Hi! I hope this 2020 finds you as well as it does me.
Personally, I’m excited about this year; twenty-twenty sounds nice.
And speaking of things that sound nice, a lot of what we translators do is precisely related to this. It’s about how to approach texts so that they accurately communicate, convince, and inspire. We are always trying to figure out how to say things in the best way, and at the same time convey their original intent in another language. But the world of the translator does not stop there, it goes much further.
I would like to dedicate this article to tell you a little more about what we do, our process and our day-to-day work. To do so, I have decided to interview one of my fellow translators in the company. So, for today, he will be the voice of this blog.
What is the general translating process?
First of all, a review of the text must be made to determine what the content is. This will serve to locate the tools or materials needed to help us with the assignment in question; amongst them, dictionaries and the Internet are fundamental as reference tools. There are several methods to approach a translation. There are translators who do not use a computer-assisted translation software (CAT) and instead, work in a traditional way on the source text. Another option is to work with a split screen: the source text on one half of the monitor and the translated text on the other half, or you can even work with two monitors. Once the translation is finished, the text is edited and proofread to ensure the quality of the final product. Ideally, this review is done by someone other than the translator to ensure that the final product meets the standards required by the client.
What are the most common types of translation or tasks?
This has to do with the content. Some of the most common types of translation include legal, and medical or scientific; at least for us, these are the two most frequent projects that we receive. There is also the commercial translation of marketing material and publicity. This type includes the localization and transcreation, which is the adaptation of the advertising message to a local market. There are other projects that involve specialized translations. For example, the ones related to the engineering field, academic texts, technical documents such as instruction manuals, user guides, patents or technical specifications. As you can see, there are many types of projects. Some have a greater level of complexity than others, but in Tecnitranslations we can handle them because we are specialized precisely in the translation of documents or technical content.
Nowadays, what are the main challenges that a translator faces?
I would say that there are three main challenges and they have to do with the emergence of technology. Firstly, there is a perception, especially amongst the younger generations, that nowadays the job of a translator is not important due to the apps that provide a machine translation in several platforms, such as Google’s or Apple’s IOS. This leads many people to believe that the translator is no longer necessary. Evidently, the position of the translator and, in general, of the entire sector, is that technology does not replace the translator’s work and their analysis of the text, of cultural connotations, of idiomatic expressions since the algorithms which are used in these apps still do not recognize them and the role of human work will always be essential. Meanwhile, the emergence of new aids such as CAT tools, represents a second challenge, which would be learning to use them as support tools for daily work. Many translators who already have time and experience in the profession find it difficult to adjust to the idea of incorporating a computer program or an application into their daily work. There is obviously a significant learning curve to be able to master these tools, which undoubtedly provide a great support. Lastly, the emergence of technology, particularly the internet, has greatly facilitated the translator’s work of consultation and research, who previously had to rely on physical libraries or dictionaries. The internet opens up a whole range of possibilities for online queries or research, but at the same time it is also difficult to recognize when the source is trustworthy and when a search does yield truthful results. Therefore, the translator must be very careful and apply their judgment and knowledge to discern which ones to use and which ones not to use.
What is the “favorite” type of project?
This is a very personal answer and it depends on the translator since, of course, it has to do with the specialization and experience of each person in certain types of projects. We particularly like projects with legal content since the founding partners of Tecnitranslations are lawyers, and we have been working with legal documents for a long time, so we are very familiar with the terminology. But we also really like scientific or medical translations. We have developed a tremendous taste and a special interest in these types of projects. We enjoy researching and learning, especially working on the documents we receive from our clients in the pharmaceutical sector on advances in the development of drugs for the treatment of very complex diseases. These are topics of human interest and certainly are of interest to all of us.
What are some common mistakes and what special precautions must be taken?
The most common risk is being too literal in the translation, and for this reason an experienced translator should always be involved. I would say that the most frequent mistakes have to do also with consistency, of always using the same translation for the same terms and expressions. In such cases, the use of project glossaries and dictionaries already incorporated within the CAT tools is crucial. It helps to ensure that the same translation, which has been already applied in the past to a specific term, is used within the same project or even in different projects; thus, achieving consistency to the work. Regarding the special precautions that must be taken, the translator’s job evidently requires a lot of concentration and focus on what is being done, since he or she must be careful not only in regarding consistency and appropriate terminology, but also when making a transcription of figures or amounts to avoid committing errors or involuntary omissions. We are humans and we make mistakes. Therefore, taking extra precautions and doing final revisions always helps to minimize errors.
Do you work as a team or individually?
This depends on the type of project. The most common are projects handled individually, but there are also others that involve, for example, the translation of various documents for the same client. In such cases, due to the volume to be handled or the short delivery time, the project manager involves several translators and coordinates the work, assigning it to several specialized translators.
Lastly, any fun facts to share?
I believe that every translator goes through this: generally, when there is a translator in the family, they are considered as a kind of walking dictionary. So whenever there is a doubt about a word in a language that is not the mother tongue, and that the translator is known to master or work with, the tendency is to ask him or her on the spot. Many times, the translator will ask back what the whole sentence looks like, because there are many words that in different languages and depending on the context can be translated in different ways. For us, it is a standard or sort of an obligation that we have to always have the whole text of the idea before we can make a decision on what is the best translation that fits the word in the source language. So, the translator is not that living dictionary that is always walking around with the right word at the right time. Our job is much more complex, we have to research and analyze, and although there are times when we have to do “word magic” it is not always possible to pull the right term out of the hat, as if by magic.
TECNITRANSLATIONS, UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL: CONFESSIONS OF A TRANSLATOR
Hi! I hope this 2020 finds you as well as it does me.
Personally, I’m excited about this year; twenty-twenty sounds nice.
And speaking of things that sound nice, a lot of what we translators do is precisely related to this. It’s about how to approach texts so that they accurately communicate, convince, and inspire. We are always trying to figure out how to say things in the best way, and at the same time convey their original intent in another language. But the world of the translator does not stop there, it goes much further.
I would like to dedicate this article to tell you a little more about what we do, our process and our day-to-day work. To do so, I have decided to interview one of my fellow translators in the company. So, for today, he will be the voice of this blog.
First of all, a review of the text must be made to determine what the content is. This will serve to locate the tools or materials needed to help us with the assignment in question; amongst them, dictionaries and the Internet are fundamental as reference tools. There are several methods to approach a translation. There are translators who do not use a computer-assisted translation software (CAT) and instead, work in a traditional way on the source text. Another option is to work with a split screen: the source text on one half of the monitor and the translated text on the other half, or you can even work with two monitors. Once the translation is finished, the text is edited and proofread to ensure the quality of the final product. Ideally, this review is done by someone other than the translator to ensure that the final product meets the standards required by the client.
This has to do with the content. Some of the most common types of translation include legal, and medical or scientific; at least for us, these are the two most frequent projects that we receive. There is also the commercial translation of marketing material and publicity. This type includes the localization and transcreation, which is the adaptation of the advertising message to a local market. There are other projects that involve specialized translations. For example, the ones related to the engineering field, academic texts, technical documents such as instruction manuals, user guides, patents or technical specifications. As you can see, there are many types of projects. Some have a greater level of complexity than others, but in Tecnitranslations we can handle them because we are specialized precisely in the translation of documents or technical content.
I would say that there are three main challenges and they have to do with the emergence of technology. Firstly, there is a perception, especially amongst the younger generations, that nowadays the job of a translator is not important due to the apps that provide a machine translation in several platforms, such as Google’s or Apple’s IOS. This leads many people to believe that the translator is no longer necessary. Evidently, the position of the translator and, in general, of the entire sector, is that technology does not replace the translator’s work and their analysis of the text, of cultural connotations, of idiomatic expressions since the algorithms which are used in these apps still do not recognize them and the role of human work will always be essential. Meanwhile, the emergence of new aids such as CAT tools, represents a second challenge, which would be learning to use them as support tools for daily work. Many translators who already have time and experience in the profession find it difficult to adjust to the idea of incorporating a computer program or an application into their daily work. There is obviously a significant learning curve to be able to master these tools, which undoubtedly provide a great support. Lastly, the emergence of technology, particularly the internet, has greatly facilitated the translator’s work of consultation and research, who previously had to rely on physical libraries or dictionaries. The internet opens up a whole range of possibilities for online queries or research, but at the same time it is also difficult to recognize when the source is trustworthy and when a search does yield truthful results. Therefore, the translator must be very careful and apply their judgment and knowledge to discern which ones to use and which ones not to use.
This is a very personal answer and it depends on the translator since, of course, it has to do with the specialization and experience of each person in certain types of projects. We particularly like projects with legal content since the founding partners of Tecnitranslations are lawyers, and we have been working with legal documents for a long time, so we are very familiar with the terminology. But we also really like scientific or medical translations. We have developed a tremendous taste and a special interest in these types of projects. We enjoy researching and learning, especially working on the documents we receive from our clients in the pharmaceutical sector on advances in the development of drugs for the treatment of very complex diseases. These are topics of human interest and certainly are of interest to all of us.
The most common risk is being too literal in the translation, and for this reason an experienced translator should always be involved. I would say that the most frequent mistakes have to do also with consistency, of always using the same translation for the same terms and expressions. In such cases, the use of project glossaries and dictionaries already incorporated within the CAT tools is crucial. It helps to ensure that the same translation, which has been already applied in the past to a specific term, is used within the same project or even in different projects; thus, achieving consistency to the work. Regarding the special precautions that must be taken, the translator’s job evidently requires a lot of concentration and focus on what is being done, since he or she must be careful not only in regarding consistency and appropriate terminology, but also when making a transcription of figures or amounts to avoid committing errors or involuntary omissions. We are humans and we make mistakes. Therefore, taking extra precautions and doing final revisions always helps to minimize errors.
This depends on the type of project. The most common are projects handled individually, but there are also others that involve, for example, the translation of various documents for the same client. In such cases, due to the volume to be handled or the short delivery time, the project manager involves several translators and coordinates the work, assigning it to several specialized translators.
I believe that every translator goes through this: generally, when there is a translator in the family, they are considered as a kind of walking dictionary. So whenever there is a doubt about a word in a language that is not the mother tongue, and that the translator is known to master or work with, the tendency is to ask him or her on the spot. Many times, the translator will ask back what the whole sentence looks like, because there are many words that in different languages and depending on the context can be translated in different ways. For us, it is a standard or sort of an obligation that we have to always have the whole text of the idea before we can make a decision on what is the best translation that fits the word in the source language. So, the translator is not that living dictionary that is always walking around with the right word at the right time. Our job is much more complex, we have to research and analyze, and although there are times when we have to do “word magic” it is not always possible to pull the right term out of the hat, as if by magic.
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