For example, even within English, there are regional differences that can sometimes prevent fellow English speakers from having the same understanding of even simple conversations. Winter can get cold, and when that happens, people in the United States (US) might want to buy a sweater. However, in the United Kingdom (UK), if you asked for a sweater, you might be met with some confusion. Sweater is not the common word that people in the UK would use. Instead, they would use the word “jumper.” Conversely, if you asked for a “jumper” in the US, you would be met with a lot of confusion because the word “jumper” is typically reserved for people who do such activities as jumping.

Moreover, word for word conversion is the number one killer in rendering translation and interpretation. Often times, target audiences have no idea of what a translation is trying to say is because of that. For example, we often have to adjust English to Chinese translations done by other people, and to make the focus of each point clear and to be sure it’s easy to read and understand. The issue is that the original translation was literally written in a way that followed English words and grammar too closely. Unfortunately, Chinese grammar is not the same as English grammar. Therefore, ideas/points were not communicated easily and clearly for Chinese readers.

Another tough aspect to deal with is related to cultures. Many translators or interpreters struggle to find a perfect fit to certain idioms or phrases that might be frequently used in one country, but not in another. For example, in Japan, every time they eat, they have a small ritual of expressing gratitude for the food both before and after eating the food. In most other cultures, there is no such ritual, so it is hard to perfectly translate it. In general, there are many phrases in Japanese to show respect that would not translate easily into other languages without the same kind of rituals. Instead, translators and interpreters will have to skirt around and find similar phrases or words that will be “good enough” to convey the meaning.

Culture is a big part of what makes languages end up having such a big gap in phrases and words, and because of that, a one to one translation is virtually impossible for languages. There will almost always be at least some tiny nuance that is lost in translation. Even so, translators and interpreters do their best to minimize these bumps in the road. Translators and interpreters ensure that even if nuances are lost, an understanding is still able to be passed on, which in our opinion is the essence of translation and interpretation.

The English language spoken today is Late Modern English. Over the years English has evolved very much so in its vocabulary. Many words have been added to the language because of the Industrial Revolution and as technology has developed. Also, since the British Empire had so many colonies spread throughout the world the language adopted many words from other foreign languages.

It is particularly interesting when looking at how many different varieties of English there are. Some variations include Australian English, Canadian English, South African English and American English.

Although it may be difficult to clearly identify different variations. At the end of the day, it is all English, each with its own unique twist.

Siri, Apple’s new iPhone 4S app, is still struggling with picking up dialects and its ability to recognize language, so this application is long in the works. 

New technologies come up almost every day with ways to make life easier and more efficient, but may not cover the entire subject. For example, in the case of the new translation services the iPhone application Siri is looking to provide, they only offer services in six languages and dialects, American English, British English, Australian English, French, German and Japanese.

Here’s how the new translation technology is set to work, from the technology blog pcworld.com:

“The voice commands are recorded by the iPhone and then shipped to the cloud for interpretation. For example, when in Paris, a user’s iPhone could offer a translation to: “Quelle est la date d’aujourd’hui” and in response the user could reply in English, with the other person’s Siri translating the answer into their own language. The iPhone could use the GPS location to speed up translation by defaulting to the most likely language.”

Monterey Language Services can provide a more diversified translation experience with the highest quality. Monterey Language Services has access to over 10,000 translators and interpreters, offering translation and interpretation services for 175 languages and dialects to clients around the world. This broad range is sure to meet the needs of any who use the service. 

The fight with new technologies is usually about quality or quantity, but Monterey Language Services has them beat in both.