The Uncategorized archive can be conceptualised as a ‘contact zone’ where languages, texts, and collective memory intersect through translation. Archives inevitably shape our study and understanding of material presence and function of translation in specific historical periods.
Cameroon has 230 indigenous languages! Yes, you read right with 55 of these languages being national languages, 3 being lingua franca and 2 which are English & African French being the country’s official languages thus being referred to as both Francophone and Anglophone.
“
What better way to tag at one’s heart strings than with their own native African languages? We see the international scene raving over Africa like it just started existing yester year and therefore, service providers, NGOs, entrepreneurs, brands and investors are shoving to get a piece of this Africa.
Continue reading “Connect to your market through their Native African Languages”
One would wonder how crucial language translation is important in achieving business success. This normally holds for startup enterprises operating in a new business ecosystem. Join us as we delve more into how language translation services are a stepping stone in the entrepreneurship arena.
According to the recent studies, research has clearly indicated that human beings are more likely to interact with honesty and clarity when a person understands one’s language. Take an instance of a business meeting between a supplier and the business owner and the business owner doesn’t understand the most commonly used language by the supplier. It is this junction that the services of a translator will be highly appreciated so as to seal the deal.
More to that, language translation services will help the entrepreneur to settle for the better business choices since effective communication between the supplier and the business representatives will be achieved. This is due to the fact that it helps the business of Representatives to fully understand what is entailed in the agreement or the contract and their effects this is due to the fact that it helps the business a present ideas to fully understand what is entailed in the agreement or the contract and therefore take the appropriate actions.
In addition to that, translation services help to improve the communication and networking skills of the business representatives since they will be able to develop interpersonal skills such as listening and analytical thinking which are crucial for business growth and management. This puts the business that is using or relying on translation services to be a step further than a business that doesn’t.
As professional translation teams, it’s on the above ground that they make a commitment to help businesses operate when they are in a different language ecosystem and also to help them achieve success no matter where they are in Africa. Take a look at some of the language translations services done;
Madi translation services
Runyankole translation services
Karimojong translation services
Contacting an individual Linguist for your translation work involving African languages may appear simpler however, hiring a Professional African Translation Company will boost your business or make sure the intended audience/market gets your message/product loud and clear.
“
Nyege nyege almost caused billion shilling losses to the proprietor in a not so rare case of misinterpretation or generally miscommunication of a word in Luganda and Swahili. You ask how? Imagine cancelling flights, hotel bookings and not to forget; the deposits already paid to the local and international artists!
“
As the ability to speak many languages in today’s competitive world pays dividends both career wise and financially, many people are learning many languages and joining the business of translations. But what does it take to become a good translator? I interviewed Ms Feresian Amutuhe who is a professional translator with ten years’ experience, and this is what she said:
“It takes real hard work to be a good translator. Firstly, it’s important to remember that being fluent in both the source language and receptor/target language doesn’t necessarily mean that one can do a good job of translating any given text. Translation goes beyond simply changing a text from one language to another. It is about being able to carefully transcribe a message; maintaining its purpose and the target audience while putting into account the cultural and social context. From my own experience, it takes much energy and time.
“To become a good translator, you must be willing to do a lot of research and consultation, for example, a translator needs to have two dictionaries: one for the language from which you are translating and another for the language into which you are translating. When translating religious texts, you definitely have to have different versions of the Bible that you will continuously consult, on top of consulting other native speakers. This, coupled with advanced skills in the receptor language, good at vocabulary and an acute awareness of linguistic dynamics will make one a good translator.
“One must as well strive to maintain the highest level of accuracy, which basically means exact transfer of information. This accuracy is guaranteed with a possession of excellent skills in orthography of the receptor language otherwise wrong spellings may end up distorting the intended message.
“The translator must be self-motivated because translating tends to be very boring and tedious.
“Even more, one must be able to analyze the internal structure of the language – the grammar part of it. I specialize in Runyankore/Rukiga, and just like other Bantu languages, it is not easy to translate because you find that what appears as one word is actually a whole sentence. For example, ‘Bakamungambiraho’ translates to “They told me about him/her” or ‘Tukabashangayo’ translates to “We found them there”. This means to do a good job, you must be able to take into account those small but important details without fearing that one word cannot result into a whole sentence when translated.
“Relatedly, with Bantu languages you cannot do word-by-word kind of translation and maintain the meaning of the text. You have to first thoroughly understand the meaning in the source language, then find a way of putting it in the receptor language. We actually translate the meaning not the words. Some words do not have equivalents so you just have to explain them to get proper meaning. Words also die and new ones come in the language. Also the target audience sometimes determine the choice of words to use.”
“One of the challenges found in the industry is that clients do not appreciate the fact that a good translator puts in a lot of energy and resources. They think anyone who is fluent in a language can be a translator. They therefore always want to offer very little in terms of compensation compared to the job and the time frame to do the job.
“Also, freelance translators are not acknowledged for work done. You find you are like a third party if not the fourth in the chain. You do the job, get paid less and the person who got the job from the client on top gets a lot more money than the translator.
“The other challenge has something to do with different dialects in the same language. For example, in Runyankore /Rukiga, there are several dialects and sometimes the clients refuse the translated work if they happen to speak another dialect.
“It is also frustrating that some clients once they receive their work, they do not want to pay yet they claim they want to first see the work before paying. Once you give them the work, they forget about you.
“Last but not least, majority of the clients do not understand that translation, editing and proofreading are different phases in addition to updating when the source text changes. You negotiate translating and then they want all the others to come in at no cost.” However, here are some of the language translations done by professional translators;
As it is, there are franchise branches already existing and still opening up in Africa although they originate from other continents and these include Woolworth, KFC, Pizza Hut and other brands like Colgate, Coca cola, Pepsi if we are to mention the common names in the market.
Well, the above are the common ones like we said but you might be an entrepreneur or business person desiring to expand to the African continent which as of today bustling with potential. Unlike in the old days, there is a shift to this continent where people are looking out for what works in Africa.
For example, we see international acts in the music industry making collaborations with African artists or incorporating the African print into their wardrobe. French Montana. An American Hip hop artist recently made News when he made a song with triplet, Ugandan kids famous on YouTube for their dancing videos.
Another here is Gwen Stefani a renowned American pop artist who was also a judge on the popular singing talent search show the voice who has been regularly seen to wear African print.
It should be noted that Africa has over 1.2 billion inhabitants which is a very good number in the eyes of a business man wanting to acquire a bigger market. Therefore a professional African Translations Company is crucial for purposes of effective communication because the message or the product will be advertised in the language the people in the particular African country understand best. For example the English understood in Nigeria differs from that in Uganda as each is influenced by culture and indigenous languages.
Speaking of indigenous languages, there are over 1500 languages on the African continent with many not mutually intelligible thus another reason as to why your business message should be packaged in a way a particular people from a certain region will understand. This does not necessarily mean that you will need translations for all because honestly, a country like Tanzania has over 100 languages. However, one can find common ground in lingua franca or national languages spoken by all and then package the message/product/service to suit how that particular language is spoken or understood in that particular region.
Did you know that there are 54 countries in Africa? 54 potential markets for your business to expand and make more profits especially with the fast growing economies of these countries. According to the world bank, Africa makes it to the list of the fastest growing economies in the world in the year 2018 and the African countries on this list include Ghana with a GDP growth at market prices at 8.3% , Ethiopia 8.2%, Djibouti 7.2% and with Tanzania at 6.3%.
Professional here means that there is structure in such companies with project managers, translators and interpreters and proof readers. This therefore ensures that there is due process and in case of errors, they are detected as the translations work passes through many pairs of capable hands. This also means that the translators or interpreters actually studied what they do on top of being native speakers of the African language in question. Being a native speaker is crucial because this individual then is familiar with the characteristics and mannerisms of the language in question.
Confidentiality is key when it comes to your business because you would want to ensure that none of your business secrets fall into the hands of your competitors. This is taken seriously when dealing with a professional African Translations Company as they are well aware of the consequences involved if this were to happen.
A Professional African Translations Company will consider specialization when hiring its personnel and therefore have translators/interpreters in major aspects of life like Medical, Academic, and Financial. This ensures that the translators are well versed with the wordings and frame work according to what your business deals in.
By Angela Kyolaba
For more information click here.
“Somalia joins Al-Shabab” is a statement doing its rounds by sports, especially football fanatics on twitter rather in a lighter sense and not in the terrorist connotation, an example of how powerful Professional African Language Translation determines the effectiveness of communication.
In this sense Somalia is a professional Brazilian football player who was formerly with the Toulouse FC team in France but recently transferred to Al-Shabab in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“
There’s a political whirlwind sweeping perilously through the land. It began in Arua Municipality during the parliamentary by-election there after frenzied fans of an opposition candidate allegedly threw stones at the presidential motorcade. The president’s security detail retaliated; one man was shot dead and others injured. Several PMs were arrested as well but it’s the detention of popular legislator Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine that has had a seismic effect; provoking many Ugandans to hit the streets in protestation, demanding his immediate release. A couple of days down the road, sanity is far from returning. The raattt-raattt of gunfire is the order of the day as police and the army continue to battle rioters in several suburbs in and outside the capital.
As the political uncertainty heightens, it becomes our moral duty to stand tall and speak two homogenous languages that luckily require no translation services.
The first is the language of love. This is a universal language that has the most healing touch when spoken from the innermost heart without any pretence. This is the language that is driven by the famous creed: do unto others as you would love them do unto you. If this language was spoken in Rwanda in the early 90s, genocide would not have lasted, neither would have racism and apartheid caused the havoc they did in America and South Africa respectively. With the political current prevailing in Uganda the only healing balm is the love language that makes peace, not war. This language does not have tribal undertones; does not incite the masses against one another. It does not say that just because a bad leader is from one region then everyone from that region is bad. Far from it. This is the language of unity, of oneness in fighting evil. It’s not a language of violence, of keeping grudges, of vengeance. It’s a language that Martin Luther King Jr., and Mahatma Gandhi spoke fluently; that’s why they were very successful in their activism.
While articulating the power of love in his Letter to the Corinthians, Paul the apostle said that love never gives up; it cares more for others than for self, doesn’t force itself on others, and doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, and trusts God always. Paul concluded by saying that of the three things that endure – faith, hope and love – the greatest is love. If our leaders and those led all acted in love, there would be no turmoil like the kind rampaging the nation; the world would be the best place to live.
The second language worth speaking in political times that try men’s souls is the language of patriotism. This is where love for one’s country takes precedence in so much that whatever we do should advance the interests of the country for the wellbeing of all. Right now the hottest hashtag on social media is #FreeBobiWine. No doubt it’s inspired by patriotism because everyone can tell Bobi Wine was arrested unfairly and his inhuman treatment and the government’s insistence on trying him in the army court martial when he is a civilian violets the ideal of patriotism. So it’s a good thing that so many Ugandans are hurt by the plight of Bobi Wine. They are speaking one language of patriotism; saying the man who has served the country well with his instructive music, and as a legislator deserves fair treatment than what the regime is dishing out to him. Thus the language of patriotism demands fairness for all, and it’s a language that ought to be spoken loudly in word and action. Martin Luther King Jr said we begin to die the moment we keep silent about things that matter. Let’s all speak up this language of patriotism that needs no translator and one day we shall overcome.
Otherwise for real local language translation services for languages like Acholi translation services, Karimojong translation services, Lango translation services, Runyankole translation services, Rutooro translation services, Rukiga translation services and many others we’ve got you covered.
Kofi Annan, the former first black African man, and the 8th General Secretary of the United Nations was on Saturday pronounced dead at the age of 80, following a short illness as reported by the official UN website in all the 6 United Nations Official Languages.
The peace Nobel prize winner served graciously for 2 terms from 1997 to the year 2006 and his reign was praised for diligence and servant hood especially followed by his stint as the UN’s convoy to Syria in a bid to bring an end to the relentless wars.
Like other breaking News that affect the world in one or another, just like Kofi Annan’s death touched us because the UN is present in almost all countries of the world especially in parts ridden with natural disasters, poverty, sickness ad war, the News is spread much faster and further when broken in a number of languages.
One may argue that social media and the general development in technology should be credited for faster distribution and consuming of News. This is true to some extent but is a factor like other factors to cause News to travel faster.
Having something put out there in various languages aids its fast movement because people get to read, watch or hear the News in the language they understand most. For example, on the United Nations official page, one has an option of clicking on their language of choice option.
It should be noted that 3 of the 6 United Nations official languages are widely spoken in Africa as official, first, second languages or as lingua franca. For example, Arabic is a major language in North African states like Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Sudan although it comes in different variations depending on where one is and is also spoken to some extent by so many Muslims in all parts of Africa.
English on the other hand is spoken by almost all former British colonies on the African continent and other countries that simply adapted to it and took it on which include; Uganda, Kenya, South Sudan, Zambia, Namibia and Rwanda. It should be noted that the latter country took on English in after supposedly getting frustrated by the French language in a bid to strengthen ties with her English speaking countries in 2009.
Chinese is offered as a special course for the interested few to learn especially at tertiary levels and language institutions. There is likely a bright future for the Chinese language in Africa because of China’s increased interest on the continent.
All in all effective communication is key to the smooth running of things in the world today and availing News in languages people understand best is key to achieving effective global communication. While the United Nations and a few other entities have put this in place, more especially on the business world need to follow for its success and professional translation services is one way to look at it.
By Angela Kyolaba
For more information click here.
