Tag: text translation

Which languages do you think are the most challenging?

CategoriesCultural Corner, New, Professional translatorsPosted on

As English speakers we are really spoilt, as pretty much the whole world is trying to learn English, and where large parts of the world have not yet fully succeeded in the endeavour, they are well on the way. So this takes the pressure off as native English speakers, which might be seen as a good thing. Unfortunately however, the all-too-common result on our part is the tendency toward extreme laziness when it comes to language learning! After all, why bother when the rest of the whole is beating a path to our door and doing all the work to make themselves understood.

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Can I get my corporate blog translated?

CategoriesMarketing & Ecommerce, SEO Translation, Translation services, Web TranslationPosted on

These days a corporate blog is a widely-used means of generating quality content of interest to our target audience. Blogs contain keywords of popular Google searches and can be about pretty much any topic under the sun. The trick is that they be an interesting read in their own right, thereby attracting the type of potential customers that we want (in the case of a business), but also that they appear high in search-engine rankings by virtue of the use of keywords.

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Tourism Translations

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All of us have seen those lists of “top 10  translation fails” on Buzzfeed or similar pages, with their ridiculous and hilarious mis-translations from one language to another, but no-one actually wants their business to be the butt of these jokes, or appear on the lists. While it’s very amusing to see “ducha” translated as a “douche” (who wants to find one of those in their room, right?) or “exit” as “’exito” in Spanish [success, not really what people are expecting to find at the end of the hotel corridor], and “stir-fried wikipedia” sounds like an interesting item to find on the menu, if your business is in the tourism industry, you want to limit these translation mistakes to the internet where they belong.

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The art of humour translation

CategoriesNew, Professional translatorsPosted on

Humour is a notorious area of difficulty in translations, as any translator will tell you. So much of humour is derived from double meanings and wordplay, small and subtle cultural references and so forth, which can often mean that it is (or can appear to be) simply untranslatable. This is not hard to understand since a great deal of humour has to do with the language itself, the way one word sounds like another or calls to mind certain associations, which belong strictly within the universe of that language and the culture related to it.

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Professional Croatian Translator: Nadira Ljevaković Garić – Part 2

CategoriesBigT news, New, Our partners, Professional translatorsPosted on

Based on the few months I’ve been working with you, I can only say that you are one of the best clients I’ve ever had. I prefer long-term cooperations and BigTranslation offered me that very thing. It really is a pleasure to be a part of a professional team where you always get your questions answered and, at the same time, have the freedom to organize and decide the amount of work you accept – this is definitely something that makes BigTranslation stand out from other companies.

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In what capacity do you work with BigTranslation and what was it that made you choose the company? In your opinion, what makes it stand out from other companies?

Based on the few months I’ve been working with you, I can only say that you are one of the best clients I’ve ever had. I prefer long-term cooperations and BigTranslation offered me that very thing. It really is a pleasure to be a part of a professional team where you always get your questions answered and, at the same time, have the freedom to organize and decide the amount of work you accept – this is definitely something that makes BigTranslation stand out from other companies.

croatian translatorWhat essential qualities or skills should a translator possess? What’s your ‘motto’ on translation, if you like?

In my opinion, working as a freelance translator is not as easy as it may seem. The knowledge of source and target language is essential. Translation goes way beyond being able to speak both the languages you’re working on. One needs to be able to flawlessly transfer both syntax and semantics from one language to another and make the final “product” as natural as the source it came from.
The process of translating itself aside, you need to organize your time, especially if you are working for many clients at the same time. You need to plan, communicate to clients, look for new ones and only then you do the translation work. Many people tell me that I’m having super easy time, a great job where I can work whenever I want to without realizing that I, myself, do the same amount of work which is distributed to 3-4 people in the companies they work in. My motto is: „Think, translate, fascinate“. The greatest pleasure I can have is my clients’. ☺

Imagine a world without translators. What would it be like?

I’ve recently read an interesting story. A professor from the USA was giving some lectures in Japan and started one of them with a joke that lasted a few minutes. After he told the joke in English, he waited for the translator to do his job. The translator only talked for a few seconds and the audience burst into laughter.
After the lecture, the professor asked the translator how she managed to convey all the humour from his joke in only a few seconds. She shrugged and said: “I told them our American guest had just told a funny joke and that all should laugh.”
Most things that we use and buy daily go through the process of language adapting first which is obviously done by translators. Imagine you need to cook for some very special guests and go to a supermarket to buy spices, among other things. How spicy would your lunch be if you didn’t know which spices you used? That’s just a small example how important translation is.
In the bigger picture, translators are the ones connecting the world. Be it culture, finance, politics, education or any other crucial aspect of human existence and growth – none of it would be possible without translation.

International Translation Day

CategoriesBigT news, NewPosted on

Since 1991, every year on the 30th September, translators from all over the world join this celebration to promote translation as a profession, and each year a different theme is chosen. In the past the themes have included Language Rights and The Changing Face of Translation and Interpretation.

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Each year, the 30th September marks a very important event in the world of translation-International Translation Day, in celebration of the patron saint of translation, St. Jerome.

Where Did It All Start?

The Bible is by far the most translated text in world history, and has been translated into over 2800 languages. St. Jerome was one of those to translate this famous text, translating it into Latin, the style spoken and written by the people of his time, despite being well versed in Classical Latin. Jerome died peacefully in 420, on the 30th September, and it is on this day that the translating world comes together to celebrate translation across the globe.

International Translation Day As We Know It Today

Since 1991, every year on the 30th September, translators from all over the world join this celebration to promote translation as a profession, and each year a different theme is chosen. In the past the themes have included Language Rights and The Changing Face of Translation and Interpretation. This year, the theme which was proposed by the American Translators Association (ATA) and is Translation and Interpreting: Connecting Worlds. The idea behind this theme is to celebrate how translation brings enables us to share the worlds of business, science, medicine, law, etc.

Feeling Artistic?

In 2012, the International Federation of Translators introduced a poster competition to the event, allowing member associations and other people with an interest in translation to submit posters promoting International Translation Day. The motif of the poster must be linked to the theme chosen for the year, and the design must accommodate two different languages. The winner of the poster competition receives the International Translation Day prize, which consists of a certificate and/or plaque, and where possible their logo will appear on the poster.

This event is a great way of celebrating the importance of translation, and promoting it across the globe!

 

And what about us?

Here at BigTranslation we have celebrated it the best way possible: translating! Of course every good celebration needs delicious food, especially when it’s our international team! We hope you have enjoyed the day as much as we have, and that it helped you to realise how essential translation is.

Linguistic variations: Minor Mistakes, Major Consequences

CategoriesNew, Professional translatorsPosted on

It is well known that English is among the most widely spoken languages in the world, along with Chinese (Mandarin) and Spanish, but we never specify which English we are referring to. Although we think of English as being one universal language, it actually has many variations across the globe.

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It is well known that English is among the most widely spoken languages in the world, along with Chinese (Mandarin) and Spanish, but we never specify which English we are referring to. Although we think of English as being one universal language, it actually has many variations across the globe. This is why it is important to bear in mind your target audience when you are translating – because one word may have two very different meanings depending on where you are from.

Do you dare to assume linguistic variations are insignificant?

For example, if you are giving an address to the first floor of a building, an American would go to the ground floor of a building, whereas a British person would be waiting one floor above.

Another issue may arise when a party invitation has the instructions fancy dress. At an American party this would mean formal dress, black tie and ball gowns, but a British person could turn up in any outfit from a Mickey Mouse costume to a Superman cape – not a mistake you want to make!

Another common error is the difference with the word pants in the UK and the USA, as in the USA it means trousers, whereas in the UK it means underwear. Another piece of clothing American’s tend to find confusing is the jumper. Although to British people this is quite clearly an item to keep you warm in winter, in America a jumper is somebody who commits suicide by jumping off a building or bridge. Fortunately the popularity of Harry Potter, and particularly Ron Weasley, across the globe has helped Americans to understand the commonly used British meaning!

But perhaps the most embarrassing slip up you could make is with the word “rubber”. In Britain, this is a commonly used classroom object for erasing mistakes, and nobody would bat an eyelid if a 7-year old said “Please may you pass me the rubber”, but in America this would seem very strange, as rubber in America means condom!

Native translators, and say goodbye to misunderstandings!

It is clear to see that for different audiences across the globe, the same word may have very different meanings and connotations depending on its variation, which is why when doing a translation it is of the utmost importance to use experienced translators who know their language and their target audience to avoid these simple but significant errors.

Tablao Flamenco shares its tradition with the world

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Tablao Flamenco Cordobes is the only tablao flamenco in Spain that brings together the most important flamenco artists the most often with the most distinguished artists, in such numbers. Since 1970, top performers have checked in at this Nasrid-inspired decorated venue in the heart of Las Ramblas in Barcelona.

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Tablao Flamenco Cordobes is the only tablao flamenco in Spain that brings together the most important flamenco artists the most often with the most distinguished artists, in such numbers. Since 1970, top performers have checked in at this Nasrid-inspired decorated venue in the heart of Las Ramblas in Barcelona. Visitors can spend the evening either watching the show or enjoying traditional gastronomy in their highly-acclaimed restaurant. While it is a long established Spanish tradition, thanks to the increase of tourism and the rapid advance of the online world, it has become a must-do for visitors from around the globe.

As is the case with many companies in the modern world, Tablao Flamenco Cordobes uses online tools to advertise and reach out to new visitors and invite them to join in with this unique and impressive experience. Their website contains comprehensive information about their location, restaurant, tablao, show schedules and booking options. This is an extremely important element of their business, and therefore, they are much more likely to attain a successful business with a successful website.

tablao-flamenco-traduccion

How they expanded their business

In order to expand and improve their business, they wanted their website to be available to speakers of Italian, Chinese, Russian and German in order to obtain a wider client base, and to do this they chose BigTranslation. We at BigTranslation know that high quality, accurate translations are paramount for anybody who wants to expand their business on an international scale.

We have a team of over 50 native translators with years of experience, and so we were able to quickly and efficiently translate all parts of the Tablao Flamenco Cordobes website into the requested languages. This process included not only the translation of the text, but further editing and proofreading which is an essential part of the translation process. Often overlooked, proofreading consists of not only spotting errors in the spelling and grammar of the text, but also making the text sound natural in the target language.

SEO Translation: not to be forgotten

As the online world is advancing at such a rate, we make it our priority to ensure that the text will have search engine visibility in the target country by carrying out a full SEO analysis, specifying any key words and expressions which will be attractive to search engines in the target language.

After using BigTranslation’s services, Tablao Flamenco Cordobes have now broadened not only their business, but also shared the iconic tradition of flamenco dancing with four new nations, and, thanks to a professional translation agency, they can rest assured that their website sounds natural in all languages.

Using translation services is a fantastic way of sharing cultures and traditions across the globe in just a single click.

Gigantia Choose BigTranslation

CategoriesBigT news, NewPosted on

Gigantia is a Spanish based company that specialises in large scale offset printing. With offices located throughout Spain and staff with over 29 years of experience, Gigantia provides large format printing, displays, packaging, signage, assembly and much more. BigTranslation was recently chosen by Gigantia to translate the site into English, French and Portuguese, allowing the company to open itself up fully to the global marketplace.

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Gigantia is a Spanish based company that specialises in large scale offset printing. With offices located throughout Spain and staff with over 29 years of experience, Gigantia provides large services in format printing, displays, packaging, signage, assembly and much more.
Its website features a very modern and attractive design, and is very easy to navigate. BigTranslation was recently chosen by Gigantia to translate the site into English, French and Portuguese, allowing the company to open itself up fully to the global marketplace. Our team of native translators worked together quickly and effectively over a period of days, translating, editing and proofreading the entire website in order to achieve the highest possible level of accuracy and to successfully convey the company’s unique selling point to an international audience.

 

Gigantia expert in offset printing

Improve your business results with SEO

At BigTranslation, we choose our words very carefully. When our team was completing this website translation, we made it a priority to carry out a full SEO analysis on Gigantia’s specific product range, analysing and specifying the keywords used and incorporating these into our final translations to achieve the kind of results that the client was looking for in terms of search engine results.

 

We are committed to providing a quality service that will be greatly appreciated by the client. Thanks to our team of native translators and our marketing and SEO experts, our translation agency is able to provide a quick, efficient and accurate translation service that can propel your business towards achieving its maximum potential in terms of online positioning. We are aware of the importance of good language translation, but we are also determined to provide our clients with a service that will allow their company to stand out in their field of expertise. Choosing to work with us provides an excellent opportunity to boost your SEO, promoting your product online and raising your business profile.

 

Go East for Translation Inspiration

CategoriesBigT news, NewPosted on

The languages of Central and Eastern Europe are rich, complex and steeped in centuries of history. The years following the dissolution of the Soviet Union have seen the reopening of these societies after decades of isolation. Indeed, Eastern Europe’s desire to revolutionise itself in terms of establishing democratic institutions and free market economies has led a number of Western companies to invest in this virtually unexplored part of the continent since the 1990s.

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Go East for Translation Inspiration

The languages of Central and Eastern Europe are rich, complex and steeped in centuries of history. The years following the dissolution of the Soviet Union have seen the reopening of these societies after decades of isolation. Indeed, Eastern Europe’s desire to revolutionise itself in terms of establishing democratic institutions and free market economies has led a number of Western companies to invest in this virtually unexplored part of the continent since the 1990s. The demand for translation and interpretation is in consequence increasing significantly.

However, in terms of providing language training in light of the growing demand for translation and other language services to and from Eastern European languages, the response of many Western countries has been surprisingly poor. For example, in the United Kingdom, there are fewer students of languages in secondary and higher education whilst the demand for translation and interpretation is increasing significantly. Of the languages we do study at school, German is one of the most widely taught, yet recent years have shown the demand for translation from and into German slowly decreasing.

Eastern Europe Translation: Big demand for Czech, Polish, Russian

On the other hand, language service companies, like BigTranslation are seeing a marked increase in requests for documents to be translated from and into Eastern European languages, particularly Polish, yet the response in terms of education has been almost non-existent. In the years to come, this could be a considerable cause for concern if we fail to give our young people the training they need to respond to this increasingly fast growing market. Britain’s universities have been slightly more effective in terms of providing adequate language training services to modern language undergraduates. At the University of Glasgow, for example, students from the School of Modern Languages and Cultures (SMLC) are now free to take up the study of subsidiary Czech, Russian or Polish on entering Junior Honours. This opportunity should be particularly attractive to students of French and German, since the European Commission is looking for translators and interpreters who speak French or German with Czech or Polish.

However, the benefits of studying Eastern European languages aren’t limited to graduates of Central and Eastern European Studies; SMLC graduates who have any knowledge of Czech, Polish or Russian have found it has helped them in finding jobs on graduation, since UK employers tend to interpret this expertise as a special commitment and are impressed by the line of study. Native English UK graduates with some knowledge of Czech or Polish are also sought after in Central Europe. So, for current or future translation students looking for the language combination that could serve them best in terms of employment, new experiences and opportunities, it may be an idea to look towards the East for inspiration. The possibilities are very exciting indeed!