International Translation Day 2024 (Part 2)
For our second blog celebrating International Translation Day (read part 1 here), we’re thinking about the huge contribution translation makes to our lives. Human translation. Without it, the societies we inhabit and our understanding of the world around us would be quite different.
Translators, interpreters and other language industry professionals dedicate themselves to building bridges between the diverse, colourful cultures of our planet and they enable us to make better connections between people and organisations.
With a world that, superficially at least, feels increasingly divided, we think it’s never been more important to value the skills and commitment of people who help bring us together. Protecting these professions means protecting our cultural identities, nurturing our understanding of others and even maintaining people’s basic human rights.
Translation is undeniably an art worth protecting.
The following are a few examples of when only professional linguists can provide the right translation expertise.
Understanding our history and ancestors
A lot of what we know about ancient civilisations today has been brought to us through translation. Take, for example, the Popol Wuj (also Popol Vuh), the ancient text that recounts the history and mythology of the K’iche’ Maya of Guatemala. It has been translated many times over the centuries, each version bringing us a new interpretation of the beliefs and way of life of this society of the past. The most recent translation has been undertaken by a scholar who has lived for over thirty years on the lands once occupied by the K’iche Maya and believes that by doing so he will allow ‘the rhythmic grace’ of the ancient Maya text to shine through. It’s hard to disagree.
Saving endangered languages
All languages are important in preserving our cultural heritage and helping us learn more about the world. Protecting endangered languages is a vital way to safeguard our diverse identities, cultures and traditions and can also be key to saving our biodiversity. Traditional ways of living harmoniously with the land can often only be communicated orally through languages now falling into disuse. Losing these can mean losing our connections to knowledge passed down over many generations. Interpreters and translators are essential to the process of language preservation. They help create the resources that function as the building blocks for the regrowth of language and link endangered languages and the learning they carry to a much wider sphere of people.
Transmitting artistic brilliance
The skilled work of human translators means we can appreciate inspiring literature, film and theatre from other places. Examples are all around us. The publication of literary works in new languages enables us to experience the wonder of Japanese Haiku, share the thrill of Cervantes’ Don Quixote or delight in the adventures of Asterix. Translation brings television programs like Squid Games and Shogun and movies such as Roma and Anatomy of a Fall to our screens. It creates shared cultural experiences between communities around the globe and gives us a taste for the unfamiliar.
Bringing aid in crisis
Interpreters and translators help refugees in crises worldwide. They provide invaluable assistance to migrants in unimaginable circumstances and are vital go-betweens for people with legal difficulties in foreign countries. They help patients navigate medical emergencies when they don’t speak official languages and they assist authorities in spreading warnings of natural disaster to those in danger. During the Covid-19 pandemic, translators and interpreters provided life-saving communication.
Growing businesses
In business, translators make sure companies hit the right notes for their brand marketing in new languages. They enable companies to negotiate complex legal contracts during expansion abroad and transfer highly technical manuals or product specifications into new languages for new markets. In fact, without expert translators and interpreters, global business might not even be possible.
The importance of protecting translation copyright
The rise of generative AI technology has thrown a spotlight on copyright in the translation sector. To what extent the work of translators and interpreters can be protected by copyright and therefore enable them to receive economic and personal recognition for their work, is an ongoing debate. International Translation Day this year is highlighting the need for clarity in this area.
Professional bodies are calling for translations to be classed as stand-alone creative works where appropriate, and as such, to receive protection from unauthorised reproduction or use. Recognising this more widely would protect the skilled work of translators and their livelihoods.
In the new age of AI, attributing translated work to people rather than machines is also an important step. Clearly showing the origins of a text will ensure readers can differentiate between human and machine language output and help safeguard users against inaccurate information. Preventing the use of translated texts for training AI models without permission is also key.
Many of these issues are currently being addressed in parliamentary acts worldwide and it is to be hoped that the new regulations will help protect the invaluable work that translators and interpreters do.
Technology is a great tool
This is not about pitting machines against people and it isn’t a victor-takes-all scenario. It’s about recognising that we, as humans, have unique qualities that ultimately can’t be matched by AI and that by combining these qualities with the benefits of new technologies, we can bring more languages to more people in more ways.
Translation is a fundamental part of human communication. If we don’t respect and protect the skilled professionals who can do it, humanity will be without those who can truly transfer human experience from one language to another.
At t’works, we bring people, technology and language together. Get in touch with us today to find out how we can help you reach new audiences in new languages.
