Castilian = Spanish = Castellano = Español

This is a persistent misunderstanding… Before starting any Spanish translation, having this information handy might be helpful when clients or distributors tell YOU what variety of Spanish is required, without providing any geographical context.

Castilian/Spanish, Castellano/Español are all synonyms for the same language.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_given_to_the_Spanish_language

In short, it avoids confusion to call the national language spoken in Spain “peninsular” Spanish or European Spanish.

In many Spanish-speaking countries in the New World, people casually use the term castellano (Castilian in English) to mean “proper” Spanish – that is, not colloquial or a regional dialect, and without a lot of folksy local vocabulary or slang that wouldn’t be understood by Spanish speakers outside of their specific country or region.

One will commonly hear “castellano” used in this sense in Mexico, for instance. It’s sort of like a U.S. speaker saying “the King’s English.” But this is a colloquial usage, and not linguistically accurate.

In some cases, what the client is driving at might be one of the “virtual” Spanish varieties used for translation purposes; for example, “Latin American” Spanish or “Universal” Spanish. These are not really Spanish dialects at all. Instead, in the translation industry they are a convenient way of indicating that the target Spanish variety needs to be comprehensible (to the extent possible) in various countries and might need to include some alternate wordings where differing vocabulary might cause confusion.

Sometimes Spanish speakers outside of the USA may in fact be specifying “Castilian” because they believe (with some cause) that a lot of what they would consider “bad” Spanish or Spanglish is spoken within the USA, and they’re concerned (also with cause) that they might receive this from any translation agency based in the USA.

• Another interesting aspect of the term castellano (Castilian) is that many people within autonomous regions of Spain who speak other peninsular languages such as Catalán, Galician or Basque make a point of calling it castellano. After all, theirs are also co-official “Spanish” languages!

Usually, when “Castilian” Spanish is requested, either:

1. The client really does mean European Spanish as spoken in Spain (and Equatorial Guinea, Gilbraltar, Ceuta, Melilla); or
2. Their own clients or distributors have told them “Castilian” as a way of saying “standard” Spanish that isn’t colloquial or regional dialect— it which case it would NOT be appropriate to translate to European Spanish.

• Spanish in Europe has some basic grammatical differences from any New World Spanish variety, including the well-known use of the second-person plural pronouns and verb forms (vosotros). In the New World, these are generally only seen in archaic, poetical or biblical styles. There are also many other important differences in vocabulary, preferences for sentence construction, and compound verb forms. Pronunciation is also very different, and this is of crucial importance when recording voiceover narrations for e-learning, video, PowerPoint, Flash, etc. A large proportion of European Spanish is intelligible to well-traveled New World speakers, but they will definitely recognize it as a different Spanish variety. Especially in non-technical text, European Spanish sounds more “foreign” to American Spanish speakers than British vernacular does to USA English speakers, for example.

As always, if clients let us know exactly WHERE the Spanish translation will be used, our expertise can help them choose the most appropriate target language variety.

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service interpreting and translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide translation, interpreting, proofreading, studio voice recording and media production, localization of interactive and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com

Translation of Page Layouts: Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke

OK, you have your final translated text. Because you used a professional translation agency, proper steps were followed for translation, editing, proofreading and quality-control. Now it’s time to place all this foreign-language content into a print layout. This can be a very error-prone phase of the process—all your final layouts should be reviewed by professional linguists!

This article highlights a few of the most common mistakes we see at ASIST Translations, when page-layout experts are unfamiliar with handling translated text.

Title Case
Title case (initial capitals on individual words) is customary in English for section headings, titles of articles, programs, etc. However, this doesn’t necessarily apply to other languages—Spanish, Portuguese and Italian, for example, where sentence case is the norm. Even if the English original is in title case, don’t “fix” individual word caps in the translated version without consulting a professional linguist.

Punctuation
English conventions for punctuation don’t apply to other languages. Here are some common misunderstandings.

• Bullet lists. Punctuation in bullet lists can be fairly fluid in English. However, in many languages the conventions are different and a more structured approach is obligatory. For example, in Romance languages, one bullet list may have semi-colons after each item and a period on the last item—because each of these is treated as an alternate ending to a partial sentence that precedes the bullet list. Conversely, a different bullet list in the same document may have no final punctuation each list item, because they are fragments that aren’t grammatically linked to the surrounding text. In either case, they may differ from the format of the original English bullet list. Use the text provided by the translators, and if in doubt about differences from the English original, consult a professional linguist!
• Spacing. In French, colons (and usually semi-colons) are separated from the preceding words by a space (ideally, a non-breaking space, in word processing or layout programs). We frequently see French text get “fixed” during layout because this extra space looks like an error to English speakers.
• Numbers. The English use of commas and points to separate thousands and decimals in numbers is exactly the opposite of many languages. Most (but not all) European languages other than English use a point to separate thousands, millions, etc., and a comma as the decimal separator. (Note that Spanish text for Mexico, the USA, Puerto Rico and Panama is an exception to this rule.) That being said, the International System of Units (SI) standard also encourages using spaces (technically, thin spaces, 1/5 of an em wide) as the thousands separator, in order to avoid confusion.
• Quotation Marks. Style guides for the American English recommend placing quotation marks outside commas and periods. But that often doesn’t apply to other languages—don’t try to “fix” anything before consulting a linguist! Of course, languages like German or French also use completely different symbols for quotation marks—the well-known “chevron” style guillemet symbols in French, for example. (By the way, it is also best if the spaces inside French guillemets are non-breaking spaces.) Even so, for contemporary text in many of these languages it is also common to use the more international quotation marks, although dialog in works of fiction is a frequent exception.

Symbols
Some common typographical symbols in English are not acceptable in many other languages. When these form part of an artwork file, some redesign may be required. For example, the number sign (#) is not often used in other languages, and frequently gets substituted by an abbreviation for the word “number.” The ampersand is very uncommon in other languages, and gets replaced with their word for “and.” The “at sign” (@) does not automatically suggest an abbreviation for the word “at” in most languages, and its use is mostly limited to e-mail addresses.

Hyphenation and Line Breaks
If the page-layout program doesn’t have a hyphenation table for your target language, the post-layout proofreading process will be more cumbersome. If this feature is available, always make sure that the program you’re using properly indicates the language being formatted. As a general rule, it’s useful to know that Romance languages favor hyphenating prior to the initial consonant of the next syllable, for example. However, in languages like Chinese, where the words themselves are not separated by spaces, only a Chinese linguist can ensure that the line breaks in your final layout don’t create anything “funny” sounding.

One last note of caution: never retype translated text, no matter how brief! Cut and paste directly from the source translation document; you will avoid a lot of problems.
Another article in this blog provides more general tips for foreign-language layouts. Planning ahead for translated content always makes the process smoother.

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service interpreting and translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide technical translation, interpreting, proofreading, studio voice recording and media production, localization of interactive and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com

Translating to “Mexican…” Spanish?

According to the Ethnologue Web site, in addition to Spanish, 290 living language varieties are spoken within Mexico. This includes between 87,000 and 100,000 people who speak Mexican Sign Language. Eight percent of Mexico’s population speaks one of many native-american languages. When creating Spanish translations for use in Mexico, it is important to understand that much of this country’s unique Spanish vocabulary reflects Mexico’s cultural diversity, and the influence of other languages that co-exist with Spanish.

To name just a few of the larger language varieties—other than Spanish—that are spoken in Mexico:

• 1,749,000 — Nahuatl language family
• 740,000 — Maya language varieties (southern states)
• 444,000 — Zapotec language family
• 418,070 — Mixtec language family
• 367,000 — Mazahua language varieties (México, Michoacán)
• 272,000 — Totonac language family (Puebla, Veracruz)
• 252,000 — Otomi language family
• 190,000 — Tzeltal language varieties (Chiapas)
• 185,000 — Mazatec family
• 134,000 — Chol language varieties (Chiapas and Sabanilla)
• 122,000 — Huastec varieties (Veracruz, San Luís Potosí)
• 120,000 — Me’phaa language varieties (Guerrero)
• 97,000 — Chinantec language family (Oaxaca)
• 95,000 — Tarahumara language family
• 90,000 — Mixe family (in Oaxaca)
• 79,000 — Tzotzil language varieties (Chiapas)
• 59,000 — Popoloca language family
• 42,000 — Chontal language varieties (Tabasco, Oaxaca)
• 40,000 — Mayo (Sonora , Sinaloa)
• 40,000 — Plautdietsch (German language; Chihuahua)
• 40,000 — Purepecha language varieties
• 38,000 — Chatino language family (Oaxaca)
• 36,000 — Tojolabal
• 28,000 — Amuzgo language family (Guerrero, Oaxaca)
• 25,000 — Tepehuan language family
• 20,000 — Huichol (Nayarit and Jalisco)
• 15,000 — Cora language varieties (Nayarit)

Considering the incredible linguistic diversity of this country, it is hardly surprising that Mexican Spanish (like many other varieties of Spanish spoken around the world) regularly uses so many words originating from languages already spoken in that country before the arrival of the Spanish in the early years of the 16^th century.

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service interpreting and translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide translation, interpreting, proofreading, studio voice recording and media production, localization of interactive and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com

Translation to Chinese: What kind of “Chinese”?

The most-common Chinese language varieties requested of ASIST are Mandarin, followed by Cantonese (also known as Yue, Gwong Dung Waa, Yueh, Yuet Yue, and Yueyu). The written form of Mandarin can use either Simplified or Traditional characters, depending on the target audience, while Cantonese generally uses Traditional characters. If you are planning for a Chinese translation, here are some basic guidelines to keep in mind.

Spoken Chinese

While it also applies to a large group of linguistically related dialects, Mandarin usually refers to the Standard Mandarin variety as spoken in Beijing. The name Mandarin literally back-translates as “northern speech.” This is the official language of the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan (a.k.a. Republic of China), and is also one of four official languages in Singapore.

In China, Cantonese speakers are mainly concentrated in the province of Guangdong (previously known as Canton in English) and Guanxi. It is also spoken in Macau—where it is an official language, along with Portuguese. Cantonese is also the traditionally dominant language in Hong Kong used in education, government, business and the media, although Mandarin is also a co-official language there. “Standard Cantonese” usually refers to the Canton-Hong Kong dialect.

There are also large Cantonese-speaking communities in Southeast Asia, Canada, Australia and the United States. The majority of the Chinese-Americans well into the 1980’s could trace their ancestry to the Cantonese province of Taishan; consequently Cantonese was prevalent for many years in the US. As the demographics among Chinese immigrants have shifted over the last 50 years, Mandarin has steadily increased in prominence as the lingua franca among overseas Chinese.

Written Chinese

Presently, two distinct systems of characters are used for writing Chinese: Traditional and Simplified. As the name implies, the Simplified form decreases the number of strokes required for many (but not all) characters. A finalized version of this system was made official in the People’s Republic of China in 1964. Use of Simplified characters is the norm among Mandarin speakers in mainland China, Singapore, Malaysia and in the United Nations. Additionally, writing in Simplified characters is also gradually gaining popularity among other overseas Chinese.

In contrast, Traditional characters are used for written Cantonese in Hong Kong and Macau, and written Mandarin in Taiwan (where use of Simplified characters is disapproved). Many overseas Chinese communities also tend to use Traditional characters, especially Cantonese speakers and families who emigrated before the mainland’s changeover to Simplified during the 1950’s and 1960’s.

There is also a “romanized” version of written Chinese that uses Latin characters to approximate Standard Mandarin pronunciation. Hanyu Pinyin (or simply Pinyin) was adopted by the ISO as the standard romanization for modern Chinese. Aside from its main use for teaching phonetic pronunciation to non-Mandarin speakers, Hanyu Pinyin is also sometimes used for entering Chinese text into certain computer systems that don’t support Traditional or Simplified Chinese characters.

What To Do?

If Mandarin Chinese is requested, and your principal target audience is worldwide or mainland China specifically, it will most commonly be written using Simplified Chinese characters. However, for “Chinese” speaking audiences within the USA, it is important to check beforehand. It is not unusual for both Mandarin and Cantonese to be required. For example, the San Francisco area has separate radio and TV channels broadcasting in each language, and various American television networks broadcast programming in both languages. For written Chinese, a significant portion of Chinese-Americans may be more familiar with Traditional rather than Simplified characters.

ASIST offers translation, interpreting and voice recording in Mandarin and Cantonese, plus many other languages throughout China, Asia and elsewhere.

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service interpreting and translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide translation, interpreting, proofreading, studio voice recording and media production, localization of interactive and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com

Symbols in Foreign-Language Translations

You need to be very careful how symbols are treated in the source text you provide for translation to other languages. Here are a few common issues:

#

Not everyone associates this symbol with “number.” In many languages, some sort of text abbreviation for the word “number” is used (for example, Nº or núm. in Spanish).

"

This abbreviation for inches should usually be avoided in translations. While it may be recognized in regions familiar with English usage (Canada, Spanish speakers in the USA or Mexico), it is better to use the standard abbreviation in the target language. Of course, unless the item being described necessarily comes in inch sizes—like a nut, wrench or pipe fitting, for example—it should usually be converted to metric system anyway!

&

To most speakers of foreign languages, the ampersand does NOT represent the word “and.”

@

The “at” sign is ubiquitous in e-mail addresses, of course. But many languages use a distinct term for this symbol, that doesn’t suggest the word “at” to speakers of that language at all. Consequently, creative constructions like “Work@Home” don’t translate.

/

American English frequently uses the slash symbol to represent the idea of “or” or “and.” To minimize ambiguity in your source English text for translation, it is recommendable to actually use the words “or” or “and.”

$

When the dollar sign is used in Spanish, to avoid confusion this should be the version with a single vertical bar — not two vertical bars, which is used for the peso in Mexico, Dominican Republic, Colombia and Cuba.

ASIST Translations can help you prepare your source text for translation to a foreign language, to ensure that your original content is as universal and unambiguous as possible. Feel free to contact us about effective communication in today’s multilingual, multicultural environment.

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide translation, interpreting, proofreading, voice recording and media production, localization of interactive and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com

Tips: International Business Card Etiquette

1. For business meetings in non-English speaking countries, it’s very significant to have a two-sided version of your business card printed—English on one side, local language on the other. This makes an immediate statement about your awareness of global culture. Hand over your card with the local language side up and facing the other person. However, be very careful to obtain a professional translation!

2. In some cultures, it’s customary to include relevant educational credentials (especially postgraduate degrees) along with your job title; check first.

3. In many countries, handling of business cards is more formal than in the United States (Japan and Korea being well-known examples). When foreign counterparts give you their card, thank them, take a moment to review it in detail, and keep it in your hands or on the table during the meeting. It may be considered rude or dismissive to quickly tuck a card into your pocket, day planner or wallet. In many Asian cultures, it’s good etiquette to present and receive business cards with both hands. Tossing or sliding a card across the table can easily be interpreted as a lack of manners or even disrespect. Likewise, avoid writing your notes or comments on someone else’s business card.

4. Unless this person directly reports to you within your own organization, do NOT point out typos or English grammatical errors on others’ business cards.

5. It is ALWAYS preferable to offer cards at the beginning, rather than the end of meetings. Like you, your counterparts may have difficulty remembering or correctly pronouncing foreign names.

6. Unless the number of participants is very large, personally hand your card to everyone present. From an outside cultural perspective, it may not always be obvious to you who the ranking officers or decision makers are, but when possible present cards first to the highest ranking individual(s).

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide translation, interpreting, proofreading, voice recording and media production, localization of interactive, e-learning and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com

Translation and Interpreting: the Global Marketplace Begins at Home

The most effective way to communicate with clients, consumers and your own employees is in their own language! In the global marketplace, good translations enable effective cross-cultural communication with clients and consumers—they are a necessity that no successful business can ignore. Indeed, when it comes to risk management and safety training for your own employees, successful communication in their own language is a necessity that you can’t afford to ignore. The key to success is working with a firm that offers professional translation, Web and software localization and interpreting, as well as language and cultural training.

What to look for in a professional translation service

• Language proficiency
  For business and technical translations, it is essential that expert, native translation be available from and to any language, on virtually any subject. Translations must also be rendered in the specific regional variety of the target language, by trained professional linguists who are fully cognizant of any vocabulary and usage issues. (For example, Spanish translations targeted for Mexico often require significant changes for Spain or South America.)
• Reputation
  Before signing the contract, do your homework. Check their Web site. Do they offer comprehensive services, beyond simple text translation (for example, page layout, interactive media or video)? Can requests for any world language be handled? How long has the company been in business, and who are their clients?
• Quality Control
  Even the best writers don’t try to proof their own work—nor should a single translator. Additional editing/proofreading steps are required, as well as a rigorous check of the final product by a quality-control professional.
• Customer Service
  Does the translation company have dedicated Account Managers, a track record of meeting deadlines and providing regular progress updates? Do they ask questions when there’s any doubt about the English original? Are they available for quick turnarounds, and have sufficient resources to handle large projects in multiple languages?

The Translation Process
Translations provided by ASIST have been perfected through a 4-step process to ensure accuracy. Our translators are trained professionals, not only native speakers of the target language but also with expertise in the subject matter. An editor is a second linguist who reviews grammar, checks accuracy, makes suggestions to further complement the style of the translation, and verifies that field-specific terms have been interpreted correctly. Yet another linguist, the proofreader, then reviews the document for consistency and completeness, ensuring that the translation is as accurate, culturally sensitive, and polished as possible. Finally, our quality-control department reviews the document from the client’s point of view, verifying that all formatting, graphics, typefaces, and other layout details are faithful to the original.

Page Layouts and Translation
A professional translation agency can create the foreign-language versions of your page layouts, using your source documents. For example, ASIST can format in all major page-layout and design programs, both Mac and Windows. If instead you use our supplied translation to do a layout in-house, it is absolutely critical to have the final version reviewed by our profesional linguists before going to print! We won’t go into the details here, but often the conventions for capitalization, punctation, spacing and so on are decidedly different from English.

Web and Software Localization
Many of our clients manage work forces around the globe, providing newsletters, HR information, training and safety materials in 9–10 languages or more. It’s important that your translation provider have the technical depth to ensure your content is rendered correctly in any electronic media, including the Internet, interactive DVDs or CD-ROMs, and video.

Interpreting
When meeting with non-English speaking clients or associates, it is important to work with professional interpreters—either onsite or via telephone and video conferencing. ASIST interpreters undergo thorough testing and training, are acutely aware of their role as cross-cultural facilitators, and are committed to prompt, professional service.

Conclusion
With the diversity of today’s workplace and the opportunities in the global market, it is important to think of your translation provider as a strategic partner.

ASIST Translation Services, Inc. is a full-service interpreting and translation agency located in Columbus, Ohio. We provide translation, legal, business and medical interpreting, proofreading, studio voice recording and media production, localization of interactive and Web content, and specialized language services to clients around the world.

www.ASISTtranslations.com