Coronavirus and Language Barriers: How to React in a Health Crisis

Posted On February 27, 2020By TranspanishIn Languages, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ 2 No Comments

The global village in which we live has innumerable benefits, making the world smaller and more connected than ever. However, periods of crisis like the recent coronavirus outbreak highlight our vulnerabilities in this system and draw attention to linguistic misunderstandings that can lead to devastating results.

The recent outbreak has shown how the paths we have built between nations and people can be used to rapidly spread infection in a way once unimaginable. It has also shown just how many real-life issues language barriers can cause in times of crisis, which this article addresses.

The international nature of the modern world means we have more problems of an international nature, and epidemics like coronavirus, SARS and Ebola are good examples of just how quickly viruses can manipulate the connections we have built. An international health crisis requires an international response, but this is made all the more difficult by complex linguistic realities around the world. For example, it’s all well and good to issue an official warning and advice in a country in its principal language, but if not everyone understands the language, it exposes everyone to possible dangers due to lack of information, lack of awareness or pure misinformation through social media. This can exacerbate a health crisis, lead to unnecessary stress and make tensions between linguistic minorities and the majority worse.

The novel coronavirus outbreak has shown many examples of language barriers causing unnecessary problems for foreigners, especially tourists, with inefficient and haphazard approaches to translation and communication. Take the case of the British couple quarantined on a cruise ship moored in Yokohama, for example. Japanese medical authorities examined the passengers for the virus and due to their very limited knowledge of English and the British couple’s non-existent knowledge of Japanese, the couple came to believe that they had tested positive for the virus while they were actually just being told that the medical staff was positive they had to remain in quarantine on the ship. Even if translations are provided, they are often done in such a rush by non-translators that they can contain extremely harmful errors.

This issue is, of course, a problem in epidemics. However, it is also a problem in all manner of crises, as evidenced by the recent tragic bushfires in Australia. Considering Australia’s linguistic diversity, there were challenges due to misunderstandings about the need to evacuate and misinformation, potentially endangering those on the fringes of the linguistic mainstream of society, including tourists who may not receive extremely important breaking news updates.

In areas that have yet to face a high level of coronavirus outbreaks, like Latin America where the number of COVID-19 cases has not reached European proportions, countries should prepare essential documentation in all relevant languages, including those of minority groups, and foster community relations to make sure that language barriers to information can be overcome, with information access being key in such crises. All over Latin America, in addition to making documents available in major languages like Spanish, Portuguese and English, the unique demographic landscapes of each area’s minorities and tourist groups, such as Chinese tourists, should be considered when providing information to make sure that everyone knows exactly how to act.

In facing linguistic challenges, machine translations may work for very basic needs, but caution is advised, and users should be aware of their limitations. Of course, for interaction with patients and the like, interpreters would be best, possibly even phone interpreters. However, for making general information widely available, Australia’s response to the bushfire crisis shows a good outline for how to react to a crisis and overcome language barriers. In the country’s case, all essential information was professionally and readily translated so that people who could not communicate effectively in English had equal access to information, which is absolutely key to overcoming a crisis. This is an approach that countries that haven’t had any outbreaks of coronavirus should adopt, preparing to make sure that vital information is available in relevant languages.

Translators, editors, journalists and all people working in communication need to stay on top of the novel coronavirus terminology as it is being defined. Transpanish has built a COVID-19 Glossary which includes terms and definitions in English, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese.

Check out how we are supporting our clients and freelancers during this crisis.

If you need to translate vital information to English, Portuguese or Spanish, contact us for a free quote! We provide discounts for new customers and nonprofit organizations.

Marketing to Latinos through Social Media – Transpanish

Posted On December 9, 2019By TranspanishIn Languages, Latinos, Spanish Language, Spanish Translation, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 5 4 Comments

In the early days of social media marketing, marketing strategists rarely used to target Latinos using social media or other forms of digital marketing. However, this has since changed and according to a recent article in Forbes, companies now need to be aware that on average, in the US at least, young Latinos are more likely to interact with companies on social media than the rest of the population and are very loyal to brands that use Spanish. Clearly, there is a good reason for brands to attract this growing and generally loyal target market.

According to eMarketer, while Hispanics in the US have a similar level of smartphone ownership compared to the general population, they spend 10.5 hours per week online on the devices on average compared to an average of 8.4 hours among other groups. They are also now more likely to use social networks via smartphone and are higher than average in their use of Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, while also watching more content and buying more products online than the average.

Meanwhile, another study revealed the shocking statistic that almost 50% of Hispanic millennials had used a brand hashtag or discussed a brand online compared with a figure of 17% for non-Hispanics, showing not only the huge size of the Hispanic market but also a very high level of engagement.

Facebook has also revealed that their platform is the most popular among Hispanics, with 71% of survey respondents saying that they used Facebook every day. In terms of Twitter, a study conducted in August 2018 found that Latinos make up 31% of the Twitter users in the US, only surpassed by Asians at 35%.

The Latino community is now, as can be seen, an incredibly important target market online and as eMarketer concludes, “Internet penetration among US Hispanics has mostly – though not entirely – caught up with that of the general US population, but their digital activities still stand out in several ways,” adding that “ad spending growth on US Hispanic media has outpaced that of total media in recent years and will likely do so for the foreseeable future.” [1]

So, how can marketers take advantage of Latinos’ growing presence on social media to promote their brands?

Marketers must realize that an effective social media campaign directed at the Latino segment will involve more than just a mere translation of the existing English-language campaign. Hispanics are eager to connect with content and engage in a dialog with their favorite brands, so companies should provide opportunities for consumers to interact bilingually or in their preferred language as it has been shown to be highly appreciated. In addition, they must consider how the English-language and Spanish-language pages can complement each other and create synergy, rather than just duplicating the message in another language, since many users will likely visit both pages if companies offer unique content.

Although Twitter offers a different format for customer engagement, the keys to successful corporate marketing on Twitter are to 1) jump in on existing conversations that are taking place within the Latino community to develop brand awareness and 2) get consumers to join in on the conversation about the company’s brand. Live chats on Twitter also provide sponsorship opportunities that may prove attractive to advertisers.

Are you ready to speak to your Spanish-speaking audience?

Producing great content in Spanish takes time and commitment. We can help you expand your reach and establish a connection with an audience that speaks the second most widely spoken language in the world. If you’d like to find out more about our service, visit Multilingual Social Media.

English - Spanish - Portuguese Social Media Tips

The Essentials of Multilingual Social Media – Transpanish

Posted On December 6, 2019By TranspanishIn Mulilingual Digital Marketing, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ No Comments

Social media platforms are excellent tools for promoting your brand around the world. However, to truly internationally promote your brand, it’s essential that your content is suitable for your target audiences. Of course, this means having content that will resonate with and attract your audience, but it also relates to actually speaking your audience’s language. Multilingual social media can help your business access new and exciting markets that you may well have been missing out on with a monolingual social media policy. However, managing multilingual social media platforms can have its issues, so here’s what you need to consider.

Translation, Localization and Engagement

A successful social media platform is key to your brand online, and engagement is key to running a successful social media platform. Engagement is crucial in modern marketing so your approach to multilingual social media should consider it a priority. Getting real engagement from social media can be difficult and there’s no real hard and fast rule for it, but engaging and localized translations of posts will definitely help.

A poor translation is arguably worse than no translation at all, so it is important to invest in an expert translator who can help you understand how your target market thinks. This means avoiding erroneous machine translations and, instead, using content that reflects the cultural context of your audience, with relevant phrasing to show that you understand them as a customer.

Having a Consistent International Brand Identity

While it’s important that your multilingual social media strategy reflects the differences in your audience’s cultures and languages, it’s also important to make sure that your brand is consistent. This can sound almost like a paradox and it is indeed difficult if you think small picture, but to help make matters easier, you should make sure that your translator not only understands your target audience but also understands you as a brand and how you want to be presented, making sure the core essence is the same.

Reflecting Your Brand with a Bilingual Social Media Manager

Social media management isn’t just related to posting content, it’s ultimately about engaging with your followers. As such, it’s important to have multilingual staff who can naturally respond to comments or complaints, be it on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. For instance, if you have a Spanish Facebook account, it’s imperative that you have a Spanish native speaker as a social media manager who can interact with your followers to ensure engagement is natural, making sure that you understand your followers better and that they are more likely to use your services. If you don’t have staff who can readily respond in their various native languages, then you will likely be very slow to respond to your followers, thus harming your engagement.

Having Separate Accounts for Different Languages

While your company may be multilingual, not all of your followers will be. Posting content in, say, Portuguese on your English Twitter will likely alienate your followers and harm engagement. Make sure to have different accounts for each language on each platform and keep them separate to improve engagement and reduce confusion.

Localizing Hashtags

Hashtags are wonderful tools that act as a form of free promotion and they can be very helpful if used correctly. They also vary from language to language so make sure to research the correct hashtags and use them in the correct respective languages for the most relevant outreach and engagement.

Of course, having interesting content is also key but without good multilingual social media management, you risk missing out on key engagement.

Are you ready to speak to your multilingual audience?

Producing great content in another language takes time and commitment. We can help you expand your reach and establish a connection with an audience that speaks Spanish or Portuguese. If you’d like to find out more about our service, visit Multilingual Social Media.

Why Good Translation for Your Online Content Is So Important

Posted On December 5, 2019By TranspanishIn Languages, Translation Buyers, Translations/ 1 Comment

In an age when more business is done online instead of face-to-face, writing correctly has never been so important for making a good impression. In today’s world, writing using the correct grammar and avoiding silly spelling mistakes is as key to coming across well online as having a firm handshake in the analog business world.

The Importance of Writing Well Online

Whether you’re writing an email, updating a blog on your website, posting on social media or writing a report, good writing will always help whatever your needs. This is a fact that businesses today are well aware of, leading to an increase in the popularity of proofreading services and software, which reflects the importance of writing well in the modern age. In fact, according to one study by BBC News, even just a single spelling mistake can cut sales in half, with Oxford University’s Professor Dutton adding that it can “raise concerns over trust and credibility.”

Writing well isn’t just about knowing the do’s and don’ts of grammar, it’s also about expressing yourself in a way that will appeal to your audience, be they readers of your website or customers of your products. It is for these same reasons that good translation and localization is important, and finding a translator who can convey your message naturally through good writing is crucial when pursuing a multilingual audience.

Good Writing Needs Good Translation

Even if you write well in one language, poor translations into another will likely cause misunderstandings and make a poor impression, coming across as uninterested in the language or their custom. Good translation is, like good writing, about showing respect and doing so will help improve your reputation and make a good impression on the reader. If you take the time to get a professional, accurate translation, then it shows you have respect for the language while also avoiding misunderstandings that could prevent you from reaching your potential. In some circumstances, spending a little extra on having a skilled translator can hinder confusion that could potentially even lead to lawsuits.

Don’t Skimp on Translation

Good translation isn’t just about the writing itself. This is something that is often misunderstood and a reason why many businesses choose to cut corners and rely on machine translation tools alone. Good translation is also about localization and knowledge of the target culture as well as the language, being able to adapt the copy to suit the needs of the target market. For example, if you write in English in an informal, friendly manner with lots of colloquialisms, translating these directly into Spanish using an automatic translation tool would be highly confusing. In these circumstances, localization is about being able to adapt content for the target market and in this example, it’d feature the use of Spanish colloquialisms.

Using a machine translator or even a human translator who either isn’t a professional or fully aware of cultural differences can have negative effects on your content, and this will very likely lead to mistakes that could cost you clients.

It’s very important to not only write well in the first place but when translating to another language, to make use of a professional translator who can not only translate your text but adapt it, making it suitable for a local audience.

The Rise of Spanish as a Second Language

Posted On September 19, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 2 No Comments

With 21 countries listing Spanish as an official language, and with it being a de facto language on nearly every continent, there’s a good reason to learn it. With 577 million speakers around the world, Spanish is the second most spoken language on earth, after Mandarin, and this figure is only set to increase. Not only is this due to a general rising global population, with the population of many Spanish speaking countries and communities set to rise, but also due to an increasing number of people studying Spanish.

While the English language is still the world’s most studied language by far, Spanish is a contender along with French and Mandarin for the second-most widely studied language with 21.8 million learners in 107 countries according to the Cervantes Institute. Most of these learners are in the US (8 million), Brazil (6 million) and France (2.5 million), with significant interest in countries like Italy, Côte d’Ivoire, Germany and the UK. This increase in learners has led to an interest in who exactly these close to 22 million people are and why they have chosen to learn Spanish. Obviously, the decision to learn a second language is often a personal choice and as such, there are many different reasons for learning Spanish depending on the general characteristics of countries.

Take the UK for example, where there are 519,000 Spanish learners. While the UK has traditionally favored French and German as second languages to study at school, there has been an increased preference for Spanish, in part likely due to a desire to communicate and interact with people while visiting or moving to the UK’s preferred holiday destination: Spain. While there is no doubt that many in the UK study Spanish for holiday reasons, it is also recognized as many as being a very important language for the future, according to the British Council.

The importance of Spanish as a global language in terms of employment, business and diplomacy also contributes to its popularity in many countries as Spanish is widely spoken and as such highly popular among certain professional circles. Similar patterns can also be seen throughout Europe in countries like Germany and Ireland, with a mix of cultural, tourist and business interests factoring into the equation. It is also interesting to note that Spanish is generally regarded as being an easy language to learn for English speakers, which may partially explain its prominence.

The US, with 8 million Spanish learners, has the largest number of Spanish learners on the planet. With over 40 million Spanish speakers and major communities of Mexicans, Cubans, Colombians and Puerto Ricans, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, with 88% of primary schools with language programs teaching Spanish. Massive parts of the US, including California, New Mexico and Arizona, were all also once under Mexican control and as such, there is a large Hispanophone influence on such states. This population of Spanish speakers is only predicted to increase and by 2060, it’s predicted that the US will be the second most Spanish-speaking country in the world after Mexico.

However, as in many other countries, the similar aspects of tourism (in this case primarily to Mexico), being a global language of importance to business and diplomacy and perceived ease all also affect the number of Spanish learners in the US. Considering the demographics of the US, there are also many Spanish learners who may want to better understand their compatriots in their native language or even learn the language that was spoken by their ancestors, with some in the growing Hispanic community having lost their language.

Considering its position as a global language, Spanish was ranked as the fourth most powerful language in 2016 and this looks only set to increase. With increasing online importance as the second most widely used language on Facebook and Twitter and the third most used language online, added to the Spanish-speaking cultural powerhouses of countries like Spain, Mexico and Argentina, and increasingly the US too, Spanish seems to be a language of the future and a language well worth studying for so many reasons.

With all this in mind, Spanish is an obvious language to study and engage in for cultural, business and personal reasons, as well as a clear favorite language for study among English speakers who don’t need to learn the current international lingua franca.

What Steps Should You Follow to Get a Successful Translation?

Posted On August 7, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanish Translation, Translation Buyers, Translations/ No Comments

Feeling overwhelmed by the translation process? Don’t know how or where to start?

One of Transpanish’s priorities is to educate customers so that they get the best translation service without any unpleasant surprises that could jeopardize their project.

That’s why we’ve come up with the following tips to help you make the right decisions for getting a successful translation.

Planning ahead matters

Plan your translation schedule in advance. A professional translator usually translates around 2,000 words per day. A translation agency can double that number and can also translate higher volumes, but translating large volumes of content in a short amount of time may cost more than you might expect. Bear this in mind when considering the text that you’re going to get translated and when establishing deadlines.

Ask yourself what goal you intend to reach with your translation. Supposing that you’re translating into Spanish, is there a specific region or country you’re looking to target? Or would you prefer a neutral Spanish translation that can be understood by all Spanish speakers?

Write for translation

If you haven’t written the source content yet, write it with translation in mind. Keep it simple and avoid idioms if possible. Write error-free copy and have it proofread before you send it for translation. You’re much more likely to get a quality translation if the original text is well written.

Provide reference material

Make sure to provide the translation agency or translator with all available reference material. This could include any past translations you were satisfied with and any glossary containing your company’s key terms, whether it’s bilingual or not. The more the translator understands your company’s tone the better.

Ever previously worked with a translation company and had it all go wrong? Be honest about it with the translation agency you’re hiring. Tell them about the problems you faced. If you have any examples of a bad translation that was done for you in the past, it might be a good idea to show them. This could even help a translation agency in choosing the right translator for your project.

Translation vendor selection

You might be wondering whether you should use a freelance translator or a translation agency. Maybe you’re even considering having your bilingual employee translate your documents.

But bear in mind that you pay for what you get.

Your Spanish-speaking employee, for example, might seem like a perfect option but it really takes much more than just speaking a language to translate documents accurately.

There are excellent freelance translators on the market but can they manage large-scale projects, and will you need to end up having to pay for another translator to proofread their work?

If you’re looking for a comprehensive service solution that can manage the entire process for you, you’re going to need a translation agency.

The standard will be higher as they have a quality assurance process that usually includes an expert proofreading. By the way, do remember to find out if a proofreading by a second translator or linguist is included in a translation service. Many companies offer different “quality levels” and they might even offer machine translation services at a cheap price. So remember to read the fine print of what is being offered and ask all the relevant questions.

Formatting

It’s important to format your document for translation. Are you getting a brochure translated? Bear in mind that some translations, such as translations from English to Spanish, end up having 15-30 percent more text than the original. This means that some arrangements, such as reducing font sizes, might need to be made to the final document.

If you’re translating a PDF, decide whether you’ll be doing the formatting on your end. If you request the translated document to be formatted, you’ll need to provide the source files (e.g. InDesign, PowerPoint) or the format will need to be recreated, which might result in a major expense.

Translating a large volume of content? Make the most of translation memories

If you’re translating high volumes of text with repetitions (sentences or segments repeated within one or more documents), it’s worth learning about translation memories.

A translation memory is essentially a database where the translation is stored as the translator works.

Let’s imagine that you’re translating six documents from English to Spanish with a total of 40,000 words, of which 10,000 are repetitions. If this is the first time the translator is working for you, the translator will start working with a computer-assisted translation (CAT) tool and create a translation memory for your project. As they translate, the sentences will be saved in the memory. When a new sentence is being worked on and the database finds a similar entry, the tool will show the sentence to the translator as a reference. This might be an exact match or what is called a fuzzy match (an under 99% match). Either way, the translator’s work will be made quicker and you’ll benefit from a time-efficient translation, not to mention consistency between your current and future documents.

Many agencies also offer discounts for repetitions and fuzzy matches so be sure to check if your translation quote reflects this discount.

Build a strong business relationship with your translation agency

If you find a translation vendor you trust, continue using their services.

This will help you get faster and more consistent translations and you may even benefit from special rates if you keep sending documents to translate on a monthly basis.

Regular clients can ask for special favors that a one-time client may not, such as translating a few sentences at a regular rate without incurring a minimum fee.

As with any project, making educated decisions is the key for a successful translation.

Still have questions? Contact us for a free quote or advice.

How US Politicians “Hispander” to the Latino Vote

Posted On June 4, 2019By TranspanishIn Latinos, Spanish Translation, Translation Buyers, Translations/ No Comments

The Hispanic population constitutes the largest minority group in the United States, if one counts the population as one ethnic group, and this is only forecast to increase. As such, the Spanish language is not only an increasingly important language in the US for the country’s corporate and cultural spheres but also its politics.

In fact, in the 2020 US elections, the Hispanic electorate (32 million) will overtake the African-American electorate (30 million) for the first time. In recognition of this community’s electoral importance, and in a bid to increase the size of their audience, many politicians try to court Hispanic votes through using the Spanish language in political materials and announcements. The problem? Well, some of them aren’t very good at it for a start.

There are many examples of mistranslations and a lack of cultural understanding, including everything from gender mistakes to direct translations that make little to no sense in Spanish. Amy Klobuchar, the senator of Minnesota, for example, referred to her mother on her website using the masculine rather than the feminine.

Even Julián Castro, the only Latino presidential candidate in the 2020 race so far, showed cultural misunderstanding by erroneously referring to the United States of America as “América” instead of “Estados Unidos”, with América being used in Spanish to refer to the entire continent. All these incidents and many more are subject to criticism and ridicule, likely being a result of using services like Google Translate.

Even when politicians do use Spanish correctly, they can still come across as pandering to the Hispanic population for their vote while ignoring them outside of the electioneering season, a phenomenon that’s come to be known as “hispandering”. Some politicians offer an unequal amount of content in Spanish to what they do in English, while other candidates have tried to pander to Hispanic voters on a cultural level. A famous example of this was when the Hillary Clinton 2016 campaign published an article called 7 ways Hillary Clinton is just like your abuela, which prompted backlash with the hashtag #NotMyAbuela.

This isn’t to say that politicians shouldn’t have a go at other languages to try and expand their appeal. From Jackie Kennedy to George W. Bush, the political class in the US has long taken an interest in the Spanish language, and this interest should indeed be regarded as positive.

However, there is a difference between, on the one hand, expressing a genuine interest in a group, with a desire to show you are listening to them and value their language and culture, and, on the other hand, patronizing them by using their language as a token gesture. It all comes down to attitude.

There is an argument that, as most Hispanic Americans speak English, the aim of this hispandering is just to show that they respect their culture in an environment that can be very hostile to Hispanic Americans and the Spanish language. But even if that is all that is intended, this message would be made all the more powerful through using professional translations and experts and making genuine attempts to understand this group rather than pander to them in a tokenistic manner.

How Should Translators Approach Content Too Complex for Its Intended Audience?

Posted On April 30, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanglish, Spanish Language, Spanish Translation, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ 1 Comment

Language can be hard at the best of times, but paradoxically at the times when communication is the most important, all meaning can be lost in jargon for the average reader. This is a common phenomenon in fields like the civil service, finance and health care, all of which affect every person on the planet. However, they often involve highly complex terms and concepts that will leave many of those who rely upon these services scratching their heads, having a detrimental impact on their lives.

This problem is exacerbated by language issues, possibly caused by learning difficulties, a lower level of education or not being a native speaker of a language. This matter of needing to bear your audience in mind is a familiar issue for many translators, with this being a topic that affects all languages.

A recent study for the American College of Radiology analyzed 134 Spanish-language imaging-related patient education articles from Radiologyinfo.org and found that while most adults read at an eighth or ninth-grade reading level, and organizations like the American Medical Association advise materials to be at a maximum of a sixth-grade reading level, the average article was written at a 12^th– grade reading level. This is common in other medical specialties.

This complexity has very real and potentially very dangerous consequences, depending on the audience. A lack of understanding of personal health materials is associated with an increase in both hospitalization length and frequency, an increased rate of complications and higher health care costs, made all the worse in the case of the aforementioned study by US Hispanics having the lowest health literacy among all racial groups in the USA, with even the AMA’s reading recommendations likely being out of reach of many.

So, what should medical translators do in these sorts of instances? Should a Spanish translation intended for those who have lower reading levels reflect the reality? Or should it mirror the complex language in the original source document? This question is ultimately one of a matter of document intention and audience. If a document has highly complex language and involves very technical terms for an expert audience, then simplifying the language may not only lead to a loss of content, but it could also be interpreted as offensive. However, it is both a writer and translator’s job to bear the audience in mind and the solution to this issue lies in a dialogue between the two.

If a translator is working on a Spanish translation for a clinic or health care institution and knows full well that the document is for public consumption and that the language is too complex, then the translator should raise this issue with the client. Then, they can work with them to put things into as plain language as possible while maintaining the message behind the document that is so crucial to the wellbeing of the audience. While a medical translator may know the “correct” translation of a technical term in such instances, it is worth considering a simplification or the use of dialect words (such as Spanglish terms among US Hispanics) if it conveys the message in a clearer manner. The goal of this translation is to speak to its audience and to do this successfully with a hospital document for the average patient, keeping the original complex language may actually hinder the goal.

While this is indeed a topic for hospitals and the writers of public medical documents to consider, as there is still clearly an issue with clarity in their original language, translators should avoid copying source document mistakes, confusing audiences and risking hazardous outcomes. To do this, a dialogue between hospitals and translators is key – both have to know their audience and content and help each other to do so, helping them to successfully provide documents from which patients can actually benefit.

Future of the Spanish Language Debated in Córdoba: Rival Congresses on the Spanish Language

Posted On March 26, 2019By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ No Comments

From the 27^th to the 30^th of March 2019, the Argentinian city of Córdoba will see academics, writers and language enthusiasts flock to it for the 8th International Congress of the Spanish Language (VIII Congreso Internacional de la Lengua Española, CILE). Some 250 writers, academics, experts and professionals from all over the world are coming to the city for discussions centered around the theme “Latin America and the future of the Spanish language: Culture and education, technology and business”, debating the future of the language in Latin America and its use and challenges in a changing world.

However, the prestigious CILE, backed by renowned Spanish institutions like the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) and the Cervantes Institute, isn’t in Córdoba alone. From the 26^th to the 29^th of March, something of a counter congress is being held by the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities at the National University of Córdoba, arguing that language is a human right and its development in Latin America doesn’t need the royal backing of Spain or its approval on the “correct” use and course of the language.

The presence of the two congresses not only raises key questions facing the Spanish language, but also society in general and how these changes are reflected in society. This CILE, promoted by the government of Argentina as well as the RAE, ASALE and Cervantes Institute, promises a discussion on the Latin American future of Spanish, the rise of digital technology, the economic value of Spanish, the challenges of cultural industries, linguistic tourism, translation, linguistic fusion, teaching the Spanish language and literature, and the importance of clear legal language, among many other topics. Among the guests present will be the writer María Teresa Andruetto, Nobel prize winner Mario Vargas Llosa, King Felipe VI of Spain and Mauricio Macri, the President of Argentina.

The royal aspect of the CILE and the somewhat authoritarian approaches of the RAE and the Cervantes Institute to the Spanish language, such as stipulating the use of official Castilian forms to be considered “native”, have been interpreted as a little patronizing, and in this spirit the I Encuentro Internacional: Derechos Lingüísticos como Derechos Humanos en Latinoamérica (First International Conference: Language Rights as Human Rights in Latin America) is being held by the National University of Córdoba to argue that the use of the language is a human right, not something to be controlled by Spain with Spain’s approval on defining the language. Spanish should be inclusive of the international nature of the language, varying enormously from place to place. It isn’t just dialects that many believe the likes of CILE overlook in their approach, but also the polemical gender issue in the Spanish language and gender neutrality in a gendered language, such as using the gender-neutral ‘e’ instead of the feminine ‘a’ and masculine ‘o’.

It is around this topic of inclusivity that the interesting issue of censorship also arises: should a language be changed to prevent offence? Should offensive words be removed to make Spanish more inclusive? In essence, the next few days will be filled with debate on issues that affect language and how they mirror issues we see in a rapidly changing society, such as staying up to date in the language, inclusivity and by that token discrimination and to whom does the Spanish language belong if not its half a billion speakers around the world.

VIII Congreso Internacional de la Lengua Española – Program and Activities.

I Encuentro Internacional: Derechos Lingüísticos como Derechos Humanos en Latinoamérica – Program and Activities.

Translating Genericized Trademarks

Posted On March 21, 2019By TranspanishIn Languages, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers, Translations/ No Comments

Language is constantly changing and adapting to suit its environment. One noticeable example of this is in brand names for new technologies or products becoming used as a generic name for any similar product whether they were produced by the brand or not. From trampoline to cellophane, words that were once specific brand names have entered everyday language to refer to general products, a process that continues today with the likes of the term photoshopping and googling. However, the introduction of these terms is not universal to all languages and can provide potential problems for translators, not to mention lawyers and marketers. This article highlights several notable examples of brand names that have been generalized and how to approach translating these so-called genericized trademarks.

Notable Generic Trademarks

Dig a little into the subject and there’s a surprisingly large number of words that have made their way into common use that were once brand names. These include Velcro, which is trademarked by Velcro Companies and refers to, instead, the “hook-and-loop fastener” system – a term that is almost never used in common speech to refer to the system.

Similar examples include:

A Zimmer frame to refer to a walking frame (with the Zimmer frame specifically belonging to Zimmer Holdings).
A Taser to refer to an electroshock weapon instead of one created by Taser International. It is, in fact, an acronym for a fictional weapon: Thomas A. Swift’s Electric Rifle. This has created the verbs ‘to tase’ and ‘to taser’.
A Hoover to refer to a vacuum cleaner instead of one created by Hoover Company. This has also become a verb synonymous with ‘to vacuum’.
Rizla instead of tobacco rolling papers, with Imperial Brands’ Rizla papers being the world’s most successful rolling paper brand.
Coke can be often used to refer to all Cola in the UK, not just Coca Cola, while in some parts of the southern US, Coke is the generic term for all soda.
PowerPoint to refer to all slide shows or presentation programs, instead of exclusively the slide show presentation program developed by Microsoft.
A Zeppelin to refer to rigid airships (with Luftschiffbau Zeppelin being a leading German airship company founded by Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin).
Photoshop to refer to all photo manipulation instead of the program by Adobe. It is commonly used as a verb ‘to photoshop’ or ‘to shop’ to mean digital photographic manipulation.

Potential Problems for Translators

For understandable reasons, companies often fight hard to prevent their brand from becoming a generic term. The Velcro legal team has even created a music video complaining about the use of the generic term Velcro. Some companies have been more successful in the prevention of their brands becoming generic terms, such as Nintendo who spread the use of “video game console” instead of a “Nintendo”, which now sounds antiquated and out of touch.

With this in mind, some brands may become incorporated as genericized trademarks in some languages while others may not. There is also the issue of culture and which products have been marketed more successfully in an area. For example, the generic untrademarked term “ramen” is used in the US to refer to instant noodles, while this is often referred to using the genericized trademark “Pot Noodle” in the UK, so even in the same language complications can arise as to what is being referenced. These issues can complicate translations for translators who are unaware of what is actually meant by the trademark, leading to possible misunderstandings and mistranslations. For instance, in Mongolia, the term “Canon” is used to refer to photocopying, named after the brand, but if this term were to be translated literally into English due to an insufficient level of cultural knowledge on the part of the translator, there could be problems in regard to whether they are specifically referring to the brand.

How to Translate Genericized Trademarks

As with most translation issues, there are a few strategies that can be used depending on the translator’s aim. If the cultural context is important or perhaps if there is no equivalent term in the target language, an explanation may be necessary. However, often times these terms are just used without people being aware that they are referring to a specific brand. In these instances, the brand name becomes a synonym rather than a new term, so Hoover – now essentially a synonym for vacuum cleaner in English – should be substituted with the non-trademark name vacuum cleaner when translating into another language.

In short, generic trademarks are an issue to be aware of when translating and care should be taken considering both the context and the intention of the piece. When possible, for clarity’s sake, translators may want to consider avoiding their use unless it sounds unnatural to do so.

Translation Buyers