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Translation by Interpreters and Interpreting by Translators

September 3, 2021

There is an ongoing debate in the language industry whether translation and interpreting services can be rendered by the same person. Needless to say, while these two services are related, the primary responsibilities and skills that a person needs to provide translation or interpreting services differ.

Meanwhile, many people who are not too familiar with linguistic services think that translation and interpreting are the same trade. Linguistically, this is well illustrated in Russian-speaking countries, where “переводчик” means both translator and interpreter. From the customer perspective, “переводчик” deals with different languages, either working on the written text or providing an oral rendition. In this aspect, the two trades are the same.

The International Standard ISO 17100 “Translation services — Requirements for translation services” does not restrict whether a translator can also handle interpreting assignments. It only mentions that a professional translator shall have competencies, including linguistic and textual, in both the source and target languages.[i]

Someone who professionally translates from one language into another accepts an ethical and professional duty to represent their qualifications, capabilities and responsibilities honestly and always work within them. Being truthful in advertising applies to professional translators and interpreters: our resumes, websites, brochures, business cards, manner, and non-verbal emotional tone all must accurately reflect who we are and what we can actually do, both practically and professionally.[ii]

Following that logic, a translator must decline, say, a request to help their client with over-the-phone interpreting of a conversation with a draft contract’s other party. Likewise, an interpreter has to decline a proposal to translate pitch decks used at a conference where this interpreter is engaged, despite being immersed in the event’s context and thus knowing these particular pitch decks’ content well.

To a certain extent, I agree with that. As a freelance translator, I have to decline an assignment that I cannot properly perform when it is beyond my qualifications. And what about those assignments that are within the scope of my abilities, even though I was never professionally trained and qualified in that area? Is it still a good idea to miss out on a lucrative interpreting or translation assignment then?

At this point, I have to quote Corinne McKay, an ATA-certified French-to-English translator and former ATA president: “When you work full-time for an employer, you have one job title. When you work for yourself, you’re not only the translator but also the department head for sales and marketing, technical support, customer relations, accounting and facilities maintenance. Unless you’re willing and able to pay someone to do these tasks for you, you’ll be doing them yourself, in addition to your regular job.”[iii]

To run a successful business, freelancers therefore do not have to miss a business opportunity if they feel up to the task. And if we look at it that way, why not try out both translating and interpreting even if you are not yet qualified in the twin trades?

In this regard, I believe that besides developing a specialization in a particular field, it is essential to find a niche in which offering a specific service really makes a freelance translator or interpreter stand out.

In his recent article “Does the jack of all trades still get the short end of the stick?”, the current editor of The NAJIT Observer, Jules Lapprand, stated, “Translators and interpreters have a superficial knowledge of almost any topic, and unless they have extensive experience in another profession, deep knowledge of only one: language. This reality was difficult for me to accept initially.” This quote resonated with me as I think translators and interpreters need not be afraid of gaining the “jack of all trades (and master of none)” moniker if they are trying out a new area of specialization. As a matter of fact, we have to be interested in new topics, master new areas, and find niches to stand out in. Otherwise, our overall marketing and messaging will more likely speak to no one. Courtroom interpreting with its “structured legalese and its own language that does not change as quickly as the latest fads do in other areas”[iv] is an excellent example of interpreter’s specialization. In other words, offering legal translation and court interpreting services at any time can be a niche.

Since we have a profound knowledge of language, we should be using that to its full extent, not limiting ourselves to one of the twin trades of translation or interpretation.

Today, however, it is rare for a freelancer to be both a translator and an interpreter.

In a truly inspiring Troublesome Terps podcast episode #63,[v] high-profile conference interpreters Louise Jarvis, Monika Ott and Sybelle van Hal-Bok, three members of three very different networks admitted that they often do translations as well when the existing clients ask for it. It should be noted, however, that translation is only a small part of their businesses; they still focus primarily on conference interpreting.

In this context, I would suggest that not only are different skills required to render translation or interpreting services, but our psychological make-up is also important. The existing stereotype is that translators are usually introverts with a tendency toward being quiet and reserved. Interpreters, however, are more often extroverted in nature. In addition, we are all human. Like everyone else, translators and interpreters tend to fear failure in an area where they feel less confident. For this reason, when it comes to deciding between staying in your comfort zone or handling a twin trade assignment, language professionals would rather remain in their comfort zone (i.e., decline a twin trade assignment), no matter how lucrative it is.

When the language service is provided by a company, it is usually never asked whether translation and interpreting can both be offered, but when it comes to a freelancer working with end clients, it can oftentimes be that the end client likewise expects the contracted translator to interpret.

For example, I was recently interpreting for a client, a law firm partner, who had a phone conversation with the Legal 500 Rankings researcher to find out how to send a law firm submission. As soon as the client found out that he had to fill out the multi-page submission templates, he asked me to translate the templates into his language. Did I decline that offer? Of course not! This is just one scenario where an interpreter can and, I think, should also perform as a translator. Let’s take a closer look at other scenarios.

In my legal translation practice, I have often been asked to render interpreting services when the end client needs to expeditiously negotiate contract details or urgently talk to a counterparty who does not have access to the Internet and therefore is unable to quickly respond to an e-mail. Notably, the client rightly assumes that I am already immersed in the upcoming deal’s details as I have been drafting or translating the contract for some time now. In that scenario, I provide interpreting services.

Vice versa, clients may forward me audio messages asking me to let them know the messages’ content in writing in a meeting, which is why they can’t talk. With such requests, I translate, even though the source content is in audio form.

Another classic example of assignments at the juncture of the two twin trades is on-the-spot translation, which occurs when I am asked to orally render a written legal paper’s content. This is quite specific to business meetings and court sessions where the client has not had a chance to quickly find a translator and instead asks the interpreter for a sight translation. In that scenario, I translate. There is all the more reason for this as the Russian law does not yet provide for sworn interpreter status, so the Russian courts do not require a separate certification for court interpreting. In short, by primarily focusing on legal translation, I do not need to sub-contract court interpreting assignments. This strategy has proven beneficial by allowing me to retain existing clients and catch new business opportunities.

To summarize, provided that both the client and freelancer are happy, I think freelancers offering both translation and interpreting services, even those who were never professionally trained and qualified in the twin trades, are still legitimate.

Notes

[i] ISO 17100:2015(E), paragraph 3.3.

[ii] American Translators Association Code of Ethics and Professional Practice, 3rd tenet: https://www.atanet.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/code_of_ethics_commentary.pdf

[iii] Introduction to the book “How to Succeed as a Freelance Translator” by Corinne McKay. First Edition. 2006

[iv] “Does the jack of all trades still get the short end of the stick?” by Jules Lapprand. July 30, 2021

https://najit.org/does-the-jack-of-all-trades-still-get-the-short-end-of-the-stick/?unapproved=106974&moderation-hash=310e754a47eb598a50c8c69fb18c6b8e#comment-106974

[v] Troublesome Terps, a roundtable-style podcast covering topics from the interpreting space and the wider world of languages; episode # 63 of July 21, 2021: https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/troublesome-terps/63-interpreters-assemble-8TwuQZeFCaR/

Author bio

Dmitry Beschetny is an English>Russian translator and interpreter specializing in legal translation and court interpreting, based in Moscow. He holds a master’s degree in law and a master’s degree in humanities and social sciences, also having an academic qualification in translation studies.

Dmitry has extensive experience in criminal investigation and public prosecution. He has also worked as an in-house lawyer, and a legal counsel with law firms before turning his previous career into his area of specialization in the T&I industry. He has been translating and interpreting for academia, law firms and private clients. Dmitry can be reached at db@legalxlator.com. 

 

 

We would love to feature other guest authors who are translators and interpreters working with Slavic languages in future SLD Blog posts! If you have recommendations or would like to share expertise, please email the SLD Blog co-editors: Veronika Demichelis and Marisa Irwin.

Filed Under: Interpreting, Legal, Specializations, Translation Tagged With: interpreting, legal, Russian, specializations, translation

Localizing digital products into Russian: what is it like?

June 22, 2021


Photo by Christopher Gower on Unsplash

What is localization?

There are a few definitions out there. The course on Internationalization and Localization offered by the University of Washington (UWashingtonX) defines localization as “adaptation of digital content for a specific foreign market.” According to Nataly Kelly, who leads localization at HubSpot and has a great blog on this topic, “localization means adapting a digital experience for users who speak other languages or live in other countries.”

Localization is required when software products, websites, e-commerce and e-learning platforms, or mobile apps are made available to new markets.

In very basic terms, the localized digital product needs to:

  • cater to market needs
  • target a specific group of users
  • connect with users emotionally
  • be culturally appropriate
  • be easy to navigate

What do localization projects involve?

Localizability work often comes before localization to ensure that the process is as smooth as can be. This involves, among other things, transferring strings that need translation into a standalone file, separating text from images, making provisions for text expansion, and using placeholders.

Then comes the time for localizing both the content and the user interface (UI), making it accessible to users in the new market. Translation is usually sufficient for the more straightforward content, whereas UI, taglines, headings, call-to-action (CTA) buttons, and images might require a more creative approach to ensure that the product resonates with users.

What to look out for when localizing into Russian?

1. Level of formality. When starting a localization project from scratch, it’s important to determine how to address users, formally or informally, using «вы» or «ты». This is often decided by the client or together with the client. In fact, the same product might have different levels of formality between different languages: it might address users as “vous” in French, “du” in German, and «вы» in Russian.

A word of caution: it is often easier to start off with «вы» and use it throughout the project. This would cover the app content and all the system messages, as well as the inevitable privacy or cookie policies. An informal tone of voice is definitely justified for some products, but there will come a time to localize messages like “Forgotten password?” or “Are you sure you want to delete your account?” and these look much better when phrased formally.

Another benefit of using a formal pronoun is that it eliminates the need for feminine/masculine endings. It also makes the product more inclusive. This was the case with a parenting app I helped localize: initially the client wanted to go with the informal «ты», but that would’ve meant addressing only the mothers and excluding dads, while the content was trying to achieve the exact opposite—making sure that the new moms received much-needed support and involved dads as early as possible, even before their child was born.

2. Character restrictions in the user interface. If the app is content-heavy and contains articles or blog posts, character restrictions aren’t usually an issue there. However, when it comes to the user interface, space is at a premium, especially as Russian tends to be 15% longer than English. Even though adaptive design allows for these changes, it’s a good idea to keep this limitation in mind and try to be as concise as possible to avoid the back-and-forth with developers later on, after the product is tested on different devices.

3. Variables and placeholders. Variables and placeholders replace numbers (%d), characters (%c), or strings (%s). One of the most problematic situations in Russian localization is when a variable replaces a number and is followed by a word, for example, %d results. This poses a problem in Russian, which has complex rules governing the endings of the words following numbers. Some localization platforms like Crowdin allow for this variation and have different tabs for entering word forms for “one,” “several,” and “many” with the groups of numbers already predefined, which makes the translator’s job so much easier. However, that’s not always the case.

When there isn’t a way to specify different word forms on the localization platform, the easiest way around this is to flip the phrase so that it displays «Результаты: 5» (Results: 5). This isn’t always the most elegant solution, but I have had to resort to it quite often, especially when working on localization projects via an agency, as you don’t usually have a direct line to the developers.

4. Strings reused in different locations. In both website and mobile app localization projects, strings are often reused on the assumption that the words can be moved around without it affecting their form or meaning. With Russian being an inflected language, this approach simply doesn’t work. It results in phrases like «Нашим отелям» (“To our hotels”) or «Райских направлений» (“Of paradise destinations”) in menus, which I recently spotted on a hotel’s website. This can easily ruin the first impression for the users, especially if a brand is targeting customers in the luxury segment.

It is also possible to have strings that are used in two locations and require different translations or even different approaches to translation. This was the case when I was localizing a website for a jewelry brand, which had a “Store finder” page. I had to translate city names for the drop-down menu, but when the same city name appeared in the store address, I wanted to keep it in English because a transliterated address in Cyrillic will not get you anywhere if you’re trying to locate a jewelry boutique in London or St. Tropez!

5. Ambiguous verb forms. This is not unique to Russian, but app interfaces can have buttons like “Enter” or “Submit.” These can be translated using an infinitive, «Ввести», or as an imperative, «Введите». This depends on the context, but what makes it even trickier is that this string can also be referenced in other strings, and it’s essential to be consistent.

6. Culturally relevant content. When localizing an app, it makes sense to minimize references to source-language culture that aren’t going to resonate with the target audience or might be distracting. An example I like to give is a blog article on pool safety for children in the same parenting app. Most Russians don’t have the luxury of owning a house with a backyard and a pool, so the original reference to the private pool wouldn’t have gone down very well. However, I rephrased the sentence to include inflatable pools that you can have on your dacha, this scenario being much more likely.

7. Context is important. Translation is unimaginable without context, and it is especially important for localizing app UI and creating a positive, intuitive and memorable user experience. When working on localization platforms, there usually is a string description, like “invalid_email_error,” which gives you an idea where and when the string appears. There’s also an option for developers to include a screenshot or for translators to request one if it’s not there.

This list of potential issues that can come up when working on localization projects into Russian is not exhaustive, of course, and there are other things to be aware of to ensure successful localization, some of which only surface at or after the testing stage.

What I’ve found is that localization is very much a team effort, and it’s essential to keep talking to everyone involved in the process—producers, developers, content managers, and translators working into other languages—as they often have excellent creative ideas and suggest great workarounds.

 

 

Yulia Tsybysheva is a Russian marketing translator based in the UK. She works with clients in the fashion, beauty, jewelry, and travel industries and specializes in web & app localization, as well as transcreation. Having worked on four large-scale app localization projects, she’s planning to transition into localization and has recently received a Professional Certificate in Internationalization and Localization from UWashingtonX.

 

Website – https://choiceofwords.co.uk/

LinkedIn – https://uk.linkedin.com/in/yuliatsybysheva

Twitter – @ruchoiceofwords

 

We would love to feature other guest authors who are translators and interpreters working with Slavic languages in future SLD Blog posts! If you have recommendations or would like to share expertise, please email the SLD Blog co-editors: Veronika Demichelis and Marisa Irwin.

Filed Under: Specializations, Translation Tagged With: localization, Russian, specializations, translation

Human Rights Translation: An Interview with Lucy Gunderson

February 1, 2021

SLD member Lucy Gunderson has had an active role in ATA and SLD for many years. SLD members know her as a past Administrator of the Slavic Languages Division (2011-2015), an extraordinary colleague, and an expert in human rights translation. This important subject seems fascinating to many, but it is challenging to find information about what it takes to work in this field.

We asked Lucy to share her story and advice with SLD members. She also presented an ATA webinar on this topic in September 2020, which is now available on-demand.

  • Can you please share your story of getting started as a translator?

I remember learning the instrumental case at the end of first-year Russian. We had to answer the question “Кем Вы будете?” (What are you going to be when you grow up?). My vocabulary was quite limited at the time, but I went carefully through the choices. Doctor – No. Lawyer – No. Engineer – No. Переводчик – Hmm. “Я буду переводчиком!” So I guess I’ve always felt an obligation to remain faithful to that solemn oath I took in first-year Russian.

I held “regular” jobs (English teacher in Russia, document manager/translator at a banking company doing business in Russia, editor at a newswire service) before going full-time freelance, but I always did some translation as part of my job or on the side. I understood fairly quickly that I wasn’t suited to a corporate environment (or, to put it better, that the corporate environment wasn’t suited to me!), so when an attractive translation opportunity presented itself, I started working part-time at the editorial job. That part-time job was eventually moved to another city, so I took the leap and started working towards full-time translation.

  • Why did you start specializing in human rights and how did you build up your expertise in this area?

I never consciously made the decision to specialize in human rights, but I can see how I ended up here when I look back.  I spent my junior year in Voronezh, Russia. I arrived two weeks after the August putsch in 1991 and stayed until June 1992, which means that I witnessed the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the formation of newly independent states. I returned to Russia in 1993 and experienced the October 1993 coup and, later, the currency fluctuations of the mid- to late 1990s. This experience living in Russia was what initially sparked my current interests in human rights, international relations, and law.

My first referral for a human rights translation came from an SLD colleague (Nora Favorov). The file she asked me to handle was about electoral fraud in Belarus. I was initially worried about my ability to translate this file, but then I realized that 1) I actually knew where Belarus was, 2) I actually knew who Lukashenka was, and 3) I had read an awful lot about electoral fraud when I lived in Russia, so I was probably better prepared than I thought to translate this. The client was apparently happy with my translation because they kept coming back to me for more and also referred me to other human rights groups.

I am constantly building up my expertise by pushing at my boundaries. It’s important for us to specialize and know our limits, but it’s also important to understand when we can stretch those limits just a bit.

  • What type of clients do you usually work with and why do they need their documents/content translated?

My main human rights clients are NGOs, although I have also worked with one agency that specializes in human rights. The kinds of documents they need translated are reports for UN Committees, government agencies, the human rights community, and the general public; columns and articles for online media; and sometimes even primary sources.

  • Can you share an example of the most rewarding project you have ever worked on and why it felt this way?

My most rewarding project has been ongoing for several years and is the #AllJobs4AllWomen campaign. The goal of this campaign is to get former Soviet countries to repeal the List of Arduous, Harmful, and Dangerous Jobs Prohibited for Women. My work on this project has involved translating reports for the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and columns for the general public about this list. Now, several former Soviet countries have repealed their lists and others have shortened theirs or agreed to review them specifically because of the pressure mounted by this campaign. So I feel very good about being the main English-language voice for this campaign.

Another project involved mining on indigenous lands. The affected indigenous group won a court battle against the mining company and had their lands returned to them. Even though the court proceedings took place in Russia, my client in this case had repeatedly raised this issue at the international level using my English translations. I believe this had some impact on the outcome, so that makes me proud.

  • What project was the most challenging and why?

The most challenging projects are the ones that touch my emotions the most.

One was the translation of a blacklist, published by the Luhansk People’s Republic, of Ukrainian police officers (along with their photographs) who were allegedly actively working against the Luhansk People’s Republic. This list called for the capture or murder of these officers. Even though I understood that the purpose of my translation was to reveal atrocities, it was still difficult to process.

Another difficult project was the translation of a letter from a political prisoner to his wife.

If you work in this area, it really helps to have someone to talk these jobs through with. I have found that my clients have struggled with the psychological effects of this kind of work and are more than ready to talk about them, so that has helped me get through these difficult jobs.

  • What are your favorite resources for research and continued professional development on human rights, translation, and related topics?

For human rights, my favorite resources are Human Rights Quarterly (published by Johns Hopkins University press), Universal Human Rights in Theory and Practice, by Jack Donnelly, and Human Rights: A Very Short Introduction, by Andrew Clapman. The first keeps me updated on current human rights issues and helps me understand major trends in this area, and the last two are great for reference information when I have trouble understanding a certain concept. And of course, the Amnesty International (AI) and Human Rights Watch (HRW) websites are extremely useful resources for understanding contemporary challenges, learning new terminology, and improving my writing in this field.

For translation/writing resources, I also recommend the AI and HRW websites because their publications on Russia are almost always available in the original English and a Russian translation, which helps with terminology and writing. I would also recommend any book on plain language, since human rights documents can be heavy on the legal language. I love Dreyer’s English for grammar.

  • What advice would you give to colleagues who would like to start specializing in human rights translation?

Network, network, network! I’m lucky to be based in New York City, so I have been able to attend several talks at universities here where I made some contacts, and I’ve even represented ATA at the UN twice. The pandemic hasn’t been good for much, but it has presented the perfect opportunity for people who don’t live near universities to attend lectures online that they wouldn’t have been able to attend otherwise. I think it’s perfectly acceptable to email a speaker that you hear online and establish contact with them. Both Columbia University’s Harriman Institute and New York University’s Jordan Center have had great online offerings since the pandemic started. You can sign up for their mailing lists on their websites.

It’s also important to network with colleagues working in the same area or language pair. It can be tricky to approach a translator working in the same language pair, but it is always possible to offer editing services to them. It’s even better to approach linguists working in a different language pair because then that translator has no fear of competition or losing a client to the other translator. Finally, I’ve had some success attracting attention from my ideal clients on social media, but this is really a long-term effort the requires dedication, a lot of trial and error, and openness to failure!

Lucy Gunderson, CT is an ATA-certified Russian>English translator specializing in human rights, academic, legal, and literary translation. She has a master’s degree in Russian from the University at Albany and a certificate in translation studies from the University of Chicago, where she also served as a tutor in the Russian>English translation program.

Lucy has been translating for non-governmental organizations for the past ten years and follows the human rights situation in Eurasia closely. She has presented on human rights translation for ATA and the New York Circle of Translators.

She is a past chair of ATA’s Divisions Committee (2015-2019) and a former administrator of the Association’s Slavic Languages Division (2011-2015).

Website – https://russophiletranslations.com

LinkedIn – Lucy Gunderson, CT | LinkedIn

Webinar – Challenges in Human Rights Translation: How to Research Terminology and Make Your Writing Shine (atanet.org)

Twitter – @LucyGund

Filed Under: Human rights, Interviews, Legal, SLD, Translation Tagged With: ATA, blog, human rights, interview, legal, Russian, specializations, translation

New Webinar: Challenges in Human Rights Translation

August 10, 2020

Promotional image for human rights translation webinar

Have you ever wondered about the field of human rights translation? There is no shortage of human-rights issues in the post-Soviet space, but breaking into this specialization may feel too daunting. Fortunately, with research, you can become confident in your translations. But where should you look?

Join fellow SLD member Lucy Gunderson to learn research techniques to track down terminology in a wide range of documents available to human rights translators. Lucy will also demonstrate how to use human rights documents originally written in English to energize translations and inspire word choices.⁣ Let this webinar be your window or even stepping stone into human rights translation!
⁣
This webinar will be presented in English with Russian examples.⁣
⁣
Cost: ATA members $45, non-members $60⁣
⁣
Unable to attend live? Register now to receive a link to the on-demand recording after the live event!⁣

Filed Under: Translation Tagged With: human rights, translation, webinar

SLD Podcast: Episode 22 with Paula Arturo

July 3, 2020

The latest episode of the SLD podcast, Slovo, is now available! In this episode, host Maria Guzenko speaks with Paula Arturo, a lawyer-linguist and Associate Professor of Law. Paula talks about the challenges of legal translation and shares tips for translators who would like to specialize in it. In the second half of the interview, Maria and Paula discuss how language professionals can negotiate a fair contract with their clients.

Listen here, or anywhere you get your podcasts – Slovo is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, and Spotify. Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode!

Filed Under: Podcast Episodes, Translation Tagged With: legal, podcast, translation

CEU Watch: Clinical Trials and Medical Documentation: Resources and Translation Strategies for New Translators by Carmen Cross

June 8, 2020

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has brought upheaval and uncertainty to our profession, it has also been an opportunity to catch up on continuing education. However, I will not be reviewing any recent webinars on weathering the crisis or pivoting to remote interpreting. Today, I’d like to turn to an unexpectedly topical video from the ProZ.com video library—a repository that features webinars previously broadcast on the website. Disclaimer: Other than being a paying member, I have no business relationship with ProZ.com.

The video I watched was Clinical Trials and Medical Documentation: Resources and Translation Strategies for New Translators presented by German- and Arabic-to-English medical translator Carmen Cross. The live session took place back in 2016, but I found the presentation relevant to anyone getting started in the field of clinical trials.

Trial Background, Standards, and Terminology

In the first section of the webinar, the instructor gave an overview of the types of documentation produced in a clinical trial. Documents that may need translation include informed consent forms, patient information sheets, and serious adverse event reports. In addition, the speaker shared what areas clinical trials focus on. Even though our first thought may be drugs, Ms. Cross pointed out that other things may also be studied, such as medical devices or diagnostic procedures. She then went over some commonly studies drugs and drug targets (molecular entities the drug binds to). Next, the webinar focused on some common types of studies, including diagnostic, epidemiological, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamic, among others. Finally, we looked at the phases of a trial, examining the objectives, number of participants, and length of each phase.

The following part concerned international standards that govern clinical trials, such as the International Conference on Harmonisation’s Good Clinical Practice (ICH GCP) addendum or the World Medical Association’s (WMA) Declaration of Helsinki. Ms. Cross named a few regulatory authorities overseeing clinical trials, such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the US, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency in the UK, or the Public Health Institute in Russia, and emphasized that study sponsors apply to these bodies for approval. The documents involved in the application process, for example an investigational new drug application (IND), may require translation. The presenter pointed out that the actual research gets outsourced to the contract research organizations (CROs), who are responsible for trial data, and they may be the entity that needs translation services.

Finally, the speaker drew our attention to some tricky terms in this field and shared several resources we might want to turn to in our research. To name a few, she discussed the difference between efficacy and effectiveness; clinical trial and clinical study; and subject and patient. Ms. Cross recommended PubMed, which allows you to search in a particular language, and ClinicalTrials.gov, which lets you search for the full official title of the study by its ID.

Takeaways

I appreciated that the speaker not only provided an overview of clinical trials but also pointed out what organizations may be looking for translations, what documents may require translation, and where to look for terminology. She also listed the top countries where clinical trials are conducted—Russia, Turkey, China, Brazil, India, South Korea, and Mexico. Her advice was actionable and tailored to translators.

An obvious drawback of this webinar is that it was recorded in 2016, so some of the standards and processes might have changed since. In fact, the speaker mentioned that a new clinical trial regulation (EU No 536/2014) had been adopted, supplanting an earlier European Union directive, but its implementation was going to be gradual. I would still recommend this webinar to anyone interested in clinical trials, with the caveat that the viewer will need to do their own research to find up-to-date information.

Author Bio

Maria Guzenko is an ATA-certified English<>Russian translator and a certified medical interpreter (CMI-Russian). She holds an MA in translation from Kent State University and specializes in healthcare translation. Maria is a co-founder of the SLD exam practice group and the host of the SLD podcast, now rebranded as Slovo. More information can be found on her website at https://intorussian.net.

Filed Under: CEU Watch, Translation Tagged With: ceu watch, medical, translation

CEU Watch: International Keyword Research for Translators from Meridian Linguistics

May 21, 2020

Taught by Sara Maria Hasbun

Reviewed by Anna Livermore

I love CPD. My inner nerd rejoices at the prospect of starting a new course or attending a professional event. Nowadays, there are infinite opportunities to learn. So much so that it can be hard to choose from a gazillion options that come in the shape of online courses, professional conferences, live webinars, mentoring sessions, books, podcasts, blogs…

The CPD I dedicate time to usually falls into four categories: acquiring a new skill relevant to my specialization, improving my technical knowledge (CAT or DTP tools), keeping up with trends in the industry I specialize in or learning better business practices. Even so, the choice of available CPD options can be overwhelming. What helps me stay focused is going back to my marketing plan and my business goals, then choosing CPD opportunities that can help me achieve them.

One of the courses I completed recently is International Keyword Research for Translators from Meridian Linguistics. It is a short online course that provides a step by step guide for translators on working with international keywords. I intentionally use ‘working with’ instead of ‘translating’ because translation is only a small part of the overall process.

What this course is:

Exactly what it says on the tin: a guide outlining every step of creating a keyword file for a client in your target language for the target market. You will find out what needs to be discussed before you start work, what tools are available (and useful) for different stages of the project, what those stages are, why simply translating keywords from the source language does not cut it, and what your final product should look like.

Despite being short, the course packs a lot of information. The best thing about it is the way it relates the best practices for keyword research to the language industry and to the linguist’s role in that process.

What this course is not:

This is not a course that will help you optimize your own webpage, although some aspects of it can be useful. On the whole, its focus is researching keywords for clients for target regions.

It will answer a lot of questions about keywords—types of keywords, where to find them, how to choose them, and how they relate to an overall SEO strategy—but it is not a replacement for general SEO courses.

Bottom line:

I highly recommend this course: the information in it is distilled to help improve the specific skill of working with international keywords. It is designed and delivered by people who over the years have developed professional expertise in the field. I have been working with SEO and multilingual keyword research for several years now and still took away a lot from this course, which will help me deliver even more value to my clients.

Anna Livermore is an English>Russian and German>Russian translator and former marketing specialist. With a linguistics degree from the Oxford Brookes University and a Professional Diploma in marketing, she came to specialize in translating marketing materials, corporate communications, website content and various components of SEM. She is a member of the Slavic Languages Division’s Social Media team. Contact: livermore.translations@gmail.com

Filed Under: CEU Watch, Translation Tagged With: ceu watch, SEO

Digging into the SlavFile Lite Archives (Part 1)

March 31, 2020

SlavFile Header

Lydia Razran Stone, who has been editing the SlavFile for over 25 years, has been digging into her archives. She figures we all could use some light reading in this time of lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders, and has picked out a few of her favorite columns (SlavFile Lite: Not by Word Count Alone) to share. We start off with a pair of columns from Spring and Summer 1999, and this will continue as a series of at least three posts (maybe more!).

Spring 1999

Over the Christmas holidays, we were visiting а neighborhood in Brooklyn that is рrоbаblу no more than 10-20% Russian. Nevertheless, when we left, we found а handbill stuck on the windshield of our саr from which I quote verbatim: «ЭКОНОМЬТЕ 50% НА СТОИМОСТИ ПОХОРОН! Новый закон дает Вам возможность экономить тысячи долларов в любом похоронном доме. Мы продаем гробы высшего качества прямо с завода-изготовителя.» Getting this particular handbill on our саr (not the one with the PEREVOD license plate, the other one) seemed an even more striking coincidence in light of the fact that I had just finished translating а роеm concerning the value, or lack thereof, of such а “bох mаdе of wood.” (See below.) It was all rather unnerving, since given that the coffin purveyors had the uncanny ability to know that we read Russian, perhaps they also had some supernatural advance knowledge that we would soon need such а bох. However, two months later I am happy to report, as we say in our family, quoting а joke concerning а man falling from а skyscraper, we are “All right, so far,” or in Russian, «Пока ничего!»

In Defense of Bloopers! Many of my colleagues, indeed some of mу best friends, decry the citation of amusing translation “bloopers” in professional language publications and the general media, fearing that such articles make us, as а profession, look incompetent and unprofessional. These colleagues assert that other more respected and self-respecting professions do not engage in this sort of self-deprecating behavior. Му outlook on this matter is diametrically opposed to theirs. То leave aside the issue of whether laughing at one’s self can ever bе unprofessional, to me the point made bу any catalogue of translation/interpretation bloopers is that translation is an extremely difficult, challenging, and ticklish enterprise fraught with pitfalls and that anyone needing translation/interpretation services had better make certain that they find someone experienced and competent. А recent article in the Washington Post took just such а tack, starting with а court interpreting blоореr: The article reported that when а lawyer asked а female witness if she had been embarrassed bу а certain incident, the interpreter instead asked her in Spanish if she had been impregnated bу it. Нег vehement denial caused some confusion in the courtroom until the mistranslation was sorted out. After this introduction, the article goes on to discuss the need for and establishment of an intensive court interpreter training program and ends with praise for the program from АТА President Muriel Jerome O’Keefe.

In this spirit I would like to cite а few of the funniest bloopers I encountered when I was editing Russian translations of articles written bу NASA personnel for а book published jointly bу U.S. and Soviet scientists. These mistakes, I learned, are more indicative of the inadequate reference materials provided to the Russian translators, than of any lack of competence or training on their part. In addition, every once in а while, NASA engineers express themselves in terms that are somewhat less than perfectly clear and straightforward. Take the word “commode.” This term, which I have always taken to bе а hyperdecorous middle American euphemism, is the word the engineers use to refer to the toilet on spacecraft. No wonder the perplexed Russian translators came up with the translation of шкаф, leading to the statement that contamination bу fecal bacteria was, of course, most likely in the area around the bookshelf. In another, somewhat less explainable instance, the meaning of the word “shift”, as а sleeveless undergarment, was selected over а seemingly much more salient meaning, so that the corridors of а space station were characterized as most congested, not during change of work shifts, but, instead, during periods when the astronauts changed their underwear. More understandably but no more accurately, one of the attendees at а conference devoted to toxicology was listed as а representative of the Министерство внутренних болезней США [(“US Ministry of Internal Diseases”)], when he was actually, а representative of the Department of the Interior. As for my own translations of Russian chapters for this book, it goes without saying that they were perfect and contained no bloopers amusing or otherwise. However, I did have some trouble explaining to the author of the chapter on cosmonaut nutrition why I persisted in translating вобла simply as dried fish when he had repeatedly sent me the exact Latin name of the fish species involved. I was finally аblе to make clear to him that what was lost in explicitness was more than compensated for bу forestalling the English speaker’s most likely understanding of what sort of а critter а Caspian roach was likely to bе.

In my last column I wrote about my translation of “The Cherry Orchard,” which was refined during rehearsals with an American director and а young American cast. In general, the director and I got along beautifully. Being а stickler for details and authenticity herself (Sharlotta even had а live dog), she rarely objected when I told her something needed to bе changed. There were, however, two points of production оn which she fought me tooth and nail, insisting that she had seen things dоnе her way in more than опе highly acclaimed professional U.S. production. Finally I had to bring in а visitor from Russia to support my point of view. What were the two aspects of the production that Rоbin, the director, objected so vehemently to changing? The first was that in Act I, I balked at having the characters obtain coffee from а samovar; the second, in Act IV, that I would nоt allow the mеn to return from the auction (repeatedly described as occurring on August 22) wearing fur hats, nо matter how cold Americans believe it is in Russia.

Звери уходят от нас перед смертью –

И правы.

Травы стоят до последнего ветра

И правы.

Мертвые чайки не ждут

Деревянной оправы.

Море колышет их перья

В разводах мазута.

Стертой монеткой мы купим

Забытое право:

Медленно выйти на берег

И ждать переправы –

С легкой душой,

Не печалясь о смене маршрута.

И. Ратушинская

 

Beasts will run off far from man when they sense they must go.

So they should!

Rushes stand upright until the last wind lays them low.

So they should!

Gulls do not fret when their deaths don’t include

А bох made of wood.

Waves еbb and flow through the feathers that float

ln an oil slick of crude!

With well polished coins we will purchase

А forgotten good—

Freedom to wait on the shore for the boat

ln an unhurried mood.

We will wait for the ferry unworried

Ву changes in route.

Translated by L. Stone

 

Summer 1999

Му mother has been visiting me. The other evening, after listening to my husband and me discussing the details of the mailbох made to look like Ваbа Yaga’s hut he is making me for my birthday, she said to me, “I keep waiting for you to outgrow your ‘Russian phase.”‘ I estimate she has been waiting somewhere between 35 and 40 years. I thought she sounded rather wistful.

I am visited bу recurrent metaphors for the activities and phenomena that are important to me. For example, doing а relatively straightforward general translation or а technical translation in а familiar area tends to remind me of cross-country skiing. There I am whizzing along, and suddenly I see some danger оr obstacle in the path, an exposed tree root for example; one second I am thinking to myself, “Gee, I wonder how I am going get myself past that onе.” And often, if I am lucky, the next second I suddenly realize that I am past it. On the other hand, when I encounter onе of those Russian sentences that саn only bе translated bу laborious disassembly and then reassembly in English I see myself as а do-it-yourselfer who has just taken apart and then put back together an alarm clock and is just about to congratulate herself for a job well-done when she notices а small but significant pile of leftover gears and the like sitting оn the work tаblе.

When I am translating from Russian to English, I see the English language as an enormous hardware store that carries аbsolutely anything anybody would ever want or need, (as well as some things not in this category) but is extremely disorganized. Тhе good translator, then, is а kind of old geezer salesclerk whо hаs been working in the store for decades and is the only person who can immediately put his hands on the exact gizmo that someone needs for а repair or project. On the other hand, when I hаvе to produce anything more than thе most banal sentence in Russian, I see that language as а kind of elegant foreign children’s tinker toy or thе like ( оnlу purchasable, no doubt, for а great deal of money at high-еnd toy stores). Even small children from thе country of this toy’s manufacture are аblе to assemble its brightly colored parts into graceful and elaborate structures. But whenever I, а foreigner who came to this game too late, make an attempt, the pieces just come apart in my hands or at best, with great effort I am аblе to put together а misshapen and unattractive construction.

Оn the subject of distortion, if the Brightonisms I cited in last month’s column can indeed bе considered linguistic distortions, I bent some of them even further out of shаре; юзданый should have been юзаный and фудстэмпчик should have been фудстэмпщик (in other words, not а dear little food stamp, but someone whо uses or relies on the same). SLD member Natalia Geilman of Richfield, Minnesota clearly finds such bilingual neologisms deplorable. She writes, “The article you wrote in the last issue of Slavfile literally ‘задела меня за живое’! lt’s so frustrating to hear that terrible mixture, Ruslish, which so many immigrants speak nowadays. I am strongly convinced that the proportion of “Russified” English words increases with the decrease of knowledge of either language. People who do speak English do not try to impress others with that terrible lingo. Неrе are some gems, frequently used in Minnesota Russian speaking community: апплаивать (на субсидированную квapтиру, бенефиты, вэлфер и т.д.), юзаные (не “юзданые”) машины, либо кары, драйвер, нюрс (nurse) – и, конечно, аппойнтмент.” See also the article in this issue written bу Ewa Godlewska for а somewhat less negative discussion of the analogous phenomenon in the speech of the Polish community of Chicago.

As for me, I tend to see а large dollop of creativity in this phenomenon. Just as the child who says “I goed” is demonstrating а more profound and rule-governed attempt to master English than onе who simply repeats “I went,” the immigrants (ignorant of syntactic niceties as they may bе) who coin some Ruslish phrase seem to те to bе embodying а creative principle in human thought: the attempt at all costs to endow the environment with meaning. (Yes, I tend to find some grafitti creative too, although I realize I might well feel differently if it were my property serving as the canvas.) I see this phenomenon in action in the family of my friend Liana where I visit frequently. Her oldest daughter Irada is the main practitioner. In full command of bоth languages, shе mixes and adapts them either as а form of punning, to import а nuance from one language to another, or to imply when speaking Russian that she is referring to аn intrinsically American phenomenon. In one of ту favorite uses, she declines the English verb “to miss” in Russian, saying, when her mother is away, “мис(с)ую.” Тhе beauty of it is that the grammatically regular though semantically barbarous Russian phrase is homonymous with the English phrase with the same meaning, “I miss you.” Another of my favorite words used in this family is “бебичный,” meaning, of course, childish.

Filed Under: SlavFile, Translation Tagged With: SlavFile, translation

CEU Watch: ATA Webinar on Linguistic Challenges in Palliative Care

September 3, 2019

Photo by Martha Dominguez de Gouveia on Unsplash

Are there topics that you enjoy working with but can be emotionally draining? For me, palliative care is one example. I love working on translations that can help promote understanding of palliative care among Russian patients and the general public, as well as the development of palliative care in Russia, but it can be hard to look past the suffering and pain behind the text, especially if it is about pediatric palliative care.

I was glad to discover that ATA offers a webinar on this subject. “Linguistic Challenges in Palliative Care” by Jessica Goldhirsch can be found in ATA’s Webinars On Demand. Jessica Goldhirsch, LCSW, MSW, MPH is a licensed clinical social worker with the Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Institute’s inpatient adult palliative care consult service. She teaches staff interpreters and clinical staff how to work together effectively, and her background and experience really show.

Ms. Goldhirsch talks about the role of palliative care in the healthcare system and different stages of palliative care (hospice care is just one of them). She breaks down commonly used terminology, lists the most common misconceptions, and describes typical challenges. She stresses that the interpreter/translator must be an integral part of the palliative care team, backs it up with examples, and gives advice on how to become a member of this team. Most importantly, Ms. Goldhirsch explains how crucial it is to understand the patient’s cultural norms, beliefs, and traditions, and encourages interpreters and translators to be cultural meditators and coaches for the palliative care team.

I found this webinar both highly informative and really empowering. It didn’t make palliative care less of a difficult subject, but it helped me understand its scope and purpose, and made it clear what my role is. Armed with tips and useful resources that Ms. Goldhirsch generously shared, I feel better prepared, both mentally and emotionally, to tackle future translations on this subject.

I am grateful that ATA offered this webinar and included it in its Webinars On Demand. Ms. Goldhirsch mentioned other topics that she believes deserve to be addressed in more detail, such as serious illness conversation guides and palliative care family meetings, and I hope that ATA will offer webinars on these topics in the future.

Author Bio

Veronika Demichelis is an ATA-certified English>Russian translator. She holds an MA in Linguistics and an MBA in Human Resources Management. She specializes in corporate communication, HR, and social responsibility, but also enjoys working with health and wellness, in particular patient outreach and education materials. More information can be found on her website, https://veronikademichelis.com/.

Filed Under: CEU Watch, Interpreting, Translation Tagged With: ceu watch, professional development, webinar

SLD Podcast: Episode 16 with the Black Squirrel Collective

July 30, 2019

In this latest episode of the SLD Podcast, Veronika and Ekaterina talk to the members of Black Squirrel Translator Collective (BSTC)! In 2016, Victoria Chavez-Kruse, Mary McKee, Jamie Hartz, and Elizabeth Nelsen established Black Squirrel Translator Collective, a working group that provides many tangible and intangible benefits. Tune in to learn how they did it, what working together means to them, and how you can partner up with your colleagues to take your business to the next level!


Just one day left to register for the SLD’s webinar on English>Russian editing on July 31! The more people sign up, the more reason there will be for ATA to continue with language-specific “division webinars.” Don’t miss out!

Filed Under: Business Practices, Podcast Episodes, Translation Tagged With: business, podcast, professional development

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