Ive read through some of the discussion in the forum, and the one thing that I saw in many discussions were that you should only translate in your mother tounge. I am considering becoming one of you many translators. But Im confused about my mother tounge/native language.
I was born in the north of Serbia, in the area where both Hungarian and Serbian is spoken. My family is Hungarian, so the language we spoke at home was that, but with many of my friends I spoke Serbian. I moved to sweden at the age of 6, at that time I spoke both Hungarian and Serbian perfectly (perfectly on a six yeard olds level). I started school at the age of 7, and by that time I had learned Swedish pretty well. I also studied english for 8 years in Sweden. Ive lived there for most of my life, people usually think that I am Swedish, until they hear my name. My Swedish is just as good as the native peoples. And My English is pretty ok as well(Im studying English and lingustics in Australia at the moment). I forgot most of the Serbian i knew. And my hungarian knowledge is not at all on the same level as Swedish and English. I speak and understand fairly good, but I just recently learned writing and reading, which Im still improvig everyday.
Is hungarian my mother tounge since that was the language I was born into? And is that the language I should translate in, or should it be Swedish since thats the language I know the best?
I would really appreciate if someone could help me.
Greetings,
Valerija
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Michele Fauble United States Local time: 11:42 Member (2006) Norwegian to English + ...
Swedish and Hungarian
Apr 4, 2006
valika wrote:
I moved to sweden at the age of 6,... I started school at the age of 7, and by that time I had learned Swedish pretty well. ... Ive lived there for most of my life, people usually think that I am Swedish, until they hear my name.
Greetings,
Valerija
I would say that both Hungarian and Swedish are your native languages. Since you have lived in Sweden from such an early age and went to school in Swedish, Swedish is almost certainly your dominant native language. As for whether or not you should translate into Hungarian, it depends a lot on your current level of competence in the language.
Jeg håper dette hjelper.
[Edited at 2006-04-05 05:03]
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Daina Jauntirans United States Local time: 12:42 Member (2005) German to English + ...
I like Heinrich's "working language"
Apr 4, 2006
I think Heinrich hit the nail on the head (for translators at least) by using the term "working language." "Mother tongue" or "native language" are terms that don't seem to really mean much in translation practice. At Monterey Institute where I did my MA in Translation, we referred to our working languages as A, B, and C in order of fluency - we were required to pass all tests from B>A and A>B, although we knew we were going to work almost solely from B>A in the professional translation world. No one worked into their C languages, only C>A.
For example, I was born in the US to Latvian parents and spoke mostly Latvian until I started kindergarten in English. At 16 I started learning German and later spent six years or so in German-speaking countries. I have only visited Latvia a couple of times. I am now a translator who works from German into English, but only rarely take on even a Latvian-to-English job. I feel most comfortable writing, speaking, and reading in English. I spent some of my university time and work life in Germany, so that's next, and Latvian brings up the rear as my "kitchen language," even though it's technically my native or mother tongue. This is because I was neither formally educated in the language, nor lived in the country for an extended period. Using the labels above, English is my A, German is my B, and Latvian is my C language.
Again, as another poster said, if you have to ask whether a language is your native language, maybe it isn't. If your ability is on par with the standards of the majority of speakers of that language in the field and at the level of which you want to work, then by all means, translate into that language. If not, I wouldn't.
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Carolyn Brice Greece Local time: 20:42 Member (2005) French to English + ...
Formal education definitely plays a part
Apr 5, 2006
I was born to a francophone mother and anglophone father, but I only work into English because that's the language I was educated in, as of the last two years of primary school right up to and including university (before that I went to French school). During my teenage years, I always read in English.
This is not to say that my French isn't any good. I speak French just as anybody in France, and even write better than most French young people (with regard to speling etc), but I feel more comfortable writing in English. Apparently I sleep talk in French, though (!), which maybe shows that French is more my 'native' language than English is.
I definitely agree that to be a translator you need to be good at language, and using language, whicever that language may be. As far aas translation goes, we should be using the term 'working languages', in my opinion.
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
I mean to say that who you are - which in my definition - is the sum of your experiences, both linguistically and otherwise, is what your language is made up of on an intuitive, inner and personal level. And this is what I would put the "native tongue" label on. I can't explain it better, really, but usage is certainly not the only essential ingredient in being considered a "native speaker." In fact, I consider that term really narrow and not flexible at all. It focuses on one side only of linguistic ability; the speaking. But there are lousy native speakers in all corners of the world! Being born somewhere does in no way guarantee that you'll later turn into a grown person that speaks the language of that place flawlessly. I believe it has to do with skill, with talent. I do believe a person can acquire a second - or third or fourth - language and become a "native speaker" of that/those languages, i.e. speak it/them fluently and with the "correct" accent but what language does that person use when becoming mother/father for the first time, fx? Will (s)he express her/his feelings in her/his "native tongue" or in one of the acquired ones (s)he knows?
Mother tongue is you and the total sum of your past experiences on all fronts.
Acquired languages is you and your usage.
Annette
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Walter Landesman Uruguay Local time: 14:42 Member (2005) English to Spanish + ...
wow
Apr 15, 2006
Jeff Allen wrote:
Here is a starter list of some references and resources on the topic:
Jeff,
you are an open book. No, not a book, an open library!!
Amazing.
And thanks for sharing with us.
Walter
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Ledja Derveni United Kingdom Local time: 18:42 Member (2008) English to Albanian + ...
The language you were educated in
Apr 15, 2006
What interesting discussions! I am raising two bilingual kids and had never thought there was this much to consider about what their mothertongue would be. My husband and I are both Albanian and that is the language we use at home, but we are living in England and my 9year old has been educated here since nursery. His English was very weak when he started, and I didn't realise it immediately, but it took over quickly. I've always stood by the advice that parents should teach their children the language they know best themselves - their native language, but it has clearly not been enough. I feel this is because the everyday language is indead very basic and no matter how many books I read to him, this will never compensate the thorough study of language he would have access to in academic settings.
In a training session, I once heard that it takes 10 years for a person to acquire a language at an academic level and that's where I made up my mind: my son will not perfect Albanian to my expectations - unless he spends 10 years studying in Albania.
Now, how can I say his mothertongue is Albanian, when he certainly is a great deal better at English?
Bilinguality is such a common issue in London schools that when a parent fills in forms, they won't be asked what their child's mothertongue is, but what language do they speak at home. This surely reflects on the fact that home language is not neccesarily a child's dominant language.
[Edited at 2006-04-15 22:21]
[Edited at 2006-04-15 22:22]
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Jeff Allen France Local time: 19:42 Member (2011) English to Haitian-Creole + ...
glad that the list of resources was helpful
Apr 15, 2006
Jeff Allen wrote:
Here is a starter list of some references and resources on the topic:
Walter Landesman wrote:
Jeff,
you are an open book. No, not a book, an open library!!
Amazing.
And thanks for sharing with us.
Walter,
Glad that I could provide the pointers. I've taught many courses in the various sub-fields of linguistics, with much practical fieldwork in those areas.
The general area of Human Factors, psycholinguistics and human computer interaction has become one of my main topics of interest over the years, as is shown in my focus on Machine Translation (MT) postediting rather than other theoretical topics related to MT.
I think I have known several people who had more than one native language and one person who had no native language as far as I could tell.
One friend had a Rumanian mother and Dutch father and was born in Rumania, then moved to Holland for a year or two, then, moved to Sweden for most of his secondary schooling, then, to Rumania for a few years, then to the UK, then to France. He spoke several Scandinavian languages for the basics, some Hungarian as he'd lived there for a time, and his English wasn't bad either.
His Italian was great and his French wasn't too bad.
However, he told me, he had no competency in one of those that beat the others!
Strange but true. I think he got over this because of his winning personality. But imagine, always having an accent, even in your supposed 'mother tongue' which was what he spoke to his mother on the phone and in person, but Swedish when they were with his Swedish stepfather.
I heard him speak Dutch as well.
On the other hand, though my husband and I are both considered 'near natives' in French and English and we both have competencies in both languages, he will probably never write as well in English as in French, though pretty close, and I will never write as well in French as I do in English.
The person I'm thinking of is our daughter who was very good at switching between the two languages from the start and went to school in America and France.
I commiserate with Allen's wife's experiences, as when our daughter studied English in French school, they would always find some way to mark her down for a preposition that I'm sure that no English native speaker would actually split as many hairs! This is because the French refuse to concede that their version of grammar is not necessarily valid. We always taught our kids that they had to play the game, and not to take this to heart.
It's not a terribly nice game to have to play though!
When we moved back here she was really unhappy about the American system, but she did her best and her writing in English is just as good as her French. She probably has a better command of grammar than most American kids and you really would not be able to distinguish any speech patterns in her English to reveal her eight years in France in the middle of her schooling. She has entered an American university that is renowned and is holding her own.
She's actually decided to major in Italian as it was our third language and I used it in my work.
I think when she was little, I realized how competent she was because during a summer in France, she was translating for a little English girl in a summer camp she was in and she was only six. This was because she'd gained competence in an international first grade at translating for the non native teachers who did not speak the other language!
I don't know what she says her native language is though.
My son on the other hand, would probably say English at this point, but, he was only schooled in France up until two years ago when we came back to the States. In France, he probably would have said French.
Is the mother tongue only the mother's language? I'm not so sure and besides, when I listen to audio tapes of myself, I used French and English interchangeably when they were little.
I think my son's mother tongue is English now..but in France, he probably would have said it was French. His writing has suffered over the past two years as he no longer writes French, but, his speech is fine as long as he is forced to speak in French.
I doubt if he'll be as bilingual as his sister as he always had a preference for the most expedient language.
Oh another test is often this one...which language do you speak to your siblings?
Our children spoke English to one another in America, and French in France. They might code switch if necessary, but, I can't think of many times when they did.
I think being truly bilingual means knowing slang, measurements, cultural information like nursery songs and rhymes, and switching gears in terms of your 'interlocuteur'.
My daughter can cuss like a longshoreman if she needs to in English or French, though she does not indulge often, and write a composition like a pro in English or French.
One problem however, is unlearning the heavy duty French style as it does not work in America.
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
A fully featured online CAT tool and TMS, with no installation required, and a simple, intuitive interface. Maximize linguistic assets by sharing in real time as you collaborate with colleagues. Make use of next generation, cloud-based translation technol
Translation Office 3000 is an advanced accounting tool for freelance translators and small agencies. TO3000 easily and seamlessly integrates with the business life of professional freelance translators.
The translation workplace 
