Lost in (Google) translation

Source: The Sun Daily

Remember that infamous incident a while back when a local government website went viral because of hilarious Malay-to-English translations of its pages?

Malaysian netizens had a field day with phrases like ‘pakaian menjolok mata’ that were translated to ‘clothes that poke eye’.

Many suspected the snafu happened because someone trying to save time and ran the text through Google Translate.

Google Translate has been a useful tool for many people around the world ever since it was introduced in 2006. Currently it supports over 60 languages, including several dialects, with about 12 alpha languages. And more research is being done every day to perfect the system and add more languages.

Recently, one of Google’s research scientists, Ashish Venugopal, spoke to local media about the programme and how it works. In a video conference from the Google Campus in California, Ashish explained why transation errors happen.

“It all boils down to data,” he said. “Translation errors are easy to solve if we have a lot of data about the language. Some languages have a lot, some have less.

“The mistakes happen when there’s a language with too little data, and then the programme is forced to make a guess based on what it knows, which of course doesn’t necessarily produce the best result.”

Fortunately, the problem is easily solved when more material is produced in that language and published on the internet. With more examples of the language to analyse, the programme will be able to produce better results, including common phrases and idioms, which are often the hardest to translate.

Feedback about language mistakes is also crucial. Today, if you go and check the English translation of ‘pakaian menjolok mata’, you’d get the more acceptable ‘provocative fashion clothing’.

“It’s important to keep in perspective what the role of Google Translate is,” Ashish said. “It’s not to take over the job of professional translators. The programme can never capture emotion or translate speech in a beautiful way, but it can tell you what is being said. More.

See: The Sun Daily

Nepal’s mystery language on the verge of extinction

Source: BBC

Gyani Maiya Sen, a 75-year-old woman from western Nepal, can perhaps be forgiven for feeling that the weight of the world rests on her shoulders.

She is the only person still alive in Nepal who fluently speaks the Kusunda language. The unknown origins and mysterious sentence structures of Kusunda have long baffled linguists.

As such, she has become a star attraction for campaigners eager to preserve her dying tongue.

Madhav Prasad Pokharel, a professor of linguistics at Nepal’s Tribhuwan University, has spent a decade researching the vanishing Kusunda tribe.

Professor Pokharel describes Kusunda as a “language isolate”, not related to any common language of the world. More.

See: BBC

“Why computers still can’t translate languages automatically”

Source: Slate

A well thought out article on Slate, including some interesting new projects that are making the attempt. More.

See: Slate

Unpaid translators angry as owner of firm which went bust sets up new linguistic firm

Source: Birmingham Post

Unpaid translators angry as owner of firm which went bust sets up new linguistic firm. A translation firm which had to close as it had not been paid by two major clients went bust and then opened under a different name, at the same address and with the same employees. Read More

See: Birmingham Post

The rock hyrax surprises with syntax skills

Source: BBC

The rock hyrax is a surprisingly sophisticated communicator, a study published in a Royal Society journal suggests.

The small mammal is extremely vocal: males sing complex songs that can last for several minutes.

But now scientists have discovered that the order of the notes is significant, suggesting that the songs have syntax.

They also found that hyraxes from different regions had a different dialect when they warbled.

This research places the hyrax in a small and eclectic group of skilled animal communicators, including primates, whales, birds and bats. More

See: BBC

Polish novel wins ‘best translation’ award in US

Source: The News

Stone upon Stone (Kamien na kamieniu) by Polish writer Wiesław Myśliwski has received this year’s Best Translated Book Award in the United States.

he novel was published by Archipelago Books, a small non-profit publishing house from Brooklyn specializing in the literature from the non-English speaking countries, in a translation by Bill Johnston, a professor at the University of Indiana, Bloomington, and director of its Polish Study Center.

He is one of the most prominent translators of Polish literature into English and has translated works by the Romantic poet Juliusz Słowacki, the novelists Bolesław Prus and Stefan Zeromski, the avant-garde playwright and prose writer Witold Gombrowicz as well as contemporary Polish authors, Andrzej Stasiuk and Magdalena Tulli.

Several years ago Bill Johnston received the ‘Found in Translation’ Award, sponsored jointly by the Polish Cultural Institutes in London and New York, the Krakow-based Polish Book Institute and W.A.B. Publishers of Warsaw (for New Poems by Tadeusz Różewicz).

Eighty year-old Wiesław Mysliwski is one of leading Polish novelists. Most of his works focus on the life in the countryside. Stone upon Stone, written in 1984, is his first novel translated into English.

See: The News

Why economists should pay attention to translation in Africa

Source: Common Sense Advisory

According to a recent UN economic report, 10 of the world’s 15 fastest-growing economies were based in Africa. Foreign direct investment in Africa reached US$62 billion in 2009, up almost 700% from a decade earlier. The report also found that the number of middle-class households will increase by half from 2010 to 2020. And, by 2030, the top 18 African cities will have a combined spending power of US$1.3 trillion. So what does any of this have to do with translation?

Companies seeking to reach upper and middle class Africans do so using the colonial languages of English, French, and Portuguese.  While this is certainly an important way to reach government agencies and professional markets, companies with information services and consumer products seek a broader set of audiences. These companies now translate into a growing number of local languages as well. Africa is rich in cultural and linguistic diversity, which means that companies seeking to benefit from the rising economic tide require access to translation and interpreting services in many tongues from very different regions.

When economic opportunities begin to surface anywhere in the world, language service providers (LSPs) arise to bridge these language gaps, enabling cross-border business to happen. For buyers of translation, the challenge of addressing new markets in Africa stems from the sheer size of the continent, the number of countries, the still-lagging infrastructure for travel and communications, and the variability of legal-financial norms for transacting business. Recently, we have noticed a crop of Africa-focused translation and technology vendors springing up in four regions of Africa. The biggest cluster is in Egypt, where many of the top providers in Africa are located. North Africa’s historical connections with European countries and ready access to markets in the Middle East have helped Egypt’s companies gather momentum. More.

See: Common Sense Advisory

ProZ.com Certified PRO Network: 3,000 members and counting!

Source: Translator T.O.

The ProZ.com Certified PRO Network, an initiative of the ProZ.com community to provide qualified translators and translation companies with an opportunity to network and collaborate in an environment consisting entirely of screened professionals, has reached 3,000 members and more and more applications are being submitted every day.

Members of the ProZ.com Certified PRO Network have the benefit of networking with other screened professionals while distinguishing themselves as PROs. Many program participants view this also as an opportunity to make a positive contribution to the industry. Other benefits members of the program have include:

• a distinguishing Certified PRO seal shown next to their name throughout the ProZ.com site;
• a printable and downloadable certificate available in their ProZ.com profiles;
• a special search option in the ProZ.com directory of freelance translators and interpreters, ProZ.com’s main source of jobs;
• exclusive access to a personal workspace and to a Certified PRO Network private forum;
• special discount on selected ProZ.com training sessions and events;
• a distinguishing Certified PRO seal in in-person event name badges;
• access to periodically organized virtual powwows for members of the network;
• a Certified PRO logo to be used in personal websites, email signatures, blogs, etc.;
• full access to ProZ.com virtual events;
• the possibility to join Translators without Borders without going through their screening process;
• the option to share glossaries with other members of the network;
• the possibility to become ProZ.com mentors;
• and more!

To enter the Certified PRO Network, ProZ.com members must complete an online application and submit it for review to prove they meet or exceed minimum professional standards based on the EN15038 standard for quality in translation and in three screening areas: translation ability, business reliability and online citizenship.

The ProZ.com Certified PRO network is being provided as a service to ProZ.com full professional members only (non-members can still complete and submit their applications for review). If admitted, members pay no additional fees.

Click here to start completing your application.

More information about the ProZ.com Certified PRO Network is available here.

Congratulations to the over 3,000 ProZ.com members who have taken their careers to the next level!

See: Translator T.O.

Greater access to translation could save lives and protect human rights in Africa

Source: Common Sense Advisory

(BOSTON) – Translation is critical for addressing information inequalities in Africa. But could translation also improve economic development, health, human rights, and safety of the citizens of Africa? Findings from a new study reveal that the answer is “yes.”

A new study conducted by Common Sense Advisory on behalf of Translators without Borders finds that translation is critical for the public health, political stability, and social wellbeing of African nations. The report surveyed 364 translators for African languages in 49 countries representing a total of 269 different language combinations. The results are detailed in a new report, “The Need for Translation in Africa,” which is available as a free download at: http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com/Portals/0/downloads/Africa.pdf.

“We already knew that translation for Africa was severely lacking,” comments Lori Thicke, founder of Translators without Borders. “This report clearly shows that the need for translation is so striking that, for the sake of African citizens, it simply can no longer be ignored.”

“63.07% of respondents said greater access to translated information could have prevented the death of someone in their family or circle of friends,” explains Tahar Bouhafs, CEO of Common Sense Advisory. “This is clear proof that translation can save lives in Africa, and that the time to address this need is now.”

Africa is home to nearly 1 billion people, or roughly 10% of the world’s population. The African continent also boasts 2,000 languages spread across six major language families. Some of them – such as Amharic, Berber, Hausa, Igbo, Oromo, Swahili, and Yoruba – are used by tens of millions of people. At least 242 African languages are used in the mass media, a minimum of 63 are used in judicial systems and no fewer than 56 are used in public administration.

Key datapoints from “The Need for Translation in Africa” include:

• 97.14% of respondents said greater access to translated information would help individuals in Africa understand their legal rights.

• 95.85% of respondents said greater access to translated information would help protect human rights in Africa.

• 94.92% of respondents said greater access to translated information would have a positive impact on the collective health of people in Africa.

• 94.87% of respondents said greater access to translated information would help Africans in times of emergency or natural disasters.

• 91.96% of respondents said greater access to translated information would help people in Africa contribute to the political process.

• 88.78% of respondents said greater access to translated information would help prevent international, civil, ethnic, or communal conflict in Africa.

• 63.07% of respondents said greater access to translated information could have prevented the loss of life of Africans in their family or circle of friends.

The report is available at: http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com/Portals/0/downloads/Africa.pdf.

An accompanying infographic is available at: http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com/Portals/0/downloads/infographic_translation_africa.jpg.

See: Common Sense Advisory

2012 Best Translated Book Award Winners Announced

Source: Rochester.edu

The winning titles and translators of this year’s Best Translated Book Award were announced Friday, May 4, at New York’s McNally Jackson Books as part of the PEN World Voices Festival. In poetry, Kiwao Nomura’s Spectacle & Pigsty, translated from the Japanese by Kyoko Yoshida and Forrest Gander, took the top honor, and Wiesław Myśliwski’s Stone Upon Stone, translated from the Polish by Bill Johnston, won for fiction.

VIDEO: Watch the awards announcement

Organized by Three Percent at the University of Rochester, the Best Translated Book Award is the only prize of its kind to honor the best original works of international literature and poetry published in the United States over the previous year. Tom Roberge of New Directions and Chad W. Post of Open Letter (who are also co-hosts of the weekly Three Percent Podcast) hosted the celebration, which took place at one of the premiere independent bookstores in the country.

Wiesław Myśliwski is a two-time winner of Poland’s Nike Award, and was awarded the 2011 Golden Sceptre award for lifetime achievement in the arts. A grand, rural epic, Stone Upon Stone—his first work to be translated into English—is narrated by Syzmek, a Polish farmer determined to build a tomb for himself after a life of boozing, brawling, fighting in the resistance, serving as a marriage officer, and exaggerating his way through the 20th century and the modernization of his small town.

Each winning book will receive $10,000 of prize money to be divided among the author and translators. The BTBA is one of several nonprofit programs supported by Amazon.com that are focused on bringing more great works from around the world to English-language readers. Other recipients include the PEN America Center Translation Fund, Words Without Borders, Open Letter, the Center for the Art of Translation, Archipelago Books, and the Ledig House International Writers Residency.

The fiction judges for this year’s awards were: Monica Carter (Salonica), Gwendolyn Dawson (Literary License), Scott Esposito (Conversational Reading and Center for the Art of Translation), Susan Harris (Words Without Borders), Annie Janusch (Translation Review), Matthew Jakubowski (writer & critic), Brandon Kennedy (bookseller/cataloger), Bill Marx (PRI’s The World: World Books), Edward Nawotka (Publishing Perspectives), Michael Orthofer (Complete Review), and Jeff Waxman (Seminary Co-op and University of Chicago Press). More.

See: Rochester.edu

Interpreter request is refused by court because man has ‘been in UK long enough’

Source: This is Plymouth

A STONEHOUSE man has been denied a Kurdish interpreter at his forthcoming trial because he has been in the UK long enough to learn English, a judge has ruled.

Baravan Yahia, aged 26, is due to face trial on September 26, charged with taking a BMW on September 12 last year and driving it dangerously.

Yahia’s barrister, Ali Rafati, said that while his client’s English was sufficient for everyday use, he was not confident he could follow a trial.

But Judge Francis Gilbert QC said Yahia, of Durnford Street, did not need an interpreter.

“There has to be a line drawn somewhere and he’s the wrong side of it,” he said.

“At that sort of age, he must be alert enough to pick up the language.

“There has to be a limit; interpreters are expensive and cause a delay.”

Judge Gilbert also refused to allow a friend of the defendant who speaks better English to help him in court, saying the issues in the case were straightforward and the barristers could keep their language simple.

See: This is Plymouth

The bilingual brain is sharper and more focused according to study

Source: The Wall Street Journal

The ability to speak two languages can make bilingual people better able to pay attention than those who can only speak one language, a new study suggests.

Scientists have long suspected that some enhanced mental abilities might be tied to structural differences in brain networks shaped by learning more than one language, just as a musician’s brain can be altered by the long hours of practice needed to master an instrument.

Now, in a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,researchers at Northwestern University for the first time have documented differences in how the bilingual brain processes the sounds of speech, compared with those who speak a single language, in ways that make it better at picking out a spoken syllable, even when it is buried in a babble of voices.

That biological difference in the auditory nervous system appears to also enhance attention and working memory among those who speak more than one language, they say.

“Because you have two languages going on in your head, you become very good at determining what is and is not relevant,” says Dr. Nina Kraus, a professor of neurobiology and physiology at Northwestern, who was part of the study team. “You are a mental juggler.” More.

See: The Wall Street Journal

Language interpreter services see demand soar (U.S.)

Source: Los Angeles Times

(…) The demand for such language services has been surging in the last few years, partly because of growth in immigration to the U.S. over the last few decades but also because of a recent boom in international business transactions with people in such countries as China, Japan, India and South Korea. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 2,600 translation and interpreting companies make up what is estimated to be a $3-billion industry.
The number of U.S. residents who speak a language other than English at home has more than doubled in the last three decades, a pace four times as fast as the nation’s population growth, according to a new census report analyzing language data from 1980 to 2007.

During that period, the percentage of speakers of non-English languages grew 140% while the nation’s overall population grew 34%.

Moreover, the amount of foreign investments made in the U.S. tripled from 2000 to 2010, and more than 5% of the nation’s workers are employed by firms majority-owned by foreign entities, according to the Commerce Department.

As a result, businesses that offer translating and interpreting services are expanding to meet the exploding demand. More.

See: Los Angeles Times

The Govern takes down English version of its site due to errors produced by machine translation (source in Spanish)

Source: La Vanguardia.com

The Govern took down the  English version of its site  www.govern.cat because the names of the members of the Government were mistranslated. For example, Artur Mas appeared as The President More or More President. Read more.

See: La Vanguardia.com

Volunteers compile Arabic E-dictionary

Source: The Wall Street Journal Blog

Despite the growth in the number of people in the Middle East using social media such as Twitter and Facebook there is a problem. Arabic does not have words for many technology terms, so volunteers are creating a glossary.

Gulf News explains:

“The glossary will break a big barrier because many users resort to combining English terminology with the Arabic text, so we want to change that and introduce the first Arabic technology and social media glossary,” said Sami Mubarak, co-founder of Taghreedat, who emphasised that the Arabic language constitutes only two per cent of online content.

With the support of [Abu Dhabi media investment group] twofour54 ibtikar, Taghreedat is set to introduce the first Arabic Tech/Web 2.0 Dictionary and forge a standard list that can be used among Arab speakers worldwide, irrespective of their local dialect.

The project has reportedly involved about 2,500 volunteers from 28 countries. The aim is to make the glossary available as a free download.

See: The Wall Street Journal Blog

African Academy of Languages (ACALAN) proposes new working languages for ECOWAS

Source: Information Nigeria Org

THE African Academy of Languages (ACALAN) which has been collaborating with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on language matters, has proposed experimentation with three cross-border languages of Fulfulde, Mandekan and Hausa as additional working languages of ECOWAS to fast-track regional integration and development.

This is in conformity with Article 62(c) of the ECOWAS Treaty that mandates promoting the learning and dissemination of a West African

language as a factor in community integration, in addition to the current official working languages of English, French and Portuguese.

Besides, the ad-hoc committee monitoring the implementation of ECOWAS Regional

Culture Development and Integration Programme has recommended that a study on the contributions of culture to the economy of member states and the region be conducted by the end of the first quarter of 2013.

This was one of the key recommendations by the committee at its sixth meeting held from April 16 to 19, 2012 in Cotonou, Republic of Benin.

See: Information Nigeria Org

European Medicines Agency publishes new versions of controlled vocabularies

Source: European Medicines Agency

The European Medicines Agency publishes new versions of controlled vocabularies used to comply with Article 57 (2) requirements on submission of information on medicines

The European Medicines Agency has published a set of updated versions of Extended EudraVigilance product report message (XEVMPD) controlled vocabularies. These vocabularies support marketing authorisation holder compliance with Article 57(2) of the 2010 pharmacovigilance legislation, which requires marketing-authorisation holders to submit information to the Agency electronically on all medicines for human use authorised in the European Union by 2 July 2012.

The controlled vocabularies will be updated regularly to improve the standardisation of the terminology used in the electronic submission of medicinal product information to the Agency.

See: European Medicines Agency

Language barriers blamed for miscues

Source: The Wall Srteet Journal

Nearly half the executives at global companies believe language barriers have spoiled cross-border deals and caused financial losses for companies, says a report from the Economist Intelligence Unit, a business research unit of Economist Group, the Economist magazine’s parent.

The report, sponsored by language-training company EF Education First, was based on a poll of 572 senior executives world-wide.

Executives at companies based in Brazil and China said they were most affected by misunderstandings, with 74% and 61%, respectively, reporting financial losses as a result of failed international deals.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents said that misfires in their internal cross-border communications resulted in lost productivity. Among Brazilian managers, the figure jumped to 77%.

To improve communications, many global companies are trying to adopt English as an official language. A multilingual approach “is inefficient and can prevent important interactions from taking place and get in the way of achieving key goals,” Harvard Business School professor Tsedal Neeley wrote in this month’s Harvard Business Review.

But English-only policies can build other communication obstacles, she wrote, because non-native speakers may withdraw from group projects, lose self-confidence or ignore the rules entirely.

Communication difficulties are becoming increasingly costly as companies seek to expand their operations globally. More than three-quarters of the companies surveyed said they expect to have an operational presence in more countries in the next three years, and nine in 10 said they expect their overseas client base to grow; but 89% also said language and custom challenges are stifling their international plans. More.

See: The Wall Srteet Journal

Translators without Borders: one million words posted so far in 2012

Source: Translator T.O.

The humanitarian organizations operating with Translators without Borders posted for translation 282,918 words in April and a total of 1,005,281 words during the first 4 months of 2012. This represents a 52% increase with respect to the 663K words received during the first 4 month of 2011.

A heartfelt thank you to the worthy volunteers that make these achievements possible! Most volunteers belong to the ProZian community and some 40% of them are part of ProZ.com Certified PRO Network.

See: Translator T.O.

Also see Translators without Borders’ volunteers praised by the “Fundación Infantil Ronald McDonald”

Course aims to preserve language

Source: The Fiji Times Online

THE indigenous Fijian language, culture, and tradition are being endangered as never before, according to the University of Fiji’s Centre for iTaukei Studies director Master Joji Uluinakauvadra.

While officially launching the university’s Diploma in the Teaching of the Fijian Language program at the Saweni Campus on Monday, Mr Uluinakauvadra said iTaukei culture, language and tradition were being hit by winds of change as never before.

Mr Uluinakauvadra said the Diploma in the Teaching of the Fijian Language Program was aimed at helping to preserve the indigenous language and ultimately the culture and tradition.

See: The Fiji Times Online