| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Poll: Can you translate into your native language(s) at the same speed as into your non-native one(s)? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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The Misha
Local time: 17:56
Russian to English
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Muriel Vasconcellos wrote:
The only people I know who got away with writing into a language other than their native tongue were Joseph Conrad and Vladimir Nabokov.
there have been and there still are quite a few people who got away with "writing into" a language other than what they were born into, and some of us are actually pretty good at it. That you are not aware of this probably says more about you than them.
BTW, not to detract from Nabokov who is definitely Number One in my book, his earlier work in English (Pnin comes to mind, among other things) shows definite signs of nonnative writing, and even in such gems as Ada, which is arguably the absolute pinnacle of his writing career, you are never going to mistake the man for an American, or even a Brit. It is still an absolutely marvelous piece of literature though, which only goes to show that as a matter of principle, all of you folks claiming English as your God-given birthright and "turf" don't have much of a leg to stand on. That there are tons of lousy nonnative translators does not at all mean that all of them are lousy. Furthermore, in my experience, most native translators in my main working pair (RU =>EN) are just about as lousy, albeit in a different way. Additionally, these days in the US, everybody and his brother is a "writer" of one kind or other, and all of them write in their native English. Most of them are not just bad writers. They are beyond help.
And if nothing else, please spare us your "ethical/unethical" sermon, will you? This, of course, is addressed to the gentleman who fired the opening salvo in this thread. I just can't figure out how to quote from two separate posts. My bad.
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My language of habitual usage for at least half my life has not been my native language. I do occasionally translate into it, for private purposes. I have to check grammar and small points systematically, and it takes longer than just writing in English.
I frequently write directly in Danish, like anyone else who lives here. I write to the newspapers, translate recipes for friends... but never professionally. Looking back at my earlier writings, I feel they are not bad, but I find s... See more My language of habitual usage for at least half my life has not been my native language. I do occasionally translate into it, for private purposes. I have to check grammar and small points systematically, and it takes longer than just writing in English.
I frequently write directly in Danish, like anyone else who lives here. I write to the newspapers, translate recipes for friends... but never professionally. Looking back at my earlier writings, I feel they are not bad, but I find small grammatical errors, and I used to have trouble - like many Danes - with the commas. Some years ago I bought the standard reference book and sat down to learn the rules, and if in doubt, I look them up. I still make other errors, but I am surrounded by Danes who correct me.
With all due respect, I do not see why anyone would call it unethical, provided the client or recipient knows that the translator is not a native speaker of the target language.
I have proofread lots of translations into elegant English, where the translator has misunderstood the source text. That is always a risk if the translator is not sufficiently familiar with the source language. I would regard not translating the meaning correctly as far more serious than a little awkward syntax. I would prefer a human translating into an acquired language any day, rather than machine translation.
Translating into a foreign language is a very good way of sharpening awareness of both. As an exercise, I can strongly recommend it for everyone, whether you do it professionally or not.
Interpreters work both ways, and no one considers it unethical to teach a language that is not the teacher's native language. Indeed, it is often an advantage for beginners to be taught by someone who has faced the same problems. Natives, especially of English, are not always aware of how to formulate the rules of their own language. I have actually learnt a lot of English from Danes, or at least become aware of rules that I had never consciously thought about.
As for 'no native would ever say that' ... Americans say things that the British would not, Indian English has its own flavour. Scots, Irish and Northumbrians say things that are definitely not Estuary English. And so on.
My nephews and nieces are like ... Well, they're not like Shakespeare!
Read Arnold Kellett, Peter Trudgill and Tom McArthur CAREFFULLY before you tell anyone 'No native speaker of English would ever say ...'
You'll be surprised!
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| | | | | Question about the question | Feb 24, 2018 |
Isn't the question actually the wrong way round? Wouldn't the expectation be that you translate more quickly into your native than into your non-native language? I'm sticking to a question about the question, as the question is not about whether one should translate into a non-native language.
| | | | Mario Freitas 
Brazil
Local time: 18:56
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
| Volunteer standards? | Feb 25, 2018 |
Transaltors assume there is this rule that you should only translate into your native language. If you are comfortable translating to another language and the clients like your work and send you more jobs, it means you can and should translate to the other language as well. The fact that many people are not able or do not feel secure enough to do that does not make it wrong, whatsoever.
I promise to my clients the exact same number of words per day in both pairs, and I never failed a deadl... See more Transaltors assume there is this rule that you should only translate into your native language. If you are comfortable translating to another language and the clients like your work and send you more jobs, it means you can and should translate to the other language as well. The fact that many people are not able or do not feel secure enough to do that does not make it wrong, whatsoever.
I promise to my clients the exact same number of words per day in both pairs, and I never failed a deadline or received a complaint about poor quatily in either pair.
So let's please cut the "only to your native language" crap. It does not apply to all translators.
[Edited at 2018-02-25 04:48 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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Jan Truper
Germany
Local time: 23:56
Member (2016)
English to German
(English - native German)
As far as mere speed is concerned, I can actually translate faster into English, because German is a bit more complicated, and German sentences are about 30-40 % longer on average.
However, I don't reach the same quality -- my German translations are spot-on and beyond reproach, while my English translations may contain the occasional non-native inaccuracy or syntactical blunder.
I only offer German > English for purposes like back translation, ... See more (English - native German)
As far as mere speed is concerned, I can actually translate faster into English, because German is a bit more complicated, and German sentences are about 30-40 % longer on average.
However, I don't reach the same quality -- my German translations are spot-on and beyond reproach, while my English translations may contain the occasional non-native inaccuracy or syntactical blunder.
I only offer German > English for purposes like back translation, where the client may actually prefer having a non-native translator.
[Edited at 2018-02-25 08:10 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 23:56
French to English
| but the client can't even assess the quality | Feb 25, 2018 |
Mario Freitas wrote:
Transaltors assume there is this rule that you should only translate into your native language. If you are comfortable translating to another language and the clients like your work and send you more jobs, it means you can and should translate to the other language as well. The fact that many people are not able or do not feel secure enough to do that does not make it wrong, whatsoever.
I promise to my clients the exact same number of words per day in both pairs, and I never failed a deadline or received a complaint about poor quatily in either pair.
So let's please cut the "only to your native language" crap. It does not apply to all translators.
[Edited at 2018-02-25 04:48 GMT]
Thing is, most of my clients are not even capable of telling just how good my work is. They need a professional translator working into their native language precisely because they cannot produce such work themselves. They have a working knowledge of English, they can sell their product to English-speakers, that doesn't mean they understand the intricacies of my prose.
When I worked in-house, we would sometimes get slogans to translate. We were to produce three for the client to choose from. The clients systematically chose the one that most closely resembled the French. Which was systematically the least impactful, the least natural. Most frustrating, especially when you managed to get a clever pun into one of the more creative slogans.
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