Language Translation and Language Interpretation, What is the Difference?

People who are not familiar with language services might often interchange between language interpretation and language translation. However, these two jobs have similarities but are pretty different, though both deal with converting languages from one to another so that the target audience will understand them. Both language interpretation and translation (click here) need to accurately preserve the ideas behind the statements, either spoken or written. This article will discuss their differences and what it takes for someone to work in either field professionally.

What is Language Translation?

Language translation deals with converting one language to another through written documents. The work behind language translation extends far beyond just replacing words. Professional translators must preserve the idea, though, and context by considering the cultural and linguistic differences to ensure that they translate documents so that their target readers will understand them. Moreover, in the case of specialized fields, they need to consider the technical details carefully.

What Is Language Interpretation?

While language translation deals with written documents, language interpretation deals with converting words from one language to another through the spoken word. A professional language translator facilitates the communication between parties that speak different languages. They can do language interpretation work in-person, via phone, or video conferencing.

What Does It Take To Be a Language Translator or a Language Interpreter?

Since the work of language translation or language interpretation is similar, so are their skill sets. Both language translators and language interpreters need to be fluent in two languages. Their level of proficiency should extend to their ability to grasp the cultural, linguistic, and contextual differences between languages they work with. Professional translators and interpreters also need proficiency in the industries and fields. Professional language experts specialize in the medical field, for instance, or in the legal area, among others.

What are Specific Skills Required For Language Translation?

• Being professionals, they should have the ability to research the words and concepts in two languages.

• Professional translators should have excellent composition, comprehension, and grammar skills in both languages.

What are Specific Skills Required For Language Interpretation?

• Language interpreters should be excellent listeners and note-takers.

• Language interpreters should have a good memory so they won’t miss any words they need to interpret. Moreover, they need to interpret accurately in real-time.

• They should have excellent customer relations and communication skills.

• Like language translators, they need to have a firm grasp of grammar and syntax for both languages.

If I am Bilingual, do I Immediately Qualify As A Professional Interpreter or Translator?

Though you are bilingual, you don’t qualify immediately as a professional interpreter or translator. You may be able to communicate well in two languages, but you need to develop and hone specific skills to do these jobs accurately. Moreover, you must pass a language proficiency examination and have additional training to specialize in particular fields such as medical, legal, engineering, and business.

Takeaways: In Today’s World, Human Translators Are Indispensable In Any Field

The world has shrunk dramatically through the advancement in communication technology. More people can be bridged than ever before. Though machine-assisted translation can work for casual translating purposes, human translations and interpretation are still indispensable. Critical documents still require the level of accuracy of translation that machine-assisted translation tools have not reached yet. Moreover, language translation and interpretation must adapt to nuances that might throw the meaning a great deal that only human language experts can avoid.