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Translation Perils - embarrassments or pregnancies?
By Letzen Maldonado
Tuesday, December 22, 2003
This nation has seen a wave of immigration this past decade
not seen since the last wave 150 years ago. Then, and now,
we face language barriers. If you've ever tried to learn a
new language as an adult, even a teenager, you will find that
it takes years to learn, and even more years to master, especially
in the written form. Let's face it. If a business wants to
hire and sell to these new arrivals, it has to communicate
with them or someone else will! But what business wants the
additional expense of translating?
Most organizations simply don't want to pay much for a translator,
and will pretty much hire or contract just anyone that claims
to be fluent in other languages at less than prime. What most
private and public institutions do not realize is that many
people who claim to speak another language are not fluent
in its written form. They also lack the knowledge of the nuances
and variations that play on meaning.
Another assumption is that translation software will do the
job. Wrong! I have seen programs costing tens of thousands
of dollars put out the same junk that you could get from Babel
Fish and other free translation programs. At most, these programs
serve to give you an idea of what the document is about, and
it could even be the wrong idea!
A slack approach to translations can actually cost more in
correcting misunderstandings, in portraying poor corporate
image and even in opening the company to liability. Literal
translations, poor word choices and poor sentence structure
can change the context of a message and even render a sentence
illegible. I have witnessed some of the following translation
faux pas:
» In
a Human Resources Harassment Policy: The sentence "All
complaints filed will be handled promptly" was translated
into "All complaints will be archived promptly."
» On
a window poster in Miami for a national retailer: The
advertisement "Earrings for $2" translated into "Televisions
for $2.00." The word "pantalla" used in the translation
is a regionalism, meaning earrings to some and TV set
or TV monitor to others.
» In
a Procedures Manual for a grocery chain: "Do not leave
knives in the sink" translated into "Do not leave knives
in the batteries." The word "pila" used is a regional
term for "sink" but it means batteries throughout most
of the Spanish-speaking world. |
For additional examples, see Public Notices and Advertisements
at the end of this article. I have seen many similar translations
into Spanish done by Blue Chip companies and public institutions.
The Spanish Language
Let's be clear: there are no dialects in Spanish. It has
idioms, slangs, and regionalisms such as those found within
the USA (do you say Pop or Soda? Is it a Hoagie, a Sub
or a Grinder? Ya'll or You's Guys? Ain't or Isn't?); or
between the USA, Australia and England (is it guy or bloke?
Mate or friend? Lift or elevator?) You get the point.
Castillian Spanish is the base starting point for any communication
with Hispanics / Latinos. Spanish television stations such
as Univisión, Telemundo, and Galavisión follow
this principle. Messages to specific sub-segments of the population
are tailored as needed.
A note about "Spanglish" and "Anglicisms"
Spanglish is becoming the way to communicate for many Latinos
in the US as they begin to lose touch with the Spanish language
but try to hang on to it. Spanglish integrates Spanish words
and phrases into English and vice-versa, or takes an English
word and "Latinizes" it. Some examples of Spanglish are:
| English |
Spanglish |
| Market |
Marqueta |
| Carpet |
Carpeta |
| Factory |
Factoría |
| Lunch |
Lonche |
| To park |
Parquear |
| To check |
Chequear |
Translators who are not careful could integrate these "non-words"
into a document.
Anglicisms can be the most dangerous. Anglicisms are words
borrowed from the English language. The danger lies when the
"anglicized" word turns out to be an authentic Spanish word
that has a totally different meaning. See the following examples.
| English
Original |
Anglicism |
Authentic
Spanish Meaning |
| Embarrassed |
Embarazada |
To be pregnant |
| Constipated |
Constipada |
To have a chest cold |
| Deceive |
Decepción |
Disappointment |
| Supply |
Suplir |
To substitute |
| Support |
Soportar |
To tolerate |
| Molesting |
Molestar |
To annoy or bother |
| Excited |
Excitada |
Sexually aroused |
| Groceries |
Grocerías |
To do or say something rude or vulgar |
Literacy Levels and Translations
An overwhelming number of Hispanics / Latinos are recent
arrivals. In addition to segmentation by country of origin,
further segmentation exists within each cultural group such
as social, economic, and educational backgrounds. These factors
have an impact on the population's literacy levels. A good
translator will tailor the message to an audience's reading
level.
As a rule, documents should be written at a 6th
to 8th grade reading level. This rule should be
applied as well when writing in English. According to the
National Assessment of Adult Literacy (NAAL), 40 to 43 percent
of the labor force scores at the two lowest levels of literacy
proficiency (at or below 8th grade level). Compare the reading
levels of some common items:
- newspapers (9th - 12th grade reading levels)
- apartment lease (college level)
- insurance policy (12th grade level)
- aspirin bottle (10th grade level)
- tax forms (8th grade level)
Source: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment,
Adult Literacy and New Technologies: Tools for a Lifetime,
OTA-SET-550, 1993.
Steps to take for a good translation
-
Hire an internal translator
-
Contract a translating agency
-
Have a translation review process - internal and external
- for all documents, in particular those related to laws
and corporate policies and processes.
-
Audit your agencies at least once a year. They grow,
change, lose and add staff just like you do, and this
impacts the quality of the translations being put forth.
Public Notices - Examples
Here are some real notices (originals in English) from around
the world that appeared in a 1990 issue of Lodging
magazine.
| In a Tokyo Hotel |
Is forbidden to steal hotel towels please.
If you are not a person to do such thing is please not
to read notis. |
| In a Bucharest hotel lobby |
The lift is being fixed for the next
day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable. |
| In a Leipzig elevator |
Do not enter the lift
backwards, and only when lit up. |
| In a Belgrade hotel elevator |
To move the cabin, push button for wishing
floor. If the cabin should enter more persons, each
one should press a number of wishing floor. Driving
is then going alphabetically by national order. |
| In a Paris hotel elevator |
Please leave your values at the front
desk. |
| In a hotel in Athens |
Visitors are expected to complain at
the office between the hours of 9 and 11 a.m. daily. |
| In a Yugoslavian hotel |
The flattening of underwear with pleasure
is the job of the chambermaid. |
| In a Japanese hotel |
You are invited to take advantage of
the chambermaid. |
| In a Moscow hotel lobby, across from
a Russian Orthodox monastery |
You are welcome to visit the cemetery
where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists,
and writers are buried daily except Thursday. |
| In an Austrian hotel catering to skiers |
Not to perambulate the corridors in
the hours of repose in the boots of ascension. |
| On the menu of a Swiss restaurant |
Our wines leave you nothing to hope
for. |
| On the menu of a Polish hotel |
Salad a firm's own make; limpid red
beet soup with cheesy dumplings in the form of a finger;
roasted duck let loose; beef rashers beaten up in the
country people's fashion. |
| Outside a Hong Kong tailor shop |
Ladies may have a fit upstairs. |
| In a Bangkok dry cleaner's |
Drop your trousers here for best results. |
| Outside a Paris dress shop |
Dresses for street walking. |
| In a Rhodes tailor shop |
Order your summers suit. Because is
big rush we will execute customers in strict rotation. |
| A sign posted in Germany's Black forest |
It is strictly forbidden on our black
forest camping site that people of different sex, for
instance, men and women, live together in one tent unless
they are married with each other for that purpose. |
| In a Zurich hotel |
Because of the impropriety of entertaining
guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested
that the lobby be used for this purpose. |
| In an advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist |
Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists. |
| In a Rome laundry |
Ladies, leave your clothes here and
spend the afternoon having a good time. |
| In a Czech tourist agency |
Take one of our horse-driven city tours
- we guarantee no miscarriages. |
| Advertisement for donkey rides in Thailand |
Would you like to ride on your own ass? |
| In a Swiss mountain inn |
Special today - no ice cream. |
| In a Bangkok temple |
It is forbidden to enter a woman even
a foreigner if dressed as a man. |
| In a Tokyo bar |
Special cocktails for the ladies with
nuts. |
| In a Copenhagen airline ticket office |
We take your bags and send them in all
directions. |
| On the door of a Moscow hotel room |
If this is your first visit to the USSR,
you are welcome to it. |
| In a Norwegian cocktail lounge |
Ladies are requested not to have children
in the bar. |
| In a Budapest zoo |
Please do not feed the animals. If you
have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty. |
| In the office of a Roman doctor |
Specialist in women and other diseases. |
| In an Acapulco hotel |
The manager has personally passed all
the water served here. |
| In a Tokyo shop |
Our nylons cost more than common, but
you'll find they are best in the long run. |
| From a Japanese information pamphlet
on using a hotel air conditioner |
Cooles and Heates: If you want just
condition of warm in your room, please control yourself. |
| From a brochure of a car rental firm
in Tokyo |
When passenger of foot heave in sight,
tootle the horn. Trumpet him melodiously at first, but
if he still obstacles your passage then tootle him with
vigor. |
Advertisements - Examples
Roger Axtell's book, Do's and Taboos of Using English
Around the World (John Wiley & Sons, 1995), is another
good source of examples of mistranslation. He recounts, for
example, how Parker set out to market SuperQuink bottled ink
using the advertising slogan " To avoid embarrassment in your
social correspondence, be sure to use Parker SuperQuink."
When the ads were reproduced in Spanish for the Mexican market,
they were translated as "para evitar embarazo" which translates
as "to avoid pregnancy."
Many more stories are floating around the web.
» The
Dairy Association's huge success with the campaign "Got
Milk?" prompted them to expand advertising to Mexico
with the Spanish translation reading "Are you lactating?"
» Coors'
slogan, "Turn It Loose" was translated into Spanish,
where it was read as "Suffer From Diarrhea."
» Scandinavian
vacuum manufacturer Electrolux used the following in
an American campaign: "Nothing sucks like an Electrolux."
» Clairol
introduced the "Mist Stick," a curling iron, into Germany
only to find out that "mist" is slang for manure.
» An
American T-shirt maker in Miami printed shirts for the
Spanish market which promoted the Pope's visit. Instead
of "I saw the Pope" (el Papa), the shirts read
"I Saw the Potato" (la papa).
» Pepsi's
"Come Alive With the Pepsi Generation" translated into
"Pepsi Brings Your Ancestors Back From the Grave" in
Chinese.
» The
Coca-Cola name in China was first read as "Kekoukela",
meaning "Bite the wax tadpole" or "female horse stuffed
with wax", depending on the dialect. Coke then researched
40,000 characters to find a phonetic equivalent "kokou
kole", translating into "happiness in the mouth."
» Frank
Perdue's chicken slogan, "It takes a strong man to make
a tender chicken" was translated into Spanish as "it
takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate."
» When
American Airlines wanted to advertise its new leather
first class seats in the Mexican market, it translated
its "Fly In Leather" campaign literally, which meant
"Fly Naked" (vuela en cuero) in Spanish. |
-- Letzen Maldonado is Managing Director for Management Aides
based in South Carolina. She has over 20 years of successful
experience in Operations Management working with private and
public organizations throughout the USA, Central America and the
Caribbean.
Source: http://www.managementaides.com/business_articles/translation_perils.htm
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