TRANSLATION SKILLS

UNIT IV – TRANSLATION SKILLS 

Translation: 

English to Kannada More example 

Kannada to English More example

Translation

What is a translation in English?

A translation is a piece of writing or speech that has been put into a different language.

Translation is the communication of the meaning of a source-language text by means of an equivalent target-language text. The English language draws a terminological distinction (which does not exist in every language) between translating (a written text) and interpreting (oral or signed communication between users of different languages); under this distinction, translation can begin only after the appearance of writing within a language community.

The English word "translation" derives from the Latin word translatio. Thus translatio is "a carrying across" or "a bringing across" – in this case, of a text from one language to another.

Back-translation

A "back-translation" is a translation of a translated text back into the language of the original text, made without reference to the original text. Comparison of a back-translation with the original text is sometimes used as a check on the accuracy of the original translation, much as the accuracy of a mathematical operation is sometimes checked by reversing the operation.

 

Source and target languages

In the practice of translation, the source language is the language being translated from, while the target language, also called the receptor language, is the language being translated into. Difficulties in translating can arise from  and syntactical differences between the source language and the target language, which differences tend to be greater between two languages belonging to different language families.

Often the source language is the translator's second language, while the target language is the translator's first language. In some geographical settings, however, the source language is the translator's first language because not enough people speak the source language as a second language.

 

The 4 Most Common Different Types of Translation

Ø   Literary translation.

Ø   Professional translation.

Ø   Technical Translation.

Ø   Administrative translation

 

Literary Translation

As the name Literary translation may suggest, this type is all about translating literary works like stories, poems, plays, etc.

This type of translation is often considered the hardest or most comprehensive, as the translator not only needs to get the meaning of the words right, but also the context, sound, and feeling behind the words.

By this, we’re also talking about knowing the culture of both languages well enough to translate any humor, emotions, and any types of similar elements of a piece of work.

As you can imagine, this requires extensive knowledge and experience. Plus, it can still be hard even then, as in some cases, there are no suitable translations. For example, in poetry, when the rhyming of words or puns is used for additional wordplay, it often does not work in the target language.

 

Professional Translation

The next type of translation is professional translation. Any type of translations that are used for professional purposes, we would usually fit into this category.

Some common examples would be a medical translation or a legal translation.

Here, the main goal is usually to get all the information translated as accurately as possible. Unlike with a literary translation, documents won’t have any wordplay such as puns or rhymes, making it a little easier for the translator.

However, accuracy is crucial for any type of professional translation, especially for industries where the consequences of inaccuracies could be huge, such as medical or law with medical translation and legal translation.

Like the ones named above, more complex industries will often also require a specialist to ensure accuracy. Of course, this does depend on the subject matter, but the more complex the source language, the more educated the translator must be.

This is especially the case if there is a lot of business jargon used or a certified translation required.

 

Technical Translation

Technical translations are also technical, as the name suggests. Here, we’re usually talking about translating technical content for businesses such as:

Ø   Engineering Documents

Ø   Instruction Manual

Ø   User guides

Ø   Technical Training

 

These types of documents will usually need technical translation services because the translator has to understand the topic well to ensure that they can tell the user what they should do accurately.

Not only this, but they also have to understand the formatting requirements, and sometimes the images have to be changed so that they can be understood in the target language.

If you require a technical translation, it’s also crucial that you choose a company or transcriptionist who is comfortable and is experienced with your particular industry.

The content of a technical translation is usually quite complicated, so if your business ever needs some documents like the ones mentioned above translated, this is the translation type you’ll be looking for.

 

Administrative Translation

The administrative translation is a translation type used for the documents and management texts of organizations like corporate or regional businesses.

Administrative translations can be considered a sub translation type of professional translations. However, not all professional translations are administrative, so it doesn’t quite work, vice-versa.

 

What Is a Commercial Translation?

A commercial translation is a document translation where the translator must have specialized skills. This often crosses over with the professional translation that we discussed earlier, meaning industries like law or medical are extremely common.

However, it is also common that the translator must have knowledge specific to the business and understand technical jargon.

Common examples of documents that need a commercial translation include company accounts, reports, and similar documents.

 

What is Language Interpretation?

Whereas language translation refers only to the written word, interpreting refers to spoken word. An interpreter’s job is to facilitate communication between two people who speak different languages, whether the conversation takes place over the phone, in person, or via video remote interpreting.

 

What skills are required for each?

Language translators and interpreters share many of the same skill sets. Both must be proficient in at least two languages and have a good understanding of the cultures for the intended audience, whether they will be reading or listening to the words. Both translators and interpreters typically need expertise in the industry for which they’re working, as well as the procedures, standards, and terminology associated with it.

 

English to Kannada Examples

Ø   What is your name?

Ø   How old are you?

Ø   What are you doing?

Ø   What is your college name?

Ø   Where is your home?

 

Ø   ನಿನ್ನ ಹೆಸರೇನು?

Ø   ನಿನ್ನ ವಯಸ್ಸು ಎಷ್ಟು?

Ø   ನೀನು ಏನು ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿರುವೆ?

Ø   ನಿಮ್ಮ ಕಾಲೇಜಿನ ಹೆಸರೇನು?

Ø   ನಿನ್ನ ಮನೆ ಎಲ್ಲಿದೆ?