Monthly Email Newsletter
August 2005
IN THIS ISSUE:
I. Message from the Editor
II. Articles:
*** FEATURED INDUSTRY: Legal
1. Feature Article: Navigating the Linguistic
Jungle - A Look at Clients and Witnesses with Limited English Proficiency (LEP)
2. Tip Sheet: Hiring a Language Services
Provider
*** FEATURED LANGUAGE: Chinese
3. Chinese Quick-Glance/ Identifying Chinese
Dialects
4. Useful Links
III. In Our Next Issue
IV. Your Feedback
V. How to Subscribe
I. MESSAGE FROM THE EDITOR
There are several national laws dictating the use of interpreters in the
judicial setting. This month's feature article discusses the laws and
regulations you may encounter in the legal industry when working with either
clients or witnesses who are considered LEP, or having Limited English
Proficiency. For example, a person qualifies for an interpreter if they speak
only, or primarily, a language other than English if, for example, it will
impede his or her comprehension of the proceedings.
Think the term LEP doesn't affect you? Well, if you are involved in social or
health services industries, think again. While we don't touch on the specific
regulations that may impact these two industries in this article, we do
understand the issues and can offer valuable insight through case studies on
our website or individual consultation.
Put simply, many of you are in the market for a language services provider at
one time or another. But how can you know if you're selecting the right firm
for your company? Read our tip sheet to find out more.
Our featured language in this issue is Chinese. Although the Chinese government
has tried to standardize both the written and spoken languages used in China,
there are actually 54 different languages spoken in China today. Amazing?
Yes, but also confusing and challenging to doing business in this region of the
world. Read more about the numerous dialects and find useful links to Chinese
media sites, portals and search engines in this issue's featured language
section.
Since this newsletter is meant to create a virtual community where we share the
latest news and advice, we invite you to submit your suggestions, story ideas,
statistics and website tips to
mailto:newsletter@globallanguages.com.
-- Inna Kassatkina, Editor
mailto:editor@globallanguages.com
II. ARTICLES
*** FEATURED INDUSTRY: LEGAL
1. FEATURE ARTICLE: NAVIGATING THE LINGUISTIC JUNGLE - A LOOK AT CLIENTS
AND WITNESSES WITH LIMITED ENGLISH PROFICIENCY (LEP)
According to the Judicial Council of California, every day in California
courtrooms more than 80 different languages are spoken by parties and
witnesses. But, did you know that anyone who doesn't speak English and is
charged with a crime is entitled to an interpreter in court? So is anyone who
must testify as a witness. Yet in California, where 31.5 percent of
Californians speak a language other than English in the home and nearly one in
ten speaks no English at all, there are only about 1,300 state-certified
interpreters working in the courts.
Beyond the borders of California, several national laws dictate the use of
interpreters in the judicial setting. For example, a person qualifies for an
interpreter if they speak only, or primarily, a language other than English so
as to cause at least one of these three problems: inhibition of the party's
comprehension of the proceedings, inhibition of the party's communication with
counsel or the judge, or, in the case of a witness, inhibition of the witness'
comprehension of questions and presentation of testimony (28 U.S.C. 1827
(d)(1)).
Courts that are unable to find a trained interpreter for a defendant or witness
who needs one may have to postpone hearings, which is costly and frustrating.
Beyond money and frustrations, proceeding without an interpreter could violate
a non-English speaker's rights to due process.
When trained and tested interpreters are not available, judges may rely on
someone in the courtroom, perhaps a friend or family member, who speaks the
defendant's language. But without training, few bilingual speakers can
accurately and comprehensively interpret legal language flowing at 150 words a
minute. They may also be unaware of the nuances the meaning of a word can carry
in different languages.
It is common to encounter the misconception that if an individual is bilingual
he or she can interpret and, by extension, can interpret in court and translate
court documents. In reality, the demands of courtroom interpreting are
particularly complex, requiring extensive knowledge of at least two languages
and rigorous training in interpretation.
So how can you navigate the rigorous terrain of the linguistic judicial jungle?
Global Language Solutions (GLS) offers the following suggestions for using
interpreters in a legal setting:
1) Before the proceedings begin, give the interpreter case
information, including a summary of expected testimony, and a copy of any
relevant documents which the interpreter will be expected to translate.
2) If an expert witness will be using specialized vocabulary,
notify the interpreter in advance, because even skilled interpreters may be
deficient in technical terms. This helps the interpreter refuse the assignment
if he or she is not qualified.
3) Interpreters should not be asked to explain legal concepts or
procedures or to fill out forms without an attorney present. Legal explanations
must be left to attorneys.
4) Make sure the interpreter's English can be understood. Watch
out for accents that are so thick they impede communication. The Court
Interpreters Act, 28 U.S.C. 1827 mandates dismissal of an interpreter who
cannot communicate effectively with the court AND counsel. However, many good
interpreters have slight accents simply because they learned English as
teenagers or adults and may have an otherwise excellent command of the
language.
5) Interpreters also must be able to handle different dialects.
For instance, the Spanish spoken in one part of Mexico is typically quite
different from the Spanish spoken in Puerto Rico.
6) Be familiar with your interpreter's code of ethics. In most
jurisdictions where interpreters are used with any regularity, courts have
promulgated codes of ethical conduct for court interpreters and translators.
The National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators has a Code
of Ethics and Professional Responsibilities, which is binding on all its
members. Visit
http://najit.org/ethics.html
for more information.
To receive the complete tip sheet on Using Interpreters in a Legal Setting,
please send an e-mail to
mailto:tipsheets@globallanguages.com.
To find out more about state and national legal mandates for access to
interpreters in your area, please contact GLS at
mailto:info@globallanguages.com.
References:
-- National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators
-- Judicial Council of California
-- The Court Interpreters Act, 28 U.S.C. 1827 Interim Regulations of the
Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts Implementing
the Court Interpreters Amendments Act of 1988
-- Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 604
-- Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 702
-- Code of Professional Responsibility of the Official Interpreters of the
United States Courts
2. TIP SHEET: HIRING A LANGUAGE SERVICES PROVIDER (LSP)
In today's competitive business landscape, most companies simply cannot afford
to ignore global markets. International sales contribute substantial earning
opportunities both on- and offline. However, entering a foreign market can be
challenging: unfamiliar advertising cultures, different laws and regulations,
and a foreign language put potential obstacles in the way. How can you be sure
you are selecting a translation team that has the experience and the training
to properly convey your message in the target language.and, for that matter,
culture?
Based on its experience translating documents and websites for Fortune 500
global brands and leaders in the health, government, financial, and legal
sectors, Global Language Solutions (GLS) offers several tips for a successful
translation process by selecting the right provider, including:
-
Commitment to quality. Make sure that a defined workflow and documented
quality assurance procedures are in place and are used at all times. Look for a
provider with a firmly established project management process involving
different team members (translation, editing, proofreading). Don't be afraid to
ask the provider how they ensure quality. Whether a $150 or $50,000 job,
one-page or 200-page document, the level and commitment to quality and
adherence to processes and procedures should be the same.
-
The price is right. To provide quality, it takes time and
effort. Just because you select the agency with the lowest cost does not
mean you will get the worst service - or the higher priced translation does not
guarantee the best accuracy. One way certain providers cut costs is to
sacrifice quality. For example, they may choose not to follow a multi-step
quality process. Instead, they use one translator and skip the editing and
proofreading stages by other team members. Because of this, they might be
able to offer rock bottom prices. On the other hand, there is no need to pay
extra for extensive overhead costs. Keep in mind - price is only one
factor to consider.
-
Industry expertise. Just as you would not hire a divorce lawyer to
manage your meeting with the IRS, it is highly recommended you hire a
translation agency or translator with experience in your specific industry.
This is particularly important for highly regulated industries, such as medical
devices, clinical research, finance, etc.
-
All words and cultures are not created equal. The
experienced translation agency will address country-specific cultural and
linguistic issues. Brand names, for example, may need to be adjusted to target
cultures to ensure that they don't have different connotations in the foreign
language that could prove to be damaging to the brand or even offensive.
Coca-Cola sells a lot of Diet Coke in the U.S. However, 'diet' in Germany and
Italy suggests illness, thus the company renamed it Coca-Cola Light.
-
Use translation memory (TM) tools. Translation memory (TM) software
analyzes repetitive text in the source documents and then queries a translation
memory database to identify previously translated segments. TM ensures
consistency of terminology, expedites future revisions, and reduces translation
costs. Consistency is improved because the TM software will always propose the
same translation for the same source sentence. Even a large group of
translators, working from different locations, can produce consistent
translations, provided they work from the same translation memory. These tools
should not be confused with Machine Translation (MT) software.
GLS has several more tips for a successful translation process. To request the
complete translation tip sheet, send an e-mail to
mailto:tipsheets@globallanguages.com.
*** FEATURED LANGUAGE: CHINESE
3. CHINESE QUICK-GLANCE
While the English language is based on the Roman alphabet of 26 letters, Asian
languages are ideographic - they use symbols to convey the meaning. Over the
centuries Chinese, which originally had about 50,000 symbols, evolved into
various other Asian languages. Today Traditional Chinese has about 13,000
characters and is used mostly in Hong Kong and Taiwan, while Simplified Chinese
has about 1,500 to 3,000 characters and is used in most of the Republic of
China.
IDENTIFYING CHINESE DIALECTS:
Although the Chinese government, located in Beijing, has tried to standardize
both the written and spoken languages used in China, there are actually 54
different languages spoken in China today. The spoken languages include
the most widely popular Standard Chinese or Mandarin spoken by the Han Chinese
(also called Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu
(Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka
dialects, and many minority languages spoken by ethnic groups. The main written
Chinese languages are Simplified Chinese (which uses simplified characters) and
Traditional Chinese (which uses more complex traditional characters).
Simplified characters are used in many areas of China and in Singapore, while
traditional characters are used in Taiwan, Hong Kong and many overseas Chinese
communities located outside of China. Traditional characters have also
become more popular in southern China in recent years.
There are also many ethnic groups in China, including Han Chinese (91.9 percent
of China's population), and Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu,
Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities (8.1 percent of China's
population).
SPEAK THE LANGUAGE:
Despite China's commitment to, and success in, developing human resources with
good English-language skills, companies that are serious about doing business
in China should supply company information in Chinese and be prepared to
initiate contact in Chinese. Having Chinese-language material prepared and a
Chinese speaker or interpreter available makes a great first impression and
demonstrates that a company is serious about doing business in China.
THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA:
China is the world's most populated nation with just over 1.26 billion people,
and growing every day. Historically, China has been a leading civilization,
outpacing many nations in the arts and sciences. But in the first half of the
20th century, China was beset by famines, civil unrest, wars, military defeats,
and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists, led by Mao Zedong,
established a dictatorship that imposed strict controls over everyday life of
its citizens, commerce, and society. After 1978, under Deng Xiaoping, China
gradually introduced market-oriented reforms and decentralized economic
decision making. And output reportedly has quadrupled in the last 20
years. But for western business today, China remains a quagmire. With the
world's second largest GDP, enormous untapped potential markets and vast
resources, it sustains great uncertainty and instability. For example,
political controls remain extremely tight even while economic controls continue
to weaken. And in the eyes of the world, its poor humanitarian record is
of great concern.
4. USEFUL LINKS
WEBSITES:
The following websites are good sources of information about media covering
news and events in China. The majority of these sites are bilingual (in
English and Chinese); those that are Chinese-only are indicated below.
-- China Daily -
http://www1.chinadaily.com.cn/news/index.html
-- China and World Economy -
http://www.iwep.org.cn/wec
-- People's Daily Online -
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/home.html
-- China Internet Information Center -
http://www.china.org.cn/english/index.htm
PORTALS:
If you want to check out important portals, visit:
http://www.sparkice.com
http://www.alibaba.com
http://www.meetchina.com
SEARCH ENGINES:
Some major Chinese search engines are:
In English -
http://www.thechinabridge.com/index2.htm
http://www.chinasite.com/
http://www.chinavista.com/hyper-c/hyper-c.html
http://www.iearthbound.com/englishhome.html
In Chinese -
http://www.ahshun.com/
http://www.beijixing.com.cn/
http://cc-www.com/portal/traditional/main_trad.htm
http://www.thechinabridge.com/chinese/index2.htm
http://www.cseek.com/
http://www.chinavista.com/hyper-c/chhyper-c.html
http://www.iearthbound.com/
http://www.sina.com.cn/
http://www.sohu.com
http://cn.yahoo.com/
III. IN OUR NEXT ISSUE
**** FEATURED INDUSTRY: Online Education
**** FEATURED LANGUAGE: Italian
V. YOUR FEEDBACK
Have questions? Or a story idea or topic you would like us to address in a future issue? Let us know by
sending a message to
newsletter@globallanguages.com.
VI. HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
