Language Lines - Newsletter

March 2008

From the Editor

Language Translation Inc. has just added free translation tools to our site. If you just need to translate a word or short sentence for personal, these tools can help. But you must keep in mind that the results you get will be "machine" generated and only 70 - 85% accurate. To promote your business with truly accurate translations, it is essential to work with experienced human translators.

If snippets of written translation can be accomplished online, albeit with irregular results, oral translation, known as interpretation, always needs the human touch. In this month’s newsletter, we kick off with a presentation of telephonic interpreting, a state-of-the-art service that allows long-distance vocal communication without language barriers.

Our second feature takes a broad look at the huge linguistic effort being made to get Beijing ready for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. Finally, we report on some of the latest research concerning localization and international marketing.

As always, our newsletter concludes with “Language Laughs” – a humorous look at some of the confusing situations that come up in the world of translation and languages.

For more frequent updates about language services and their importance in the global marketplace, consider subscribing to our news blog.

 

Your suggestions and comments are always welcome and can be addressed to editor@languagetranslation.com.

 

Feature Topics:

Telephonic Interpreting: Long-distance Language Help

Trying Hard to Translate: The Case of the Beijing Olympics

New Yardstick Measures International Website Potential

 

Telephonic Interpreting: Long-distance Language Help

Have you ever wished you could translate a phone call?
Telephonic interpreting makes it possible.

With international phone communication on the upswing, sometimes a third party is needed to interpret a telephone conversation. This process appears complicated: how does the interpreter get in on the conversation? And how can you find an appropriate telephone interpreter exactly when you need one – even on the spur of the moment?

Actually, with modern telecommunications technology, qualified interpreters are only a phone call away. Telephonic interpreting systems provide off-site linguists who interpret conversations between individuals who do not speak the same language. This process is generally consecutive: the interpreter listens to one speaker, interprets his or her statement, listens to the other speaker, and then does the same.

Language Translation Inc. now offers a telephonic interpreting service called SpeakEasy, which gives you 24/7 access to trained telephone interpreters in over 150 languages through a toll-free number. The linguists are skilled, educated native speakers, and bound by a confidentiality agreement. Depending on your needs, you can request specialized interpreters in the fields of medicine, law, technology or other domains.

Telephonic interpreting will allow your company to increase customer loyalty and reduce customer service interaction time. It also makes your products or services more accessible to non-English speakers – an important selling point even within the USA.

Our pay-as-you go system ensures maximum flexibility – your company only pays for the services used. To get started, you just need to set up an account so you can get your SpeakEasy language code. Interested? Contact us today.\

~ Did you find this article useful? Would you like more articles about this topic? Or are there other topics you'd like to see covered? Please feel free to contact me directly Shannon McCollough | Marketing Coordinator.

 

Trying Hard to Translate: The Case of the Bejing Olympics

As China prepares for the 2008 Olympics, authorities hope to assure accurate Chinese to English translations. They have their work cut out for them.

Organizing international sports events presents many linguistic challenges: interpreting for athletes, providing accurate translations of signs and documents for foreign visitors, and generally making sure all participants know what’s going on.

To help visitors, the Beijing Tourism Bureau is toiling to establish standardized English translations for Chinese menus in hopes that no tourist will ever have to choose between a serving of “American Flag Cooks the Space Person” or a plate of “Explodes the Vegetable Meat to Steam.”

In addition, the Chinese state media has announced that they plan to eradicate other types of poor Chinese to English translations in time for the Olympics. The "Beijing Speaks to the World" Committee and the city's Municipal Tourism Bureau are already identifying mistranslations on public signs and in hotels, and suggesting appropriate changes.

At the actual Olympic sites, competitors and officials will receive linguistic services in 55 languages. “Up to 5,000 oral interpretation services would be provided and daily translation services would reach 500,000 characters,” reports the Xinhua news agency. And more than 800,000 applications have been received for the Games’ 100,000 volunteer interpreting and translating positions.

However, the Beijing Organizing Committee is still struggling to find translators and interpreters for so-called “minor” languages. Of the 55 languages slated for translation, 10 are considered “minor,” such as Finnish and Lithuanian. These languages are not even taught in Chinese colleges and universities, so it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to find volunteer translators and interpreters who can meet the Games’ stringent language standards.

Stateside, some athletes, such as swimmers Michael Phelps, Ian Crocker and Katie Hoff are studying Chinese in order to be linguistically prepared for the games. They have a long road ahead of them – but so does Beijing. \

~ Did you find this article useful? Would you like more articles about this topic? Or are there other topics you'd like to see covered? Please feel free to contact me directly Shannon McCollough | Marketing Coordinator.

 

New Yardstick Measures International Website Potential

In the second of a series of market research reports, Common Sense Advisory has released an innovative measurement designed to judge potential for website customers.

In the seemingly limitless global marketplace, one of the challenges facing companies is how best to invest in website localization. Research and consulting firm Common Sense Advisory, Inc. has released a report defining “the Availability Quotient” – a new yardstick designed to measure the percentage of a country’s total online population that is likely to access website experiences offered by companies.

“Site AQ [Availability Quotient] expresses ‘available audience’ using a consistent metric even as internet populations grow from year to year,” explains the firm’s website. “This measurement allows Common Sense Advisory to directly compare the potential audiences of any array of websites.”

The report, entitled “Website Globalization: The Availability Quotient” (available by subscription only), concludes with an Appendix ranking websites in 15 countries according to Availability Quotient and e-GDP. An earlier study by the firm defined “e-GDP” as “a proxy for internet-addressable buying power.”

The content of these reports may appear complex if you are unfamiliar with the concept of localization, but their conclusions indeed represent marketing “common sense” -- before investing in translation and localization projects, it is essential to know the potential of the market you plan to reach out to.

A qualified LSP (Language Service Provider) such as Language Transation Inc. can help you define the scope and objectives of your localization project by taking into account your firm’s products, target markets and business plan.\

~ Did you find this article useful? Would you like more articles about this topic? Or are there other topics you'd like to see covered? Please feel free to contact me directly Shannon McCollough | Marketing Coordinator.

 

 

Cross-cultural communication can bring about amusing errors and misunderstandings. Share a few language laughs with us…

Wacky menu translations not limited to Asia:

China is not alone in proposing some strange-sounding dishes on its English menus. Even in Europe, where many citizens speak English very well; diners can be taken aback by the names of some restaurant dishes. For example, according to The Linguistic Fun Page, a menu in Poland offered:

- Salad a firm's own make

- Limpid red beet soup with cheesy dumplings in the form of a finger

- Roasted duck let loose

- Beef rashers beaten up in the country people's fashion

 

Stolen in translation: Prague pickpocket warnings miss their target

“Take a tram in the centre of Prague these days and you are very likely to hear a prerecorded message: the transport authority and the police would like to draw your attention to the fact you are in an area with a high incidence of pick-pocketing: please watch your belongings. Actually, that’s a translation. The warning is in Czech and Czech only. Which is of course utterly useless if you’re a foreign visitor to the city and don’t speak the lingo.” (Extract from Radio Praha, February 3, 2008)

At least their heart was in the right place!

 

Examples of Crazy English

It’s easy to joke about poor translations, but seriously, have you ever thought about how difficult English must be to learn? Verb conjugations are not that complex compared to Spanish or French, but pronunciation and other irregularities defy all logic:

 

Why is “through” pronounced like “threw,”
but “rough” pronounced like “fluff”?

 

One mouse, two mice.
So why not one house, two hice?

 

When you wind up your watch you start it.
So why am I winding up this newsletter… by finishing it?

 

 

For more news about languages, translation and localization, and international business, visit our news blog, updated three times a week.

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