Rise 360, part of the Articulate 360 package, is a web-based app for authoring online courses.
After we were asked to translate a course created with it, we learned that it can export and import xliff files. Great, we thought, just the ticket. But later when we started processing the xliffs, we discovered that things were not quite as rosy as we’d hoped.
Continue reading “Translating Articulate Rise 360”
Today we pause to remember key workers who have died in recent weeks of COVID-19: nurses, doctors, receptionists, hospital porters, bus drivers, delivery people and many more. As we remember the dead and their families, we salute those who continue their work delivering essential services for all whether they speak English, Italian, Spanish, Mandarin or any other language.
In the UK a minute’s silence will take place at 11am to commemorate the key workers who have died with coronavirus. The tribute will bring together ordinary people and those across the political spectrum including Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Labour leader Kier Starmer.
Continue reading “Memorial Day for key workers killed by COVID-19”
The new coronavirus Covid-19 is much in the news. But there are straightforward steps that everyone can take to help reduce risk and slow the spread of viruses, as shown below on our multilingual Coronavirus prevention poster.
Germs can live on some surfaces for hours. Coronaviruses, such as COVID-19 and the common cold, can be spread via droplets which land on these shared surfaces such as train handles. Some research has even shown that those using public transport are more likely to pick up an acute respiratory infection.
This makes good hand hygiene essential. Make sure that you wash your hands after using public transport and do not touch your face or bite your nails while travelling. In particular, wash your hands when you arrive at work or back home, and don’t go to work at all if you are sick to decrease the chance of passing a virus to your co-workers.
To help yourself and colleagues remember these simple steps, WorldAccent Translation have produced a free multilingual Coronavirus prevention poster. Continue reading “Coronavirus Prevention Poster”
The theme of this year’s International Translation Day is indigenous languages. This celebration falls within 2019 marking the UN International Year of Indigenous Languages, and could not be more timely.
The United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues reports that, “At present, 96 per cent of the world’s approximately 6,700 languages are spoken by only 3 per cent of the world’s population. Although indigenous peoples make up less than 6% of the global population, they speak more than 4,000 of the world’s languages. Conservative estimates suggest that more than half of the world’s languages will become extinct by 2100.”
So does this matter? Yes, absolutely … for all of us! Each and every language in our “global village” contributes to the world’s rich cultural diversity and understanding. As the International Federation of Translators (FIT-IFT) put it:
Losing a language is more than just losing words, it is a loss of unique cultural perspectives and narratives contained within the language and culture, along with its contribution to the richness of diversity.
On the FIT-IFT website, you can read more about Translation and Indigenous Languages and ITD 2019. There are various resources including a poster to download.
To mark ITD 2019, we have also produced a free e-card with some ornamental patterns based on various indigenous cultural motifs. You can click on the image for the full-size version or link to our e-card using this HTML:
In this era of globalization and mass communication, minority languages are increasingly in danger of dying, and many have already done so. We agree this is not only a linguistic loss, but a cultural one since a language embodies a whole way of seeing the world and may contain unique knowledge of it.
It is axiomatic that language helps us communicate. Professional translation can play an essential role in connecting peoples, communities and individuals – thereby fostering peace, understanding and development. On International Translation Day, we’ll be taking a moment to take a step back, consider this wider picture, and thank those who labour at translations and finding just the right turn of phrase all through the year!
International Translation Day dates back over 25 years, although WorldAccent first shared an International Translation Day card in 2008. Back then we noted:
The translation day was established in 1991 by the Fédération Internationale des Traducteurs (International Federation of Translators). The date of 30 September was chosen as it is the feast day of St. Jerome (347-420 AD), patron saint of translators, interpreters and librarians. The day celebrates and promotes translation as an essential activity in contemporary society – but one which too often remains invisible and ignored. Each year a particular theme, highlighting a different area of translation, is adopted
Please note that the motifs used are purely for decorative purposes and are not intended to convey any particular meaning here. However such visual art is often full of symbols, and there is much to be gained by those interested by exploring this. Some understandings are only known to people of certain communities or even only to sub-groups or individuals within the community. There are many examples around the world. One place to start learning more about Australian Aboriginal People’s art and symbolism is the Artlandish Gallery while Wikipedia has a broader round up of Visual arts by indigenous peoples of the Americas.
Meanwhile celebrations of ITD 2019 and Indigenous languages can be found around the world wide web. Proz have an online series of lectures later in the week about both translation and interpreting. English Pen host another of their popular annual symposia, entitled “Translating Today” asking what it means to be a translator working in this moment and exploring some of the theoretical and practical questions that raises.
It’s safe to say that the majority of us are guilty of having used Google Translate at some point in our lives. Whether it be trying to order a meal on holiday abroad or desperately attempting to email a foreign colleague with information on a job, we’ve all given into the temptation and ease of online translation. However, the question of accuracy in official translations or in the public sphere has long been a topic of debate – particularly recently in Wales. Continue reading “Don’t get caught writing ‘Scymraeg’”
In advance of a new radio series next week, one of the WorldAccent team takes a personal view of the ever-changing English language.
It is odd to think that some of the words we use in our everyday lives once had completely different meanings, like ‘awful’ being used to describe things that were ‘worthy of awe’, or ‘nice’ (now the archetypal British compliment) originally meaning ‘silly, foolish or simple.’ Continue reading “The ever-changing nature of language”
Best wishes on International Translation Day 2018, this 30 September!
As part of this annual event, the Association of Translation Companies and the Institute of Translation and Interpreting have a theme of “This is Translation” as an industry-wide celebration. Continue reading “International Translation Day 2018: free e-card to celebrate”
Just which countries do buy goods and services from the UK? And where do we as a country buy from? The Office of National Statistics have produced a neat visualisation of these UK trade partners, using a map of the world. Hover over a country to see how trade has varied over the past two decades, or move over the side bars to reveal partners in order of scale.
Continue reading “Who are the UK’s trading partners?”
Best wishes on International Translation Day 2015!
This year’s theme in the annual event is “The Changing Face of Translation and Interpreting”
Continue reading “International Translation Day 2015: free e-card to celebrate”
Indonesia is the fourth most populous nation in the world, and a member of the G20 group of major economies. So it should come as no surprise that Prime Minister David Cameron is starting his business tour of South East Asia there. Continue reading “Translation for Indonesia”