The idios root shows up in idiosyncrasy, and, of course, idiot: one who keeps to himself, not quite ready for prime time or the public square.

Let’s take a few examples. If you translate from English into Russian “out of sight, out of mind” you will probably end up by “с глаз долой, из сердца вон”. If you try a computerised translation it could be something like “invisible idiot”. No comment is necessary.

Russians often say “как по маслу”, which means something like “easy going” or “going smoothly”, “without any problem”. If a business runs как по маслу, there is no need to worry!

Sometimes the language itself and its flow are important. You lose it and your translation work would be compared to inhaling a scent of a tea rose through a gas mask.

Sometimes the meaning and importance of words can be changed in translation; when a language itself is insignificant because a writer wants people to be attracted to the content of his or her work.

In this case a translator is a co-writer and is free to use his or her language means in order to convey the content in the best possible way. I had a smashing experience of being a part of a translating team working on a translation of a philosophical novel. Quite a reserved 3^rd person narration is fully focused on philosophical issues you should be fluent in and be able to render them in the target language using the right means. It is very easy to start just translating facts, events and consequences but it is not good enough… There are plenty of tiny details which help you to make it work, to make it look and sound as genuine as a source.

There appear to be some things that are untranslatable, and when converted to another language they seem kind of weird sounding, and because of that, they attract attention.

But let’s come back to idioms. Sometimes one little phrase gives translators trouble.

In Russian, English and probably every other existing language, physical gestures and facial expressions – sometimes metaphorical, sometimes actual – are used to convey emotional states. When English speakers use the similar expressions to convey the same emotions, translation is easy. Он почесал затылок (He scratched his head; he was puzzled). Он навострил уши (he paid close attention to what was being said).

Americans puff out their cheeks and expel air as a sign of exasperation, denoted by the words “whew” or “phew.” They also pout. In Russian, this is надувать губы (literally, to puff out one’s lips).

Надувать щёки is a pose of proud self-importance. In English, we’d probably say: to be high and mighty. If we were to convey this by a physical gesture, we might say: to puff out our chests. Or:  be puffed up. Or maybe even: swagger.

It’s a mysterious craft… It emerges from so many things…

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Granted, in some “mechanical” cases commas are used in English where they aren’t in Russian, including: certain date renditions (“My daughter was born June 17, 1993.”); within large numbers (1,700,000); to introduce direct quotation (“He shouted, ‘Boo!’”); and in friendly letter salutations (“Dear friends,”).

In English, dependent clauses starting with “that,” “what,” “if,” “where,” “when” and the like DON’T want commas before them. And “because” doesn’t needs a comma before it but “потому что” often does.

A subject clause, even a lengthy one, ordinarily doesn’t take a comma after it – although its translation into Russian probably will.

The “which” which starts a restrictive subordinate clause doesn’t need a comma. The point: a который clause in English should not produce a comma reaction.

So for me it means that every time I want to put a comma automatically I don’t do that. How cool is that? Although it works in English and in Russian I just have to follow my intuition.

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E-mail, Skype and other technologies have opened the door to cross-cultural communications, but they alone cannot bridge the language gap.

I perfectly realize that there are a lot of us translators there. But there are quite a few real professionals. It’s not enough to simply speak another language. There is a wealth of knowledge and background you need in your area of specialty.

Translation is far more than words and also far more than the context of words and phrases. Very many different issues are involved. And the spelling has to be impeccable.

Some businesses try to save on translation fees by using free computer programs, but those don’t offer the quality needed to avoid stilted and often nonsensical results.
Slavic grammar is complex, and developed differently than in other Indo-European languages, which means that sentences have to be construed in a very different manner.

The Russian language is full of words of intimacy or endearment. First, the Russian national character is expressive and emotional, and one aspect of it is that it has so many diminutive adjectives and nouns; second, the language itself offers a variety of ways to be expressive and emotional. One of them is suffixes. Russian is sometimes called the language of suffixes.

Russian suffixes express an extremely wide range of emotions and attitudes. They can produce words that are caressing, diminutive, familiar, vulgar or contemptuous.

Polish linguist Anna Wierzbicka studied the way Russian suffixes work with Russian personal names. She says the meanings expressed by names with suffixes are so rich and complex they cannot be represented by simple labels such as “affectionate” or “scornful”. Some are ambivalent.

The suffix -ka (as in Lenka) may express familiarity or “anti-respect” but it becomes diminutive and even caressing in Lenochka.

The suffix –ik/ok is used with diminutive connotation when used with masculine names, e.g. Vladik or Sashok.  People use it when they talk to small boys and till they approach adolescence.

In English, suffixes are rarer, and they are less expressive. Most commonly, standard short forms such as Tom or Bill are used with regard to people one knows well. Sometimes, such short forms are preferred by the person and are used officially like Jimmy or Billy.

Translators of fiction face enormous problems rendering the expressive range conveyed by Russian suffixes. The mysterious craft of translation: it has to emerge from the whole — one must see it as a whole, and love it as a whole.

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In the burgeoning world of translators and interpreters it’s all about the niche.

“It’s not just having the language skill. It’s also having the expertise in the subject matter,” said Dahlberg, whose story was striking enough that Nicholas Hartmann, president of the American Translators Assn., retold it during the group’s 50th convention in New York last month.

I am pretty sure that I would leave the convention completely a different person and a better translator, if I was one of the lucky attendees. For four days, some 2,300 attendees networked, traded stories and listened in on workshops and seminars at a Times Square hotel.

That’s 1,000 more than attended last year’s conference — evidence that even in this economy, the industry is healthy.

Hartmann said demand for translators and interpreters is expected to grow by 15% in the coming year as globalization, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the worldwide green movement spur demand for information in myriad languages.

E-mail, Skype and other technologies have opened the door to cross-cultural communications, but they alone cannot bridge the language gap.

It’s not enough to simply speak another language. There is a wealth of knowledge and background you need in your area of specialty.

“Translation is far more than words,” said Hartmann, who specializes in translating German patents. It requires him to understand not only the context of words and phrases, but also the technical and legal issues involved. And his spelling has to be impeccable.

The slightest error can cause extraordinary embarrassment.

If somebody is going to make a joke he better makes sure it translates well.
If a leader makes a joke that doesn’t elicit laughs, a good interpreter will say in the listening audience’s language, “It’s a joke that does not translate — please laugh.”

You wouldn’t translate something like “God bless you all” to the atheist audience to avoid embarrassment.

Despite the fact that niche translators and interpreters are “everybody’s lifeline,” they remain in short supply, particularly in U.S. government agencies.

The FBI said its translation workload had doubled since the Sept. 11 attacks. Hospitals, courts, schools and other institutions are struggling to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse population.

But few people have the training it takes to do what can be an excruciatingly difficult job. I am not talking about weekends, but sometimes we have to translate or edit a large document in no time which means working many hours straight.

Some businesses try to save on translation fees by using free computer programs, but those don’t offer the quality needed to avoid stilted and often nonsensical results.
The mysterious craft of translation: it has to emerge from the whole — one must see it as a whole, and love it as a whole.

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Basically, the Russian is one of the three surviving East Slavic languages from the Indo-European language group; Ukrainian and Belarusian being the two others. The language has a long history, its earliest traces are found in Novgorod in 11th century.

Though the language seems to have a heritage of almost 10 centuries, the written Russian started to gain significance only in 17th century during the reign of the Peter the Great.  It is during his reign that a new alphabet was introduced and the new language started to develop.

Later, famous 19th century writer Aleksander Pushkin developed this language further. In recent times, the language has become almost identical with the spoken Russian. In fact, during that time, the Russian language and literature flourished magnificently in the hands of world class writers like Tolstoy, Dostoyevskiy and Gogol. The Russian language was the only official language during both Russian Empire as well as the USSR.

However, these days when the world has become a global village, the culture and language of Russia can no longer remain restricted in that country alone. This is why the Russian translators are eagerly looked for. “It’s not just having the language skill. It’s also having the expertise in the subject matter,” said Dahlberg, whose story was striking enough that Nicholas Hartmann, president of the American Translators Assn., retold it during the group’s 50th convention in New York last month. There is a wealth of knowledge and background you need in your area of specialty. “It’s so easy to communicate, but once you find someone you want to communicate with, you find they don’t speak your language,” Hartmann said. And it’s not enough to simply speak another language. “Translation is far more than words,” said Hartmann. It requires understanding of not only the context of words and phrases, but also the technical and legal issues involved. And the spelling has to be impeccable.

It is not an easy business to find a good Russian translator who can meet all the above mentioned demands. References and certificates can help you to find one, but experience is crucial.

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In Scotland recently translation companies have undercut market rates to win the contracts to supply interpreters to Scottish courts and other government services. A court interpreter said the new conditions meant interpreters were effectively being forced to work for less than the minimum wage. It takes many years of practice and training to get to a level that is sufficiantly competent to carry out intricate work in a high pressured environment like court. A lot of interpreters and translators are forced out of the profession because of the low rates of pay.

For better value for money and greater efficiency a professional translator should be engaged.

I, as a professional English Russian translator, am supposed to provide a high quality translation, carry out all the stages of translation myself and as a result to receive less than a minimum payment. I think, OK, at least I have an experience and I am in demand. But I would rather take part in projects for non-profit organisations for free. At least I have a feeling of fulfillment and commitment. And I do what I personally love – translating from English to Russion and from Russian to English.

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Freelance services: Translation, Analysis, Stylistic research and interpretation, Editing, Proofreading, Sign-off.

I started writing my blog this year (I know from the various courses I followed in NZ that the pioneer years of blogging are over and it is high time to switch to the information platforms and networking) and since I have learnt a lot but the most important thing is that my future lies in the web, which means that I better be proficient and fluent in Internet business as I am in languages.

I moved to NZ (family circumstances) and now I can devote (almost!) all my time to the business of my life – translating and writing. I have to be serious and prove to the world that I am a capable and very persistent translator. One thing I know is that I am able to learn things from scratch using my skills gained during my university years and my life experience afterwards.

I wish myself good luck and a happy busy life!

Particular types of work I am looking for

1. Languages services.  In addition to my English I am fluent in Dutch and quite good in German (German>Russian). I studied Latin for two years at the University and am fond of Humanities. After University I started working as a technical translator (English>Russian)at the TV research company in Ukraine and very soon I was commended by engineers whose everyday work depended on the translation of the information on the subjects from more technologically  developed West. They were not happy at the day when I was dismissed (four years later), when the hard times hit the country. I was picked up by owners of the private languages courses almost immediately and started sharing my knowledge with people who decided to leave the country in search of a better life. After I moved to the Netherlands I learnt Dutch myself (State examination certificate, University level) and immediately started working as an interpreter for the Dutch company whose interests lay in farming, processing machinery and trade. Very soon I started my own little company as a translator, as a representative of the Russian state and private companies on the Dutch market. I got the feel of doing it and developed remarkable communication and business skills. The period of 1998-2008 was low profile as I was devoted to family matters. I did some language training for professionals, lived and visited several countries and developed my observation and writing skills. I would like to mention the years 2007- 2008, when I made an individual language course for the CEO of the large Cement company in Germany and consulted and translated a few speeches into Russian for big events.  After moving to NZ I resumed my activities as a professional linguist: a freelance translator for NZTC International and Translators Café (I had to sit several tests and was successful). I also followed quite a few courses on the latest development in small business and internet/software. I did translations on finances, oil prospecting, private documents and letters and many editing and sign off jobs on medical equipment, general and technical subjects. I also took part in some projects of doing literary translations of e-books and articles as a volunteer. And last but not least I write my reflections on the translation in my blog.
2. Text analysis, interpretation and stylistics. I started language researches at the university years and since I love interpreting and analysing texts or information.
3. Proofreading and editing, sign-off.

Time scales and Regions

For translation, I will take long-term and short-term projects immediately. I am based in Wellington NZ and am ahead 12 hours.

For any kind of questions I am available during work hours NZ time.

Pricing

Your requirements and offers are welcome.

For translation, I am asking 0,04 $ per word (written translation) English>Russian, Dutch>Russian, German>Russian and 0,05$ per word Russian>English.

For proofreading and editing, I am asking 25$ per hour.

I accept payment as a bank transfer, cash and cheque whatever is convenient for you.

Why you would want me to do work for you?

I am reliable, realistic, and respectful and strive to meet the deadline. After talking to me or working with me people say that I talk as a writer; I am responsible for the work I do and at the same time I am a sweet person to deal with as I try not to act strictly businesslike but take into consideration all the aspects and make it easy for people I work for. I like people and am a pleasant companion as I always have many ideas and look at things with optimism.

As I am a real person, a real translator, I am looking for real jobs for real money. Please, do not bother me with easy money spam.

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Everybody is following the collisions in the web. Two media: internet and publishing business are watching each other and waiting for any blunder from each other’s side to grasp the situation and act immediately. If there is an article missing in a magazine; there is an immediate campaign on internet to publish the notorious article in translation, so that the readers can still read it.

So you can see the words ‘Russian translation’ everywhere nowadays. Russia achieved the pick of its popularity; I mean there is a lot of interest in what happens in Russia. It arouses many questions. So I guess, that Russian translators, like myself, are facing a new era.

And another tendency.

As the world gets smaller, readers are turning toward foreign fiction to understand other viewpoints. Far from being just the province of small independent publishing houses, literature in translation has become a mainstream phenomenon, with books that inspire huge bidding wars and literary debates.

There are very talented works of today’s young Russian writers, who speak modern Russian life to the world. And their stories are not lost in translation. Smart translation.

It is nice to believe, that people’s interest in Russian modern literature is growing. So the question is: can a philosophical novel, exploring the question of whether good can exist without evil, like “The Master and Margarita” be translated in such a way that it reads smoothly and fluidly like a bestseller?

Can we talk about a new translation, when, each phrase used in it appeared easily accessible and had a good rhythm. The characters are readily distinguishable from one another.

And the last but not the least. The top 10 countries ranked by Common Sense Advisory’s report “Countries That Matter Most Online in 2009″: U.S., Japan, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Canada, Spain, China and Australia. The top 10 languages that provide the biggest bang for a business’ buck are: English, Japanese, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch, Simplified Chinese, Portuguese, Korean, Russian and Swedish.

Even in far New Zealand there is a growing interest in the Russian phenomenon. I happened to be one of the first readers of the science fiction novel where the author tries to penetrate the Russian psyche in order to understand the modern history of the western mankind. The translation of this talented book would become a highlight of my carrier as a translator.

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The Internet continues to make the distance between people in different countries shorter and shorter. People, regardless of where they come from, are constantly interacting with one another. As we all know, not everyone speaks the same language. The English language is spoken by less than a third of Internet total users, in other words, out of 1.596 million Internet users; only 463 million use this language online, (followed by 321 million that use Chinese online). Less than 10% of the world’s most populated regions speak English: Asia, Africa and Latin America.

As a translator I am a witness of  the beginning of a new era that encourages expansion and contact between people of different cultures and languages. To this moment cultures were isolated by geographical, ideological and linguistic distances.

According to the theory of the six degrees of separation, only six chains separate any of us from another person in the world.

Online people are joined by their common preferences, interests and objectives.This opens the way for people to know each other because they share preferences in spite of having no prior relations in the past.They can exchange information, that depending on their personal interests, may be about scientific investigation, humanitarian or human rights, friendship, studies, etc. My task as a translator is to make the exchange possible.

This opens the way to an unexplored multiplication of the human knowledge, since the information in general, shall be nurtured by different cultural views and ideologies.

An important point to bare in mind, is that the exchange in between cultures, languages and ideologies is created in the users own language. This aspect is of fundamental importance, since contrary to the usual concept of globalization, which implicates the loss of identity, the online exchange is based on a totally new perspective, where users can still express themselves in their own language.

As a translator I belong to those who believe in the importance of cultural exchange and that a better world is possible thanks to worldwide cooperation, tolerance and respect of differences.

My point here is as far as there are human translators any obstacle in communication between people of different cultures and backgrounds can be solved in the name of better understanding and cooperation. Today I translate love letters of those two who want to be happy together and tomorrow I start a big project: translating documents which will allow two companies work together in the same direction. For me both things are of the same value.

Living in the 21st century means to follow the tendencies of the time. As a translator I realize that I have to apply new attributes of translation to make it more accessible.

They say that readers today have developed a text message way of seeing, meaning that their eyes grasp one entire section of text as an image and then go on to the next. For this reason, the sections cannot be too long: ideally, no longer than would fit on the screen of a cell phone or in a single manga picture.

The secret of this new translation may be that an unusually large number of paragraph breaks added to the novel. Text message readers can read the novel by passing from paragraph to paragraph as if from one manga image to the next. They are no less intelligent than their grandparents, but they have a different organ of vision, or a different cable connecting their retinas to their brains.

Each phrase used in the book has to be easily accessible and have a good rhythm. The odors and dust of a foreign society are suppressed.

I can imagine a modern translation of Brothers Karamasov where images alternate artfully with the dialogue.

Perhaps this is part of a global process in which visual thinking is taking on a more central role. And as a translator I accept the new rules.

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“You got it wrong,” retorted Lavrov, who informed her that “peregruzka” meant overcharge, not reset.  Presumably there was an empty desk at the US State Department the next day.

In his 1963 speech in Germany, the American President John F Kennedy told the world: “Ich bin ein Berliner.” Debate exists to this day about the accuracy of the statement, but some language pedants still chuckle to themselves about the fact that Kennedy announced himself as a jelly doughnut and not as a citizen of Berlin (a “Berliner” being both a resident of the city and a doughnut).

President Carter also fluffed a remark in 1977 when, on a visit to Poland, he told the gathered crowd that he wanted to understand their “desires for the future”. The following day, there was good-humoured ridicule in the Polish press when it transpired that his translator had mistaken “desires” for “lusts”.

Earlier this year, America found itself the wrong-footed one when Mirek Topolánek, the former prime minister of Czechoslovakia, accused the US of funding economic stimulus packages by selling bombs. Turns out that Topolánek’s translator had mistranslated “bombs” and “bonds”.

Other countries have had their fair share of translation malfunctions, too. In 2003 Jacques Chirac, then president of France, landed himself in diplomatic hot water after telling several Eastern European countries to “shut up” about the impending Iraq war. (“These countries missed a good opportunity to shut up,” he was reported as saying.)

The French verb “se taire” had been interpreted as to “shut up” instead of the more tactful to “remain silent”.

But then think of the riches that translators have given to the world over the centuries. Myriad ancient texts and advances in science and arts would have been denied without their help. And reflect on the fact that the world may have between 5,000 and 10,000 languages (Wikipedia announces this rather vague number, so it must be true). Really, it’s little wonder that standards occasionally slip.

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