In general, the profession of a translator looks attractive due to its apparent simplicity. It would seem that it is enough to learn the language, go abroad a couple of times and that’s it! After all, you can provide translation services and make money on it, confirmed by the abundance of translation services offered in our market. But in reality, the translation business is not so simple.
The art of translation has a very distant relationship to art as such. Instead, it is a complex, almost exact science and a narrow specific activity area. People study this profession for five years in universities, and then develop their whole life, gaining experience and honing skills. A translator can never afford to stop learning. Science, technology, society, languages are developing, so you must follow these processes and keep abreast of all the latest innovations. And only people who have decided to devote themselves to the translation business, constantly improving their qualifications, can be considered true professionals.
There are two main types of translation services it is interpretation and translation. And translators, as a rule, specialize in one of these types, choosing within its framework their own narrower direction. Interpreting is more complex than written translation because the translator has much less time formulating a thought and translating it to people. This type of translation requires a great deal of experience from the translator, good language knowledge, and persistent practice. The interpretation itself is also divided into two main types:
Written translation is much easier to work with than oral translation. However, depending on the specifics of the materials being translated, it also requires a high concentration of attention and a high level of education from the translator. Written translations are divided into four types:
1. Full written translation. This is the leading and most common type of translation. The purpose of a complete written translation is to obtain a text that is identical in meaning and form in another language.
2. Selective translation. This is a written translation that excludes irrelevant information that can be dispensed with. High-quality selective translation will make it easier to work with significant texts.
3. Short translation. The translator reads and comprehends the entire text and then summarizes the main issues raised without revealing their explicit content.
4. Consultative translation. It is carried out at the request of a person who, to some extent, knows the target language but has not been able to comprehend the part of the text.
Translation services are provided to both individuals and companies, and companies make up the lion’s share of clients in the translation market. Depending on the subject of translation, the agency usually selects a translator for the client who has the necessary knowledge and is well versed in the subject needed by the client.
The most demanded and complex topic today is technical translation. Technical translation requires the translator to know highly specialized terminology, depending on what kind of service or production industry is discussed in the text. It is essential to choose the right words here because the leading players in this topic are large industrial companies that order document translation of technical and project topics for local employees.
A mistake in such a translation can lead to misunderstandings, confusion, or even industrial accidents, so such translations are usually trusted only by experienced professionals with some understanding of the industry that the text affects. The best technical translation is usually done by translators from the document translation service who have a technical background and know a foreign language. By entrusting the translation to such people, you guarantee quality and confidence that the translation will be accurate and understandable for everyone who works in this industry and will read it.
This also includes medical document translation. Although it is a more straightforward form of technical translation, accuracy and correct word choice are also important. Accuracy, simplicity, and correct word choice are the main success factors in any translation, especially technical translation.
Legal texts are distinguished by their stereotyped speech patterns, which is why they are complex. There are a lot of turns, and all of them must be memorized. Here, very high demands are placed on style consistency and accuracy of document translation. This type of transfer usually covers various contracts, agreements, and documents, from certificates and identity documents to invoices and invoices. An error in such a document translation can entail severe consequences because the customer’s financial interests are often at stake, and the opacity of the wording can cause difficulties in possible legal proceedings.
It may happen that due to an error in the translation of a passport or some other document, you may be denied a visa. This will lead to a loss of time, and money (and bad for the nervous system) that no one needs. Trust document translation only to professionals, not machine translation.
Literary translation also falls into a separate category. The presence of creative thought and a vast literary vocabulary is essential here. Usually, a translated work of fiction is perceived somewhat differently than the original. This is sometimes due to the difficulties of the language. Let’s say the target language may be missing words that accurately convey the idea of the original language.
There are other topics of translation, which have their characteristics, but they are much less in demand. Therefore they are not singled out into a separate group. With regard to such translations, it should be noted that the market for professional translation services is very rich. Today specialists of such services can provide you with a high-quality translation of any type. Summing up, we can say that the profession and services are much more complex than they might seem at first glance.
