Konichiwa “Buenas tardes”, y cantando el “Hatopopo” (canción popular que cantan los niños japoneses mientras dan de comer a palomas y pájaros)…..
Terminó la canción recitando su dirección, con números incluidos, lo que condujo a la policía hasta su residencia habitual el día 19 de Junio.
Ahora el loro ya ha vuelto a su rutina habitual y es el encargado de despertar a la familia Nakamura con un “arriba, arriba, que ya es la hora”.
O sea que el japonés no es tan difícil.
- www.goihata.com
Life as translator
Thursday, May 22nd, 2008- www.goihata.com
A- “What did you say you did for a living?” asked me someone once.
B- “I’m a freelance translator,” I declared proudly.
A- “That sounds pretty glamorous. So you translate what important people say at press conferences and events and work with politicians, actors and actresses?” he added.
B- “No, that’s an interpreter. I work as a freelance translator,” I replied.
A- “And what do you do exactly?” he muttered, with an expression of total confusion on his face.
B- “I translate written documents, mainly legal and technical stuff,” I said.
A- “Oh, I see,” he exclaimed, as if showing disappointment and a complete lack of interest.
So what? Maybe being a translator is not a glamorous profession and you surely won’t make tons of money as probably a lawyer or a doctor would. But one thing’s for sure: if you’re up for a challenge, enjoy being alone for long periods of time and you don’t mind unreasonable deadlines, you’re on the right track. And let me tell you, there is something about this profession that is extremely rewarding. Once you get used to being completely isolated in front of your computer for days at a time, and you come to understand that you won’t be having any co-workers with whom to make small-talk or share a cup of coffee whenever you feel like taking a break, you’ll realize that this could even be a blessing. You might probably feel the need to make any type of contact with another human being once in a while – though I honestly don’t mind the solitude of my home or the fact that I might be considered a complete recluse – but once you’re past that, you’ll clearly understand what I’m talking about. I mean, nothing beats the luxury of being able to work in your pj’s if you want to.
And nothing can be better that arranging your own schedule: no need to set the alarm clock at unreasonable hours and no need to wait for the bus to go to work at 6.30 in the morning when it’s still dark outside. And if you’re thinking that having to endure the pressure of yet another deadline would be completely unbearable, you’ll see how that pressure will soon be part of a constant challenge that not only will you get used to, but you will also come to need. Since that is what makes this adrenaline-driven profession so alive in the first place. So what if being a freelance translator is not glamorous and you won’t become rich overnight? There is nothing like a good adrenaline rush when you’re alone late at night.
Clarisa Attademo
- www.goihata.com
Facts about Spanish (3)
Thursday, May 22nd, 2008- www.goihata.com
Some of the differences you may notice between the Spanish used in Spain and the one used in Latin America:
Pronunciation: One of the main differences is that many Spaniards often pronounce the z and the c like the “th” in “thin,” while many Latin Americans pronounce it the same as the s. Also, speakers in some areas (Argentina in particular) often pronounce the ll and y like the “s” in “treasure.” In southern areas, you will hear some speakers drop s and r sounds, so “esto” sounds like “eto” and “pagar” sounds like “pagá.” In some areas, the j sounds like the “ch” in “loch” like in “reloj” while in others it sounds like the English “h” like in “jarra.” You’ll become aware of other differences as well, particularly in the rhythm or cadence in which Spanish is spoken in the different countries.
Grammar: Among the differences, we can find the use of the pronoun “vos” and “tú” (the singular familiar for “you”) in Latin America and “vosotros” is often used as the plural of “tú” in Spain, while in Latin America “ustedes” is by and large the word used.
Vocabulary: The use of suffixes is widespread, for example, a lápiz is a pencil or crayon everywhere, but a lapicero is a pencil holder in some areas, a mechanical pencil in others, and a ball-point pen in still others. There are also fair numbers of obvious differences, such as a computer being an ordenador in Spain but a computadora in Latin America, but they are probably no more frequent than the British-American differences. Of course, every area also has its peculiar words: as an example, a biscuit in Ecuador is called an allulla, but you will not run across that word in other countries of the region.
Paulina Torres De Witt
- www.goihata.com
Facts about Spanish 2
Wednesday, May 14th, 2008- www.goihata.com
When the Spaniards ‘discovered’ and colonized the Americas, the language of Spain was still undergoing change. It was the tongue of Castile (land of castles) which was destined to become not only the principal language of Spain, but also of the Latin American countries.
As to be predicted, the native population of Latin America exerted a great influence on the Castilian language and differences between the two types of Spanish emerged chiefly due to the diminishing contact between Latin America and Spain, coupled with the use of their own languages.
The influence of American English and French was present as well as the words were absorbed with a Spanish pronunciation which was based on what was heard with no regard for the correct spelling, e.g., ‘guachiman’ (watchman) or ‘chofer’ (chauffeur)
Even though there are some differences between Castilian Spanish and Latin American Spanish – particularly relating to pronunciation – they do not prevent mutual intelligibility because people from throughout the Spanish-speaking world can converse with each other as easily as people throughout the English-speaking world can. The differences are mostly observed in the spoken language rather than in writing, but they aren’t so extreme as not to reach mutual comprehension.
Also, while it’s easy to think of Latin American Spanish as one unit, as textbooks and lessons often do, you should note there are differences in the Spanish of various countries in the Western Hemisphere. But again, the differences aren’t so extreme that they avert communication.
If your pronunciation is reasonably good, whether your accent is Castilian, Colombian, Mexican or Venezuelan, you will definitely be understood. Latin Americans watch movies from Spain and Spaniards watch Latin American telenovelas (soap movies), so you can be assured the differences aren’t all that great especially if you avoid slang or extreme colloquialisms.
Paulina Torres De Witt
- www.goihata.com
夏休みの計画
Wednesday, May 14th, 2008- www.goihata.com
5月は夏休みをどう過ごすかを考える月のようです。最近のラジオのコマーシャルは旅行会社の宣伝が休みなく続いています。また観光フェアも開かれるとあって「今年の夏はどこへ行く？」というのがすでに話題の一つになっています。今年のコマーシャルの特徴は何といってもユーロ高を反映したアメリカ合衆国への旅行案内。旅行するのも買い物をするのも今までにない安さというのがその宣伝の趣旨です。
その他、大型テレビが当たる、今予約すれば７％引きなど消費者の気持ちをくすぐる魅力的なキャッチフレーズが何度も繰り返されます。こうなると最後の最後まで、なかなか旅行の準備をしない（ずるずると延ばしてしまう）、しかししっかり者のバスクの人々は、早めに考慮し始めざるを得ません。
もちろんしっかり者の若い人たちは旅行会社よりもインターネットを使って計画を立て、すでに手を打っている人も少なくないとか。こうなると思うように休みの計画が立てられないために最後の最後まで手を打てないのは、通訳・翻訳者だけなのかも…？
- www.goihata.com
ALERT!
Thursday, May 8th, 2008- www.goihata.com
I have been informed about a “new” (but this is actually an old swindler process) form of ‘Nigerian scams’. These crooks contact Translators via their personal contact form disguising themselves as Translators or potential clients and their modus operandi is as follows:
A (false) cheque is sent to you but banks need 4 or 5 weeks to identify a swindling. The cheque amount is always higher than previously agreed (they would say it is an “error” or give you any other pretext) and then the crook asks you to pay the difference to another account ASAP… by bank transfer from your bank account or using a postal order. Next thing… you are trapped!
Crooks of this type can get away with it for a long time before being caught in the act because they use a number of plausible addresses and a number of Internet Service Providers all at the same time.
So, please beware of e-mails like this:
Sender IP: 208.78.63.210 [Port: 1885] or
Sender IP: 41.204.224.24 [Port: 22413]
———————-
Sender : Juliet Brown (whoever@yahoo.com)
Recipient : xxx (xxx@gmail.com)
Attachment : — —
Subject : Translator needed (URGENT REPLY ) !!!
My name is Juliet Brown and I am a Canadian translator from Prince Edward Island currently living in West Coast Africa and I was granted a
3-month contract to translate from English to French. I would like to know your fees to translate the attached project. Please review it and inform me if you are available and can take this responsibility.
I look forward to hear from you as soon as possible.
Best regards,
Juliet
Recommendation I was given to disable dangers of the internet? To check a freeware version for Windows which is available from Trace Route (http://www.d3tr.de/) to identify the origin of any Sender IP address.
Paulina Torres De Witt
- www.goihata.com