As the world is increasing globally, translation is becoming more and more important. Strong communication among different type of industries is key, and the importance of translators is rising. Think about the close relationship between business, media and science, for example.
Today’s world is inter-connected and effective translation is essential in all areas. In this blog post you will learn further about the importance of translators.
7 Reasons why Translators are Essential
1. Online translation tools are not sufficient
Free online translation tools such as Google Translate are simply not enough as they often changes the whole meaning of the text. The Korean language for example has words that have several implications. For this reason, human translators are necessary in order to avoid incorrect translations.
Will AI Replace translators? For those thinking about it: No, artificial intelligence will never replace translators, at least not in the close future.
If you want to read more please check this article on Machine vs Human translation
2. Loss of translation
Some words cannot directly be translated from one language to another. This is called loss of translation. Translators should have sufficient knowledge and should perfectly know the meaning of these kind of words, so that they are capable of replacing them with an alternative word or a short equivalent sentence.
Loss of translation is one of the most common challenges for translators
3. Expressions and sayings
Some expressions and sayings that have a certain meaning in one language but change when you literally translate them to another language. This is a very common translation mistake, known as False friend. For this reason, it is crucial to have translators that are not only bilinguals.
They also need to be experts in both languages, and know how to identify most common translation mistakes in order to successfully find a replacement for phrases and expressions that are relevant to the translated text, since they cannot be literally translated.
4. Contribute to a global economy
More and more businesses are looking to grow internationally, enter new markets and cut costs. Translation services have therefore become very useful to these companies looking to establish themselves overseas.
Accurate translation helps to cross a communication gap that could exist between buyer and seller, when a company has just moved into another country.
This is because skilled professional translators can build the customers’ trust in a company through personalized translation, as the customers would feel assured that they are fully informed with regard to the goods and services offered by the company.
5. Cultural background research and documentation
You may not think of it, but culture plays a significant role in translation. Each culture has its own way of communication messages through for example languages, symbols, shorthand, etc. These messages can change meaning when different cultural backgrounds communicate.
Therefore, translators have to have knowledge not only on the language that they are working with, but they also have to understand the cultural background completely. This helps in researching and writing down documentation on cultural influences, languages and dialects.
6. Translation promotes tourism
A great share of every country’s income comes from tourism. Tourists usually do not speak the official language of a foreign country they are travelling to. When going to a country where speaking English in not common, it is very difficult for tourists to express themselves, or even understand the local language.
For this reason, translators are important for the growth and the development of the tourism industry in a particular country. Think for example of tour guides, online articles, brochures and promotion videos. Translation is essential in the tourism sector, since it gives tourists from abroad the feeling that they are welcome, and it boosts the popularity of a country as a destination of choice.
7. They help the spread of ideas and innovation
Translators are essential as they help us to collaborate and learn from each other. Without accurate and effective translation, the world would have been many years behind as we would not be able to share ideas and work together with other communities.
The spread of theories, beliefs and values has also relied heavily on accurate translation in the past. The bible, for example, is the most popular book of all time due to the fact that it has been translated into more than 600 other languages, which has helped it to transcend international barriers and influence the lives of billions of people worldwide.
The Role of Global Communication
We live in a world where it becomes increasingly important to communicate with international relations. Translators are of essential importance nowadays for the transfer of information.
Now the question is, how will translation help you reach your needs?
Our professionals at TranslateDay can guarantee you that your project is in good hands and that your information will be correctly communicated to the target language.
