The Culture Vulture

If there is one thing you can't call my employers at Kwintessential, it's that they aren't generous. As well as all the free information on the website, last month saw a guide to cultural awareness and now they have produced a fantastic guide on global SEO tips - again for free! Looking for tips on website marketing but with an international flavour? Read on...

Unfortunately within business, translations are often bottom of the priority list. Any good translation company will tell you stories of last minute panics by clients to get vast amounts of words translated as part of tenders, legal hearings or business meetings. A Chinese company almost paid the price for a similar attitude for a tender worth ten million - yes 10,000,000 - tablet PCs. 

Novel translation. What do you picture? Chained doors? Publishers of Dan Brown’s Inferno have taken the concept of "top secret" to a whole new level -  11 of the novel’s translators were locked up in an Italian bunker to translate the latest product of Brown’s pen!

Ever thought a celebrity such as Robery Downey Jr. would need and use localization to market himself and his latest flick Iron Man 3? Here are some tips that might have aided Downey, but can definitely help you market your products properly in foreign markets!

According to culture awareness expert Andy Molinsky, 'global dexterity' is key to successful cross-cultural understanding. Awareness of culture and cross cultural differences are increasingly important in our global economy; Molinsky explains more in an interview with Forbes.

What English words translate from Arabic? Arabic to English translation intern Zoe, explores some of the shared linguistic history between the English and Arabic languages...

How does one go about inventing a language? Many people have done this for TV and movies before whether it's Klingon for Star Trek, Elvish for Lord of the Rings or Wookie for Star Wars. The hit TV series Game of Thrones has brought a new language to our screens - Dothraki and High Valyrian.

Travelling to the Arabic speaking world? Learning some Arabic phrases? 'No' is one of the most crucial words you will need to know. Arabic - English translator, Zoe Trunks explains why.

Planning on exporting or selling more abroad? If you are new to international trade then you may be new to cultural differences. Research has shown that language and cultural barriers are amongst the top cited reasons for companies struggling to export.

We focus a lot on this website about cultural differences in business; however for us it's all about culture and understanding that culture influences who we are and what we do. Only when you understand your own "self" and the cultural programming your have received, can you move towards understanding the "other".

What is the state of the games localization market? What are the pressures being put upon localization agencies and especially translation companies who feed into the localization and gaming industry? Aaron Lee and Develop give us new insights into today’s game localization market.

Any idea what a ‘Raute’ is? Or what a ‘sfigato’ is? Probably not, but imagine all the new English words invented every year and you get a sense of how the digital age and internet neologisms are challenging languages across the globe.

A common problem we find when working on website translation or especially with web designers is that many do not appreciate text expansion and contraction within the translation and design process. The common perception is that when you translate the text of a website, it will automatically fit into the existing website template and space. Unfortunately, this is not the way things work.

Has the adoption of western education, management and leadership paradigms killed off local and national management styles across the world? Voices in the UAE are claiming this is unhealthy and unsustainable as foreign principles can never 100% fit in with local cultural needs.

Bill Gates has been all over the news for a major cultural faux pas. The media hype illustrates the need for people visiting a foreign country to learn about the target culture. Understanding etiquette, manners and protocol is critical in making a good impression. The consequences, as we now see for Bill Gates’ PR, can be damaging.

Even though many sectors are currently sailing in stormy weather, the seas of the localization sector seem to be as smooth as a mill pond. The increasing demand for localization and internationalization related services is natually also having an impact on the need for international translation services.

In order to help multinational and multilingual websites to provide their audiences with the right landing pages, Google has introduced a new rel-alternate-hreflang annotation.

Looking for business development opportunities abroad? Considered Africa? Lots of potential and opportunities but always remember localization!

Would you wash your clothes with Barf? Getting it right when it comes to language and translation isn't always about the international market; sometimes it's right at home. Having a large population who speak a different language can also pose localization challenges.

It's funny translations time! Swedish flat-pack giant IKEA has again been in the news over a translation that has left them a little bit red-faced. Who would think a pillow could bring such PR?