http://blogs.languagetranslation.com Wed, 27 Aug 2008 21:54:12 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en A recent parliamentary vote in France has given over 20 regional languages recognition -- despite cries of outrage from L'Académie Française. According to Article 75 of the revised constitution, languages such as Breton and Occitan are now officially "part of France's heritage," and may soon be incorporated into road signs ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/27/france-votes-to-give-greater-role-to-regional-tongues/ In the not-so-distant past, translators wrote out their translations on paper and could use only books and dictionaries they owned, or which were available at local libraries. The computer era has obviously changed the nature of language translation work immensely. Of course, translators have been using word processing for years to ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/26/translators-need-to-hone-multimedia-skills/ When dealing with foreign business partners, the ideal situation is to have an interpreter available. However, we all know this is not always the case. Here are our top three tips for effective cross-cultural communication -- especially when all parties are not using their native language. Keep it slow and simple: ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/22/top-three-tips-for-cross-cultural-communication/ Athletes often talk about "hitting the wall" in their performance capacity, but have you ever thought of the same concept in language learning? In fact, learning a new language is not a linear process, but takes place in bursts and plateaus. Eventually, just about everyone learning a new language will ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/20/hitting-the-wall-in-language-learning/ Google's recent announcement that they will be getting involved in "human" translation services proves what we have known for a long time: in the forseeable future, machines will not be able to do the job of a qualified human translator, because they cannot understand the complex cultural and linguistic nuances ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/18/dont-fool-yourself-computers-cant-perform-accurate-translations/ Boosted by the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, the Chinese have never been more enthusiastic about speaking English. Of course, many young people already study English in school -- but the recent surge in interest for the English language crosses all age groups. An in-depth article from CCTV.com reports on how even ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/15/enthusiasm-for-learning-english-sweeps-china/ Several European nations have recently undertaken reforms to simplify or standardize their national languages. Hungary, Malta and Portugal have all carried out measures to clean up some fuzzy areas in  Hungarian, Maltese and Portuguese, respectively. In late July, Portugal’s head of state, Aníbal Cavaco Silva, signed the Orthographic Accord in order ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/13/european-nations-working-on-language-changes/ Despite the current economic situation, Internet shopping sites may see an upswing in their 2008 holiday sales as strained consumers look for bargains on the Internet. This projected sale increase will especially benefit sites offering good value and attractive discounts. "The upcoming holiday season is expected to be highly promotional, with ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/08/holidays-should-be-full-of-cheer-for-e-commerce-sites/ In film and television dubbing, casting can be a big issue. Whose voice will be able to convince audiences that Johnny Depp is speaking French, or that Julia Roberts is speaking Spanish? In Poland, the entertainment industry doesn’t face that problem: films and shows have traditionally been dubbed by lektors ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/06/poland-may-drop-voice-overs-on-tv-broadcasts/ In the field of foreign languages, “false friends” are pairs of words that appear to be similar, but actually differ in meaning. For example, in French, the verb “attendre” means “to wait” – quite different from the English sense of “to attend an event.” False friends are treacherous for language ... http://blogs.languagetranslation.com/2008/08/05/what-is-a-false-friend/