There are languages like Spanish (tons of work, lots of translators), and languages like French and German (good amount of work, not a surplus of translators), and then there are languages like Tagalog, Nepali, Bulgarian, Amharic, Icelandic, and so on. What are some pathways to a viable freelance … [Read more...] about Tips for translators in small languages
Languages
Which language is "the best"?
I am often asked this question, in various forms: I want to become a translator/interpreter: which language should I study? Which language is the most in-demand for translation and interpreting? What is the best language for a translator or interpreter to know? The answer, like the answer to … [Read more...] about Which language is "the best"?
Torn between two cultures
I'm guessing that most people in the translation industry are used to this question: "Which do you like better...(insert the name of your native country) or (insert the name of your "adopted" country/ies)??" I often get asked "Which do you like better, the U.S. or Europe?" It's not an easy question … [Read more...] about Torn between two cultures
Word clouds of inaugural addresses
Thanks to reader Dierk Seeburg for sending the link to these word clouds that compare Obama's inaugural speech to those of Bush, Clinton, Reagan and Lincoln. If you haven't checked out Wordle, it's a very cool language/art/geek tool that generates a word cloud that gives greater importance to … [Read more...] about Word clouds of inaugural addresses
Obama on bilingualism
The inauguration of our 44th president promises to bring many changes to the U.S., and there's reason to hope that better foreign language education will be among them. The statistics on foreign language proficiency in the U.S. are downright dismal; in 2005, the National Association for Bilingual … [Read more...] about Obama on bilingualism