10 QUALITIES OF A GOOD TRANSLATOR

Attending a translation courses, learning through Textbooks is not enough to become a good translator. The profession of translation is a daily and permanent activity that requires a good background and a high level of professionalism.

1.      Severity

Being a good Professional requires more rigour and diligence. The translator should be severe both while doing the work and in time management. This implies that he should be severe in the choice of words he uses, in sentences or phrases punctuation, in proofreading and in correction before delivering the work. 

2.      Good knowledge of the working languages

Translating from one language to another will not be easy if you don’t master the bases of that language; those are: grammar, conjugation or the vocabulary of that given language. Therefore, it is very important to acquire and master the syntax and morphology of your working languages.

Mastering languages also implies that you should understand the culture related to that language. If not, at times, you won’t get the meaning of some phrases.

3.      Good knowledge of working tools

For a better translation, translators may use dictionaries, glossaries or translation software. Altough they help them to save time and money, they also have limitations in the sense that, at times they can lead you into errors. For example, the dictionary may help you to check the spelling of a work, understang the meaning, but It won’t help you to translate a sentence according to its context. Except it gives you some examples of how the word may be used in different context.

4.      Excellent writing skills

Writing is an art. Writing is also a key of better reading and understanding. A poorly punctuated sentence may lead to the misunderstanding of the whole passage. Also, a passage with many mistakes doesn’t encourages readers. It tired readers.

For instance: I sweep the floor (in this case the speaker means he is the one who swept the floor) and I, sweep the floor (in this case the speakers means that he cannot sweep or he doesn’t want to sweep the floor).

5.       Good general knowledge

A good helps you to better understand types of translation and to be open minded. It also prevents from softwares translation trap.

e.g: The French sentence: « SCRIBO-Cameroon met à votre disposition une équipe de rédacteurs, de traducteurs et de développeurs professionnels afin de produire des contenus qui s’adaptent à vos besoins et qui épousent votre vision. » is translate by Google translate as “SCRIBO-Cameroon puts at your disposal a team of writers, translators and professional developers to produce content that adapts to your needs and that embrace your vision.’’  Instead of “our team of professional writers, translators and programmers are all yours for works that fit your needs and embrace your vision.”.  So be aware of translation softwares limitations.

6.      Promptness and discretion

You may have private documents from individuals or organizations. Make sure not to offend somebody sensibility.

A good professional is somebody who can keep professional secrecy. Always make sure you honour your commitments towards yourself and your audience. Humility is a virtue when you are unable to achieve your objectives.

7.      Flexibility and adeptability  

Translation in scientific domain is not the same in general domains. Words may have several meanings according to their context of use. The word bank may have several meanings in different domains. For example: the phrase “to bank on something” means to count on something while the phrase “to bank” refers to where to pay my school fees).  

8.      Curiosity

Have you ever noticed that a phrase or a word may have another meaning although it is written or spelt the same language or in another language? The word library (bibliothèque in french) and librairies (Bookshop in french). “Library” in english means bibliothèque in french, but the word “librairie” in french refers to bookshop in english.

As such, mastering syntax and morphology of a language is not enough. Words may have false friends or contextual meaning.

9.      Warmthness

Make your workspace pleasant and be yourself friendly, cheerful, hospitable to quickly acquire knowledge and experience in the domain.

10. Passion

Passion helps you to upgrade quickly thank to your willingness. For Christelle Ngueajio, expert translator, her passion for languages makes her to work as volunteer in several NGOs in Cameroon. Nowadays, although she serves in a company, she also works as freelancer for many NGOs and individuals to earn her daily life. 

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Scribo-Cameroon is an enterprise specialized in E-learning modules technologies, Translation and interpretation, digital communication and websites development. At Scribo-Cameroon, we digitized your content and process your requests online and in our offices in Yaoundé, Cameroon and if necessary in other countries in Africa, Europe, America, Asia and Oceanie. To know more about at Scribo-Cameroon, visit our website on www.scribo-cameroon.com For any express translation or certified documents, contact lingua-Express. Visit our website on www.lingua-express.com or call us on 677 712 626

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