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Care to explain this services-and-finances-related oddity?
Thread poster: S_G_C
Christopher Schröder
Christopher Schröder
United Kingdom
Member (2011)
Swedish to English
+ ...
Um… Sep 18, 2021

Adieu wrote:

There's really absolutely no need whatsoever to have perfect grammar and good composition skills in your source language.

Translation is about fast and accurate pattern recognition + stubborn research skills for when that fails you. For technical translation, an even bigger part is knowing target language terminology (= the POSSIBLE answers to questions you may encounter).

None of that involves being particularly articulate in the opposite direction.


Theoretically, perhaps, but when someone writes poorly in their source language it’s a double red flag for me.

For example, a Russian who omits all the articles when writing in English.

That immediately suggests limited exposure to English and/or no feel for language and grammar. So then you have to question how well they understand English, and if they don’t understand it they can’t translate it properly.

Alternatively, if they can’t be bothered to put the effort into writing accurately in one language, will they bother in the other?
 
Baran Keki
Baran Keki  Identity Verified
Türkiye
Local time: 15:23
Member
English to Turkish
OCD Sep 18, 2021

Sorana_M. wrote:
while people who lose their sleep searching for the most adequate translation, freaking out over the slightest typo, checking and re-checking their work, polishing it... aren't.

Some degree of OCD is good in that it ensures extra quality and accuracy (perhaps at the detriment of your mental health). That said, there will always be a 'proofreader'/'editor' who will ruin your meticulously researched, beautifully crafted translation by simply changing words with their synonyms and using their preferred phrases and wordings (regardless of whether or not they're correct or consistent with the context) for the sake of 'appearing to have done their job'. And since you're translating into Romanian, not into English, French or German, a PM in Paris, Copenhagen, Amsterdam or Vienna will be more likely to let themselves influenced by the sea of red track changes before them since they don't speak a word of Romanian, and probably won't be bothered to have your side of the story checked, and will think twice before assigning you another job in the future.
Call me a cynical b*stard, but this happens. Especially in language pairs where jobs are scarce and chased by bottom feeders, and, more importantly, where the PM or client is unable to tell the difference themselves (meaning the languages other than English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian... you get the idea).
So there is that to consider before fussing over things excessively.


[Edited at 2021-09-18 10:20 GMT]

[Edited at 2021-09-18 10:21 GMT]
 
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Care to explain this services-and-finances-related oddity?







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