Language Abilities on the Fingertips
With regards to dermatoglyphics, we also realise why some people are so good with words, others are good in athletics. These abilities are inborn, since the day we were fetuses in our mothers’ womb. However having those kinds of qualities do not necessarily translate you into a genius in those areas. One must still have a nurturing environment to help you develop those qualities. Back to translation. For those who are learning a third language, it is also important to immerse yourself into that environment so that you can pick it up faster. Non-native linguists who stay for long in...
read moreCan a picture paint a thousand words?
Have you attended wedding dinners before? Ever wondered what the usual programs or activities are during the dinner? It is usually the emcees doing the opening, then introducing a video clip of photos of the bride and groom from young till now, before the couple into the ballroom. This is a typical kind of opening for a wedding dinner. Last night, I went to my cousin’s wedding. Her husband and her are quite “arty farty” kind of people, so instead of doing the photo collage, they came up with a comic strip – hand drawn by themselves. It was based on the lyrics of a...
read moreWhat is Translation defined as?
According to an online dictionary website, it is defined as “a written communication in a second language having the same meaning as the written communication in a first language” I believe this is the most fundamental definition we know all along. However, if we ponder further, we will know that translation does not only mean written communication. Translation could also mean bring two different cultures closer to understanding each other. When we go to a foreign place, where the language or culture is not anything near to our own, we feel uncertain or even fearful of them as we do...
read moreTo Get the Experts or DIY?
Recently, I received an email from a friend. It made me even more certain that I should always opt for professional translators who understand the language as well as the culture. Otherwise, misunderstandings may occur… Next time when you want translate text yourself to another language you are not very strong at, think...
read moreStandardise My Name, Please!
I have watched many movies, and I tend to appreciate those with the availability of subtitles. However it seems there is always a chance that the names used, is sometimes different, though in English, the name is the same. What do I mean? For example, Johnson in chinese can be written as “zhuang sheng” or “qiang sheng”. So sometimes, without listening to the voices, it is difficult to correlate the names to the English one. I thought that for names to be translated to Chinese, it should be like those of country names. No matter where you are, be it in Taiwan, China,...
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