Many people believe that just the knowledge of a foreign language has been enough to become a translator. Such beliefs are clouded by misconceptions and misinformation, and they are the stumbling blocks in the progress path of several translation experts and translation agencies. Before making any prior opinion, customers should be aware of the prevailing fallacy about it. The five most popular and pernicious assumptions about translation are:
Any Bilingual or Multilingual Can Translate
Giving important business documents or marketing materials to someone who knows the foreign language for translation can be proved dangerous, as they might be unaware of the subject area. Translators may understand and speak a foreign language superbly, but it does not mean their translation would be accurate. They might not have an extensive knowledge of vocabulary and other technical terms like a trained translator has. A skilled translator has not only an excellent command of both languages but also has wonderful writing skills, a flair for selecting the accurate words and expressions to convey the message, and profound knowledge of the text written in the source language.
Any Translator Can Translate Text on Any Subject
Another popular misconception is that translators can work on a number of different subjects that is written in the language of their expertise. However, in reality, a talented translator is basically a specialist in a particular area. We can’t expect that a translator who has done an excellent literary translation will give quality results in the translation of legal, financial, medical, technical, scientific or business content. One should have the knowledge of terminology and even grammar & style rules of that specific area before translation.
Translators Don’t Need to Aware of Cultural Differences
A translator should not only have knowledge of only two languages or how the grammar works, but also need to acquaint with the cultural terms. Although a coherent translation will strongly stand on its own, there are several cultural aspects to take into account when translating any content. In every culture, the way of treating people is quite different, as in several cultures; unfamiliar persons are treated more formally, whereas in others everyone is treated informally.
A Machine Translation Is Good Enough For the Job
Although online translation tools such as Google translate are extremely advanced these days, they will never substitute human translation of professional language translation agencies in Delhi and other parts of India. The primary reason for this is they are computer programs that give a word for word translation of a sentence or a phrase without understanding the subtleties of a language. Therefore, important business documents and contracts should not be translated with the help of automatic translation as they would not necessarily provide 100% accurate translation.
Translation and Interpretation Are Synonymous
Some people have a false notion that an interpreter can translate anything. Whereas it is not true, the task of a translator is completely different from the interpreter. Where translators work with the written word and keep dictionaries & other references with them to ensure they translate everything accurately, interpreters are trained to learn to translate quickly as an intermediary between two parties in real-time. Both professions require exactly different skill sets. A knowledgeable interpreter can’t be a decent translator and vice-versa.
So, for effective results, businesses should hire professional translation agencies. In India, Delhi is the hub of certified translation agencies.
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