The Origin of Hashtag
This week we’re starting a new blog series called “The Origin of …” In it, we’ll be discussing the origin of a new word each week, including it’s translations or adaptations in other languages. We begin the series with a word that has become widely recognized among Internet parlance in a short amount of time: […]
Managing Work Overload
Being confronted with too much work is not necessarily what every freelance translator fears when they branch out on their own. Not having enough work to make is usually higher up on the list of worries. But once you get going with your freelance business, it’s not uncommon to find yourself on the other extreme […]
Dos and Don’ts of Translation Project Management
For freelance translators, project management can end up being one of the more time-consuming roles that they fill. It is a multi-faceted set of responsibilities, and mastering it is essential to making sure everything runs like a well-oiled machine. It covers everything from managing time schedules and deadlines, to setting rates and communicating expectations. It […]
Cocoliche and the origins of a regional dialect
Regional differences in the way Spanish is spoken can usually be attributed to either the influence of native languages that exist in a particular area or the languages brought by immigrants that blend with Spanish to create a unique regional dialect. The Spanish spoken in Buenos Aires, as we have discussed in our series on […]
A Call to “Erase” Racism from Spanish
A new campaign is picking up steam to eradicate instances of racism in the Spanish language. The contentious phrase, “trabajar como un negro” (“to work like a black person”), is unifying musicians, famous athletes, and officials in a call to Spain’s Real Academia Española (RAE) to eliminate the phrase for being discriminatory and outdated. The […]
Do Children Benefit From Language Mixing?
More information continues to come out about the challenges and benefits of young children learning two or more languages simultaneously. Studies in recent years have largely focused on how early bilingualism or multilingualism affects learning in other areas, as well as the effect on a child’s vocabulary both short-term as well as long-term. A […]
Understanding the Hispanic Labour Force
As the largest ethnic minority group in the U.S., Hispanics constitute a significant and growing percentage of the workforce. Many of these workers are involved in the construction and landscaping industries, though they are present in just about every industry and region of the U.S. As such, it’s important that employers understand the complexity of […]
The Meaning of the Lunfardo Word ‘Gamba’
Argentine Spanish is strewn with words and colorful phrases from Lunfardo, a rich vocabulary born on the streets of Buenos Aires in the second half of the 19th century. Now considered a fixture of the Spanish language in Argentina (especially in and around Buenos Aires) and Uruguay, linguists cite the use of Lunfardo as a […]
Language Barrier Linked To Worse Diabetes Control
The ability to receive effective health care and follow recommendations is contingent on open communication between doctor and patient. Barriers to communication not only hurt the doctor’s ability to understand what is ailing their patient, but they prevent patients from understanding treatment options and, often, how to implement them. Indeed, health-related problems are some of […]
Spanish Is Second Most Used Language On Twitter
According to Spain’s Cervantes Institute, Spanish has officially become the world’s second most used language on Twitter after English. With the most speakers of any language globally, Chinese is in third place. And while China does have its own version of Twitter, Weibo, it is undeniable that Spanish is currently seeing a growing presence on […]
