Training shows
After reading about the furore caused by the use of “adultery” instead of “adulthood” when describing Aboriginal tattoos in the National Museum of Prehistory’s “Taiwan and Austronesian Culture” guidebook (“Indigenous affairs chief apologizes for bad translation,” Mar. 11, page 3), I thought I’d offer thoughts on my experience in Chinese-to-English translation in Taiwan.
A mistake like this shows that either the translation was done by a native speaker of English with a poor grasp of English or one who does not proofread thoroughly, or it was done by a person who is not a native speaker of English who does not have a good enough command of English to allow him/her to differentiate between adulthood and adultery.
I haven’t seen the guidebook, but with a glaring error like this I have a sneaking suspicion that it isn’t the only problem with the English translation. This is what happens when translations are done by careless or unqualified people and shows how serious the consequences of incorrect translation or mistakes can be. It also shows the importance of having translations done by a qualified native English speaker.
Poor quality translations can be avoided if Chinese-to-English translation is done only by a translator who is either an educated native English speaker or someone who has a Chinese-to-English translation qualification and/or is certified by a reputable translators organization.
In Taiwan the above requirements are often not met and getting translation work depends more on who you know rather than what you know or how qualified you are. Good quality Chinese-to- English translation cannot be guaranteed if:
One, the translation is done by someone who is not a native English speaker (even if they studied abroad and have a masters or a doctorate);
Two, if the translator is a native English speaker with a masters or doctorate but no proven Chinese language or translation ability;
Three, the translator is the foreign boyfriend of the daughter of the person in charge of commissioning the translation or a friend of a friend, or a former English teacher who is a self-styled translator after living in Taiwan for two to three years;
Four, it is done by a translation company that uses local translators who are not native English speakers and have limited English ability (it is a cardinal rule of translation that translators should only translate into their native language) or foreign students with limited Chinese ability.
The standard of translation could be greatly improved if government Chinese-to-English translation work is only given to freelancers who are native English speakers and have a relevant translation qualification or who are certified by a reputable translators organization or to translation companies that can guarantee that the work is done by translators who meet these requirements.
Taiwan could set up its own certification system or, better still, recognize certification awarded by reputable organizations in North America (American Translators Association), Australia (Australian Institute of Translation and Interpretation) and the UK (Institute of Linguists).
Taiwan has quite a few “unqualified” translators who do a good professional job, but also some who don’t and some translators who try hard but are not native English speakers, and also some translators who are “rubbish.”
Good translators who are serious about their work shouldn’t mind making a bit of effort to gain a qualification from or get certified by one of the organizations above, as I have done. In doing so they will have their skill formally recognized and the customer will know the translator provides work that can be trusted.
FLORA HO
Keelung
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