My name is Hugh Jacob Lester. I am an accomplished freelance Arabic/English translator with some 20 years of professional experience. Although my Western name seemingly belies my claim to native Arabic skills, I was educated in the Middle East, where I lived for more than 25 years. I speak, read, and write Arabic and English at the levels you would expect from educated native speakers of each language.

I have native-level capability in MSA, Classical Arabic, and the colloquial dialects of Egypt, the Arab Gulf, the Levant, and Iraq. I am equally comfortable translating from English to Arabic and vice-versa.

Although I am capable of translating a broad range of subjects, I have tended to specialize in business, including marketing and advertising; trade, including international commerce and commercial regulations; government, including politics and military; and technical, including IT, software, hardware, photography, lithography, and electronics.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions. I will be happy to take any translation-related tests required.