English to Tagalog,
Tagalog to English,
how faithful to the original text?
Translation from Tagalog to English involves only the test of whether the translator, who is not a native speaker of English, knows, uses and is fluent in English. Some clients give a test to gauge fluency. Ultimately however, for obvious reasons, a native speaker of English is often preferred over a non-native speaker.But if you are not that picky and are pressed for deadline, the first freelancer who assures you that
she can deliver Tagalog to English fast can be "it" for you.
You wish sometimes that you have the time to choose who is most qualified. For quick results, you require a list of past and present clients which awards the translators merit points. It can't also hurt to ask the Tagalog to English translators what dictionaries and other references they are using. Do they have both American and British dictionaries, style books or manuals, Thesaurus and a variety of tools on usage and idiomatic expressions? This will give you a hint of how much they care about their profession to give you an accurate translation. More and more, electronic translation tools are making these qualifications less relevant. Today, all the clients ask for is what translation tool the translator is using and that's enough sometimes to assure them that their job order will be delivered on time. What about in the absence of translation tools or maybe in spite of having them? In this case, you may want to device a grid.
What's in a Tagalog to English Grid?
The translation grid will provide a style sheet of words which can go together and in what sentence order, an analysis of idiomatic expressions and how these play on the meaning of the original text, and variations in prefixing which is often a problem in English to Tagalog translation. What words can stay in English since more Tagalog readers use the English words more often and there are no exact equivalents? What will the translation literally look like if back translated from Tagalog to English? What spellings look and sound awkward because the translator tried too hard to "Filipinize" it. These are included in the grid and more.... If the client appreciates translation notes, the following may also be included in the grid or style sheet: What other sources, specially for technical translation, have been consulted. Most freelance technical translators for example will not be IT experts or lawyers, or electrical engineers, or medical practitioners, or woodworking experts. But they will bid on a job order because they are confident that since they speak and write in Tagalog, all they need is a dictionary. But we are all aware that jargon do play an important role in technical translation. And only the experts in their fields know the vocabulary of their disciplines. And finally, the translator must not only be able to access equivalents, but he must also deliver
your exact message and meaning in natural and idiomatic Tagalog.
You will agree that the translation cannot sound stiff, otherwise, it will be better to read it in English. In medical and pharmaceutical translation for instance, it is important to stay very close to the original text because any error on the literature can spell longer life or quick death. But even in some technical texts, dynamic translation is needed and this involves a transfer of a text's exact meaning using mostly Tagalog idioms rather than finding a word for word equivalent. Clients sometimes complain of missing words. But in spite of the missing vocabulary, the meanings as originally intended are accurate. Visual Orientation in Tagalog to English Translation
Also on this grid, take note of the problem of visual orientation. For example, the word "lawn", which in English conjures up an image of a front yard with manicured grass and maybe some flowering plants, is common only among the upper middle class and rich people, at least in this country. And they are the ones who would normally prefer to read English. So the target audience for Tagalog cannot be them because the target audience don't usually have "lawns." What they have are either front or backyards normally populated by all sorts of shrubs and trees and vegetables and non-flowering plants and wild grass here and there, with roaming chickens, and sometimes goats tied onto one of the trees! So "lawn" would be difficult to translate if the audience is not specified. The translator will be wise to simply retain the English word "lawn" with or without a note inside a parenthesis. Better yet, employ the "amplified translation" which needs to be a combination of words that interprets lawn. "Harapang may bermuda" (front yard with bermuda grass). Of course, a different rule applies if the reader is outside the Philippines and lives in a different context and milieu. What does it take to construct a grid? Not much. Only a passion to stay faithful to the original meaning of the source text.
Tagalog to English, English to Tagalog: How faithful
is the final translation? I suggest, see
our Tagalog to English grid.
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