Certified Translators - Buyers Guide

The Art of Certified Translators

Contrary to what one might imagine, certified translators are writers and artists in their own right. Although you can be forgiven for thinking that all they are doing is verbatim translations of texts into another language, in reality a good translator will take the text and transform it. Not only will the text convey the same meaning, but also the same feeling and it will hold the same subtleties and beauty of the original – this is especially true for translations requiring some form of narrative.

Certified translators are far from being simply the person who manages to take your text and write it in whatever language you want – they are professionals who have had years of schooling, sometimes in several languages, and who have spent their times garnering an extensive body of work experience. Only certified translators offer such pedigree. While other translators may have the degrees and the portfolio, only certified translators have been tested by a standards- regulations body that sets a bar at which all translators must perform. Without such certification, you cannot be sure that what you are getting is the best kind of service available.

A good certified translator will be able to take your text, read it and understand what you are saying between the lines and they will be able to translate that as well as the obvious message. Translators must understand the nuance and the subtleties that a language possesses and they have to know how to use them effectively. Someone who merely converts one word to the next may miss out on many of the variations in tone and expression that a document can hold. However, a good translator will not only pick up on those tonal variations but will also be able to insert them seamlessly into the translated text.

Translating is truly an art that needs to be mastered in order to be done well. Otherwise you end up with the kind of botched signs and crazy product labels that occasionally find themselves into humorous emails that we have all seen at one time or another. Even people who think they know a language and are able to translate properly would be surprised at the number of mistakes they can make with a text unless they have the right schooling and background for such work.

Businesses who have to deal with foreign clients should never make the mistake of asking an assistant or a marketing coordinator to translate a text – regardless of its use. If the document should ever fall into outside hands and it is poorly translated, then it would reflect badly on your business. Instead, if you have to have a translation done, you should always turn to a professional translator – preferably one who is certified either by the IATI (International Association of Translators and Interpreters) or by their school or local organisation. After all, your brand and your image are more important than ever in today’s business environment – why entrust something so precious to someone less than professional?

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