Ebonics refers to the dialect or ethnolect associated with African Americans in the United States.  It is a combination of words and grammatical forms from American English and from various tribal dialects brought over by captured slaves.  Though often considered a spoken language, it does sometimes appear in literature by or about African Americans, and features prominently in song lyrics in jazz, rap, and other African American music.

Ebonics has strong cultural connotations which may or may not be advantageous.  Sometimes a person will adopt Ebonics—or at least a few aspects of it—into their speech quite deliberately, so as to cultivate a certain impression of being authentic and folksy.  President Obama might be pointed to as an example.  Obama was often accused of being too elitist in his days as a Presidential candidate.  In one stage in his campaign, he modified his accent and diction, apparently adopting a few aspects of Ebonics in order to counter such criticisms.  Other times, people who speak it will try to suppress it in themselves so as to appear more educated and prosperous.

For the outsider, understanding Ebonics can be harder than it looks.  Some of the words are unfamiliar, or have a changed meaning.  The grammar is also significantly different.  How, then, are you supposed to learn Ebonics?  Will you have a hard time finding translation service or books that will help you understand Ebonics?  Of course.  Is this because a person speaking “standard” English does not need professional translation in order to decipher Ebonics?  Of course, this is false.  Ebonics can easily befuddle non-speakers.  Rather, it might be because many people believe Ebonics is not worth learning.  It simply does not have the cachet of, say, French, for which you can easily find classes and human translation.

Actually, Ebonics, being treated less formally than other types of speech, can be said to be almost entirely passed about by human translation.  If you cannot learn or translate it out of books or programs, you pick it up by immersing yourself in the culture, places, and music associated with it.  This is the most “human” way to learn a language or dialect: a way of life being used as a translation service.

Then again, the cultural associations of Ebonics are rather complicated, especially if we take a global view.  Many people who are neither African Americans nor from predominantly African-American neighborhoods sometimes adopt Ebonics.  Stereotypically, this is spurred by an interest in rap and hip hop.  However, the link between Ebonics and such music is also complicated, and perhaps even weakening, since many non-Anglophone communities have also developed their own rap and hip hop. For instance, German rap artist Bushido is quite popular among German-speaking communities, and he has little to do with Ebonics.

Still, the situation for Ebonics and other ethnolects is changing.  Many American teachers believe that Ebonics should be given more recognition and respect, instead of being treated as wrong and substandard.  With schools being more accepting of Ebonics, perhaps the racial and classist prejudices some people have towards it will erode.

The above trend forebodes well for translators as both the continents have myriad of languages in use. The demand will not be just translation with English as source or target language but also other combinations like Spanish/Chinese, German/Korean, and French/Korean, Italian/Hindi etc. as well.

Similarly the opportunities in Africa are huge. Although there are hundreds of local languages spoken in Africa, they are still not very well developed. Business is predominantly conducted in English, French, Portuguese and Arabic at present. Hence in the immediate future translation in these language pairs viz. English/French, French/Arabic etc are expected to be in demand. Over a period of time translation from / into the other African languages will also be required.

According to a Commonsense Advisory survey on global translation companies, the top 25 companies are reporting solid growth in revenues through localization, translation, internationalization business. Each year they are reporting higher revenues than previous year as well as the list is becoming more global. The top 25 list includes language service providers from diverse range of countries like U.S., UK, Switzerland, China, Finland, France, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden.

This growth augurs well for the future of both in house translators as well as freelancers. Some of the reasons for this globalization trend include decoupling of the world economy from the U.S. economy. As the global GDP share shifts from US and other European to lesser known countries like Brazil, China, India, Russia, Korea etc. there is bound to be more business interaction by these countries with the rest of the world. This will fuel more and more translation services from and into the languages spoken in these emerging economies.

Another reason for the growth of translation companies is multiculturalism which results in companies and governments striving to meet the needs of diverse population at home and abroad. It attracts lot of public funds as well as marketing dollars. Thus globalization forebodes well for translators and interpreters as discussed in another blog and they can look ahead with optimism.

The basic difference between translation and interpretation is that the former is a written task while the latter is an oral task. Translation involves changing a written text from a source language to a target language. Interpretation involves listening to a speech or conversation in a source language and orally convert it into a target language.

The difference between translation and interpretation may look subtle but actually the skills required are quite different. While a translator has to be good writer, interpreters need to be skilled in oral communication. The spoken language can be quite different from written language with slang etc. which adds to the complexity. Translators generally work alone in doing their job while interpreters work with two or more people depending on whether it is a head to head meeting or conference, seminar etc.

The common types of translation are human translation, machine translation, machine assisted translation, screen translation (making subtitles of movies etc.) etc. Interpretation is mainly of 2 types: consecutive interpretation which is performed in head to head meetings in both directions and simultaneous interpretation in which a speech is simultaneously interpreted in a target language like a meeting in U.N. in a single direction.

Interpretation is done in real time while translation is offline. Interpreters have the choice of consulting the speaker for more clarity if required while a translator has no such luxury. Translators usually sit alone in their chambers, ruminate over the material to be translated, consult thesaurus or dictionaries while doing their job. Rarely there is opportunity for the translator to interact with the original writer before translating. Thus translation is an inorganic process while interpretation is more organic with scope for consultation with the speaker.

Translations are often delivered as a single product meaning thereby the order is unimportant i.e. you can do the end first before the beginning. Also the time pressure in translation is less compared to interpretation. Interpreters do not have that luxury and are under intense time pressure to deliver the job in real time. Translators can revise their work and fine tune and polish it before delivery which is not possible in interpretation. Interpretation is more about catching the essence or meat of the speech while translators can afford to focus on the nuances or subtle differences while executing their job.

Thus the experience that a translator and an interpreter undergo while doing their job is vastly different as also the skills required.

Hiring an in-house translator does have its good points.  You will talk to the translator face-to-face.  The translator can learn very well how your business is run, and might even be able to suggest ways to improve the “original” English versions of your content.  (Of course, an outsourced partner whom you repeatedly work with might be able to do something similar.)

Then again, in-office professional translation can place a greater burden on the employer.  Firstly, you may have to help maintain the translator’s equipment. An outsourced professional translator, on the other hand, is not “your” employee.  If he/she experiences technical difficulties, he/she will take responsibility for them—and for delivering their work on time, despite the problem.

You will also be able to pay an outsourced translator according to the amount of work you need done.  An in-office translator, on the other hand, is likely to want a regular wage or salary.  Otherwise, why come to the office regularly at all?  Even if you have come to a satisfying, work-based agreement as to fee, you will still have to go to the cost and effort of actually making space for the person in your office.  This will be a major concern for businesses that only want a few things translated, or have very small premises.

Last but not least, there is also the issue of time.  There are some things, like the translation of correspondence with major foreign partners or customers, which need to be translated right away.  It is true that an in-house translator can be made to take care of the work quickly, since he/she is standing by throughout the day.  However, something similar can also be said for an outsourced translation service.  Certain websites exist that can put you in contact with people who can translate your text an hour after receiving it.

Ultimately, outsourced translation offers many of the same benefits as in-office service, with much more convenience.  Give it a try as you make your business go global.

Of course, the demand for human translation has also led to a rise in the supply of translation service providers.  Not all of these cultural bridge-builders are professionally trained.  For a highly informal example, a person who has grown up with parents who run an inn for foreigners might simply “pick up” other languages.  This person may serve as a guide for guests, and one of his or her functions will be to provide basic translation service.

However, in matters of business or politics, one needs even more fine-tuned understanding.  Such fields then take advantage of the professionalization of translation service.  Many people who take jobs in professional translation have received specialized training in at least one of the languages involved, usually in the form of academic studies.

However, it should not be assumed that taking language classes for a few semesters is highly unlikely to prepare you for a career in professional translation, particularly if we are talking about a job as a simultaneous translator or interpreter.  The difficulties will soon emerge if one tries to translate spoken words.  This is because teachers in academic settings often speak more slowly and clearly than most native speakers of the language do to one another.  Thus, even a person who has done reasonably well in basic-to-intermediate-level classes may find that, when confronted with native speakers, he or she has difficulty even distinguishing one word from another.  Perhaps, if one were to dedicate one’s undergraduate years primarily to learning the language, the situation would be very different.

There is also the fact that not all university language programs are equal.  It is quite possible for you to think that your university program is good, but to find out, after several classes, that it simply does not measure up.  A surer bet might be to take classes in an official language institute, such as the Instituto Cervantes (for Spanish) or the Goethe Institut (for German).  These institutes have branches all over the world, are standardized, and are connected to the governments of the countries whose languages they teach.  They also offer access to informative (and sometimes rather fun) training and cultural events.

The social networking sites can also serve as useful tool for freelance translators in linking up with fellow translators, exchange ideas, self promotion etc. Some of the popular social networking sites include Facebook, Bebo, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, Nexopia, Hi5, Tagged, Orkut, Friendster, ProZ etc. Though accessible worldwide, some of these sites have geographical preferences i.e. they are more popular in certain geographies and languages than others.

Blogging is another way of utilizing social media to keep in touch with others as well as promote business. You can use Wordpress for macroblogging and Twitter, LinkedIn, ProZ for microblogging. You can converse with other fellow translators via blogging and leaving comments on other blogs. You can join relevant translation related blogging communities using tools such as Technorati, MyBlogLog etc. You can join translation community forums in Google, Yahoo, ProZ etc. and also sites like LinkedIn, Proz, Ning etc and provide back links to your website and increase your footprint in the cyber world. Google Analytics can be used to measure the impact of the online tools that you are using.

The social media sites mentioned above can help you build relationships and create a personal brand of yourself in the world of translation. Building a brand not only attracts more customers but also increases your market value and helps in establishing yourself. They can help in building your reputation. In addition social bookmarks like Delicious, StumbleUpon, Magnolia etc. allow you to ‘listen’ to the conversational hubs that you may be interested in. They keep you abreast of recent happenings in the world of translation.

To sum up, social media sites are an inexpensive means of marketing as well as a source of latest information for freelance translators. They can be used to your advantage in making an impression in the translation world and establish your brand identity.

There are 2 aspects to receiving payments from abroad: one is the mode of receiving payment and the other is managing exchange rate fluctuations. As far as the first point is concerned you have the following options of getting paid for your translation services: Company issued MasterCard like the One Hour Translation MasterCard, banker’s check, direct transfer (wire transfer) to bank accounts, ACH (Automatic Clearing House), or utilize the services of private providers like Paypal, MoneyBookers, etc. While the direct transfer to your bank account may be the least expensive in terms of service charges, using private service providers such as Paypal etc. may prove to be more expensive.

Exchange rate fluctuation is an important factor to consider when receiving payment in different currencies. One way of managing it is to open bank account in the currency in which your client pays you and probably in the country where he/she is based. Thus you may have to open multiple accounts if you have clients from different countries paying you in their local currency. You can choose to transfer the amount from any account to your home currency account when the exchange rates are most favorable. But this approach of having multiple currency accounts may entail more maintenance expenses compared to a single multi currency account even though it will be convenient from the client’s point of view.

The next option is to open a multi currency account in a single bank. A multi-currency account is a bank account with a single account number in which you can hold balances in diverse currencies. This type of account gives you the benefit of foreign exchange rate flexibility as with multiple currency accounts. In this type of account you can transfer money in and out in any of the currencies including international SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) transfers with no restriction.  The maintenance expenses of a multi-currency account are generally less than keeping multiple currency accounts as it has single service fee, single minimum deposit etc. Multi-currency accounts are a good, conservative way to hedge against currency risks or make exchange rate fluctuations work in your favor.

Finally utilizing the services of private providers like Paypal etc should be the last option as they involve considerable service charges. Not only you have to pay fees in effecting transfers but the exchange rate may be unfavorable. Typically you may have to bear anywhere between 5 and 10% of the money transferred as fees. Thus you have to carefully weigh the pros and cons of each payment method and decide which one suits you most before sending quotes for the translation job you are about to undertake from across the border!

Those users prefer buying apps in their native languages. Some apps even became a single-country “hit” (see here) thanks to a wise decision of their developer to localize them.

Here’s a short guide. Some of the tips are ours, some from our customers experience and some were gathered on the Internet.

1. Use translators who translate to their native language only. Mobile apps are used for daily tasks, so a translation made by a translator who isn’t familiar with the small nuances of his native language will effect negatively the chances of viral marketing of the app in the target country.
2. Supply the translator as much information as possible about your app functionality. Be very descriptive. Translators are most probably not a users of your app. Insert a note or a description tag for every phrase. It is a lot of work – but you only need to do it one time for all your local versions.
3. The next tip is true for all types of software / websites localization processes: try reusing the same phrases whenever possible. It will save you money and the result will be much better.
4. This is not a tip. This is a warning: do not use machine translation for your apps. The result may ruin your app and brand reputation. Machine translation tools are good for general understanding of meaning, not for real life uses.
5. Use translators with rich knowledge in technology, software and mobile apps. They will be fluent with the precise translation of the terms you used. They will be fine with the code that surrounds your source phrases.
6. Do not put markup code inside the source phrases. Especially not behavior tags. Simply split such code into two different phrases. If possible, use CSS instead of markup.
7. Do not skip translating the help files, the marketing content and your website. Your customers will not buy the app without reading and exploring it first.
8. Use TLD (Top Level Domains) if possible for your website. It will increase your odds in the target countries to appear in higher positions in search engines.
9. Split long paragraphs into smaller strings, preferably full sentences.
10. Use expandable layouts, as the translations may be shorter or longer than the source.