Interpreting (or interpretation) is an activity that consists of facilitating oral or sign language communication, between two or more speakers who are not speaking (or signing) the same language.

Interpreters can work in a variety of settings such as international events and conferences; at technical, business, legal or political meetings; at court hearings; and at police interviews.

There are two types of interpreting: consecutive and simultaneous.

In the most popular form of simultaneous interpreting the interpreter sits in a booth wearing a pair of headphones and speaking into a microphone so that delegates at a meeting or conference receive a real-time account of what is being said in a language they understand. 

Consecutive interpreting is used for smaller meetings, discussions between individuals, politicians or journalists and the interpreter gives an accurate account of what a speaker has said immediately after they have spoken. During consecutive interpreting the speaker stops every 1-5 minutes usually at the end of every paragraph and the interpreter then steps in to render what was said into the target language. A key skill involved in consecutive interpreting is note-taking, since few interpreters can memorize a full paragraph at a time without loss of detail.

In addition to the above there is also whispered interpreting. In whispered interpreting (chuchotage, in French), the interpreter sits or stands next to the small target-language audience whilst whispering a simultaneous interpretation of the matter to hand; this method requires no equipment. Chuchotage is used in circumstances where the majority of a group speaks the source language, and a minority (ideally no more than three persons) do not speak it.

Qualifications of a good interpreter include:

Knowledge of the general subject of the speeches that are to be interpreted.
General erudition and intimate familiarity with both cultures.
Extensive vocabulary in both languages.
Ability to express thoughts clearly and concisely in both languages.
Excellent note-taking technique for consecutive interpreting.
At least 2-3 years of booth experience for simultaneous interpreting.

Because of the very different nature of contact, interpreters can expect to travel frequently. They need to work well with people in groups and on a one-to-one level, be presentable and quick-thinking.

The institutions of the European Union (EU) jointly constitute the largest employer of interpreters, with the majority working in the Commission or European Parliament. The Commission currently uses up to 800 interpreters, set to rise to 900 in the near future.

Within the the UK Civil Service, there are occasional specialist vacancies for interpreters in the Ministry of Defence (MoD). There are very few other interpreter posts in the UK. It is rare for even very large industrial and commercial organisations to have in-house interpreters, either in the UK or elsewhere.

Freelancing is increasingly dominating the proffession. Within the public sector the Border and Immigration Agency has a very large pool of freelance interpreters that they use at nearly 100 locations in the country. Each freelancer has an approved qualification or attends an assessment/training programme.

Interpreters with a diploma in public service interpreting are employed in public services such as health, law (including work as court interpreters) and local government. African and Asian languages, including Urdu, Gujarati, Punjabi, Bengali and Turkish, are most in demand.

International organisations like the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) or the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) normally employ members of the Association Internationale des Interprètes de Conférence (AIIC). The United Nations (UN) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) also employ interpreters and use many world languages. Most members of the AIIC (about 400 with English mother tongue) are freelance.

Translation is the interpretation of the meaning of a text in one language (the "source text") and the production, in another language, of an equivalent text (the "target text," or "translation") that communicates the same message.

Translators can translate any written material ranging from appliance manuals to works of literature. They may find themselves translating legal, sceintific and commercial documents, business reports, insurance claims, private correspondence, information for websites and subtitles for DVDs.

A Diploma in Translation or equivalent is normally required in order to become accredited with one or both of the professional associations for individuals, the Institute of Linguists and the Institute of Translation and Interpreting.

The civil service and the armed forces employ many full time translators. Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) in Cheltenham recruits most of the translators in the Civil Service. They work primarily translating information that can be political, economic or related to international crime or terrorism. The languages in greatest demand are Russian, Arabic, Japanese, Chinese, Urdu and Persian.

MI5 employs linguists to translate and interpret intelligence information obtained in many languages. Much of the information is gathered from telephone and postal communications. Demand for languages varies but, in general, Farsi, Urdu, Arabic, Sorani, Bengali, Somali, Turkish, Mandarin and Russian are popular.

All the institutions of the European Union (EU) employ translators. Each recruits independently and entry requirements vary. To work as a staff translator for the EU, you must have a university degree and an ability to translate, which you have to demonstrate by passing several entrance exams, both written and oral. It is not essential to have a degree in languages or experience as a translator. Several of the institutions of the EU run five-month ‘stages’ (traineeships) in translation. To be eligible for these, you must be competent in three of the 20 official languages of the Union. Selection procedures are complex and lengthy. Recruitment of staff translators is once every three years. The Court of Justice, based in Luxembourg, recruits translators who are also qualified lawyers as lawyer/linguists. The working language of the Court is French and all documents and Court proceedings are translated back into the other official languages when a case is complete.

The United Nations and its specialised agencies, eg United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), employ British translators. They translate into English from French, Spanish, Russian, Chinese and Arabic (the six official languages) and occasionally from Italian, German, Scandinavian and eastern European languages. Relevant postgraduate training and/or experience is usually necessary. There are occasional openings for translators in other international organisations such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) or the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

Most large organisations with in-house translators employ small teams who review and edit texts, which have been drafted by freelancers. Translators working for most commercial organisation are likely to use the more common, usually European, languages.

Many translators work freelance for agencies that provide a range of translating and interpreting services.Email for document transfer as well as the internet for research are vital tools. Attention to detail and proof-reading skills are very important aswell as organisational abilities for scheduling workload to ensure it is delivered on or before deadlines.

 

There are many employment opportunities for people with language skills in a limitless range of industries. 94% of the world's population does not speak English as their first language and 75% do not speak english at all. As you can appreciate its a multilingual world and companies are now realising that they need foreign languages to compete in an international market.

Practically any job can involve languages. Some examples include: credit controller, journalist, market researcher, personal assistant, recruitment consultant, technical help desk. Occupations such as those listed above are typical of the majority of jobs where languages are used. Language skills may be less pivotal in such jobs but when combined with specific qualifications or expertise they can really enhance your career options.

When applying for a post where using your language skill is not you primary function it is important that you do not over emphasise your desire to use your language skill but rather sell it as an added bonus in addition to your other skills. Your language ability is a very useful tool but you need to be convincing about how effective you will be at applying it in all kinds of different situations.

Fluency in a language tends to give jobseekers more options but even basic ability is much in demand as employers seek those capable of communicating with foreign customers or breaking the ice with a few phrases at a meeting. You can acquire or refresh your language knowledge in a number of ways such as evening classes at a local college, at home with family if your mother tongue is not English, time spent in another country where the language is spoken or enrolling on a university course.

Companies and organisations that have overseas business, customers or links tend to offer the most opportunites for people with language skills. This also applies to companies that are web based or foreign owned. However with the ever expanding EU and migration of skilled workers between member states there are just as many opportunities within the public sector. In the UK alone over 300 different languages are spoken – English is very often not the mother tongue. To provide better service and ensure access to equal opportunities, many local government roles need people who can speak community languages. Communicating internationally is also vital, to bring new investment, or to work in partnership with other regions in Europe and around the world.

Whenever people are asked, what in their opinion the most difficult languages to learn are, some old favourites invariably pop up. Many people list Japanese, Chinese and Arabic as a matter of course and with a little more though, add Finnish and Hungarian too. It is worth noting though, that for many non native speakers, English ranks very highly amongst the most difficult languages listed.

The main reason for this inclusion in people’s lists, is not necessarily one of the difficulty of English words themselves, but more a question of contradictory rules and exceptions; here are just two examples. ‘I’ before ‘ E’ except after ‘C’ and the use of the word component ‘ough’. This can actually be pronounced in eight different ways; the following sentence contains all eight: “A rough-coated, dough-faced ploughman strode through the streets of Scarborough, coughing and hiccoughing thoughtfully”.

The English language of course, has been subject to many influences during the history of its development; Celtic, Roman, Norman and Low German to name but a few; indeed, during the middle ages, this ongoing mixture meant that people from even different districts of the same County would be barely intelligible to each other.

This ‘bolt on’ development of our language must surely qualify it as the one most likely to cause confusion to learners…unless anyone knows differently.

There can be no doubt that the world in which we live is becoming ever more globalised and that the driver for this phenomenon has been the advent of technology such as the internet, IP telephony, fax machines, satellite TV and mobile phones. Although the cause may be apparent, the effects are ongoing and no-one can as yet predict where they will take us, however, the most apparent trend thus far, is globalisation’s highlighting of language barriers.

Globalisation has, perhaps for the first time in history, brought together many disparate cultures, who to date, may never have had any degree of cross cultural interaction. The first and most immediate manifestation of this meeting of cultures has been the sudden increase in the need for bilingual and multilingual personel.

This stage in cultural interaction can be illustrated in microcosm, with the example of the European Union. The European Union has some 20 officially recognized languages and when the European Parliament is in session, it requires the services of some 60 interpreters for it to be able to communicate with all of its members. The whole organization actually employs some 2,000 translators and interpreters in total, to enable it to function at all.

Although we are at the initial stage of the meeting of cultures…that which necessitates translators and language professionals, evolution suggests progression to another stage…that of a common medium of communication… and for its first manifestations we need to look back into the past.

A common second language as a medium of universal communication was first developed by L.L.Zamenhof in 1887 with his publication of Esperanto. It was formulated from all of the common European languages and had a strong revival in the 1950’s and 60’s. It was never to gain universal popularity though, but to this day, it still has a following of up to 2 million speakers.

What failed to happen by design, however, might well be happening by default. Looking at the two most popular internet languages we find that English and Chinese top the league, we also find that both these languages are gaining ground globally. English is of course, arguably, the de facto language for international business and finance and together with German, the language of science and technology.

Chinese, or more exactly the Mandarin dialect, is however, gaining ground. China has become the main engine of world trade and with its expanding global partnerships and trade deals, comes the expansion of Mandarin. The two continents where this is most evident are the southern Americas and Africa, but increasingly, Mandarin is a core requirement for the many global corporates establishing themselves within, or hoping to do business with China.

Whether we will witness the evolution of a common linguistic medium has yet to be seen. That languages can gain such ascendancy is a matter of historical record…I cite the use of Latin throughout the ancient civilized world. Until that time comes though, we will continue to require the skills of bilingual and multilingual professionals who can smooth the path between the present day linguistic diversity and a possible linguistic homogeny.

Lingua-Jobs is proud to announce the official launch of Lingua-Jobs.com, an exciting new job portal dedicated to the entire spectrum of multilingual and bilingual job vacancies on a global level.

The new language job site aims to connect ethnically diverse language groups with employers committed to fostering a diverse workplace or simply having the need to recruit for language speakers.

As the European Union, the Internet and other globalizing forces create new and expanding business relationships throughout the world, Lingua-Jobs.com provides clients with access to talent not found at more generalized job boards. With this focused talent pool, we help our clients leverage the advantages of diversity, filling key positions and increasing the strength of their organizations.

In many cases, a lack of diversity happens by accident. Companies expand to new markets or find their client demographics shifting over time. Lingua-Jobs.com can help clients shift with the demographics – using internal diversity to open new doors and expand existing business relationships.

Lingua-Jobs.com covers junior level to executive level positions across the full range of industry sectors, in over 50 languages. The team behind Lingua-Jobs has many years of sales, marketing and language recruitment experience making it a major player within its sector. Our extensive marketing knowledge in this area, coupled with the use of the latest search engine technology, allows Lingua-Jobs to attract thousands of jobseekers with language skills. Our specialist multilingual CV database is also free to access unlike many other job portals!

The Lingua-Jobs.com website has been carefully designed and tested to make the process of finding, applying or advertising for jobs as quick, easy and painless as possible with new features continuously added. Some of our products include:


1. FEATURED RECRUITER / EMPLOYER

Your company logo with a comprehensive company description positioned on the homepage for maximum exposure linked to all your multilingual and bilingual vacancies.

2. LOGO ALONGSIDE EACH VANCANCY

Option to upload a company logo for each vacancy advertised – a powerful method to make your multilingual vacancy stand out.

3. IMPROVED CV SEARCH

Development of high speed Boolean CV Search. Allowing you to run more powerful queries on our CV database comprising of active multilingual candidates.

4. RSS FEEDS

Allowing us to send you multilingual and bilingual vacancies directly to your desktop as soon as they are posted.

5. VACANCY STATISTICS

Real-time statistics showing you the number of times your vacancy has been viewed and the number of language professionals who have applied.

There are many more features in development, so you can look forward to the many new and exciting cutting edge elements still to be delivered over the next few months.

If you're a jobseeker interested in using your language skills, simply register with us in order to apply for language jobs and have access to our wide range of features such as receiving updates by email as new language jobs matching your criteria are posted. By registering on Lingua-Jobs.com you also automatically get entered into one of our free monthly prize draws in which you can win a FREE gift!

If you're an employer or recruitment agency looking to recruit candidates with language skills, advertise your language vacancies with Lingua-Jobs.com to receive unrivaled exposure to the largest specialist audience of highly qualified language speaking candidates in the market place.

A good record on diversity provides a strong competitive advantage as companies hire and sell to Japan, China and all throughout Europe. Through Lingua-Jobs.com you will be able to create a more capable and adaptable workforce, as well as reinforce a sense of cultural awareness.

The result: Better relations between employees and importantly, better communication between you and your clients, customers, partners and investors.

For further information please visit: http://www.lingua-jobs.com

The importance and global influence of China was highlighted last week with news that the Panamanian National Assembly has given provisional approval to a Bill that will make the teaching of Mandarin compulsory in all schools.

Panama’s trade with China amounts to some $1bn annually and with China being the biggest single user of the Panama Canal, it is a vitally important trading partner; the Panamanians recognise that English is still the international language of business, however, supporters of the new language bill say that increasing the number of Chinese speakers will dramatically increase Panama’s competitiveness.

China is actively seeking to expand its influence worldwide in order to secure a share of increasingly scarce natural resources and has met with great success. Whilst Western nations have been ‘bogged down’ in worldwide conflicts, China has been building trade alliances and dispensing aid and loans to countries in Africa.

China’s success in these regions (which also happen to be rich in natural resources), has been so successful because China has very few ‘strings’ attached to their loan and aid provision; unlike most Western Governments, China never demands any change in the way recipient Governments are run or behave.

With Panama setting this trend for closer linguistic ties with China, how long I wonder, before other countries start doing the same?