#SpeakGlobally

What Is Translation and How Is it Done?

Translation is in fact an inherent aspect of all parts of life.

To answer this question, first of all we have to understand what communication is. As social beings, communication is one of the most important tools of development and learning for humans. Communication in its most basic meaning is the process of transferring emotions, thoughts, behaviors, and information between a sender and a receiver. There must be a sender and a receiver for the communication to take place. Communication takes place in a written, verbal, and nonverbal form, and each of these three forms complement each other. It is an irreplaceable tool in order for individuals to survive, social and individual needs to be met, and societies to develop.

It is thought that human beings, who have a very short history in comparison to the world which is estimated to be 4.5 billion years old, appeared 200,000 years ago. If we think about this period of time–a drop in the ocean in terms of the Earth’s history but an age on the part of human beings–we can easily understood why people needed communication to survive.

About 10,000 years ago, some groups of people living independently in different parts of the world had their own languages and cultures. The development of sounds, languages, and vocabularies was hugely important in providing a means by which people could express themselves. After the developments in agriculture and techniques made by groups of people completely unaware of each other’s existence led to an increase in the population, these groups started to establish closer relationships. And a need for numbers, writing, and units of measurement arose in order to run the societies which developed together with this rapidly increasing communication.

A History of Translation

People with different cultures and languages have communicated with each other throughout history for many different purposes, from commerce and state matters, to immigration and marriage proposals. In other words, interpreting, or what we can call “spoken translation”, actually existed long before the invention of writing. We know that the invention of writing–another milestone just as important to the history of humanity as the birth of languages–dates back to about 5,000 years ago. With this development, agreements began to be translated between societies and, thus, communication gained a social momentum.

It is thanks to translation that the developments seen in the fields of religion, science, and commerce were able to influence all those human beings who were interacting with each other. Another breakthrough in the history of humanity was achieved with the invention of the printing press in the 15th century. The Renaissance and the Reformation changed the existing balances of the world and, having reached a certain level of welfare, technical capability, and freedom, humanity began to also thrive in terms of intellectuality through literary translations. Actually, what lies behind the fact that the entire world has access to all kinds of information, including scientific and technological developments, is multilingualism and translation.

Some research studies estimate that the world is home to between 6,000 and 9,000 languages, most of which have been forgotten. This finding makes it easier to get an idea of the long-established history and importance of translation.

In its simplest sense, translation means transferring a text into another language while maintaining its meaning. Despite its history being nearly as old as that of humanity, professional studies on translation only began in the 19th century. But, even though methods keep changing in today’s globalizing world, translation still maintains its vital importance.

What’s the Difference between a Translator and an Interpreter?

People are often confused about the terms “translation” and “interpreting”, which are generally used interchangeably, despite having different meanings. Interpreting refers to spoken translation and those who work with spoken translation are called interpreters. Translation, on the other hand, refers to written translation. That’s why, today, many universities offering translation education name their courses Translation and Interpreting.

What Are Translation Specializations?

Written translation includes a whole range of specializations, such as academic translation, literary translation, book translation, technical translation, maritime translation, commercial translation, medical translation, and website translation. Interpreting, on the other hand, is divided into two main categories: consecutive translation and simultaneous translation. In addition to written and spoken translation, some other fields, such as localization and machine translation, have come to the fore in this global world requiring different language solutions for different needs.

Although different strategies are followed for different purposes in the process of translation, the most important goal is to ensure that the target text bears the same meaning as the source text.

At EDU Language Group, we’re right by your side, offering translation and localization services in all languages and specializations since 2005 through our sub-brands each with great expertise in their different fields!

What Is Translation?

Acting as a bridge that allowed communication between societies in areas of commerce, science, and religion, in brief, enabling communication among people throughout history, translation was carried out in a spoken form until the invention of writing, when it then became a written discipline. It was in the second half of the 20th century when translation became recognized as a science and an interdisciplinary practice requiring expertise.

In its simplest sense, translation is the process of relaying a message from a source language into a target language. This act is also referred to as the emergence of a target text bridging a source and target language. Although the terms translator and interpreter are often used interchangeably, a translator is someone who engages in written translation, while an interpreter works with spoken translation.

How Is a Text Translated?

Unlike interpreting, written translation involves the process of reading a source text in the context of a specialized field, conducting the necessary research, translating it using the correct terminology, and having it checked to correct any errors. Thus, it takes more time compared to interpreting, but presents less risk for error. Despite it traditionally being solitary work, today faster results are being produced through collaborative work thanks to computer-assisted translation tools.

Translation Specializations

The idea that all you need to be a translator is knowledge of a foreign language is one of the biggest misconceptions facing the translation industry today. Indeed, there are crucial differences between amateur translations and those carried out by professionals. Delivering a good translation not only requires an expertise in the source and target languages, but also an expertise in both cultures and the subject of the translation. Getting translations done by unqualified individuals in order to cut costs often costs a client more than what they would have paid in the first place if they had chosen to work with a translation office recognized for its success. Some major specialized areas of translation requiring particular professional expertise are academic translation, literary translation, book translation, technical translation, maritime translation, commercial translation, medical translation, and website translation.

Thanks to our experienced teams at EDU Language Group brands offering translation services in every language and specialization, you too can #SpeakGlobally and get your message to the world!

What Is Interpreting?

Although it is written translation that generally springs to mind when it comes to translation, the oldest tradition is actually spoken translation. Verbal communication existed before writing and has been the most important tool in human relations throughout the history of humanity. The work and practices involved in interpreting, which can be defined as the process of relaying a message as exactly as possible from a source language to a target language in spoken form, differ from written translation by their very nature.

The most distinct difference between interpreting and translation is that translation concerns a written text carried out to a certain deadline. However, interpreting is carried out either simultaneously with the speaker or right after the speaker has finished talking. This means that interpreting is a translation made within a very limited timeframe, or even instantly. Unlike written translation, interpreting offers no chance to go back and check or correct the translation, and interpreters normally travel to the client, rather than working in-house or having the client come to them.

What Types of Interpreting Are There?

There are two main types of interpreting: consecutive interpreting and simultaneous interpreting. In consecutive interpreting, the speaker says a few sentences and gives a pause. The interpreter takes notes while the speaker is talking and then at the pause relays what has been said so far. Standing out as a less costly alternative as it does not require any special equipment, consecutive translation is often preferred for small business meetings, police examinations, hearings, and technical discussion meetings. This type of translation not only requires an excellent command of both the source and target languages, an exceptional memory, and advanced note-taking skills, but also a prior knowledge of and background research into the topic at hand.

Simultaneous translation, on the other hand, requires technical equipment, such as special interpreting rooms and audio systems and offers real-time translation as the speaker talks. It is generally preferred at occasions such as large-scale events, trade/press meetings, congresses, seminars, and conferences. Allowing the audience to understand the speaker immediately, this translation requires special expertise. Interpreters with special training in this field not only need to have an excellent command of the source and target languages and cultures, expert knowledge of the topic, and perfect diction and communication skills, but should also be able to successfully manage extreme levels of stress.

If you too require interpreting services to #SpeakGlobally and get your message to the world, then EDU Language Group is the best option out there, with a proven record in providing professional interpreters with expertise in all languages and specializations since 2005!

What Is Localization?

Localization is a very important procedure in the practice of translation and is a specialization within the field of written translation. In its simplest form, localization requires one to use the most suitable expressions available in the target language when translating.

If questions such as, “Isn’t it enough to translate a message into another language in order to relay that message? Then why do we need localization and how is it done?” are popping up in your mind, then it will be helpful to look at some examples in order to explain this process. Have you ever noticed how world-famous brands use different campaigns for the same product to promote it in different countries and employ different marketing strategies to address different target audiences? That’s because this is the only way to establish an emotional relationship with the target audience and achieve success. From this point of view, if we liken translation to a human being then we can liken the human spirit to localization. A human lacking a spirit would be nothing but an organic robot.

Language is a living organism. Every language has a range of words and expressions that carry the same meaning. Just look at how dynamic language is as a concept, how easily terms go in and out of fashion, and the differences in the vocabulary used by different ethnic groups, people of different religions, and different geographical locations. Likewise, each technical and professional field has its own unique usage of certain terms. All of this means that in order to produce a quality and effective localization, an excellent knowledge of the target language culture and the text’s context, as well as the source language culture is extremely important.

Today, localization is most needed in the field of marketing, by brands and companies aiming to get direct sales through their websites, in gaming, books, and literary works, as well as in the media industry when it comes to the content of movies and TV series.

If your company also needs localization services in these or other specializations you can opt for EDU Language Group brands’ localization services offered by a dedicated team of web design specialists, IT technicians, professional translators and certified project managers working with extensive software applications and equipment.

What Is Machine Translation?

In its most general sense, machine translation is an automatic translation produced using certain algorithms. The first machine translations in history were the Georgetown–IBM Experiment of 1954 and the ALPAC Report of 1966. The report concluded that machine translation was unworkable, however, it suggested that studies be conducted on how to speed up human translations, improve computer-assisted translations, create practical translation assessment methods, solve reference data, vocabulary, and terminological issues, detect factors causing delays, and find ways to improve these. In 1968, one of the first pieces of machine translation software was produced by SYSTRAN, which served the United States Air Force during the Cold War and later the European Commission.

Nevertheless, before the 1990s, the costs of machine translation were too high, it required a huge amount of expertise, presented too many terminological issues, and had limited opportunities for optimization. That was until IBM developed a word-based statistical translation model compatible with software systems and using the Shannon-Weaver Communication Model, not only one of the leading models of human communication, but also electronic communication. Requiring a great number of algorithms due to the fact that language structures are all dynamic, machine translation took its current shape with hybrid systems, also known as human-assisted machine translation. From then on machine translations started to produce more and more successful results thanks to artificial intelligence technology.

At EDU Language Group we have been making a series of hardware, software and database investments since 2013, and as a return, in January 2015, we were able to launch our brand Transistent, which provides our clients with machine translation and quality automation services. The most important feature distinguishing the machine translation service offered by Transistent from ordinary machine translation tools is the fact that it boasts engines that are customized according to sector. Correction and control processes can be carried out at different stages during the machine translation process. Thanks to the technology used by Transistent, which is currently the only company in Türkiye and the Middle East offering services in this field, you can reduce your translation costs by 30-50% and deliver your projects 30-50% faster. If you have a special project for which you would like to use machine translation, post-editing or quality automation services, and if you are looking to stay ahead of the game with the latest technology, then Transistent is the right choice for you!

Transcription, Subtitling, Dubbing and Video Content Localization

Do you need language services for any conferences and seminars you’re holding, radio and TV shows you’re attending, or videos and documentaries that you’ve prepared? Then our transcription, subtitling, dubbing and video content localization services are just what you need!

Simply put, transcription is the process of having video and audio recordings put down in writing by specialists using special programs. At the end of the transcription process, it is of great importance to have a complete, correct and faultless text.

You may need to have your transcribed audio and video recordings or subtitle texts that have already been put down in writing translated. Producing a quality translation is not the only important thing in the process of subtitle translation. Expert knowledge of things such as synchronization and time codes, deciding how long the text will stay on the screen, also matters.

In addition to subtitling for films, TV series, video content used at your company, or your own special projects, you may also need dubbing, translation or video content localization services for the same. Among the most important requirements in dubbing translation are having a high-quality translation, finding the most suitable dubbing artist for your video, and ensuring that the voice and the narration of the artist matches the spirit of the video/film.

With expert technical teams, up-to-date programs and software applications to hand, you can put your trust in EDU Language Group brands to meet all your transcription, subtitling, dubbing, and video content localization needs! Feel free to combine these services or use them separately depending on your requirements.

Desktop Publishing

Producing a quality translation doesn’t automatically mean that you’re delivering a functional service. The format of the translation is also one of the most important aspects when it comes to ensuring customer satisfaction in the translation sector. Unfortunately, visual problems involving formatting, page layout, and design are some of the most basic issues appearing in the sector, mostly due to the lack of desktop publishing departments.

In the translation business, DTP departments consisting of experienced team members with an expertise in desktop publishing ensure that the documents delivered for translation are in the same format as the source files.

All translation projects have their own requirements, formats, and layouts. Documents such as brochures, books, invoices, and user manuals not only have different page layouts, but also have different visual aspects and designs. It is the responsibility of the Desktop Publishing Department to transfer the printed documents delivered for translation to the digital environment and ready documents in different formats for translation. It is again the Desktop Publishing Department that checks the presentation of the ready-to-print documents whose translations are completed, and, if necessary, takes care of formatting the visual items in these documents.

Thanks to our experienced Desktop Publishing teams, you can deliver your translations in a whole range of formats, including MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, PDF, Freehand, InDesign, CorelDRAW, QuarkXPress, Photoshop, XML and SGML. All your EDU Language Group translation services will be returned in the format of your choice in accordance with our zero-error policy!

Quality Control

People generally think that translation projects are carried out and completed in one go. However, translation is a process that combines many disciplines and requires expertise in the subject of the translation, in addition to a good knowledge of the related language and culture.

Translation is a long and complicated process and one of the most important stages of this process is the retrospective quality control process, which is carried out following the completion of the translation. An indicator of translation success and professionalism, this quality control process consists of a few different stages.

Together with all of its sub-brands, EDU Language Group has been offering its services in accordance with its zero-error policy and superior customer satisfaction principle since day one. Still, it is impossible to avoid a certain number of errors or omissions in any work done by a human. That’s why, in order to ensure their clients get the perfect translation, EDU Language Group brands use a four-stage quality control process that combines human skill and technology.

In this process:

1. The first stage is carried out by specialized editors who check elements such as translation integrity, grammar, terminology, and conformity with style guidelines.

2. In the second stage, the translation undergoes a detailed quality control to correct inconsistencies, numeric and spelling errors, as well as terminological mistakes, if any.

3. In the third stage, the DTP Department checks the page layout, names, numbers, and appearance of the target text prepared in its original format.

4. In the fourth and final stage, proofreaders whose native languages match the target languages check the target text in terms of fluency, appropriateness in the target culture, and terminology.

Naturally, if your translation does not undergo this process, you risk important details of your project being omitted and serious errors being made. This is where EDU Language Group brands come in, offering professional services in all languages and specializations with their expert teams always working diligently through each of these processes to deliver the perfect translation. If quality is your priority too, then you’ve come to the right place!