by Arline Lyons | Jul 15, 2015 | Basic Information
Japanese uses single vowels, consonant + vowel sounds with modified versions, and one lone consonant. The main set of sounds can be represented on a five by ten grid, often called the 五十音 (gojūon) – literally, “fifty sounds”, along with modified...
by Arline Lyons | Jul 6, 2015 | Basic Information
When Japanese doesn’t have its own word for something it can use one of its two phonetic alphabets to represent a word from another language. computer konpyu-ta コンピュータ But as Japanese has a limited range of sounds, some loanwords (such as those with a...
by Arline Lyons | Jul 2, 2015 | Translation as an investment
So what if there are some spelling mistakes on your site, or your brochure reads like a translation? People are here to buy products and services, not act as judges for an English competition. But they judge anyway. How do you decide whether to trust someone...
by Arline Lyons | Jun 18, 2015 | Stress-free localisation
What do you do? Find a translator who knows. Think of something you know nothing about. Could you write about it? Even in your native language? Who would you hire to write the material you need translated? An engineer? A chemist? An advertising expert? Translation is...
by Arline Lyons | Jun 16, 2015 | Translation as an investment, Watching and reading
If you don’t pay for quality, pretty soon quality won’t be there. That’s a quote from the president of ATA at the Interpret America conference, and it struck a chord with me. It encapsulates something that I’ve been trying to tease out recently...
by Arline Lyons | Jun 9, 2015 | Basic Information
Although the words are often used interchangeably, localisation covers a wider scope than translation. Translation turns content from one language into another (e.g. Japanese into English). Localisation identifies and resolves cultural issues present in the content...
by Arline Lyons | May 19, 2015 | Watching and reading
I watched the live broadcast of “Orphan Drug & Rare Disease Development: Understanding the European and US Regulatory Landscape” today, hosted by XTalks and presented by Premier Research. Talking about the US regulatory scene, Nach Dave emphasised...
by Arline Lyons | May 15, 2015 | Common problems
Why is text missing from the top and bottom of my document? If you’re having a letter, cover letter or other piece of correspondence being sent from one person directly to another, you may find that some text is missing from the very top and bottom. Japanese...
by Arline Lyons | May 15, 2015 | Common problems
Why do all the titles in my translation have “about” in them? If you’re taking the word “about” out of all the titles in your Japanese to English translation, they do come from somewhere. Japanese has a convention of identifying headings...
by Arline Lyons | May 8, 2015 | Basic Information
A number of professional organisations have put together a handy guide to commissioning translation, available in a range of languages. Have a look and see if they have some useful hints for you! Translation: Getting it Right - English (UK) - English (US) Translation:...
