Intercultural Communication and Translation News

The EU is a community of 27 countries, whose unity and diversity is expressed via 23 official languages, as well as plethora of other national, regional and local languages. It is home to nearly 500 million people with diverse ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds. Multilingualism contributes to European values of democracy and equality. The European Parliament is committed to debate and discussion in all EU languages. The reason for this and how it is achieved is explained in this focus.

Preserving this unique linguistic diversity is a big challenge. As the EU has recently started operating in 23 languages, it is worth looking at the meaning of multilingualism, its benefits and its costs.

The EU is a “multicultural, multilingual democracy” and it uses three alphabets: Latin, Greek and Cyrillic. To set the stage for the rest of our article here are a few statistics about multilingualism and its costs * For 2006 the cost of translation in all EU institutions is estimated at €800 million, in 2005: the total cost of interpretation was almost €190 million.
* Multilingualism expenditure represents over one third of the total expenditure of Parliament.
* The EP translated 673,000 pages during the first half of 2007 (165,000 of them externally).
* Since 2005 the EP has translated over a million pages a year.
* EU system on average requires over 2000 translators and 80 interpreters per day.

Read more > The EU

Over the last 2 years, the dollar has lost more than 18% of its value against the euro (sinking from $1.20 to 1.42 per euro). This foreign exchange (forex) reality means that the cost of translations into Western European languages paid by American companies has gone up by the same rate. Conversely, translations into English done by American translators for European LSPs have become cheaper.

We are in the midst of updating our research on translation pricing. Our surveys thus far have shown that LSPs have not yet transferred these increased forex costs to translation buyers, choosing instead to reduce margins or to renegotiate rates with suppliers so as not to lose business to their competitors. But LSPs tell us that they are feeling the squeeze. When the euro reaches $1.45 or $1.50, the market will adjust. U.S. translation buyers will see their invoices rise by $0.02 or $0.03 per word — that’s 10% or more of the average list price for translations.

Read more: Common Sense 

Kwintessential have today released their latest translation tool – a keyword translator. The tool is designed to help website professionals such as webmasters and SEO consultants research keywords in foreign languages.

What are keywords?

Keywords basically refer to internet search terms. For example, if someone was looking for office space to rent they may enter their query in a number of ways into a search engine such as Google, Yahoo! or MSN. Some people may enter “office space” some “rent an office”. Using certain laboratories that research these trends experts are able to identify what terms people are using when looking for office space. At present the top 5 searches for this topic are:

1. office space
2. office rental space
3. office space realtor
4. office space for rent
5. office space for lease

These are known as the keywords for this particular search term (there will of course be many more). Webmasters and SEO experts use the keywords to ensure that they build their websites so that they can attract people from the search engines.

Why keyword translation?

We believe that the internet is going multilingual. Most big companies now translate websites into foreign languages but soon this will start to become the norm. This is to meet the demand of foreign language speaking internet users. Through researching keywords in foreign languages, those with multilingual websites can now ensure they are using the correct search terms to get French, Spanish, Italian or German speakers.

So using the example of office space again, if someone uses the keyword translation tool they will now find that the top 5 searches in French are:

1. amenagement espace bureau
2. espace bureau
3. restructuration espace bureau
4. espace bureau louer
5. restructuration espace bureau paris

A website owner will now know how to build their website pages in order to bring in queries by French users of search engines. Simple but effective!

We hope the tool will be of benefit to users. Visit the tool here > SEO Keyword Translation 

Measurement drives behavior. That is one of the most fundamental rules of performance management. Another way of saying this is “what gets measured, gets done.” Setting goals and targets, and linking performance indicators to incentives is meant to motivate people. However, people’s behaviors are culturally dependent. Looking someone in the eye is polite in my country (The Netherlands), yet very impolite in others. The Dutch are known for being very direct (others would call it blunt), which doesn’t always work in the UK or USA. My wife Alexandra is German, and she needed to learn to explain “why” if she wants something done (or not done) in The Netherlands, where in Germany authority counts more.

Yet, management culture seems to equate to USA culture in many cases. Methodologies such as balanced scorecard, and best practices for implementing them, may usually work in the USA, but may completely fail somewhere else. Global companies have cultures too, but national cultures seem to be stronger than company cultures.

We have to make performance management culturally dependent in order to drive the right behaviors of people. Fortunately, in the field of intercultural management there is a lot of research on this topic; for instance, by Trompenaars and Hofstede. These scholars, and others, have defined many dimensions on how to describe cultures. Here is one example of how to apply performance management in different cultures, making use of one interesting cultural dimension, called Rules Orientation. The spectrum has two extremes: universalism and particularism.

Read more:  Frank Buytendijk Blog

With all the attention given to the Middle East today, it is important that the Western public receives a complete picture in order that their opinions and sentiment toward Arabs and their homeland’s is a responsible one. Much of the history of these countries is left unacknowledged, untaught, and for the most part, completely unspoken. One country in particular, Saudi Arabia, is clouded by mystery and stereotypes regarding the Islamic faith that its population holds. Aramco Brats’ Story is a feature length documentary film depicting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as seen through the eyes of the Western expatriate children who grew up there between 1933 and present day. Aramco Brats were the children of expatriate workers who were employed by Aramco (Arabian American Oil Company) and who spent their childhoods within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The film is an amazing depiction of Saudi Arabia, Arabs, and Islam narrated by nearly 100 average Western citizens of all faiths, who choose not to concentrate on religion, but rather look at the other cultural aspects that many overlook when unfairly judging these people and their nations.

Beginning with the History of Saudi Arabia and its first monarch, King Abdullah Aziz Ibn Saud, The Aramco Brats’ Story mixes old and new media with the stories and commentary of average Western citizens to explore such topics as: Desert Storm, the Royal Family, the discovery of Oil in 1937, expatriate life within the region and the Western Media’s portrayal of Arabs and Islam. Throughout the film, the audience comes to realize that the reporting they have witnessed, the small vignettes of footage they have seen, and the rumors they have heard are not indicative of the overall Arab culture. One of the most interesting facets of the film is found in the understanding these interviewees carry regarding the acclimation of the Islamic world into the new millennium’s Global Village. This privileged group of children and adults have, in their own way, inadvertently developed a Third Culture without denial of religion, race, color, or creed that is representative of the future earth culture, with a goal that is nothing shy of world peace.

The Aramco Brats’ Story is one in the first of a series of films that will, without a doubt change the world. If you’ve ever held an opinion about the events of this day and age, or wanted to know more about the Arab world, this film is a must see. You will leave inspired, humbled, and enlightened.

Visit the Website > ARAMCO Brat’s Story

Business English is becoming more and more widespread in Denmark, with some 25 percent of companies now employing it as their main operating language, according to a survey by the Confederation of Danish Industries (DI).

Of the 400 businesses polled, one in four had now started using English for inter-office e-mails, when placing job adverts, at meetings and in official company documentation.

Mette Fjord Sørensen, DI’s spokesperson, said the trend goes hand in hand with globalisation and is used by companies to attract more international workers.

‘It’s a good signal to send to international customers,’ Sørensen told Berlingske Tidende newspaper. ‘Social integration of foreign employees becomes easier when you can build a bridge between nationalities through a common language. You create a business culture.’

Read more: English 

YouTube Inc. said Thursday it launched a Chinese-language site in Taiwan as part of its expansion into foreign markets.

YouTube, which is owned by Mountain View-based Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) said the site showcases mostly local content from Taiwan media partners that include China Television Co., Sanlih E-Television Co., Lion Travel Service Co. and Taiwan Broadcasting System.

YouTube earlier launched a Chinese language site in Hong Kong.

The company also has local versions in Brazil, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the U.K.

Read more: YouTube 

Thanks to the Internet, companies can leap over most geographical barriers to conduct business globally. But language barriers remain a tough hurdle.

Increasingly, though, translation software is making it easier to do business in other languages. While computer translation isn’t perfect — human input is still needed to ensure complete accuracy — the latest programs are faster and more accurate than earlier generations of translation tools.

That’s helping businesses decipher foreign-language Web pages, news reports and documents, translate company communications for foreign workers and reach customers around the world in their own languages.

Ford Motor Co. uses translation software from Systran SA of France, along with some human input, to convert vehicle-assembly instructions written in English into four languages: Spanish, German, Portuguese and Dutch. It also uses software from Applications Technology Inc., of McLean, Va., for translations from English to Turkish. Nestor Rychtyckyj, a Ford technical specialist in artificial intelligence, says that while machine translation still isn’t 100% accurate, it has improved over the years and is good enough to convey the substance of instructions to foreign workers.

Read more: Wall Street Journal 

BT and  CNBC are holding a live webcast discussion at this year’s Gartner IT Expo in Cannes, on November 6th at 08:30-09:15 CET.

A small number of business leaders, including Kwintessential’s Neil Payne, will be bringing their experience and expertise to a discussion around the following pressing topic:

Mobilise to be Globalised: Positioning your company for 21st century connectivity

Globalization and technology are drastically changing the way we work. The traditional office now spans the globe but all the wikis in the world won’t help if your corporation doesn’t have the infrastructure and workforce to bring everyone together and deliver profits.

The E-Forum will be chaired by CNBC’s award winning presenter, Simon Hobbs, who will be joined in person by Peter Sondergaard, SVP Research at Gartner and Steve Chambers, Global CIO at Visa. The discussion will be filmed in front of a live studio audience and simultaneously streamed on BT’s newly created “Bigger Thinking” website.

The programme will also become a permanent fixture on the site joining dynamic interviews from Google’s CEO, Dr. Eric Schmidt, WPP’s CEO, Sir Martin Sorrell and the CEO of Infosys, Nandan M. Nilekan.

Monday 22nd October – Book launch – The Fisherman and the Cat: A Tail to Help Fight Poverty!

Author: Keya Ashraf, Translator: Bhadra Patel, Illustrations by: Shirley Puiyan Cheung

Bilingual storybook & CD from Chadpur Press helps tackle poverty with ActionAid. Price £17.99, Hardback

Book launch:

ActionAid and Chadpur Press are holding the official book launch event for ‘The Fisherman and the Cat’ at Stanford’s, Covent Garden. Members of the public are welcome to come and meet the author and translator. For every copy of the book sold during the event, Stanford’s have kindly offered to donate all proceeds to ActionAid.

Come and meet the writer, translator and illustrator!

Date: Monday 22 October 2007

Time: 5.30pm – 6.30pm

Address: Stanford’s, 12- 14 Long Acre Road, Covent Garden London, WC2E 9LP

“The Fisherman and the Cat” is an enchanting tale for all ages which aims to unite communities and raise global issues by highlighting the need for communities to work together. It tells the story of a small village in India where traditional fishing has been supplanted by the arrival of corporate fishing trawlers.

Author and Director of Chadpur Press, Keya Ashraf has written the story to encourage the learning of Indian languages in Britain, as well as to spread the message that poverty is the result of unfair trade systems.

The audio CD features Bhadra Patel, an award-winning librarian of 25 years who has made significant contributions in the field of library services to minority communities. Music is by Jonathan Mayer, son of the renowned Indo-Jazz musician, John Mayer.

Chadpur Press will donate 5% of the sale price of the book (£17.99) to ActionAid. The publishing house will also publish the story in Punjabi and Bengali later on this year.

“The Fisherman and the Cat” (ISBN 978-0-9556312-0-7) is available to buy online from www.chadpur-press.com via a booking form or by telephone ordering calling 0207 100 1692. It can also be purchased from Stanford’s, Amazon or the Arthur Probsthain bookshop

Please contact:

Keya Ashraf on 0207 100 1692 or 07745050 200 / keya@chadpur-press.com

For more information about the “Taking the Fish” Campaign

Please contact:

Beatrice Cooke on 020 7561 7646 or beatrice.cooke@actionaid.org

About Chadpur Press

Author and Director of Chadpur Press, Keya Ashraf founded Chadpur Press in 2003 with the aim to create and publish bilingual books, to make great Asian literature accessible to an English speaking population. By using storytelling, Chadpur Press aims to encourage bilingualism in British Asian communities and encourage the English community to learn Indian languages to bridge the gap between communities. The aim of the Fisherman Series is to raise awareness of global economic and environmental issues.

About ActionAid

ActionAid works in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas to fight global poverty and tackle the injustice and inequity that cause it.