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Interpreting or interpretation is the intellectual activity that consists of facilitating oral or sign language communication, either simultaneously or consecutively, between two or among three or more speakers who are not speaking, or signing, the same language.
Note that the words interpreting and interpretation both can be used to refer to this activity, the word interpreting is commonly used in the profession and in the translation studies field in avoiding the other meanings of the word interpretation. Translation studies is the branch of the humanities dealing with the systematic, interdisciplinary study of the theory, the description and the application of translation, interpreting or both these activities. ...
Interpretation, or interpreting, is an activity that consists of establishing, either simultaneously or consecutively, oral or gestural communications between two or more speakers who are not speaking (or signing) the same language. ...
The word interpreter refers to the practitioner who orally translates for parties conversing in different languages or in sign language. Interpreters must convey not only all elements of meaning, but also the intentions and feelings of the original, source language speaker. In fact, the end result is an intermediate stage of spoken communication, which aims to allowing target language listeners to hear, perceive, and experience the message in a way that is as close as possible to the experience of those who understand the original, source language.
Interpreting vs. translation
Although the terms translation and interpretation are used interchangeably in everyday speech, they vary greatly in meaning. Both referring to the transference of meaning between two languages, however, "translation" refers to the transferrence of meaning from text to text —usually written, recorded, or sign language— with time and access to resources such as dictionaries, glossaries, et cetera. There is a very high standard of accuracy demanded for translation. On the other hand, interpreting, usually occurs "on the spot", with the clients present, dealing with utterances, though the source language may be a text.
A common misconception, by the general public, is that interpreters must deliver "verbatim", i.e. word-by-word renditions of what is said in the source language in order to be accurate. This misconception usually is held by monolingual speakers, and, occasionally, by lay, self-described bilingual persons. The truth, however, is that, if one were to attempt a "word-by-word" translation of a sentence, regardless of the listener's understanding, the end result usually would be unintelligible. A case in point is a Spanish phrase such as "Está de viaje", which when rendered verbatim to English would translate as "Is of voyage" (a senseless phrase in English), when it truly means, per the context: "He/she/you is/are traveling," or "He/She/You is/are out of town."
Modes of interpreting There are two modes of interpretation: Simultaneous (while the utterance is spoke) and Consecutive (immediately after the utterance is spoken).
Simultaneous interpreting In such situations, the interpretation occurs while the source language speaker speaks, as quickly as the interpreter can formulate the spoken message to the target language. Simultaneous interpretation is used in various situations such as business conferences, graduation ceremonies, any situation where there is not pause between each statement allowing time for the interpreter to relay information to the interpretee. For example, at international conferences and at the UN, simultaneous interpretation is effected while the interpreter sits in a sound-proof booth, speaking into a microphone, and usually with a clear view of the source language speaker, while listening with earphones to the speaker's source language message. The interpreter then relays the message in the target language into the microphone to the target language listeners who wear headsets, listening to the interpretation occur at the same time the speaker speaks. Simultaneous interpreting also is the most common mode used by sign language interpreters as there is no audible language interference while both languages are being expressed simultaneously.
Simultaneous interpreting sometimes is incorrectly referred to as "simultaneous translation" and the interpreter as the "translator". This is incorrect, as discussed in the distinction between interpretation and translation.
Whispered interpreting In whispered interpretation (a.k.a. chuchotage interpretation after the French word for the same), the interpreter sits or stands next to the small intended audience, whispering a simultaneous interpretation of the matter at hand; this method requires no equipment. Chuchotage interpretation often is used in circumstances where the majority of a group speaks one language, and a minority (ideally no more than three persons) do not speak that language.
Consecutive interpreting Interpreter whispers to Garry Kasparov her rendering of Klaus Bednarz's speech. Interpreter speaks the translation of the speech of Garry Kasparov In consecutive interpretation, the interpreter speaks after the source-language, -text speaker has finished speaking; the speech may be divided into sections. Garry Kimovich Kasparov (Russian: ; IPA: ) (born April 13, 1963, in Baku, Azerbaijan SSR) (now Azerbaijan) is a Russian chess grandmaster of Armenian descent and former World Chess Champion. ...
Garry Kimovich Kasparov (Russian: ; IPA: ) (born April 13, 1963, in Baku, Azerbaijan SSR) (now Azerbaijan) is a Russian chess grandmaster of Armenian descent and former World Chess Champion. ...
Normally, the interpreter sits or stands beside the speaker, listening and taking notes as the speaker progresses. When the speaker finishes speaking or pauses, the interpreter consecutively renders the message in the target language, in its entirety, as though he or she were making the original speech.
Frequently, an experienced consecutive interpreter prefers interpreting phrase by phrase, or shorter sentence portions, so as to approximate simultaneous interpretation. This method requires that the speaker pause between phrases and clauses to permit the interpreter to instantly render each portion of the speech into the target language, without having to take time to take notes and without risking forgetting details of the speech. The phrase-by-phrase method frequently is used in settings such as speeches before an audience, legal depositions, recorded statements, while interpreting for a witness in a court hearing or a trial, et cetera. It is also used in community interpreted dialogues, such as medical, job interviews, etc.
Consecutive interpretation allows the full meaning to be understood before the interpreter renders the message into the target language. This often affords a more accurate and fully accessible interpretation than simultaneous.
Liaison interpreting Liaison interpreting involves relaying what is spoken to one, between two, or among many people. This can be done after a short speech, or consecutively, sentence-by-sentence, or as chuchotage (whispering); aside from note taken then, no equipment is used.
Types of interpreting
Conference interpreting Conference interpreting is the interpretation of a conference, either simultaneously or consecutively, although the advent of multi-lingual meetings has consequently reduced the consecutive interpretation in the last 20 years.
Conference interpretation is divided between two markets: the institutional and private. International institutions (EU, UN, EPO, et cetera), holding multi-lingual meetings, often favour interpreting several foreign languages to the interpreters' mother tongues. Local private markets tend to bi-lingual meetings (the local language plus another) and the interpreters work both into and out of their mother tongues; the markets are not mutually exclusive. International Association of Conference Interpreters AIIC is the only world-wide association of conference interpreters. Founded in 1953, it assembles more than 2,600 professional conference interpreters in more than 80 countries; the website is http://www.aiic.net/
Legal and Court interpreting Legal, Court, or judicial interpreting, occurs in courts of justice, administrative tribunals, and wherever a legal proceeding is held (i.e. a conference room for a deposition or the locale for taking a sworn statement). Legal interpreting can be the consecutive interpretation of witnesses' testimony for example, or the simultaneous interpretation of entire proceedings, by electronic means, for one person, or all of the people attending.
Depending upon the regulations and standards adhered to per state and venue, court interpreters usually work alone when interpreting consecutively, or as a team, when interpreting simultaneously. In addition to practical mastery of the source and target languages, thorough knowledge of law and legal and court procedures is required of court interpreters. They often are required to have formal authorisation from the State to work in the Courts—and then are called sworn interpreters.
Focus Group (Marketing) interpreting In focus group interpreting, an interpreter sits in a sound proof booth or in an observer's room with the clients. There is usually a one-way mirror between the interpreter and the focus group participants, wherein the interpreter can observe the participants, but they only see their own reflection. The interpreter hears the conversation in the original language through headphones and simultaneously interprets into the target language for the clients. Since there are usually anywhere between 2 to 12 (or more) participants in any given focus group, experienced interpreters will not only interpret the phrases and meanings but will also mimic intonation, speech patterns, tone, laughs, and emotions. A mirror is a surface with good specular reflection that is smooth enough to form an image. ...
A focus group is a form of qualitative research in which a group of people are asked about their attitude towards a product, service, concept, advertisement, idea, or packaging. ...
Escort interpreting In escort interpreting, an interpreter accompanies a person or a delegation on a tour, on a visit, or to a meeting or interview. An interpreter in this role is called an escort interpreter or an escorting interpreter. This is liaison interpreting.
Public Service interpreting Also known as community interpreting, is the type of interpreting occurring in fields such as legal, health, and local government, social, housing, environmental health, education, and welfare services. In community interpreting, factors exist which determine and affect language and communication production, such as speech's emotional content, hostile or polarized social surroundings, its created stress, the power relationships among participants, and the interpreter's degree of responsibility—in many cases more than extreme; in some cases, even the life of the other person depends upon the interpreter's work.
Medical interpreting Medical interpreting is a subset of public service interpreting, consisting of communication, among medical personnel and the patient and his or her family, facilitated by an interpreter, usually formally certified and qualified to provide such interpretation services. The medical interpreter must have a strong knowledge of medicine, common medical procedures, the patient interview, the medical examination processes, and the daily workings of the hospital or clinic were he or she works, in order to effectively serve both the patient and the medical personnel. Moreover, and very important, medical interpreters often are cultural liaisons for people (regardless of language) who are unfamiliar with or uncomfortable in hospital, clinical, or medical settings.
Sign language interpreting When hearing person speaks, an interpreter will render the speaker's meaning into the sign language used by the deaf party. When a deaf person signs, an interpreter will render the meaning expressed in the signs into the spoken language for the hearing party, which is sometimes referred to as voice interpreting. This may be performed either as simultaneous or consecutive interpreting. Skilled sign language interpreters will position themselves in a room or space that allows them both to be seen by deaf participants and heard by hearing participants clearly and to see and hear participants clearly. In some circumstances, an interpreter may interpret from one sign language into an alternate sign language. The term hearing or hearing person, from the perspective of mainstream English-language culture, refers to somone whose sense of hearing is at the medical norm. ...
A deaf individual, or deaf person, may mean: a pre-lingually deaf person, someone who is deaf at birth or became deaf in infancy before acquiring mastery of a spoken language, will often have sign language as a first language, and may be part of the deaf community. ...
Deaf people also work as interpreters. They team with hearing counterparts to provide interpretation for deaf individuals who may not share the standard sign language used in that country. They also relay information from one form of language to another - for example, when a person is signing visually, the deaf interpreter could be hired to copy those signs into a deaf-blind person's hand plus include visual information.
Where interpreters work An armed Iraqi interpreter on patrol with U.S. troops on the streets of Baghdad, Iraq (April 2005). The majority of professional full-time conference interpreters work for international organisations like the United Nations, the European Union, or the African Union. Baghdad (Arabic: ) is the capital of Iraq and of Baghdad Governorate. ...
The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ...
Anthem Let Us All Unite and Celebrate Together Administrative center Largest city Cairo, Egypt Leaders - Chairperson John Kufuor - Alpha Oumar Konaré Establishment - as the OAU May 25, 1963 - as the African Union July 9, 2002 Membership 53 African states Area - Total 29,757,900 km² (1st2) sq mi Population - 2005...
The world's largest employer of interpreters is currently the European Commission, which employs hundreds of staff and freelance interpreters working into the official languages of the European Union. The European Union's other institutions (the European Parliament and the European Court of Justice) have smaller interpreting services. The Commission seat in Brussels The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive body of the European Union. ...
Chameleon, a symbol of the multilingualism of the European Union. ...
Established 1952, as the Common Assembly President Hans-Gert Pöttering (EPP) Since 16 January 2007 Vice-Presidents 14 Political parties 8 Committees 22 Last election June 2004 (785 MEPs) Meeting place Brussels and Strasbourg Secretariat Luxembourg and Brussels Website europarl. ...
European Court of Justice building, Luxembourg The Court of Justice of the European Communities, usually called the European Court of Justice (ECJ), is the highest court of the European Union (EU). ...
The United Nations employs interpreters at almost all its sites throughout the world. Because it has only six official languages, however, it is a smaller employer than the European Union.
Interpreters may also work as freelance operators in their local, regional and national communities, or may take on contract work under an interpreting business or service. They would typically take on work as described above.
The U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan employ hundreds of interpreters to assist with its communications with the local populations.
Bibliography - Chuzhakin, Andrei: "Applied Theory of Interpretation and Note-Taking", "Mir Perevoda 1 to 7", Ustny Perevod, Posledovatelny Perevod, Ace Perevoda 2007, Mir Perevoda.
- Jones, Roderick: Conference Interpreting Explained. 1998, ISBN 1-900650-57-6
- Seleskovitch, Danica: L'interprète dans les conférences internationales. 1968, Cahiers Champollion
- Taylor-Bouladon, Valerie: Conference Interpreting — Principles and Practice. 2007, 2nd Edition ISBN 1-4196-6069-1. Available from Amazon.
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