ProZ.com Translation Forums

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Melting pots, elementary schools...

Parrot — Sun, 24 May 2009 22:40:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Parrot
Post title: Melting pots, elementary schools...

[quote]hfp wrote:

Where are these famous bilingual people? I've never met someone who has the ability to speak and write in two languages with the facility of a native of the two languages, much less an educated native. This would be extremely difficult, unless you lived in a country in which the two languages were taught an equal amount in school, your mom spoke to you in English and your dad in Spanish with the same frequency, and you had an equal amount of friends who spoke to you constantly in the respective languages, and to top it all off, you constantly read books in both languages while always being diligent not to prioritize in one language.

To even come close to this sort of lifestyle, one must really be dedicated to constantly improving their language skills. But the word bilingual generally doesn't carry such a heavy burden. Normally people ask "So are you bilingual now?" after you've spent maybe 6 months in a foreign country, and if you say "Well, no, it's not that simple." they think there must be something wrong with you because they heard about the preacher's son who went to Russia or somewhere and claims to speak like a native after just 3 months, or something bogus like that.

The everyday definition of bilingual seems to be someone who can communicate in two languages without too much trouble, and it's ok if there is hesitation, grammatical mistakes, a few incoherent sentences here and there, as long as the message gets across, more or less. That person to me should not be considered bilingual, an interpreter or a translator.

How many of you who claim to be bilingual or a native in Spanish and English can interpret right now on the spot everything I've just written into its equivalent in Spanish out loud? Record yourself reading it out loud in English and then in Spanish to analyze the pauses and self-corrections. If you think you can do it flawlessly, do it, and then ask your buddy who grew up in Managua or wherever, if he thinks it sounds just the way a native speaker would interpret it. And don't forget to interpret any grammatical mistakes I have made into their closest grammatical error in Spanish.

I don't care about native accents. As long as monolingual speakers of the two languages can understand you, that's good enough.

Now, I'm not saying that this is impossible, but it's very hard to do, and these people who are capable must be hiding from me. :) [/quote]

The world's a big place and there are more plurilingual societies than majority languages can account for. Consider post-colonial situations or those countries with more than two autochthonous languages apart from a lingua franca, bilingual education and a multilingual press media and you don't even have to go into a specific family profile. Multilingualism can well spill out into the street in such cases. And I daresay that's applicable in large areas of the world.

Why I said "no" was, precisely because this is no guarantee of control.

[Edited at 2009-05-24 23:36 GMT]

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | In Belgium, Switzerland, ...

Williamson — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:02:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Williamson
Post title: In Belgium, Switzerland, ...

[quote]hfp wrote:

Where are these famous bilingual people? I've never met someone who has the ability to speak and write in two languages with the facility of a native of the two languages, much less an educated native. This would be extremely difficult, unless you lived in a country in which the two languages were taught an equal amount in school, your mom spoke to you in English and your dad in Spanish with the same frequency, and you had an equal amount of friends who spoke to you constantly in the respective languages, and to top it all off, you constantly read books in both languages while always being diligent not to prioritize in one language [/quote]

Dilligent sons and daughters of a family of Eurocrats with for example the father a Spaniard and the mother an Estonian, coming from a different country, speaking their respective languages at home, living in Brussels where the official languages are French and Dutch and where English is the lingua franca, going to the European school where 21 different "native" languages are spoken, who as young adults study at both Brussels Universities (French-speaking ULB and Dutch-speaking VUB )in a bilingual program applied economic sciences-option languages (some courses are taught in English) fit that picture.

In a country like Belgium there are a lot of mixed couples where one of the partners speaks French and the other Dutch or French/German (Region of Eupen) where children from a young age grow up with both Dutch/French and French/German.
In Luxembourg French/German and Letzenburgisch are official languages. In Switzerland, families where French and German is spoken are no exception either.
Being bilingual does not make those people translators, but the most certainly have an excellent basis, living both languages on a daily basis and being educated in both.

[Bijgewerkt op 2009-05-25 05:00 GMT]

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Vietnamese

hfp — Sun, 24 May 2009 17:20:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: hfp
Post title: Vietnamese

[quote]Shane Wall wrote:

... in Vietnam I will be employed as a secretary who's duties encompass not only translation, but also interpreting, for often seriously important, multi-million dollar business negotiations or political visitations!

Those of you in mature translation markets like Europe, Canada, U.S., U.K., etc. should spare a thought for those few of professionally trained translators in the developing world countries like Vietnam who have to battle for work against "a secretary who studied English for 3 years"!

Shane [/quote]
Everything you've written is very interesting to me, Shane. I have never studied Vietnamese, so I don't know the first thing about it. Maybe one of these days when I'm fed up with Spanish, I'll try to tackle it. In any case, have you met any professional English-->Vietnamese, Vietnamese-->English interpreters in Ho Chi Minh City who possess a native-like mastery of both languages?

Those people must be insanely articulate. :)

[Edited at 2009-05-24 17:28 GMT]

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | "I studied English in college and got an "A ranking", therefore ...

Shane Wall — Sun, 24 May 2009 15:23:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Shane Wall
Post title: "I studied English in college and got an "A ranking", therefore ...

... in Vietnam I will be employed as a secretary who's duties encompass not only translation, but also interpreting, for often seriously important, multi-million dollar business negotiations or political visitations!

Those of you in mature translation markets like Europe, Canada, U.S., U.K., etc. should spare a thought for those few of professionally trained translators in the developing world countries like Vietnam who have to battle for work against "a secretary who studied English for 3 years"!

Shane

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | No, never ever

Elodie Bonnafous — Sun, 24 May 2009 08:46:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Elodie Bonnafous
Post title: No, never ever

Does singing in the shower make you a singer ?
Does washing your teeth make you a dentist ?

Being bilingual is necessary to work as a translator / interpreter, but it is not enough.
Who answers yes to this questions hasn't understood anything about this profession.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | It depends!

bookwormkt — Sun, 24 May 2009 08:30:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: bookwormkt
Post title: It depends!

I know lots of people (adults and children) who are bilingual in an Asian language and English. They speak a home language and experience their education and other aspects of life in English. Some of them have 'Special Educational Needs', but quite often they have a relative at home who speaks very little English, so they translate/interpret for them on many occasions, including written work such as filling in forms, writing letters.

I don't speak their home language, so I can't comment on how accurate their translations are, but they seem to manage!

Maybe my point is, being bilingual sometimes means you have to function as an interpreter when you have to link people who are monolingual?

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | matter of definition - short answer - no

hfp — Sun, 24 May 2009 04:43:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: hfp
Post title: matter of definition - short answer - no

Where are these famous bilingual people? I've never met someone who has the ability to speak and write in two languages with the facility of a native of the two languages, much less an educated native. This would be extremely difficult, unless you lived in a country in which the two languages were taught an equal amount in school, your mom spoke to you in English and your dad in Spanish with the same frequency, and you had an equal amount of friends who spoke to you constantly in the respective languages, and to top it all off, you constantly read books in both languages while always being diligent not to prioritize in one language.

To even come close to this sort of lifestyle, one must really be dedicated to constantly improving their language skills. But the word bilingual generally doesn't carry such a heavy burden. Normally people ask "So are you bilingual now?" after you've spent maybe 6 months in a foreign country, and if you say "Well, no, it's not that simple." they think there must be something wrong with you because they heard about the preacher's son who went to Russia or somewhere and claims to speak like a native after just 3 months, or something bogus like that.

The everyday definition of bilingual seems to be someone who can communicate in two languages without too much trouble, and it's ok if there is hesitation, grammatical mistakes, a few incoherent sentences here and there, as long as the message gets across, more or less. That person to me should not be considered bilingual, an interpreter or a translator.

How many of you who claim to be bilingual or a native in Spanish and English can interpret right now on the spot everything I've just written into its equivalent in Spanish out loud? Record yourself reading it out loud in English and then in Spanish to analyze the pauses and self-corrections. If you think you can do it flawlessly, do it, and then ask your buddy who grew up in Managua or wherever, if he thinks it sounds just the way a native speaker would interpret it. And don't forget to interpret any grammatical mistakes I have made into their closest grammatical error in Spanish.

I don't care about native accents. As long as monolingual speakers of the two languages can understand you, that's good enough.

Now, I'm not saying that this is impossible, but it's very hard to do, and these people who are capable must be hiding from me. :)

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Misunderstanding?

polyglot45 — Sat, 23 May 2009 16:25:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: polyglot45
Post title: Misunderstanding?

As I read the topic, this has nothing to do with the albeit old chestnut of native/non-native but concerns whether the very fact of being bilingual makes you (or qualifies you) ipso facto to be a translator. I firmly believe that there is not necessarily a direct link between the two. They are not mutually exclusive. You don't have to be bilingual to be a translator and being bilingual doesn't mean that you will always be able or want to translate.
End of story.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Gentle step off topic

Textklick — Sat, 23 May 2009 11:02:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Textklick
Post title: Gentle step off topic

[quote]Laureana Pavon wrote:

... that we ProZ.com members can't seem to let go of this discussion on native vs. non-native translators?
It's getting quite old, really. [/quote]

Maybe some of us should add [url removed] to their Amazon wish list?

Back to topic: my vote was no.

I am pretty much bilingual as such but would never translate into German. I can express myself quite eloqently in that language but find personally that aiming for grammatical perfection (genders, cases etc.) is as much fun as driving a Porsche with the handbrake on. [IMG] [url removed] [/IMG]

When speaking, you can usually get away with that handicap by mumbling the odd word and claiming that you have ill-fitting dentures.[IMG] [url removed] [/IMG]

Conversely though (DE>EN) I do in fact know several NNS peers who I would trust to do the job.

Incidentally, given the logical nature of the German language, I think that anyone being asked to translate this question into German would have to respectfully ask "Could you kindly elucidate?"

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Multi-lingualism and translations

Ahmet Murati — Sat, 23 May 2009 10:10:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Ahmet Murati
Post title: Multi-lingualism and translations

I am not native bilingual at all. But I have a friend that his mother was Turkish, his father is Albanian. He speaks in three languages Albanian, Turkish and English. But in meantime I am much faster finding appropriate words needed to be used.

For myself I can speak in English, Serbian, partially German and then there come other languages like French, Macedonian, Croatian. But I don't translate among other languages except from language pairs Eng Alb or De > Alb.

Because to translate you don't need to have only huge vocabulary in your mind but you must have also grammar, syntax and also pronunciation of particular words and of whole sentences. Furthermore I know many bilinguals that during speeches they make the non-intentionally switch among languages they speak or use words from other languages.

For example if a multi lingual person writes something like this

I aime el traduction sepse ja sum veramente brz che mund find das fjalë.

This practically wound be a nonsense sentence because to understand this sentence you have to know English, French, Spanish, Serbian, Croatian, Macedonian.

In this way to become a translator/interpreter multi-lingualism does not satisfy the requirements to become translator/interpreter because to translate/interpret then you must have sound knowledge of both languages in sense of knowing many, many words from both languages, knowing the grammar of both languages and also to have sound knowledge of culture of both languages.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Agree - yes but not a professional one

Venkatesh Sundaram — Sat, 23 May 2009 06:30:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Venkatesh Sundaram
Post title: Agree - yes but not a professional one

[quote]Mariam Osmane wrote:

So you can get by while in a market or a store, help tourists and may be you can explain the content of a letter to a colleague. [/quote]

Agree - you can translate / interpret as Mariam has pointed out - but professional quality translation / interpretation needs more than just good working knowledge of two languages, as many colleagues have explained in detail

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Maybe... NOT.

Gilberto Diaz Castro — Sat, 23 May 2009 05:33:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Gilberto Diaz Castro
Post title: Maybe... NOT.

I consider myself to be bilingual....EnglishSpanish, but by no means will that quality make me a good, or even mediocre, translator/interpreter. I was born in the USA, raised in Puerto Rico, spent 23 years in the US Army and am able to read/write/speak both versions of these languages fairly well. Just being able to speak or think on either language does not help either. Yes, this ability helps but does not make me anything. In order to translate/interpret I must have the ability to use proper grammar and punctuation marks while writing and be able to speak with the appropriate pauses needed for proper reproduction of the written word in both languages. Then you must count in the ability to localize the variations of the language you claim. Just because I was raised in Puerto Rico and learned "Spanish" does not mean I can properly communicate in Spain, Argentina, or Mexico. The way I see it is, Christopher Columbus brought to what is now The Americas a Version of Spanish; which has been corrupted by passage of time and our varied backgrounds. These versions are influenced by words of the Caribe, Taino, Inca, Aztec and Mayan tribes. Based on this, NO, being bilingual will not make you a translator/interpreter... but many try.

I am still learning, from all you guys. Thanks.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Why is it ?

Williamson — Sat, 23 May 2009 05:26:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Williamson
Post title: Why is it ?

[quote]Laureana Pavon wrote:

... that we ProZ.com members can't seem to let go of this discussion on native vs. non-native translators?
It's getting quite old, really. [/quote]

Because they are so egocentric that they can not work together with a native of the target-language they master to a certain extent. Ego sum. The word most used on these forums is "I". Translation into a non-native language can be a life-long exercise which helps to enhance your knowledge of the target-language, especially if you live in a country where that language is spoken.

Mastering written language (translation) requires studying it, so that you do not make mistakes against spelling, interpunction, terminology or style. The stylistic register also plays an important role in written and spoken language: for example in written language it is not appropriate to use "you, guys" (typical American expression in spoken language).

Bilinguism does not mean that you mastered the techniques of interpreting (consecutive) or have trained your memory, it helps in using your spoken languages.
The educational level of your "examples" :Father, mother, surroundings also plays a role.

[Bijgewerkt op 2009-05-23 05:50 GMT]

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Multiligual history in Argentina??

Valeria Lagos Gordon Downie — Sat, 23 May 2009 05:09:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Valeria Lagos Gordon Downie
Post title: Multiligual history in Argentina??

[quote]neilmac wrote:

especially those working in the Spanish-English pair, and particularly from Argentina, which has a long and respectable multilingual history. [/quote]

Dear Neilmac, people in Argentina - in this generation and for at least two generations back- only speak Argentinean Spanish. It is true that learning English is an obsession among those with a certain amount of resources and culture, and as a result, many "Argies" speak a relatively decent English (and I agree that the pronociation tends to be better than that of Spaniards, probably because even TV has subtitles). But there is no multilingual history in Argentina, unfortunately. Nearly nobody speaks Italian, for instance, when it would be so natural in a country with so much Italian immigration.
The millions of immigrants that went to Argentina a hundred years ago in many cases would not speak their native languages to their own children. THey wanted to forget where they came from, what they've been through, etc. And they are all dead now.

Take it from me, I'm Argentinean.

(Sorry to go off topic, but this statement shocked me a bit and I needed to clarify.)

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | No. But it helps a lot

Aitor Aizpuru — Fri, 22 May 2009 23:14:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Aitor Aizpuru
Post title: No. But it helps a lot

I do not agree with Chris.

True bilingualism is NOT AN IMPEDIMENT. I think it is of great help in translation, and in life.

You sometime mix words, when you speak with other bilingual persons, because you just don´t care.

When I was a kid, I spoke both Spanish and French, (English is absolutely not my native language, I hope you don´t notice!).

But even if my parents are completely bilingual, my father always speaks to me in French and my mother in Spanish. It helps to make the "switch".

I have a one year old girl, her mother speaks to her in Mexican Spanish, and I speak to her in French. From my experience, I really don´t think that being completely bilingual makes you worst in one of the languages.

When you speak without any foreign accent, when you write naturally, knowing the specific expressions, without having to look for terms in a dictionary, or in a TM, it is of great help.

Obviously, this doesn’t make you a translator/interpreter. You need much more than that. For example: Love for words, dedication, ability, and ... among others, you need to be very critical with your work and a bit obsessive about using the right term.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Does being compassionate make you a counselor?

Marna Renteria — Fri, 22 May 2009 20:28:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Marna Renteria
Post title: Does being compassionate make you a counselor?

Does [having a certain ability] make you a [professional or even amateur performer of a certain task]? The answer cannot be "yes" no matter what you put in place of the bracketed text! Possessing an ability doesn't "make" you "be" anything other than a person with a certain ability.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Absolutely correct!

José Henrique Lamensdorf — Fri, 22 May 2009 19:43:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: José Henrique Lamensdorf
Post title: Absolutely correct!

[quote]Michele Fauble wrote:
A person who is bilingual is a person who is able to speak two languages. Being bilingual does not necessarily mean - and in most cases does not mean - that the speaker is a native speaker of both languages. [/quote]

I am a piece of living evidence that it does not.

I am pentalingual, but I only translate between two languages. The other three, I speak and understand them well, but I don't dare to translate from them. I admit that I'd have to study a lot more (a different "quantity" of each) to start doing it.

Neverheless I often see paid translation works done in my working pair by people who know less of either (or both!) language(s) than I do of these three. It's a matter of self-awareness.

On the other hand, I see people who have native-like command of various languages and yet never thought of translating anything in their lives.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Meaning of 'bilingual'

Michele Fauble — Fri, 22 May 2009 19:30:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Michele Fauble
Post title: Meaning of 'bilingual'

[quote]neilmac wrote:

Very, very few people can truthfully claim to be fully bilingual, despite the plethora of people on proz and elsewhere who purport to have 2 "native" languages, ...

[/quote]

[quote]Nesrin wrote:

(*1) bilingual: someone who is perfectly native in two languages, is well educated in both of them and is able to communicate in writing in both of them equally well;

[/quote]

A person who is bilingual is a person who is able to speak two languages. Being bilingual does not necessarily mean - and in most cases does not mean - that the speaker is a native speaker of both languages.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Why is it ...

Laureana Pavon — Fri, 22 May 2009 16:24:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Laureana Pavon
Post title: Why is it ...

... that we ProZ.com members can't seem to let go of this discussion on native vs. non-native translators?
It's getting quite old, really.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | I totally agree

Interlangue (X) — Fri, 22 May 2009 16:08:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Interlangue (X)
Post title: I totally agree

[quote]neilmac wrote:

This poll touches a nerve for me.
Very, very few people can truthfully claim to be fully bilingual, (...).
Linguistically speaking, the general norm is to have one mother tongue (MT1 or L1) followed by other, 2nd, 3rd, 4th languages etc...
(...)
To cut short my rant, my answer to this poll is a resounding "NO"!!
Even native speakers may be unable to write a coherent sentence or understand a relatively complex text in their own L1, and being a native speaker of any language does not necessarily mean that the person in question will be a good translator.

All of this without considering the differences between Castilian and other Spanish variants, Or US vs UK vs Australian English, for example...
There is more to translation than language proficiency. [/quote]

There is a huge difference between just babbling a language and really knowing it in depth.

What is a mother tongue, anyway? Your parents’ language? Not in my opinion, I am afraid – I had quite a few harsh discussions about that with my mother, who was shocked whenever I would say that French is my mother tongue and not Dutch, even though Dutch was her language and my father’s, the first language I ever spoke and the one we all spoke at home… BUT, I never had friends in Dutch for instance, only cousins. Nor did I go to school in Dutch. Only more recently did I get into some slang. All those things I went through in English though, at one time or another in my life. Does that make English (which type? American, which I learned first, on the spot; British, which I learned in a more academic way afterwards?) some kind of a mother tongue for me?

I am fluent in 3 languages (used to be 4) but I only have 1 mother tongue, the only language into which I translate. Because translating is not just converting words from one language into another, but understanding what the author means in the source language and see to it that the reader understands it right in the target language.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | True bilingualism is usually an impediment to good interpretation

Chris Lovelace — Fri, 22 May 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Chris Lovelace
Post title: True bilingualism is usually an impediment to good interpretation

Actually, I have noticed that people who are truly native in more than one language are usually the worst translators. From a cognitive standpoint, I've noticed that people who grow up speaking two languages from infancy tend to blur the "switch" necessary from one language to the other, and that there is so much invasion from one langauge to the other that bilingualists seem to have much difficulty in translating.

*Naturally, there will always be exceptions to this observation. Therefore, I will immediately say to any bilingualist reading this post who feels that he or she is an excellent translator: You are the exception, and I, therefore, sincerely congratulate you for being exceptional.

Of course, language dominance is also an important issue. I would argue that everyone, no matter how fluent they are in various languages, always have one langauge dominant. Granted, this may change depending on usage, envirnment, and other factors: For example, some of my family members were born and grew up in Argentina to North American parents. Growing up, their dominant langauge was Spanish. But now that some of them have lived for several years in the U.S., their dominant language has changed to English.

However, none of my truly bilingual family members (or friends, for that matter) feel that they have the technical skill to translate professionally. I respectfully agree with them.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | No, but it does help

Catherine Shepherd — Fri, 22 May 2009 14:56:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Catherine Shepherd
Post title: No, but it does help

[quote]Josée Desbiens wrote:

I don't even consider myself to be fully and perfectly bilingual.

[/quote]

Is that ever possible, I wonder? Because the more you are exposed to one language, the more you lose the other, if you don't practise. You will always be better at one language than at the other (IMHO).

I consider myself bilingual, for the reasons some of you have stated above (I fully agree with neilmac), and as I live in Spain, I have to go to the UK often to keep up, and read a lot of texts in English, and practise it whenever I can because otherwise it slips away. (When I've spent long periods in the UK, it is the other way round). So, I am not 'comfortably' bilingual, I have to work hard to keep it up! (as everyone does, of course).

As for my answer, 'No, but it does help', in some respects it does (I think it helps when interpreting, mainly), but then you find yourself mixing structures and stuff, so you do have to keep a clear head and separate both languages.

Whoever said translating was easy? ;)

[Edited at 2009-05-22 14:57 GMT]

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | No, being bilingual does not necessary mean that the two languages can be "connected"

AWa (X) — Fri, 22 May 2009 14:34:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: AWa (X)
Post title: No, being bilingual does not necessary mean that the two languages can be "connected"

With myself I noticed there were 3 stages when I learned a new language.

1. I formed a sentence in my native language and then tried to translate it into the foreign one; or, when listening I "heard" the foreing language translated into German and then understood what had been said.

2. I was fluent in both languages, no need to translate back and forth anymore - but they were totally separate in my brain, no connection whatsoever. I was fully aware which language I was using at a time, sometimes struggeling to decide which was the correct word in a particular context. When dealing with one language I had problems, made mistakes for a while when I had to switch to the other one. Although this stage to me is "being bilingual" I would never recommend anybody in this stage to start professional translating.

3. still fluent in both languages but also able to switch between them without using wrong words/grammar for a transition period, unable to remember which language a particular conversation was held in. At this stage the foreign language is not foreign anymore, I'm just as comfortable using it as I am using my native language. I know "instinctively" which word fits in which context without thinking about it. To me this is the type of bilingual a translator should have achieved.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | In fact...

Josée Desbiens — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:55:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Josée Desbiens
Post title: In fact...

I don't even consider myself to be fully and perfectly bilingual.

Of course, you have to understand your source language, but you mainly have to be a excellent detective to find the "right" word and to write down the translation in your target language by properly respect the spelling, the grammar, the syntax, the cultural meaning, the context and the target audience. And that is not necessarly given to bilingual people.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | Not necessarily

Maksym Petrov — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:33:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Maksym Petrov
Post title: Not necessarily

I guess the question is not whether there can really exist true bilinguals.
The thing is if being a native speaker of two languages (or at least one foreign which is very good) is enough for making you a translator/interpreter. My answer is: no. Being a translator involves too much knoledge and skills to call just a bilinual person a translator. And being a belingual is not a must here.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | With polyglot

SirReaL — Fri, 22 May 2009 11:37:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: SirReaL
Post title: With polyglot

[quote]Marijke Singer wrote:
I took the question as referring to me personally and then yes, it makes me a translator when added to all my other "fantastic" qualities. What is more, I am trilingual. Probably my best asset followed closely by my experience (25 years).
Whether it makes any other bilingual person a translator, is another question. [/quote]

Not really. Your choice to become a translator/interpreter is what made you one. Not your skills, but your decision to apply them and pursue this profession.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | I said Yes

Marijke Singer — Fri, 22 May 2009 11:14:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Marijke Singer
Post title: I said Yes

I took the question as referring to me personally and then yes, it makes me a translator when added to all my other "fantastic" qualities. What is more, I am trilingual. Probably my best asset followed closely by my experience (25 years).
Whether it makes any other bilingual person a translator, is another question.

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | does being bilingual MAKE YOU a translator/interpreter ?

polyglot45 — Fri, 22 May 2009 11:05:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: polyglot45
Post title: does being bilingual MAKE YOU a translator/interpreter ?

If you read the question properly, then the answer can only be NO. A resounding "no"- whence the capitalisation.
If you also have other qualities and the desire to work in the profession, then it may help or make things easier but there is no automatic link between bilingualism and being a translator/interpreter.
In fact, I could quote examples of people I have encountered, who may fully deserve the label bilingual but who cannot and will not interpret. The ability to pass easily from one language to another and, especially in simultaneous, hear one language and reproduce the same thing in another at virtually the same time is something that not everybody can (or wants to) do - period !

Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter? | just a help

Gianluca Marras — Fri, 22 May 2009 10:14:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Does being bilingual make you a translator/interpreter?
Poster: Gianluca Marras
Post title: just a help

It can help, but id your writing style is not good, then any job involving writing should be avoided, even though you are bilingual.

So, other skills are required, and if you have them, then being bilingual is a great help.