This content has been archived. It may no longer be relevant
Think about your favorite book. Most likely it is written in your native language. Translating a book to another language can be a hard and daunting task. Sometimes, especially in creative writing, the story is told just as much as by what is not on the page as by what there is. There are even books written in your own language that you might not understand, because they come from a different cultural region than yours.
Some people believe there is no such thing as a good translation, because language is so deeply rooted in culture. Your culture plays a role in how you see the world and in the words you use to describe it. Your culture forces you to put on tinted glasses that make it hard to take a wider view of your story. Think about body language. In America, we value direct eye contact. We see it as a sign of respect and view those who don’t look you in the eye as weak. But that’s not a universal truth. In some Asian countries, direct eye contact is viewed as disrespectful or challenging.
The art of translating is so much more than just switching out words for different words. It is coming up with the correct words and phrases that are going to give the same experience in a new language as the text did in the original. That is anything but an easy assignment. The result is a way for us to learn more about other languages and cultures, and expand upon our own. Translation opens the door to so many other experiences, descriptions, and people.
In the business world, translation is a necessity as the world continues to shrink. With technology booming and constantly improving, the world we know is becoming smaller and smaller. We can now be in touch with those across the globe in seconds, when twenty years ago that was nothing more than a wild dream. With communication becoming more and more global, companies have to think about translating. Translation can allow businesses to communicate with their audience more effectively, and can help businesses reach more people.
Businesses should be careful when it comes to translation. Bad translations happen all the time and can ruin your business in a market. Maybe you use software to translate your business documents, and the software doesn’t understand a particular cultural disparity between two words. Just as you might not know not to look in someone’s eyes in Asia, the software might offend someone by translating your words into something with a completely different meaning. This is why all credible businesses should look to a human translation service that looks deeper than just a word count, and which can take into account both meanings and cultural aspects.
