The article
is devoted to description of the language translation process and distinguishing
of human and machine translations. Learn more about translation procedures.
The
globalization process has started a few decades ago. It has brought to a
considerable increase in governmental and economic contacts between different
countries, as well as to the development of tourism industry. The quickly
developing process of globalization is underlined by all-round language
penetration and it has told on various branches of our life. English language
is conventionally considered to be an international language. English is spoken
all over the world by millions of people with different level of proficiency.
Almost any person in the world has a general idea of the English language.
Meanwhile, other foreign languages are less widespread. If people face with the
document or text in a foreign language they start looking for a way to understand
what it is saying.
How can you
obtain a translation?
Translation
is a procedure of text interpretation from one language into another one.
Conventionally it's considered that there are two main methods of translation:
automatic and manual translation processes. Manual translation process is the
earliest sort of translation process and it means just translating the text or
document phrase by phrase by a quality translator. At the same time automatic
translation process is an invention of the modern technical progress and it has
become popular not so long ago. Automatic translation of the text can be
accomplished with the use of specialized computer programs, like Prompt, Wordfast
or it may also be done online at the sites dedicated to foreign languages
translation.
We have
already automated a great number of procedures. But still, what concerns
automatic translation process there are certain minuses. Taking into account
that there are thousands of special turns of speech, colloquial phrases in
every foreign language, it isn't possible to foresee all the probable
situations with translation. That is why the software uses the most common
meaning of this or that word, and this meaning isn't all the time the most
appropriate variant for translation. In addition, sometimes the software translates
the turn of speech word by word, and as a consequence the meaning of the phrase
is changed. The most evident plus of the automatic translation is speed. But
nevertheless, essential documents you should translate manually or ask for
assistance of special translation firms.
Bogdan Stupka
is a successful writer, editor and native
English translator employed at a Czech translation company, defended his PhD in machine translation in Charles University.
He has developed an extensive corporate translation quality system TTQC.
