Международный день переводчика (International Translation Day)
1. Read the article and give the short summary of the article in English.
В 1991 году по инициативе Международной федерации переводчиков 30 сентября было выбрано датой проведения Международного дня переводчиков. Дело в том, что 30 сентября 420 года ушел из жизни переводчик, писатель и глубоко верующий человек, причисленный впоследствии к лику святых, – Иероним Стридонский. Он традиционно считается небесным покровителем переводчиков. Иероним Стридонский заслужил этот статус в полной мере. Он был высокоинтеллектуальным и духовно развитым человеком. В земной жизни святой совершил множество путешествий по миру, паломничество в Иерусалим, провел 4 года аскетичного существования в Халкидской пустыне. Временная роль отшельника позволила Иерониму Стридонскому прозреть в духовном плане: вдали от людей и даже диких зверей ему посчастливилось пару раз услышать то, что никогда не касалось уха простого смертного, – трубные звуки, возвещавшие Страшный Суд. Данный факт определил уже после смерти покровителя переводчиков место Иеронима в живописи: на картинах святой неизменно изображен в окружении трубящих ангелов. Впрочем, есть и другие варианты: например, отец Церкви, расположившийся в келье и работающий над своими научными трудами. Иероним Стридонский действительно очень много сделал для лингвистического мира. Его перу принадлежит глаголица, а также перевод Библии на латынь, ставший спустя 11 веков официальной латинской версией Священного Писания. Международный день переводчиков достаточно популярен среди представителей этой многогранной профессии.
Read the quotations and say what you think about the art of translation.
2. Известные люди о переводе
«В переводе я передаю не слово в слово, а мысль в мысль». (Иероним)
«Переводчик от творца только именем рознится». (В. Тредиаковский)
«Перевод – это автопортрет переводчика». (Корней Чуковский)
«Переводчики – почтовые лошади просвещения». (А. С. Пушкин)
«Не бывает переводов с языка на язык, а лишь переводы со стиля на стиль». (Ульрих Виламовиц-Меллендорф)
3. Read the text. What interesting facts about the profession of translator have you learnt? Would you like to choose this profession? Why?
Myths about Translation and Translators
1. Translators are just people who can speak two or more languages.
This is one of the most widespread myths circulating outside the translation industry. Merely knowing two languages does not mean that a person can translate with those languages. Translation is so much more and non-translators are often perplexed by this fact.
2. Translators can translate any subject matter as long as the material is in a language they know.
Good translators specialize in only a few different but related areas. This allows them to keep up-to-date on changes in their industry. Inexperienced (or bad translators) often say they can translate everything.
3. Translating from one language to another (i.e. Spanish to English) is the same as translating in the reverse direction (i.e. English to Spanish).
There are translators that can do a good job translating in both directions; however, the number of translators that can do this is not very high. Clients often think that translating is the same no matter which direction the translator is going. Translators have dominant languages and it is usually in the best interest of the translator and client for the translator to translate into his/her dominant language.
4. Translators can produce any translation with little or no turn-around time.
Once again, people often believe that translation is a simple task that can be done quickly. A good translator needs sufficient time to produce a quality product.
5. A native speaker is always a better translator than a non-native one.
This is a myth equal in error to that of #1. Merely being a native speaker of a language does not ensure or guarantee that that person will be able to translate well. Translation requires discipline, study, and continual practice. A native speaker of a language does not inherently possess all of these qualities.
6. Translators can also interpret.
Translation is not interpretation and interpretation is not translation. They are not synonymous. Translation is written material; interpretation is speaking. These are two very different skill sets.
5. Read interesting facts about translation and answer the questions.
Interesting & Fun Facts About Translation
The word “translation” derives from the Latin for “the carrying from one place to another.”
The Bible is available in 2454 languages.
Only 5 % of books each year are translated into Chinese; many translations for the Chinese market are translated into English, not Chinese.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s novel “One Hundred Years of Solitude” was – according to him – better in the English translation, than in the original Spanish that he wrote.
St. Jerome, the patron saint of translators, studied Hebrew so he could translate the Old Testament into Latin from the original, instead of from the third century Greek version that everyone else had used. The resulting Latin version, which became the basis for hundreds of subsequent translations, contained a famous mistake. When Moses comes down from Mount Sinai his head has "radiance" or, in Hebrew, "karan." But Hebrew is written without the vowels, and St. Jerome had read "karan" as "keren," or "horned." From this error came centuries of paintings and sculptures of Moses with horns and the odd offensive stereotype of the horned Jew.
How many language was the Bible translated?
How many per cents of books are translated into Chinese?
What novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez is better in the translation than in original?
What mistake did St. Jerome make during his translation of the Bible?
