Advice and Information for the World Traveller on Many Destinations

Archive for May, 2009

Translation services connect languages by considering the differences in social groups, which is rather difficult and can be done incorrectly if a translator is not cautious. Dealing with written words is not the primary focus of this service, since it deals as well as with the characteristics of the text. Cultural differences are considered as they can affect almost every culture in the world. As time progresses, nations with differing cultures began to unite, as they also share technological enhancements. This allows the boundaries between cultures to be blurred.

Today’s translators face various cultures, thus making their job to supply clearly understood translation more difficult. Cultural expressions and idiosyncrasies must be learned first hand, with a vast and meticulous understanding of a particular language. This is called cross-cultural translation, which is required by numerous international organisations.

The task of focusing on the source and target culture is given to the translation service. It has become apparent that the integrated approach in translating has become the most generally used; turning the macro into micro, as it were. Furthermore, cultural transposition should also be focused on, and not just on simple language transfer. Thus, translators should be both bicultural and bilingual.

People often commit mistakes when dealing with different cultures. For instance, showing the soles of one’s shoes, or doing a ’thumbs up’, can be considered unpleasant by some. Learning cultural differences and similarities in traditions, customs and mores can be a great way to develop relationships with others. For people to generate understanding and respect, simple do’s and don’ts can be learned. Therefore, the appropriate employment of translation services is essential if one desires a successful relationship, both in business and personal dealings.

The creative English translator Arthur Golding (1536-1606) was born into a family of influential Puritans. His siblings achieved wealth, but Arthur’s life was filled with financial uncertainty.

Married, with seven offspring, the bereavement of his brother made him a rich man. However, the properties were mortgaged and other burdens drained his inherited resources. Despite his huge body of work and several influential and wealthy patrons, Arthur’s finances were depleted and he was detained in a fleet prison due to debt. He dedicated his first publication to Sir William Cecil; these were the first classical translations that brought him fame. After his death, his literary translations gained recognition. The translation of Ovid was his most important work written in iambic heptameter.

Golding as the English translator of Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’ was remarkably a strong man filled with Puritan compassion, who translated several works. He set out the moral standards contained in the stories and infused the metamorphoses with a stern moral tone. It was from his pages that Elizabethans obtained their knowledge on conventional mythology. He translated commentaries of Julius Caesar, the history of Junianus Justinus, Niels Hemmingsen and David Chytraeus’ theological writings, etc., and completed translating the ‘Trueness of Christian Religion’. His original work is prose entitled the ‘Discourse on the Earthquake of 1580’, where he was inspired by how God portrayed his wickedness through the catastrophe.

Golding is the renowned English translator of Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’, which William Shakespeare used as a reference. His importance in sixteenth-century writing extends further than this work on several religious and classical texts. Golding’s translations were broadly read and discussed in literary groups of his day.

The Renaissance is known as the great age of translations. The growth of Humanism inspired translators from different European countries to interpret several texts, including the ancient ones, and to develop translations into the English language.

Latin is the universal intellectual language and it is the best way of reading texts throughout Europe; for those authors who wrote in Flemish, Czech, or Dutch, Latin is essential in the distribution of these texts. If some authors were not fluent in Latin during those times, translators were hired to interpret a certain foreign work into the vernacular, which was considered as a noble challenge, as well as a contribution to the national treasure. The translations became widespread in the 16th century.

Greek text translations appeared during the English Renaissance in England, but a few were derived from translations of translations. Others were also translated from Greek to Latin. The Greek texts were revived during the 15th century in Italy. They were stimulated by the production of brand new manuscripts coming from the East. In Venice between 1495 and 1515, many Greek printed editions were done by Aldus Manutius.

England’s growing curiosity in Greek texts came mainly from travel and trade with Italy. Manutius produced an outstanding Greek text from Plato’s works, and two French refugees achieved influential translations at that time as well. Plato’s texts were available in England during the 16th century, but those were in Latin, which were also translated by foreign intellectuals.

In England, the growing interest in Plato’s work increased especially for his novels and plays about love, which continued to be an important part of Stuart literature. In the 19th century, translations of Plato’s works were entirely translated from Greek to English.

Understanding language is not just knowing the meaning of expressed words and the manner in which they are united, but illustrating inferences based on non-linguistic information and the assumption of the translator to meet the standards of communication.

If the reader or listener understands what the speaker or writer is trying to say, there is good communication. Communication entails the clarity of the message, the channels by which it is conveyed, and the situational aspects that may distort meaning in the reader’s or listener’s minds. When this is applied to translation, the problem will be more complex when the translator is asked to figure out the writer’s message and interprets what has been understood, which may appear completely different from what the reader is trying to say.

Dressler and De Beaugrande (1984) define a pointless text as a serious difference between the arrangement of concepts and relations articulated. Abdellah (2002) points out the work complexity of the translator. Misconception happens in reading and understanding messages, which lead to disfigured representations. Blum-Kulka (1986) recognises consistency as the key in the realisation of the text’s meaning and assumes that this might lose its meaning by translation. Baker (1996) assumes that the maxims of quality, quantity, relevance, and manner are not universal. However, the interpretation may vary from one linguistic society to another.

Every language interpreted must have a preference for a coherent tool to express meanings not literally included in the text. Texts must be read and understood literally, and then translators must know what is implied by the particular terms in the texts. Finally, good translators interpret the literal and the implied expressions into vernacular using preferred devices. With these, a translator is certified to reword, omit, add, and rephrase to convey the real sense that the original writer is trying to say.

The United States of America has developed a prominent culture derived from two strong influences: domestic culture and European ideals. The culture of the US encompasses ideals, beliefs, traditions, customs, values, innovations and arts. The range of these cultural concepts were developed domestically and imported through immigration and colonisation.

As America’s demographic composition changes, its culture likewise changes and develops; thus it is not static. The changes are brought by the flight of citizens of several Central American countries to the United States. This was caused by deteriorating economic and social conditions in their own countries.

Scientifically and technologically, US culture has achieved significant advancements and innovations. Several of these efforts are centred in the Silicon Valley, the state’s largest silicon manufacturer and innovator. The US also has focussed on areas such as military research, space (NASA), nuclear research, and biotech.

American literature and arts has taken much of its cues from European culture. In the mid-19th century, writers like Edgar Allan Poe, Henry David Thoreau, and Nathaniel Hawthorne established a popular American literary canon. Other important playwrights in the Americas emerged at the end of the 19th century.

The US has also evolved and adapted several elements of other cultures. In the area of food, these include hamburgers, hibachi, and pizza. Regarding entertainment, examples are T.V. shows like ‘Power Rangers’ and ‘American Idol’. The US is well-known as a great and successful entertainment exporter for movies, news, and shows. Due to this capability, its popular culture is cheaply and widely dispersed and consumed worldwide. Along with Japan and Europe, American entertainment is considered an ‘entertainment power’. Part of the reason why American entertainment is superb is because it owns many foreign properties and has a various military workforces serving overseas.

‘Personal,’ ‘collective’ and ‘expressive’ are the three most important categories of human activity being addressed by culture. ‘Personal’ signifies that individuals function and think as such; ‘collective’ means that individuals act in a social context; and ‘expressive,’ through which society expresses itself. Language, being a sole institution in which no other social body can function, underpins these three categories.

Translation involves the system of cultural encoding, recoding and decoding. Multicultural considerations then bear a rising degree as cultures gradually connect with other cultures. Translators don’t just deal with words written in a specific socio-political post, space or time, as it is the cultural aspect they’re taking into account. Transfer systems must consequently deal out attributes in relation to the target culture, thus, ensuring the credibility in readers.

Multiculturalism plays a significant role here as it affects almost all the people in the world. In addition, the advancement in technology caused cultures and nations to be united that resulted for outlines (cultural distinctions and boundaries) to rather recede.

Translators face alien cultures requiring its message to be expressed in an alien way as well. Culture conveys ‘culture-bound’ idiosyncrasies, including proverbs, idiomatic expressions and cultural works, whose use and derivation are exceptionally and intrinsically bound to that certain culture to be successful. And so, translators are asked to accomplish a cross-cultural translation that depends on their own comprehension of the culture concerned.

Concisely, the system of cultural encoding, recoding and decoding must focus not just on language transfer but also on the transposition of culture. Thus, as an unavoidable consequence, translators are required to be both bicultural and bilingual, though not necessarily multicultural.

Achieving a high quality translation requires professional services. Translation services must be effective in all messages being conveyed to the online user. These services are offered to listen, learn and pay attention in order to manage and monitor the translation process. This will ensure that the company is providing the best services by means of communicating the correct message in any chosen language.

Most of the companies offer several translation services that can be ordered 24X7. These companies also offer the opportunity to be acquainted with the translators and establish a good relationship with clients while working with them. They provide a large number of languages, making certain that all the target global areas for a website are covered. Some companies have native translators, exceptional resources and bilingual experts to provide their clients with the excellent services they are expecting. Several translation services offer wide-ranging services in CRO document translation; instruction manuals; training manuals; marketing materials; exhibition materials; product package translation; web site and multimedia localization; software localization; software modules, help manuals, training manuals; multi lingual voiceovers; interpretation services; language transcription services; DTP /Multi Lingual New Media Publishing; and coordination services for language service providers (LSPs).

At present, translation services are very important for building a successful business operation in the global market. These services can be conducted through the internet as well as through traditional means. With these translation service offerings, clients are given professional and accurate translation, which will provide them with an advantage not only in the local language but also in global communication.

The years and decades of India’s history and struggles, including its adoption of the traditions and ideas of neighbouring societies, have played a significant role in shaping Indian culture today. The nation also had been successful in preserving its heritage from the ancient time — predominantly formed throughout the Indus Valley Civilisation. Further, the civilisation evolved during the period of Vedas, Buddhism’s rise and decline, the Golden Age, Conquests of Muslims, and the colonisation of the Europeans. The vast diversity of India’s cultural and religious practises and traditions, languages, and family customs are apparent examples of the exceptional co-mingling of the nation’s culture over five millennia ago.

A number of famous Dharmic religions originated and flourished in India. These include Buddhism, Sikhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. The widespread amalgamations of these religions and practises have also influenced the cultures of other societies across the globe; thus it is one of the most religiously diverse countries on earth. In the life of many Indians, religion is still a definitive and central focus.

There are many languages spoken today in India. Over 10,000 groups of people speak 1000 languages; and there are yet other dialects spoken by a smaller number of people. When counted all together, including the remotest word or dialect spoken, 415 living existing languages are used by Indians today.

Indian culture is centred on the family. Marriages between a man and a woman are commonly arranged by parents; however, consent of both the bride and the groom is needed.

The United Kingdom (UK), as an urbanised island nation and a major world power, has preserved and developed elements of unique cultural heritage and symbolism. UK culture follows the pattern of how UK and British people customarily live. With this human activity, the language, arts, science and technology, and religion of the UK have taken significant roles in the development of its culture.

Referring to its official language, the United Kingdom has not yet established its own; and so it uses English as its de facto language. However, indigenous languages are being promoted within the UK by individual countries.

The Celtic languages of the Island were important in the preserved native literature of the UK — since this literature was written in Celtic. From 6th century until today, the literary tradition of Welsh and of Irish poetry has represented an unbroken tradition, making the Ulster Cycle particularly relevant to Northern Ireland.

The UK has a vibrant theatre tradition, as is seen in other island nations. Theatre arts were first introduced to UK by the Romans; shortly after, auditoriums were built across the country for theatre performances. In the 16th and 17th century, during the supremacy of Elizabeth I, theatrical dramas and arts flowered; this period was also nicknamed the ‘Age of Shakespeare’. Approximately 40 plays written by William Shakespeare, a prominent playwright, are still performed in theatres across the globe.

UK was largely a Protestant Christian nation, as evident in the dominance of the Protestant churches that are continually spreading in the land. Protestantism has continued to increase, although UK is a secularised society.

Perhaps a translator needs excellent tools for both English and French translations, but some are not for untrained and inexperienced translators. There are translation books for English-French and French-English translators, which can be adapted in combining languages.

‘Le Grand Robert’ is a single CD-ROM containing six huge books that serve as sources for English and French translations. Its second version consists of 325,000 quotations and 100,000 words. It has an appealing and accessible interface, and is easily installed in a computer. Each item includes etymology, pronunciation, register, historical uses, and regionalisms.

HarperCollins’ ‘Robert French Unabridged Dictionary’ is the most systematic bilingual dictionary, with over 2,000 pages. Items include expressions, regionalisms, and slang. A useful section is included that tackles the language in use, with extra expressions and vocabularies that are categorised into groups, such as advice, suggestions, correspondence, and more.

‘Cambridge International Dictionary of English’ can be used by translators as the best book for the English language. It indicates distinctions between, American, Australian, British, and Canadian English.

‘Thésaurus Larousse’ is satisfactorily indexed and consists of approximately 900 subtopics. This serves as an adequate reference book contained with various French words for writers and translators.

‘Roget’s International Thesaurus’ includes over 1,000 subtopics and is arranged thematically. Synonyms and antonyms are also in thematic lists, such as types of plants, human skeletal system, etc.

‘Le Bon Usage’ is known as the bible of French grammar and the most systematic French grammar book ever written. This was republished several times and is considered very essential to translators. Native speakers always refer to this book when explaining aspects of French grammar.

These tools are all exceptional, which will help English and French translators in creating an understandable transformation of meanings and expressions.