Language translation is a challenging task for obvious reasons. There are up to 7000 languages that are helping people communicate with each other globally. However, not everyone speaks all of these. People require translation to bridge the language gap and to communicate effectively. A language translation is a process that deals with converting words and their meanings from one language to another. It is not a typical process that follows the plain conversion of words in two languages. It is more than words. A successful translation deals with the contextual flow and focuses on preserving the original intent of the text.
Language translation is all about understanding the grammar effectively, working on cultural contexts, idioms, and the intended tone that deals with the original message. It is not a literal translation. When it comes to traditional Chinese translation services, it is extremely crucial to know the language first. The Chinese language has many dialects and variants, and two main variants are:
- Mandarin Chinese
- Simplified Chinese
A literal translation is never the intent of the businesses and people who seek Chinese and other languages’ translation. Chinese is the world’s most spoken language with billions of native speakers. Also, it’s a tonal language and does not have any alphabets. It rather works with the pinyin. This makes it a tough language to crack especially for the people speaking Western languages. The Foreign Services Institute USA ranks this language as the most difficult and it falls in category V. The group that they consider super hard contains a few other languages too. These are Cantonese, Japanese, Korean, and Arabic.
Dealing with the challenges of the Chinese language
Translation of the Chinese language, either simple or Mandarin, comes with particular complexities and challenges. There are linguistic complexities as well. Bridging the language gap between Chinese and other languages requires translators and businesses to navigate through many factors. It also requires cultural contexts, historical references, and know-how of other social norms. The set of challenges that are part of the Chinese translation include linguistics and other domains.
Linguistic nuances and idioms
The linguistic nuances and idioms of all languages are important and cannot be compromised. Considering Chinese a difficult and tonal language, this has a different type of linguistic nuances.
Mandarin’s complexity
Mandarin is one of the ancient languages. It has come a long way. This comprises rich homophones, complex characters, and combinations with tonal variations that often become a reason for misinterpretations without proper comprehension. Mandarin gets tough even for its country fellows at times. Therefore, they eventually came up with another variant and simplified the language for the current generation to be good at it.
Idioms and proverbs
The idioms and proverbs of the Chinese language have a distinct presence. These do not have direct alternatives in other languages. Moreover, these require creative solutions that help in conveying the intended meaning, tone, and impact. This is important to mention here that only experienced companies understand how they can navigate through the challenges of this language. Therefore, it is particularly important to consider this factor in advance for traditional Chinese translation services and its other variants.
Adapting Humor
The adaption of the humor is different in different languages and cultures. Chinese culture is somewhat different as compared to the western cultures. Therefore, translators often find it tough to deal with the translation of humours content and its appropriate adaption.
Cultural references
The cultural references are also crucial to consider in the Chinese translation. Many times humor comes with cultural references which translators often miss while translating. The literal translation does not get along with the original intent. Also, jokes that are based on historical events and figures require careful consideration. The humor or historical event gets missed in the translation. Therefore, to cope with these references only the local translation vendors and Chinese translation companies must be your best bet for the Chinese language translation.
Maintaining appropriate tone
Chinese is a tonal language so maintaining an appropriate tone is crucial to ensure there are no misinterpretations and misrepresentations in the language. As Chinese communication mostly relies on indirectness and implicit meaning, translators have to ensure that the translated text does not lack an original tone and also avoids a blunt or aggressive sound. The translated text should never be biased. It should reflect a neutral tone.
Conclusion
Chinese is an ancient language with billions of speakers. It has two main variants, Mandarin and simplified Chinese. Translating Chinese into other languages can be a real struggle. Therefore, translators often have to cope with the linguistic nuances and idioms with the relevant adaptation and translation of humor and tones. Only native speakers must be hired for the Chinese language translation.
