Staying Current with Language Trends
And one thing to add to all this, when communicating with your translator and when searching for a competent one, is to remember that language changes. Sometimes very quickly, and sometimes in both time and space. Things you said 30 years ago sound ridiculous now. Things you say in London don’t make sense in LA.
Translation Services Need to Stay Current
This morning, a middle-aged man I know used the phrase “pound sign” to refer to what most younger people know as the “hash tag”. Perfect case in point. I could “translate” this for the young people in the room, but without this translation, everyone was confused.
Similarly, we now commonly say “out of whack.” But there was a time, about one hundred years ago, when it was common to say “in fine whack.” Really. In fact, according to Bonnie Trenga Mills over on Grammar Girl, President Lincoln was referred to being “The Tycoon in fine whack.”
It makes no sense today, but everyone understood at the time.
So when you are searching for a translator who is a good fit for your project, make sure to remember that the person should be current in their industry, and current with the language when and where you need it translated. If you’re writing for elderly gentlemen living in an obscure village in Umbria, the Italian is going to be quite different from something you’d write for a club functioning in Sicily. Etc.
Good luck, and have a wonderful Friday!