Minerva Translations & Language Services

Minerva Translations & Language Services

National Interpreter Appreciation Day

National Interpreter Appreciation Day falls on the first Wednesday of May every year.

This year, May 1, 2024, was National Interpreter Appreciation Day.

Keep in mind these future dates:

Wednesday, May 7, 2025

Wednesday, May 6, 2026.

This is an opportunity to celebrate the work of language professionals. It is estimated that approximately 6,500 languages are spoken worldwide. It I no surprise that interpreter have a fundamental role in various sectors and to bridge any gaps in communication.

How did this day become a reason to celebrate?

In 2013, Joshua Jones, a deaf-blind individual from California, created a Facebook page for this reason. His idea became popular and now the day is commemorated throughout the U.S.

How about a worldwide celebration?

September 30^th is the day as a tribute to St. Jerome, who translated the Bible from Hebrew into Greek and Latin.

This celebration should also recognize ASL interpreters. Here is an article that discusses the component of social inclusion of ASL.

- This article was published in the NOTA Spring-Summer Newletter in Septemebr 2024.

HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?

Seriously, how low of an estimated price are you willing to propose for a translation project?

This is a typical scenario. Can any of you relate?

You are contacted and asked to provide a quote for a large translation project. It takes you time to review and prepare the quote. Then, you may even adjust the quote for a better opportunity to be awarded the project. You submit the quote. Then, no answer or a delayed answer, despite the stated urgency with the request for a quote. Apparently, your quote is appreciated, but another offer was selected.

At some point in your life, you decide to become a translator, a conscientious and qualified translator. You consult with other translators, you research this career, you understand that, whether you may become a part-time or a full-time translator, you will need to get an education, plenty of experience, and follow ethical guidelines. There are certification exams, various educational avenues, and specializations, among the possibilities. There are, in fact, multiple ways to become qualified for this role. And you continue to pursue the adequate avenues to be better prepared. You take your role seriously.

Then, you come to realize that in many contexts, your qualifications and diligent attitude do not count so much, because the priority of many clients and/or agencies is the lowest possible quote within the shortest time given to complete the job.

There are also agencies and websites that foster a crowdsourcing type of translation bidding for projects. I believe this can be one of the most humiliating experiences for qualified and well-seasoned translators to endure. It reminds me of visiting an open market and yelling a price for merchandise one wants to buy at the lowest price possible. In the case of crowdsourcing for translations, you place a bid with details and hope that your quote will be accepted. Yet, unless you made a close to minimum wage offer, you discover you have waisted your time.

Make no mistake -

This piece is not about convincing you to make your quotes less competitive, if you need to do so. There are also situations which will lead you to decide for a moderate adjustment to estimations, considering the solid professional relationship you have built with some of your clients and agencies. You can also negotiate to maintain a balance between your professional image and the needs of the client/agency.

But, HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?

How low should you go to win the bid? How low should you go to arrive first in a race where you are going against unqualified translators, or beginning translators, who will accept any miserly pay? How do you compare against those pseudo-translators who use machine translation, but lack the training and knowledge that you have so assiduously secured?

The acceptance of low bids - The reality:

High-quality expectations for minimum wage – Whether it is one person’s work, or a group of people who work on portions of a project, a low compensation will be administered, likely below an acceptable rate for similar work in that specific subject matter.

Low rates lead to continued low rates - Low rates lead to having to accept more projects for a low compensation in order to earn a living.

Low rates + continued low rates lead to decreased quality – Pursuing low rates means getting trapped in a web of low-bid pursuits with accelerated timelines. This fosters a decrease in the quality of the translated projects, because there is just not enough time to accomplish the task in the appropriate manner.

Low rates + decreased quality lead to a diminished professionalism – Chasing projects with the lowest bids causes a decrease in the quality. This takes aways from the gratification of a job well done and the realization of the final product as a result of continued professional preparation and commitment.

Crowdsourcing issues – Despite the convenience of outsourcing work, there are a few, but significant issues with crowdsourcing for translators. (1) The balance is tilted from quality to quantity. (2) It encourages a multitude of amateur translators to participate in a process that would be better handled by professional translators. (3) Problems with inconsistency and accuracy across projects. (4) Unsubstantiated competencies and ethics. (5) It may open the doors for fraud from either side of the equation.

So, “HOW LOW YOU CAN GO” is probably proportional to your own professional image and self-respect, as well as to your willingness to commit to the promotion of excellence in the translation/interpreting profession.

- This article was published on LinkedIn in October 2022.

Translating Spanish and Italian: Are They The ‘Same’ Languages?

If they were the same, they would be ONE language, maybe ‘Spatalian’?

For the sake of a clarification on this matter, I would like to finally undo this misconception that Spanish and Italian are the same and that no specialized knowledge/training is necessary to be fluent in each one.

Qualified and ethical translators know better than advancing a level of expertise they really do not possess. Qualifications in one language do not mystically morph into another one.

Yet, it is remarkable to see how many certified and/or qualified translators for the Spanish language have suddenly become experts in translations involving the Italian language as well.

But these two languages are not the same. They certainly share the same origin in Latin, such as other romance languages do, primarily French, Portuguese, and Romanian, with subsequent vernacular evolutions in various parts of the world. In fact, the popular use of the Latin language in the Roman Empire (circa 753 BC-565 CE) was later subjected to a diversification process, also due to geographical and political influences across the empire territories and beyond. It is estimated that approximately 23 distinct romance languages exist, but nearly 50 when considering a particular structure and dialect.

- What do romance languages have in common? They share a large pool of terms and some syntax constructs. They also have the subjunctive verb tense.

Yet, each language has evolved in a unique manner.

- How are Spanish and Italian different? Amazingly enough for some people, among the main recognized romance languages, Spanish is actually closer to Portuguese, whereas Italian is closer to French.

While Spanish and Italian share a few words, the grammar, pronunciation, overall vocabulary, and spelling are different.

Moreover, the Italian grammar is more complex and may use two different auxiliary verbs in compound verb structure. The choice may be challenging, because it is based on the verb tense and the regular v. irregular verb arrangement.

Furthermore, there are some distinctions in word starting and endings, possessive adjectives v. articles, use of prepositions, and plurals of words.

- Since Italian is closer to French, does it mean that certified and/or qualified translators for the French language are inevitable experts in translations involving the Italian language as well?

Not so fast.

A lexical similarity of 89% refers to the etymology, that is, the origin of the words. In this case, it means that both languages derive from Latin.

There are grammar differences, particularly when it comes to pronouns, verb conjugations, the use of the plural, and the definite article. Moreover, there are more accents in French and phonetic differences between French and Italian. While both languages have a formal and informal register, there are also elements that differ between the two.

What is notable is that these are distinctions that a native speaker of the language is likely to understand and recognize. People who are not native speakers would have had to live in a particular cultural context and/or been immersed in a long-term program to learn about these peculiarities.

Finally, let us not forget that cultural constructs have an impact on a language, as well as specific industry standards in the source language and target language for a translation. That is why a literal translation, or a personal/subjective interpretation, of the text may not produce an accurate result.

- Let me end with a final consideration on Latin. Latin is not an easy language to understand and/or translate from. People who work with this language have either chosen to take and/or have had to take compulsory courses in academic environments for quite a few years.

Nowadays, documents in Latin are more likely to reach translators in the form of academic certificates, theological texts, and manuscripts.

Translating from Latin requires the use of a particular text preparation procedure and portion selection, the comparison of sentences with the overall passage, and the reliance on a distinctive sentence structure and selection of terminology.

Do not be afraid to ask questions. Make sure you are trusting a principled translator.

- This article was published on LinkedIn in Septemebr 2022.

VAERS data: More people have suffered brain injury from COVID vaccines than from all other vaccines combined over the past 30 years

The Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) ‘vaccine' is linked to an alarming increase in brain injury cases. Data from the VAERS.

Read the article here

Dr. Roger Hodkinson on Heart Damage, Blood Clotting from mRNA Injection

Myocarditis means inflammation of the heart muscle itself and pericarditis means inflammation of the sack surrounding the heart - Dr. Roger Hodkinson

(February 17, 2022)

Watch the video

The Risk of Covid-19 Vaccines

Dr. Vernon Coleman warns of the curernt and future dangers of these 'vaccines'.

(First published on March 14, 2021)

Watch the video

Candace Owens interviews Dr. Stella Immanuel

Dr. Immanueal, along with other doctors, was censored for questioning the media's narrative on Covid-19. (Broadcasted on November 15, 2020)

Watch the video

Working Our Way Towards Significantly Decreasing Meat Consumption

September 2019

Revised August 2020

I want to encourage us all to stop being dependent on animal flesh for nutrition or, at least, work on significantly decreasing its consumption.

We keep reading about meat recalls, salmonella and other harmful factors, farm-raised, GMOs, contaminated food from China, torture leading to slow death.

Yet, we continue to display shock at the news.

Why do we continue playing the meat industry’s game at our expense? The meat industry has no compassion towards animals. It gets rich off the flesh and blood of innocent creatures. What makes you think that it would take a strong interest in our wellbeing?

Stand out in the crowd of gullible masses. Honor your body and life. Honor the body and life of animals.

From a health standpoint, a main concern is the link between red meat consumption and heart disease, as discussed by Stanley Hazen, MD, PhD, Vice Chair of Translational Research for the Lerner Research Institute at the Cleveland Clinic in 2014.

Watch this 2018 video. Dr. Heather Fields, an internal medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic, provides interesting elucidations on epidemiological studies and the issue of correlation with high blood pressure, some types of cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

Carnitine, a nutrient found in red meat (also added in some energy drinks), may trigger a series of reactions by microbes residing in the gut area and is metabolized to trimethylamine-N-Oxide (TMAO) – a compound linked to clogged arteries or atherosclerosis. This compound may affect the function of blood cells (platelets), which regulate clotting responses to strokes and heart attacks occurrences. TMAO increases the opportunity for age-related weakened functioning of the blood vessels’ lining (vascular endothelial dysfunction) in healthy humans and laboratory mice.

Iron intake and nitrate/nitrite were the focus of a study by Etemadi et al. (2017) and reported in an article in the British Medical Journal. The participants to the study consumed various types of meat. The investigation aimed at establishing the link between consumption and the probability of an early mortality. The results confirmed a higher incidence of an early death, primarily in association with red meat consumption. White meat consumption appeared not to cause the same conclusions. However, the authors also pointed out that only recently people have become more used to processed white meat and that, for that reason, there would be a need to collect more data on this phenomenon before attempting a determination. There was, however, an increase of the onset of Alzheimer disease in people who ate processed white meat.

Additional attention has been given to the link between (red) meat consumption and the onset of a series of chronic diseases: Colorectal cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Areas of study include the compounds already present in the meat (such as Heme-Fe or Heme Iron), compounds developed during processing and preparation of the meat, and digestive chemical processes (i.e., TMAO).

Heme Fe is part of a protein attached to an iron atom in a porphyrin ring. Although more research needs to be done to establish the exact link between Heme iron’s activity and the onset or development of chronic diseases, De Smet, Demeyer, and Van Hecke (2018) indicated that its involvement in metabolic processes affects gastric health and the degree of inflammation opportunity. Heme Fe is found in many types of meat, as well as animal-based iron supplements. A high intake amount may be linked directly to cardiovascular diseases, colorectal cancer, and other gastrointestinal conditions.

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) is an anabolic hormone responsible for normal bone and tissue growth and development in young people. In adult age, however, a high level of IGF-1 may disrupt the regular cell division process and lead to the production and metastasis of cancerous cells. The consumption of animal protein appears to increase the levels of this hormone.

It Is Time for Your Organization to Hire an Experienced Cultural Competence Expert

How flawed conceptializations may generate distorted views do diversity, biases, and morals

As companies and organizations pursue better ways for employees to work together and attain high levels of productivity, notions regarding diversity, biases, and morals continue to be expressed and explained under frequently imprudent and partial angles. What might be the underlying problem? Business savvy individuals are not experts in cultural competence and diversity related matters.

Diversity – A flood of limited views continues to proliferate when race, ethnicity and gender are accepted as primary or sole elements of diversity in the ‘inclusion=better talent’ proposition.

In reality, diversity must be considered in its complexity and as a multi-layered structure, encompassing far more than socio-economic factors and indelible personal characteristics. In fact, a substantially inadequate position on diversity and a consequential association with better financial outcomes are elusive.......

è Contact the author to find out more.

Meritocracy – A 9/2018 LinkedIn article does not support the idea of a system that allows people to professionally advance on the basis of their merit. The reasoning given is that individuals ‘at the bottom’ would be prevented from evolving under the ‘viciousness’ of meritocracy. I am afraid the confusion lies in the lack of distinction between meritocracy and aristocracy, with the latter referring to advancement merely based on titles and class.

Source: https://pixabay.com/en/courses-shares-forex-analysis-2318035/

In reality, professional advancement by merit would offer a fairer standard for progress and innovation, since further development is based on hard work and the enhanced value of individual contributions. This is at the foundation of a reasonable and ample path to equal opportunities........

è Contact the author to find out more.

Similar controversial conversations have taken place when discussing equality of opportunities versus social justice, where the former refers to fair access to prospects and the latter relates to equity of distribution based on need. In the end, a discourse on potential disparities in prospects should be undertaken with considerations and analysis of all factors involved in the socio-geographic-economic-political context rather than through the creation of rushed, simplistic generalizations.

Source: https://pixabay.com/en/smiley-emoticon-anger-angry-2979107/

Morals and Ethics - As a language major with linguistics and philology background in my fist post-graduate degree, I had the opportunity and academic obligation to discover that some terms have a similar root but may extend into various meanings. In a 2/2018 Forbes article, opinions on etymology and translation appear to have been blended. Ethos from old Greek has been given the meaning of ‘custom or habit’. The author then assumes that ethics is the translation of ethikos, believed to have the same meaning as ethos. He draws the conclusion that ethics and morality were ‘one a translation of the other.’ To reinforce his argument, he gives the example of asking a person the difference between a term in one language and the equivalent in another one; at the same time, he offers that the meaning of a term can and will definitely change. After reading this tortuous reasoning, I developed a slight headache trying to make sense of it.

In reality, ethos (ἦθος) refers to character and credibility. Thus, the adjective ethikos (ἠθῐκός) relates to character or integrity. Ethics involves a set of guidelines that guides conduct or behavior. The Latin equivalent moralis, is .......

è Contact the author to find out more.

Handling of unconscious biases – Mapping a resolution path to unconscious biases’ influences in the workplace may represent an overreaching argument in support an artificially amplified need of attitude adjustments. Some business experts and coaches believe that unconscious biases should be addressed and can be unlearned. According to their guidelines, a degree of clarity in decision-making can be effectively reached. The Forbes Human Resources Council also appears to have a formula in mind and calls for the identification of unconscious biases and to ‘actively work’ / keep them under control.

In reality, sound logic would challenge the notion of unlearning something which is maintained at an unconscious level. According to Freud’s psychoanalytic theory, the unconscious level of the mind is the storage space of ‘memories, habits, and behaviors.’ These elements cannot be retrieved at will......

è Contact the author to find out more.

Hence, the next time you read a post or an article on diversity, biases, and morals in professional environments, ask yourself how sound the logic and explanations offered are and whether consultation with well-educated and experts in the field should be considered. Plenty of us are qualified, competent, and dedicated professionals. We have the knowledge and tools to help you. All what you have to do is to contact us!

- This article was published on LinkedIn in October 2018.

Logout Edit page