Tag: accredited NAATI translators

The Challenges and Opportunities for NAATI Translators in the Era of Globalisation

Although the pace of globalization slowed somewhat during the pandemic, the pre-Covid rate has now resumed. People and their businesses and organizations are communicating as never before. The main obstacle remains the numerous language barriers. The translation industry is intimately tied to the need to communicate across the language divide, presenting opportunities and challenges along the way. 

For translators based in Australia who have the advantage of a national accreditation authority, NAATI (the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters), the growth in the worldwide demand for quality translation services gives them a head start over other native English-speaking translators elsewhere in the world. NAATI-certified translators are certainly in demand and the onus is on them to respond to the positive effects of globalization on them.


The opportunities for NAATI translators in the era of globalization

The main advantage of globalization as far as NAATI translators are concerned is that it provides a global market for their services. Not all translations can take place through online communication, but a surprising amount certainly can. In what seems now the dim distant past, the average trained translator would have an office and deal with clients on a face-to-face basis or through the medium of postal services. Most clients would have been local. Now, there are virtually no boundaries, meaning translators in Australia have potentially almost limitless numbers of clients.

The very reason why globalization is occurring, i.e. the existence of the internet and vastly improved forms of communication also allows NAATI translators to have virtual offices. The translator based in a small, country town in outback New South Wales has the same opportunities to carry out translation work as a translator in metropolitan Sydney, Melbourne, or Brisbane. Home-based offices have tremendous advantages in terms of the cost of maintaining a business as there is no longer any need for renting office space and personnel to maintain it.

The challenges for NAATI translators in the era of globalization

Of course, there are challenges associated with globalization, too. The demand for traditionally popular language pairs such as French and Japanese has been swamped somewhat by the diversity of other language demands. For trainee translators, this does provide more opportunity than a challenge as there are many more languages to become familiar with and offer in translation, but for older translators, there may be less demand for some of the languages they may have offered in the past.

Translation has also become a more complex and demanding career as the need for more technical translation has increased. The growth in globalization has its parallel in the growth of scientific and technical communication, necessitating a better familiarity with scientific and technical terminology. Cultural nuances have become more diverse and translators must accustom themselves to the need for more localization techniques to retain the relevance of the material they are given to translate, especially in marketing translation.

Lastly, there has been a steady increase in the proficiency of machine translation technology. While it has yet to match the current level of development of artificial intelligence, the reality is that machine translation tools are becoming increasingly sophisticated. As yet, for most commercial and professional translation tasks, human translators are still a necessity, it is important for NAATI translators to keep a close eye on the trends and make themselves familiar with the trends in technology which can actually make their jobs easier.

How NAATI translators can overcome the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities

 

The steady pace of globalization presents both opportunities and challenges for NAATI translators. The challenges must be met to take advantage of the opportunities. Examples of ways that translators can help to adapt to a more diverse and dynamic translation environment include:

  • continue to learn about new technologies and how these can help to expedite translation tasks;
  • build professional links across the translation industry;
  • branch out into more specialized niche translation markets to take advantage of the growth in these areas;
  • become more astute in self-promotion and marketing of one’s own translation strengths.

 

 

Tips for Getting Accurate Italian to English Translations

Italian is a major European language and is the first language for 67 million people on that continent, second only to German. Italian is also spoken by many millions of people who make up the Italian diaspora, especially in North America, but in parts of South America and Australia, too. Italy has one of the largest economies in Europe and the language has had an influence through the ages on the culture of much of Europe and the rest of the world, especially through music, theatre, the arts, architecture, and religion. Modern Italian evolved from more rustic dialects spoken across what is known as Italy today and as a Romance language is closely related to Latin, Romanian, French, Spanish and Portuguese.

Because of the importance of Italian, it means that there is a constant need for English-to-Italian and Italian-to-English translation. If you need your content translated into or from Italian it is important to know how you can rely on accurate Italian translators.

Tips for getting accurate Italian-to-English or English-to-Italian translations

Tip#1 Look for a professional translation service with native Italian-speaking translators

The most obvious tip is to only engage professional Italian translators who are fluent in both Italian and your own language. Avoid in particular the temptation to use computer-generated translation services. Some businesses make the mistake of choosing to use computer-generated translation services because they seem cheap and easy. They are cheap and easy, but not accurate enough for anything other than the most amateur of content.

Tip#2 Use translation agencies with expertise in the content you need to translate

The translation industry remains a mystery to most people, but in fact, it is highly organized into different categories. Professional translators tend to specialize in different fields which involve different terminology and knowledge of subject-specific content. Legal translators who can translate Italian to English legal documents accurately are unlikely to be a good choice for businesses wanting to translate marketing material or manufacturers of scientific instruments.

Tip# 3 Look for a professional translation service that has proven good proofreading services

Proofreading is a very important part of any translation project. It follows the raw translation itself, then editing, which refines the content and ensures it matches the requirements of those who want their content translated. Proofreading may be done by the translators themselves or given to others in a team. Good proofreading is an essential aspect of accurate Italian-to-English translation.

Tip#4 Use a certified Italian translator for legal document translation

Most legal documents require certification of translation. It is typical for translators to certify the content that has been translated itself, but you do need to know what the rules are in the country where the translated content is to be circulated. In many European countries, for example, professional translators are known as sworn translators as they have to have their credentials examined by a court before they can become certified translators. In Australia, English-to-Italian translators are accredited by the national accreditation board, NAATI, and certify any translated content themselves.

Tip#5 Stay in direct communication with the translators

It is advisable to build a good working relationship with your chosen translator or translation agency. This helps to avoid miscommunication and potential inaccuracies before they arise.

Conclusion

If you’re looking for Italian to English translation services make sure you use professional translators or translation agencies that specialize in the type of content you need translated and use good editing and proofreading techniques.

What’s Going On in July 2015 for Global Translators?

The world is in constant change and the translation industry is no exception. Translators, whether they are accredited NAATI translators, or any other translators who provide essential translation services in Australia need to keep abreast of developments in the sector. Every month there is something going on somewhere in the world which provides an opportunity for translators operating in the challenging second decade of the twenty first century to learn something new or just make contact with fellow translators.

July 2015 is the month in which a key translation conference is being staged in Brazil, called IATIS 2015. The conference is open to all translators, wherever they are based in the world, who are prepared to make their way to the conference venue. The conference’s theme is “Innovation Paths in Translation and Intercultural Studies”. The conference’s theme recognises the new and evolving challenges in what is an increasingly globalised world to intercultural studies and translation.

The conference organisers recognise the fact that society world-wide seeks out new technologies so that a whole diverse set of information and meaning can be exchanged, created and spread around effectively. The conference seeks to discuss and discover the innovative insights and solutions which provide answers to the challenge of this ever present search.

The term “innovation” used in the conference theme is used in its broadest sense. It doesn’t just include all those technological developments which have affected communication so much over the last few decades, but includes cultural and social practices and interactions as well, particularly those that affect translation and intercultural discourse.

The conference will be a broad based one and will include a huge number of different topics which conference participants can choose from. Some of these are listed below, although the full list is much longer.
Conference topics for IATIS 2015, July 2015

• Interaction of translators and interpreters with and through technology
• Innovative approaches to multilingualism, translation and intercultural studies
• Innovation in approaches to the use of style in translation
• Innovation in media accessibility and audiovisual translation
• The use of IT in translation
• Recent perspectives on the relationship between translation and literature