Test Translation Fraud Leads To Driving Licenses Removal
If learning to drive can be hard for anybody, passing a theoretical and practical driving test in a language that is not your mother tongue can be even tougher. Aware of this situation, the UK’s Driving Safety Agency (DSA) allows non-English speaker candidates to be accompanied by an interpreter during the tests. But everything seems […]
Defining Project Specifications: What Should be Included in a Quote
Lots have been said about the importance of providing clients with quality translations. One of the main aspects that translators should take into consideration is that the final document should comply with the client’s requirements and expectations and, of course, these vary from client to client and from document to document. So, how can the […]
“Wasap” and “Wasapear”: New Additions to the Spanish Language
Languages are living creatures. They are not static; they grow, change and adapt to the current times thus adopting new words that express their speakers’ reality and discarding others that are not useful any longer. Over the last years, most of the changes that languages have experienced are influenced or triggered by the massive use […]
When a Bad Translation Affects Legal Rights
Unless you are in the legal department, you study International Law or you are a fan of American police TV series, the Miranda Rights mean nothing to you. However, if you have ever watched any chapter of Law & Order or CSI Miami and you have seen the scene in which the bad guy is […]
Should NYPD Officers Speak Spanish?
The NYPD seems to have some trouble with Spanish speaking people. Just a few days after nine Hispanic officers were issued memos for chatting in Spanish amongst themselves and violating the department’s unofficial English-only policy, their intolerance with Spanish speakers has made it to the press again. image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net Five Latina women in […]
Why you Should Invest in a Professional Spanish Translation
Is it really worth to invest in a professional Spanish translation? Wouldn’t it just be the same to ask your Mexican, Puerto Rican or Spanish friend to translate that document for you? As it has already been discussed in other posts, even though your friend may be perfectly fluent in his mother tongue, that does […]
Queen Elizabeth I, the Translator
Rulers at present may be seen as practical, passionate, determined or powerful but few would think of them as intellectuals. Thus, it may be quite surprising to learn that Queen Elizabeth I, one of the most powerful English rulers during the Renaissance, was not only disciplined and independent but also an inward intellectual who devoted […]
The Origin of the Word Chévere
If you have had the chance of spending some time in Venezuela, or Cuba or in any other Caribbean country or if you have watched any Venezuelan soap opera on TV, there are great chances that you have heard at least once the word chévere (meaning good, cool). And in fact it is quite likely […]
English-Only: Past, Present and Future of a Controversial Movement
The Whole Food’s incident, in which two employees accused the company of encouraging an English-only policy in the working environment and suspending them for speaking Spanish during the working hours, seems to have opened Pandora’s box in relation to a long-standing and unresolved issue that reaches deep into the American society: the use of English […]
The E Day: Spanish Speakers Celebrate their Mother Language Day!
Spanish is the second language in the world according to its number of native speakers, over 500 million people can speak it across the globe and it is the third language most used in the Internet. Such impressive numbers as well as the richness of such a vast culture are definitely worth a celebration and […]