How to Be a Good English Chinese Translator

How to Be a Good English Chinese Translator

It is no doubt that English Chinese translation is a highly skilled, challenging yet rewarding and satisfying job. English Chinese translators here at Top Chinese Translator know well that our profession is based on knowledge and experience. Before we become great translators, we need to invest much time into acquiring knowledge and experience of life. Apart from this, there are other important factors for you to well translate English to Chinese.

First off, you should be able to understand most of the source texts without aid of a dictionary, to the standard of an educated native-speaker. A good English Chinese translator is someone who has a comprehensive knowledge of both source and target languages, so that he/she can translate English to Chinese in a precise way. But understanding of the gist and main ideas of the source texts can never be enough, a good translator should also read for details and identify the source writer’s style so as to keep consistence. To improve this skill, you can read newspapers, journals and other texts appropriate to your specialism in the source language. At Top Chinese Translator, our working languages are English and Chinese. So our translators are always reading English texts.

Secondly, as English Chinese translators, we are expected to ensure smooth transfer of information. Our job is not only to simply translate English to Chinese, but also to communicate in both source and target languages. We should be able to communicate accurately, appropriately and concisely. That is why we need exceptional skills in the target language. We should build a broad and expressive vocabulary and an in-depth knowledge of the grammatical rules and cultural implications of the target language. For this reason, extensive reading is far from enough. We should also develop writing skills. We should be familiar with different styles of writing and techniques and principles of editing in target language. Use the correct word order and grammar as used in the target language. We should convey the original ideas of the source texts in clear sentences in the target language properly. In addition, get into the habit of checking yourself on any term you are not 100% sure of. Re-check and editing improve the quality and readability of the translation.

After developing a good competence in source and target languages, a good English Chinese translator will narrow down his/her field so as to be an expert in a particular specialization. Specialization is very important in translation. That is what makes you outstanding. For example, the terminology and writing style used in legal documents are vastly different from those used in medical documents. By specializing, one’s speed and accuracy increases substantially. To quickly and accurately translate English to Chinese in specific industries, the translators should have necessary knowledge, tools and resources at hand.

In addition to the above skills, a good English Chinese translator should also have access to the best resources to assist their work such as industry-specific dictionaries, encyclopedias, and online resources. As we know, basic computer skills are also a must in translation job. Besides, excellent translators love their job and understand the significance of their work. They always have a deep sense of responsibility. It is not easy to be a good English Chinese translator. But the patience and time you devoted to improving yourself will definitely worth it.

Using English Chinese Translation Services

Using English Chinese Translation Services

If you are involved in international business, it is highly possible that your company’s technical or promotional material need to be translated into another language. As I am working as an English Chinese translator at Top Chinese Translator, I want to focus on English Chinese translation services here.

English Chinese translation services bring you comfort, enable access to local market and facilitate communication. For this reason, one needs to use the right English Chinese translation services. If not, it could result in costly blunders and embarrassment. For example, a badly translated business document, such as a business proposal or contract, can cause a devastating effect if a business decision has been based on faulty information. English Chinese translators who have not taken into consideration local cultures when translating a brochure or advertising campaign can cause a huge dent in advertising budget with only negative PR. Anyway, poor translations can lead to misinterpretations and misconceptions. And your business prospects can be ruined by them.

On the contrary, you can benefit a lot from good English Chinese translation services. For example, a good translation service can help you make or break important business deals, advertising or marketing campaigns and more. Even for private individuals, using the services from a professional English Chinese translator can save money and time. Professional translation services will help to minimize misunderstanding, avoid cultural barrier, improve team communication and extend your customer base. Therefore, using a good English Chinese translation service has become imperative.

Most professional English Chinese translation agencies provide accurate and polished copies of your original documents. Accuracy is always the paramount hallmark of good translation services. They will assign skilled English Chinese translators who are suitable for your individual project. Sometimes, you will find that most translators work only in their native languages. This is a good thing for customers since it guarantees accuracy of the translated documents, and also provides in-depth knowledge of local cultural influences. If not, find some native speakers to read the translated documents and tell you how they feel. But normally, professional English Chinese translation agencies will assign another translator to do the proofreading.

Check to make sure that the English Chinese translators have a background in your industry sector. You certainly do not want a medical translator to translate electronic brochures. A good translation service should be able to offer translators experienced in various specialist areas such as commerce, law, engineering and so on. Even if they do not have such an inclusive network of translators, they should offer you with the right translators that best suited to your individual requirements.

A last thing is to specify turn-around time on your English Chinese translation projects. Most professional translation agencies provide rush services. But that requires you to pay a rush fee. Even though you are not in a rush need, be sure to specify when you need the document back.

Whether you are self-employed or work for others, as long as you are involved in a global market, good translation services are imperative to successful business. It is better for you to take the time and do some research when using an English Chinese translation service.

To learn more about the English Chinese translation services offered by Top Chinese Translator, please feel free to contact us by simply filling in the client form. We will contact you in less than 24 hours.  

Translate Your English Websites into Chinese - Top Chinese Translator

Translate Your English Websites into Chinese

Along with the development of Internet and e-commerce, the traditional ways of doing business have also changed. A company website seems now to be a very basic precondition of doing business since with that, people can deal with customers 24 hours a day and seven days a week. A great website is a most valuable marketing tool. However, as shown by the World Internet Statistics, only 29.1% of internet users are English speakers. If you have only an English website, you are probable to miss over 1 billion people who access the internet in other languages. Therefore, it is indeed a good idea to developing several versions of your websites. For example, if you are preparing to set foot into the most prospective growing market – China, it is time for you to translate your English websites into Chinese with the help of English Chinese translators. This is what Top Chinese Translator talking about.

After discussion on why translating English websites into Chinese, then let’s talk on how to do this. Normally, there are several ways to translate websites from English to Chinese.

First, translate English to Chinese using the translation software.

As is known to all, free English Chinese translation services are available online. But most of them are conducted by computers rather than human English Chinese translators. The major fault of machine translation is that they are usually not correct. The result translation may range from comic to completely flawed. Few companies will completely depend on translation software for a company website, as few people will 100 percent accept the translated result by Google Translate. Especially when you are depending on the websites to do business, it is better to turn to human translators. But translation software is always a good assistant. At Top Chinese Translator, our English Chinese translators are good at taking advantage of translation software.

Second, hire freelancers who translate English to Chinese.

Another way is to hire freelancer English Chinese translators. They can be found through job sites like oDesk or Elance and so forth. An advantage of hiring freelancers is that they do not cost you as much as English Chinese translation agencies. These self-employed translators require less because they do not need management fees etc. But a disadvantage is most freelancer translators are not especially focusing on website localization. They may be very professional and experienced in English Chinese translation, but may not have a good knowledge on website localization. But if you hire an English Chinese translation agency, they can assign translators who are familiar with website localization for your English Chinese translation projects.

Third, cooperate with English Chinese translation agencies.

As mentioned above, a third way to translate your English websites into Chinese is to cooperate with English Chinese translation agencies. This can be the best way to translate your websites. Since these companies usually own a wide range of English Chinese translators who are respectively experienced in different industries. For instance, at Top Chinese Translator, we have many English Chinese translators who are experienced SEO workers. They can not only translate English to Chinese, but more important, they are familiar with the process of website design, establishing a new website, and doing SEO works. Localizing an English website into Chinese is not only translating the content, but also fitting the content into the website. For example, some translated sentences may be too long or too short to fit the design of the whole website. That is how English Chinese translators from Top Chinese Translator can fulfill your needs and requirements.

To contact Top Chinese Translator for your website localization, simply fill in the client form or just call us.

A Guide to Manage the Timing of Your English Chinese Translation Projects

A Guide to Manage the Timing of Your English Chinese Translation Projects

To both the English Chinese translators and the clients who are in need, the turnaround time is a key element when speaking of English Chinese translation projects. Properly managing the timing of your English Chinese translation projects can save your costs as well as ensuring a high quality of the translated text. If you do not clarify the timing with your translator partner, then your translation projects is highly possible to be put off or delayed. On the contrary, if you are the English Chinese translators, it is better for you to show your client a translation schedule so as to avoid complaint. So here are some tips on managing the time of your English Chinese translation projects shared by Top Chinese Translator based on our years’ of experience.

The turnaround time of English Chinese translation projects depend on many factors. For example, the English Chinese translators’ level of experience can highly affect the needed translation time. And the speed of English Chinese translation can be influenced by the carefulness of the translators’ work. By the way, at Top Chinese Translator, the quality is definitely the premier principle. But at the meantime, our turnaround time is never longer than the average time needed. In addition, the difficulty of the original texts and the amount of research involved are also the key elements which determine the final turnaround time of your English Chinese translation projects. Besides, if your Chinese translation partner is dealing with other translation projects at the same time, then more time is probably needed than normally do.

Although it is always better for a quicker turnaround time, you should be very cautious about those English Chinese translators who claim to be able to translate a large amount of works in a relatively short time. Even though the English Chinese translators at Top Chinese Translator are very experienced, and we are quite efficient on various English Chinese translation projects, we do not boast on turnaround time, since we do not want to take shortcuts and sacrifice the quality. After all, translation requires thought, research and time.

If you are really in rush need, then a great way to speed up the translation timing is to assign the English Chinese translation projects to multiple English Chinese translators and having them working simultaneously. The only problem is this may not be a good solution for translations where style is important. As we know, different Chinese translators can be very different in their translating style, which can accordingly cause inconsistency in the translated texts. Despite that some translation agencies may take longer time to work on your English Chinese translation projects than freelance translators due to the extra time for project management, editing and quality assurance, they often offer express translation services based on extra rush fees. And you do not have to worry about inconsistency in style since experienced English Chinese translators at the same agency are usually trained. Besides, another proof reader or editor is usually assigned for the final integration of all the translated parts.

Anyway, it is always a good idea to clarify your need and expected timing with your English Chinese translators before finally assigning the English Chinese projects to them. If they are offering a too good turnaround time to be true, then you’d better investigate further. Do the research with multiple English Chinese translation agencies to get an average turnaround time. If needed, please feel free to contact Top Chinese Translator for free consultation.

English Chinese Translation of Film Titles

On the English Chinese Translation of Film Titles

Being an English Chinese translator at Top Chinese Translator, I always feel interested in translation of film titles. After all, film translation makes my job funnier. Recently, with the ending of 85^th Oscar Academy Award (Simplified Chinese: 第85届奥斯卡金像奖), Ang Lee (Simplified Chinese: 李安) and the movie ‘Life of Pi’ (Simplified Chinese: 少年派的奇幻漂流) got popular again. Lee has even beat out his most formidable competitor Steven Spielberg (Simplified Chinese: 史蒂文·斯皮尔伯格), the director of ‘Lincoln’ (Simplified Chinese: 林肯).

To most movie fans, all the nominated films are great ones, especially the Oscar-winners. It is a great opportunity to review the films when the Oscar Academy Award has just ended. In addition to the movie content, the title of a film is also a key factor which attracts attention. As an international communication platform, the Oscar Academy Award is open for films from all countries with different languages. Thus, all the foreign movies need to get different local names when they are shown in other countries or areas. It would be interesting to see different translated movie titles because of cultural differences, let alone I am one of the English Chinese translators. It is funny to talk about this with my colleagues at Top Chinese Translator.

Speaking of the English Chinese translation of film titles, we may have to figure out not only one translation of each due to the different forms of the Chinese language used in different places, such as the simplified Chinese in mainland China and the traditional Chinese used in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Hence, the different local translations of the same film title are the result of different concepts and purposes in different places. Let’s see some examples here. We welcome all suggestions and corrections from English Chinese translators.

English Name	Mainland China	Hong Kong	Taiwan
Argo	逃离德黑兰	救參任務	亞果出任務
The Artist	艺术家	星光夢裡人	大藝術家
The King’s Speech	国王的演讲	皇上無話兒	王者之聲：宣戰時刻
The Hurt Locker	拆弹部队	拆彈雄心	危機倒數
Slumdog Millionaire	贫民窟的百万富翁	一百萬零一夜	貧民百萬富翁
No Country for Old Men	老无所依	二百萬奪命奇案	險路勿近
The Departed	无间行者	無間道風雲	神鬼無間
Crash	撞车	撞車	衝擊效應
Million Dollar Baby	百万美元宝贝	擊情	登峰造極
Up	飞屋环游记	沖天救兵	天外奇跡
American Beauty	美国丽人	美麗有罪	美國心玫瑰情
Sound of Music	音乐之声	仙樂飄飄處處聞	真善美
Saving Private Ryan	拯救大兵瑞恩	雷霆救兵	搶救雷恩大兵
Star Trek	星际迷航	星空奇遇記	星際爭霸戰
The Terminator	终结者	未來戰士	魔鬼終結者

Even though the movie titles are short, they are still very rich in meaning. As in English Chinese translation, translators should try their best to re-create a right and concise local name. The Chinese name of the English movies should be based on the content and theme of the film. Yet the local name should be attractive to the local people. So the English Chinese translation of the movies should obey the customs and language style of the targeted country. That is to say, always take the cultural factors into consideration when translating the film names.

To discuss more on English Chinese translation of film titles, please feel free to contact us at Top Chinese Translator. 

Tips on Reducing English Chinese Translation Costs

When talking about English Chinese translation projects, most people would agree high-quality translations at competitive prices are the paramount objective. Hence, the problem comes as how can you lower your English Chinese translation costs yet not lower the quality. These are several tips shared by Top Chinese Translator for your information on lowering translation costs:

Price comparison when choosing English Chinese translation agency

Before settling on an English Chinese translation agency, it is better for you to shop around so as to make a price comparison. With this comparison, you have more options and you can also know how to bargain with your translation partner since you are familiar with the whole translation market.

With your research on the average English Chinese translation costs, you will then find that some translation companies that offer the so-called bargain prices are sometimes very likely to offer a lower-quality service. They will probably to assign less professional English Chinese translators for your translation projects. As a result, you may spend more if you want to get the badly translated documents fixed.

We all know that freelance English Chinese translators are much cheaper than translation agencies. But the problem is not all projects can be handled by freelancers. Therefore, if your English Chinese translation project is relatively small-scaled, you can then choose freelance English Chinese translators rather than translation agencies for the reason of lowering English Chinese translation costs. But if you are looking for a long-term English Chinese translation partner, then professional agencies like Top Chinese Translator are definitely better choice.

Reducing quantity not quality of the English-Chinese translation project

Another way for you to reduce the English Chinese translation costs is reduce the quantity – instead of quality - of your original file. Start with the end in mind. Take translation into consideration when you are writing the original content. Keep your content as concise as possible. Eliminate unnecessary words and keep sentences short, but always ensure that the message is correctly conveyed. Avoid idiomatic phrases that have no meaning in the target culture or language.

Take a second check on the file before sending it to your English Chinese translation partner and see whether there are any parts can be left out or condensed. For example, if the original file is an instruction manual, some of the texts may be replaced by diagrams and illustrations with fewer words to be translated.

Using translation memories for the English Chinese translation projects

With the use of a Translation Memory, the English Chinese translators can start working on the project before it has been officially approved at your company. The translation memory, or TM, can store segments, such as sentences, paragraphs or sentence-like units that have previously been translated. On the one hand, it can aid human English Chinese translators. On the other hand, a TM can considerably reduce the delivery time and costs, since you can ask the translators to begin the work even if the original document is still in draft stage. That way, the English Chinese translators can do the translation work in a less demanding pace. The translation costs are accordingly reduced.

In addition, budget for your English Chinese translation in advance, so that you can avoid surcharges for rush turnaround timing. Most English Chinese translation agencies would offer a discount for larger projects, so you can combine several small projects into a larger one to get the discount. Anyway, try your best to avoid extra charges.

So those are all the tips Top Chinese Translator shared for reducing your English Chinese translation costs. If you want to discuss more on this, or you are looking for a English Chinese translation agency at a competitive price, please feel free to contact us at topchinesetranslators@gmail.com

English Chinese translation case study: Chunyun

The Chinese Lunar New Year / Spring Festival is drawing near, most Chinese people are heading back home during this traditional Chunyun period. To most English Chinese translation pros, ‘Chunyun’ may not be a great translation for the peak transport during the Spring Festival travel season. But to anyone who are interested in the Chinese culture or the Chinese society, ‘Chunyun’ is a great point to get started. The following paragraph is an introduction of the Chinese ‘Chunyun’ with English Chinese translation shared by Top Chinese Translator.

Chunyun is a period of travel in China with extremely high traffic load around the time of the Chinese New Year. The period usually begins 15 days before the Lunar New Year’s Day and lasts for around 40 days. The number of passenger journeys during the Chunyun period has exceeded the population of China, hitting over 2.5 billion even in 2010. It has been called the largest annual human migration in the world. Rail transport experiences the biggest challenge during the period, and myriad social problems emerged.

春运，是中国在春节前后发生大规模的高交通运输现象的一段时期。春运时期通常在农历新年前15天开始，持续40天左右。早在2010年春运期间，乘客数量就超过了中国人口总数，达到了25亿人次。春运因此也被誉为人类历史上规模最大的、周期性的人类大迁徙。春运是铁道部门需要经历的最大挑战，没有“之一”；同时，大量的社会问题也会在这期间涌现。

As is known to all English Chinese translators, glossary is always an important part in English Chinese translation. Translators have to define the translation of glossary so as to keep consistency in the whole translation. Thus Top Chinese Translator would like to share some other English Chinese translation resources regarding the Chinese Chunyun period, say, some high frequency words and phrases:

local train慢车

direct train直快

special express特快

bullet train动车

high-speed rail 高铁

hard seat 硬座

soft seat 软座

cushioned berth 软卧

semi-cushioned berth 硬卧
upper berth/ sleeper 上铺

middle berth / sleeper 中铺

lower berth /sleeper 下铺
car attendant/train attendant列车员

guard/conductor列车长

dispatcher 调度员

volume of passenger transport 客运量

peak time for passenger transport 客流高峰期

operate/arrange extra trains 加开列车

24-hour ticket sales windows 24小时售票窗口

group ticket-booking 集体预定火车票

regulate ticket sale 规范售票

crack down on scalpers 打击票贩子

Offering high-quality and professional English Chinese translation services has been the prime goal since the founding day of Top Chinese Translator. We are open for all correction and suggestions. In case you need any English Chinese translation services or want to discuss more on translation, please do not hesitate to contact us.