- www.goihata.com
I read about a study where a magnetic resonance imaging machine was used to map the language centers in the brain on multilingual individuals. Some of the people learned a second language as children while others learned it in high school or college.
Among those who learned it as children, the study shows the brain dealt with the languages in the same area: a yellow area, for example, representing the Croatian language, and a red area representing the English language. There was also in the study a large orange area showing common characteristics in the way the brain merged the verbal communication capability.
In the case where people learned additional languages but later in life, the study indicated that the brain used a separate area to deal with the new language and this is possibly related to the brain finding it easier to use a different area of the brain for the second language. The study also showed that the brain processes the information in a total different way depending on the age of the learner.
Although there is still a lot to learn about the way our brain deals with languages, the study is already being utilized by brain surgeons as now they can easily locate the language centers or the area where speech production is managed in the patient’s brain so they are able to avoid language centers during surgery.
Experience puts in the picture that children seem better suited to picking up new languages, but there is not a clear explanation why. So, the questions arise: When is it easier to learn a second language? In early childhood or adulthood? Are learning, storage, and usage of the languages more efficient as an adult? While researchers investigate I will continue as an English Trainer for both adults and kids!
Paulina Torres De Witt
- www.goihata.com
Archive for the ‘English’ Category
Machine Tool Exhibition in Bilbao
Thursday, March 6th, 2008–www.goihata.com
This week (March 3rd to 8th, 2008) the 25th Machine tool exhibition is being held in Bilbao. This exhibition is organized by AFM (Spanish Association of Machine Tool builders) every two years.
This exhibition is one of the biggest exhibitions of its kind in the world and is attracting more and more international attention in every new edition.
This year has been specially important the presence of big Japanese Machine Tool builders like Makino, Mori Seiki, Yamazaki Mazak, Kawasaki, Amada Machinery, Yasda, Daito, Mitsubishi, Murata, Kitamura, Hitachi, Kitagawa, Koganei, Kyowa, Mitutoyo, Yaskawa, Daiwa, etc.
GoiHata has been assisting some of this Japanese fast and high precision machine manufacturers during their stay in Bilbao and during visits to customers in the Basque Country and different regions of Spain like Zaragoza, where this year will be held the world Expo.
David Sawada
–www.goihata.com
Translator’s ethics
Thursday, March 6th, 2008– www.goihata.com
This is a very sensitive and important issue in our careers whether we work as freelancers or render our services to a translation company. It has to do with image, quality, honesty and professionalism. It is not only related to values but also to the way we, as individuals, react to such values. In both complex and simple situations, ethics and our intrinsic point of view regarding ethics, has great influence in all the decisions we are required to make.
Among other scenarios in which ethics are present in our jobs there are two that are especially important: confidentiality and common sense.
Let’s take the first case in the context of a confidentiality agreement. It is based in trust as the client relies on us by handing over material classified as confidential which we must, by all means, keep it that way. Confidentiality speaks out loud about our honor and proves to be the best recommendation anyone can give about our work.
In the second case, let’s consider common sense as the guide to act according to our consciousness to reject a request for a job or even a potential client who does not satisfy our standards and the principle of not hurting anyone as would be the case, in a request to translate material about mass destruction methods or any other bellicose methods, instigation to violence in any circumstances or pornography, especially if children are involved, In such cases we should refuse and firmly reject it.
Of course our opinions and values may differ but above all we must be very clear about the main point which is to avoid hurting any person or institution as our professionalism demands the ability to decline a request for a job based in our code of ethics.
Paulina De Witt
– www.goihata.com
Updated translators
Tuesday, February 26th, 2008– www.goihata.com
On every profession it is important to be updated but in ours it becomes vital! We ought to read constantly and a whole variety of themes: let’s take advantage of the internet to read newspapers from different countries every single day and let’s keep a file with all the information that we gather here and there, that way we will have access to the right word, the precise name and any special date at all times. It is a must to be informed and on the alert.
There are several things we can do: A good idea is to keep personalized lists with terms, words and phrases that catch our attention and we consider might be useful sometime; read reviews and books related to our business to be aware of the latest changes and/or tendencies; open a folder in Favorites on your browser to save the links considered important for consultation as well as learning; adapt to changes by buying the latest equipment and software in order to be more efficient and productive; join discussion groups on the Web; share information with colleagues around the world.
When time is not an issue, although I know most of the time it really is, let’s offer our services without any charge… Remember the saying, the more we give, the more we get! You can easily find several institutions that are helping out the global community in a selfless manner and we can be part of that chain and contribute with our favorite cause, as doing so will keep us active and will provide an excellent opportunity to share our knowledge without expectations except for the satisfaction of helping others. There is always something interesting to share with the entire world, it is just a matter of reaching out and offering a hand.
Paulina Torres De Witt
– www.goihata.com
Japanese Basque dictionary
Monday, January 28th, 2008– www.goihata.com
Hi Everybody,
Some months ago, we created a Basque Japanese dictionary,
The main objective of this dictionary was to get to know each other. This is to deepen the Japanese Basque relations, because we firmly believe that both countries have a lot to learn from each other an a lot to benefit from it.
From the number of visitors we are getting from different countries but specially Japan and Euskadi (Basque Country), we can say that this project has been a big success.
Now we want to make this Japanese-Basque dictionary more content rich and function rich dictionary. We want to make it even more successful.
For this purpose, we are looking for collaborators to introduce additional data in this dictionary (or “Dictio-Wikipedia”). You could be located anywhere; Japan, Euskadi, USA or the South Pole to become an active dictionary editor.
Please get in touch with GOIHATA and we will give you the necessary access data. Become a colaborator!!!
Technical translators
Wednesday, November 21st, 2007– www.goihata.com
GoiHata has been providing Japanese technical translators and English technical translators for the ultra high accuracy and very high speed tool machinery sector in different locations all over Spain for the last 10 years. This work normally consists of machine set up, accuracy and machine function verification. Once the installations and machine verifications are properly concluded, the foreign engineer is ready to provide training to local operators and engineers. Here GoiHata provides technical translators to overcome the language barrier. Most of the training periods are carried in the following language combinations Japanese-Spanish, German-Spanish and English-Spanish, but other European languages are also provided. This is a quite demanding job for the translator since considerable machining and engineering knowledge is needed to carry out the interpretation effectively. Specially when explaining about the sophisticated and high end Numeric Control device (NC controller).
The following are some locations in Spain where GoiHata interpreters have been needed for the last 10 years; Barcelona, Madrid, Bilbao, Santander, Vigo, Sevilla, Pamplona, Valencia, Zaragoza, Oviedo, Valladolid, Malaga, etc. as well as Germany, Switzerland, France and Japan.
—- — www.goihata.com
The correct language translation price
Friday, November 9th, 2007– www.goihata.com
Which is correct the translation price? There is no such “correct price”, the translation price moves up and down influenced by many factors like;
* Supply and demand situation; when competition is tough prices drop and the contrary happens when professionals are in high demand.
* The text’s difficulty; Translation is a niche business, customers are highly recommended to find the right translator for the specific field. It is not the same the translation of patents and intellectual property or publicity and marketing text. A good translator for a medical subject, is not necessarily so at marketing.
* The language combination: Is not the same to translate into a very closely related language like Portuguese (from Spanish) or into a language poles apart, using a completely different alphabet, syntax and cultural background.
* The country where the translator is located: Scandinavian language translations tend to be more highly valued than others in the southern part of Europe, and does not make much sense to search for such translators in Timbuctoo.
* The translation format: It is more time consuming to translate an MSWord document with images and embedded text than plain straightforward text.
* The program being used: Elegantly presented documents in QuarkXpress, Freehand, Adobe Indesign, and other DTP document translation is more laborious.
* Documents with a lot of repetitive text: Technical manuals often have repetitive text that can be reused using a Computer Assisted Translation (CAT) program like Wordfast. Some discounts can be applied for the repetitive text in these cases.
Having mentioned all the above, we still come across bad-expensive translations and good-cheap translations. But the customer should weigh up the risks and take all the necessary steps to minimize them.
If the translation is going to be used in a marketing campaign costing a huge amount of money, it is not recommended to take risks by trying to save a few pennies.
And always remember the bad translation is the most expensive of all translations.
Complexity of Japanese Spanish translations
Saturday, November 3rd, 2007Language and culture are deeply related and the language stands as the maximum expression of that culture. The Japanese and Spanish cultures are worlds apart as their geographical location. Each language has its own idioms and borrows expressions from their religious background and people’s way of thinking. The language is the mirror image of the culture of that country and when translating from Spanish to Japanese language we also need to do cultural translation.
Some issues encountered by Japanese Spanish translators. Idioms with deep cultural roots
Well known biblical expression like “man can not live by bread alone” which means that human beings need something more than material things. The people need something more to enrich the mind and soul. This expression would have little meaning in a country without a Christian heritage.
Or Japanese expressions like “hito no fundoshi de sumo wo toru”, which means to practise Sumo using a borrowed fundoshi (a sumo wrestler’s belt). This could be translated as “it is not comfortable to depend on others to do something”.
The Spanish language has gender and singular and plural, from the sentence itself we discover that the action was done by a male or female and if the object is one or many. Spanish is a straight and direct language and this is not perceived as being rude or impolite.
In Japanese there is no gender neither singular/ plural articles that suggest the number,
In Japanese we could say “ringo wo tabemashita” which literally translated means “ate apple” which could be any of the following combinations: He/she ate apple/s. He or she ate one apple or many apples.
One more issue is the length of the text. Spanish text normally takes a lot more space than Japanese and when asked to make a Spanish replica of a Japanese manual or web site. The physical dimensions are a big constrain. How do we solve all this? With many headaches.
David Sawada Japanese Spanish translator
www.goihata.com
Will computers replace translators?
Saturday, October 27th, 2007Translators are using computers and very powerful tools to increase productivity.
Some of those tools could be automatic translation software programs that do the translation on a swift and then a professional translator revises the text in the target language. One of the problems with this kind of software is that quite often the translation is such a mess that the revision and correction process is more time consuming than doing it from scratch.
We all know such programs: Sytram, PowerTranslator, etc. If you try to translate literature text or typical expressions that do not exist on the other language, chances are very high that you will experience the above mentioned frustration.
Then we have the Computer Assisted Translation (CAT) software programs. Some well known programs are Wordfast, Trados, Transit, Dejavu, etc. These programs save into their memory all the paragraphs and when the same sentence or a similar one comes up again, the professional translator has to validate or amend that translated text. This is very helpful when translating technical manuals and repetitive text, because it can save a lot of time and increase productivity during the translation process.
Some problems facing the CAT programs are that they are not very friendly to DTP programs like QuarkXpress, Freehand, Adobe InDesign, PageMaker, etc.
This CAT programs are also more efficient when the source language and the target language are somewhere related like Spanish or French or even Spanish and English. But when we come across languages that are using completely different syntax, completely different cultural background and scripts poles apart like in the Japanese Spanish combination case, then the CAT programs are not so efficient and sometimes can even become troublesome.
Therefore do not expect computers to replace the professional translator for quite a while, language is a complex and often non logical communication tool that is difficult to code. Language is not black or white, there is a lot of grey that needs to be clarified by linguists and translators. Competition is tough, but we are still very much needed.
A Japanese Spanish translator
www.goihata.com
Translation of Basque and Japanese names
Saturday, October 13th, 2007– www.goihata.com
In Japanese, the same as in Basque the family name (surname) often has its origin in a geographical location. The Japanese or Basque surname often comes from the location of the house or farm.
Observe here some examples
Arrieta –> Ishida 石田 –> Stone field
Mendieta –> Yamada 山田 –> Terrain or rice field in the mountains
Mendibarren –> Yamamoto 山本 –> Base of the mountain
Elizondo –> Teramoto 寺元 –> At the base of the temple (church)
Zubiondo –> Hashimoto 橋本 –> At the base or beside a bridge
Ortuondo –> Yokohata 横畑 –> Next to the vegetable garden
Ortuzar –> Furuhata 古畑 –> Old vegetable garden
Goikoetxea –> Kazuie 上家 –> The house located above
Barrenetxea –> Oroshiya 下家 –> The house located below
Garaialde –> Ueno 上野 –> Zone or area located above
Ugarte –> Shimada 島田 –> Fields (of rice) on the island
Garaikoetxea –> Kamiya 上家 –> House (farm) located in a high location
Etxeberria –> Shinya 新屋 –> New house (farm)
Ibaiondo –> Yokokawa 横川 –> Next to the bridge
Iturriaga –> Izumi 泉 –> From the water spring, fountain.
Uralde –> Mizutani 水谷 –> Water valley
Landaluze –> Nagata 長田 –> Long, elongated field (rice field)
Zabaleta –> Hirota 広田 –> Wide place, wide rice field
Zubizarreta –> Furubashi 古橋 –> Old bridge
Jauregizabal –> Ooshiro 大城 –> Big and wide castle
In Japanese culture, traditionally the oldest son was the legitimate
heir and the one to inherit the house or farm of the family (yago).
It was the responsability of the oldest son (choonan 長男 in Japanese) to preserve the family name (surname), the house and property.
The house at the same time always belongs to a village or hamlet. All the houses used to send a representative to help in communal work (auzolan), to open a new road, build a bridge, put off a fire, etc. and in doing so a strong sentiment of belonging to that village or community would arise among the community members.
Towards the beginning of the middle ages in Japan, each house or farm had a surname. The house name and the surname of all the people living under that roof was the same. Therefore when a brother or sister went to live to a different house, that person use to take a different surname.
At the beginning of the Meiji period, the Japanese Government established that every person should have a surname, and when the citizens were forced to add this family name to their name, many people chose to have the house name or a geographical location as the surname. That is exactly the same with Basque surnames.
That is why there are many cases where it is possible to translate a Basque surname into Japanese or viceversa. As the examples above show, it is possible to literally translate those Japanese and Basque surnames to the other language.
Sure there are differences in between Japan and the Basque Country, but there are also many similarities when we analyze both cultures.
It would be worth to investigate the similarities in between Japan and the Basque Country. We have a lot to learn from each other and benefit from it.
Cultural and language ecologists
Wednesday, October 10th, 2007Cultural Ecologist
This title of “cultural ecologist” has a very deep meaning. On the one hand the awareness for the natural environment, plants and animals becomes higher day by day. The same could be said about the awareness for the cultural heritage, cultural diversity.
Cultural ecology means a respectful and caring attitude towards ALL cultures and languages, the same as when applied to the natural environment. A culture or its language as the most significant characteristic of that culture, does not belong only to that specific ethnic group or community, it belongs to the whole mankind.
A culture and its language very often represent a way of thinking, a specific approach to problems in life; that is why its care and preservation is necessary. Each time a language disappears a way of thinking disappears, and consequently there is one lost solution to problems in life. Languages that have been spoken for many centuries can not be left to die, that is a cultural legacy; the present generation borrows from the previous generation and has to be transmitted to the next generation. The same with Mother Nature, the present generation has the moral obligation of passing it to the next generation in the same or better condition. This is our moral responsibility as human beings.
But not only that, Lets think for a moment. Why do we travel? Travelling to different countries would be very boring if every body was the same, and we all think the same, eat the same and speak the same language. This world is interesting because there are many ways of thinking and the language is the main support for that thinking and approach to life. When a language is lost, a way of thinking disappears an approach to problem solving is lost.
Imagine the “firefly” disappears; the scientist world would loose a big opportunity to study and learn from that little insect. That little insect is a contribution to mankind progress. How is possible to produce cold light? The “firefly” can provide some clues when trying to answer this question and that can be used for our own progress. By caring and studying the different animals and plants we can learn about nature and about ourselves. That is why so important to preserve them.
Would not be the same when it comes to culture and languages? That is why the importance of cultural ecology. All languages, big and small are important. But special care should be taken to protect the weak and the minority languages.
A Basque Japanese cultural ecologist
Takashi Mendibarren Yamamoto
www.goihata.com
Translation – A buzzword to boost your business globally
Friday, July 6th, 2007– www.goihata.com
Spreading the business across the globe is the dream of every businessman whether it’s a small scale enterprise or the large scale one, the question arises what the translation means to these businessmen.
Though the English is the universal language yet it accounts to only 30% of the world population, the rest comprises of several other regional languages. So in order to spread the word of mouth a potential business always consider of marketing his product / services in a particular country / region the application of the native language is a big plus. Exporters has obtained huge profits and long lasting clients via translating their brochures / catalogues in several languages making a good market penetration.
Not only the exporters but the big corporates too are looking for translators and interpreters to spread their wings in all parts of the world.