Category Archives: foreign language
Translation and the meaning of everything?
I like this video promoting a witty new book about translation: It’s a brilliant introduction to the sort of conundrums that can crop up in translating even the most “common sense” concepts. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Also posted in literature, translation 1 Comment
Uncover global languages with captivating interactive atlas
Anyone who shares my fascination with language and uncovering the obscure will enjoy browsing the UNESCO Atlas of the World’s Languages in Danger. There are reckoned to be over 6,000 languages in the world with some half of those under threat of extinction this century. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Also posted in education, Endangered language, global, language, multilingual Leave a comment
Google: “Translations aren’t perfect”
Google Vice President Dr Vint Cerf has warned about relying too much on the accuracy of translation from Google Translate. He should know: not only is he Google’s “Chief Internet Evangelist” but he is widely regarded as one of the “fathers” of the internet. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Also posted in machine translation, translation 1 Comment
Does foreign language have a place in translating literature?
It sounds a mad question, but “Does foreign language have a place in translating literature?” Put differently, when translating literature, how many words should be left in the original language? Should “foreign” words in English-language texts convey a sense of a culture, or be used as a last resort for the “untranslatable”? These questions are [...]
Also posted in literature, localisation, Stieg Larsson Leave a comment
Celebrate International Translation Day 2010 with our e-card
Tomorrow is International Translation Day, and we have produced a free e-card for you to download or pass on. Each year the day takes a theme, highlighting a different area of translation. This year’s theme is “Translation Quality for a Variety of Voices”. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Also posted in International Translation Day, multilingual, professional, translation 4 Comments
Endangered languages: last chance to hear?
A very interesting item from BBC Radio 4′s Today programme about endangered languages. At the moment, some 7,000 languages are spoken globally but some predict that number will shrink in the next few decades. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Posted in foreign language 1 Comment
European Day of Languages 2009
Tomorrow sees the annual European Day of Languages. Initiated by the Council of Europe in 2001, this day sees various celebrations of language, diveristy and foreign language learning across Europe every 26 September. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Also posted in EU, European Day of Languages, European Union, translation 1 Comment
Do you tweet basic Arabic?
A language school based in Dubai are planning to make use of Twitter to bring basic Arabic language to a worldwide audience. Followers of the Eton Institute will get a daily lesson, containing an English transliteration of an Arabic phrase. • Jim Dickson is a director of WorldAccent Translation, London
Also posted in Arabic Leave a comment
Translated literature for the new year