Lunfardo: Money Talk
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 defining […]
Language an Obstacle for Internet Users in European Union
A recent study conducted by Eurobarometer, the European Commission’s survey research program, found that more than 50% of Internet users in the European Union (EU) sometimes access the web using a language other than their mother tongue. In addition, the study revealed that 90% of EU Internet users show a preference for websites featured in […]
Lunfardo: What Does “Guita” Mean?
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 defining […]
Google Strikes Deal to Translate European Patents
Last week Google announced an agreement with the European Patent Office (EPO) to translate approximately 50 million patents using the search giant’s Internet-based translation tool, Google Translate. Google and authorities at the EPO will collaborate to translate patents into 32 different languages. Patent researchers, scientists and others will be able to conduct searches for patents […]
Portuñol: A Blend of Spanish and Portuguese
Portuñol or portunhol – a dialect based on code-switching between Spanish and Portuguese – has resulted from prolonged contact between the inhabitants of border areas. Emerging over time as a sort of lingua franca for those living in immigrant communities or in trade zones where speakers lacked fluency in the other group’s language, portuñol can […]
Top reasons why you should target the Hispanic Community
– There are 48.4 million Hispanics in the US today. – The Hispanic online population reached a record 20.3 million visitors in February 2009, representing 11 percent of the total U.S. online market. – The projected Hispanic population of the United States on July 1, 2050 is 132.8 million.. According to this projection, Hispanics will […]
The Advantages of an Online Spanish Translation Service
Companies with a consistently high volume of translations often resort to hiring in-house translators to meet their needs; however, retaining one or more full-time translators presents various challenges. Working closely with a trusted online Spanish translation service may be a more viable method for getting translations done in a timely manner and at a fair […]
“Refudiate” Chosen as 2010 Word of the Year
The New Oxford American Dictionary mulled over pages’ worth of new candidates for the 2010 Word of the Year. Although the technology sector contributed a considerable number of terms to 2009’s field of contenders, this year seemed more heavily influenced by politics, the economy, and current events with words like “Tea Party,” “bankster,” “double-dip” and […]
Endangered language opens window on to past
An endangered Greek dialect which is spoken in north-eastern Turkey has been identified by researchers as a “linguistic goldmine” because of its startling closeness to previous forms of the Greek language. Fieldwork examining Romeyka, a little-studied form of Greek still spoken in the area around Trabzon, on Turkey’s Black Sea coast, has revealed a number […]
Google Translate and the Struggle for Accurate Machine Translations
Using a pioneering approach to machine translation (MT), search behemoth Google now provides translations from 52 languages through its Google Translate service. Google has capitalized on its access to unfathomable amounts of data, largely in the form of transcripts from the proceedings at the United Nations, which have been rendered into some 23 languages by […]
