When Subtitling Goes Wrong

Subtitling is another area of the translation profession that is very publicly humiliated when done badly. I know that subtitles are sometimes machine translated, but, really? Can't someone proofread them? On the other hand, there is a lot of enjoyment to be gleaned from fabulous screen shots with poorly translated captions, so read them and (try not to) weep.

I don't know if I could have phrased it any more descriptively...

In the form of APARTMENTS?! No! What an entrepreneurial bastard!

Hmmm...wonder why the translator didn't just translate that word, then?

No comment...

Touch Woody

I have heard this story in countless language classes and professional lectures, and I am sure you have, too: Chevrolet made a major marketing and translation misstep when they released the Nova in Latin America because of the irony of naming a vehicle "no va" or "doesn't run/go." The veracity of this popular and humorous story has been often called in to question, and Gerald Erichsen's argument on About.com that it is just a tall tale is very convincing. Aside from the nitty gritty of fact verification, though, the point behind the story is painfully important. So, I like to think of the Nova story as more of a fable for language translators, except instead of a tortoise and a hare and the moral of "slow and steady wins the race," we have a car and a corporation and the moral "you can't freaking be careful enough with language that is translated or used in different cultural and linguistic settings!" On that note, for your reading pleasure, please enjoy the collection of translation fables that follow and message me if you have one to add!

• 
  
•  You know about IKEA'S popular and inexpensive furniture with very Swedish names that are often a challenge for English speakers, right? How do you feel about buying the FARTFULL work bench (it even has space under the seat!)
• (Copied from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2000/10/06/60minutes/main239219.shtml) 60 Minutes' Mike Wallace, known for his tough interviewing style, drew a sharp rebut from Boris Yeltsin - thanks to a translator's error. The confusion arose when Wallace asked Yeltsin if he had a "thin skin" when it came to public criticism, but the translation had Wallace describing Yeltsin as a "thick-skinned hippopotamus." Yeltsin was not amused."An experienced journalist like yourself," Yeltsin said, "should express himself in a more civilized fashion. But this may be the translator's fault, and if so, he is the hippopotamus!" (Note from Alayne: Actually, it sounds like this was an interpreter's mistake, not a translator's mistake.)
•  A Swedish company named Locum sent out some cards a number of years back. To be cute, they replaced the "o" in their name with a heart.Think about it.Yeah, oooops!
• Are you in the market for a body bag? Hopefully not in the USA. But if you were in Germany you might look for one since that is what some Germans refer to a one-strapped backpack as!
• Also in Germany, the word "mist" means manure. How do you think the products "Mist Stick" (a hair product) and "Irish Mist" (a beverage) went over in that market?!
• I saved the best for last. Have you heard the one about Panasonic's touchscreen product launches? They secured the star Woody Woodpecker for their campaign and their slogan was: "Touch Woody - The Internet Pecker." WOW!
  

Value Isn't Real

     Value is how much someone will pay for something, but it is constantly changing. If a simple plastic bottle of water is worth $0.89 in a bulk package at Albertsons, $1.29 at a gas station down the road, $4.00 at the movie theater, $5.00 at Disneyland, $12.00 at the top of Machu Picchu, and nothing at all if it is lying on the sidewalk, what is the true value of that bottle of water? The truth is that it has no value because value isn't real. What is real is our desire for the product or service in question. Do I want it badly enough to buy it here and now or can I wait?

     This picture got me thinking about cross-cultural value. At first it's just funny to see the two different prices on the same sign for the exact same product the only difference being the languages in which the product is marketed. When you think again, though, monetary value is extremely subjective. What we spend our money on and what things and services we covet are very culturally-specific. Whether you would spend your extra money on some new rims, a gift for someone, an outing for the family, some food, or a manicure, and how much you would spend on these items...these are decisions that are positively dripping with cultural background.

      So, I understand this sign a bit better from the cultural perspective. But I am definitely going to speak Spanish when I go shopping there!

    

Tootle Him With Vigor

Badly translated materials. They abound. And, of course, grammatical and lexical errors are hardly limited to translators; just the other day at a gas station I paid by debit card at the pump and there was a sign posted that I should push the green button if I wanted to "except" the transaction. Sigh. Well, let's just enjoy them, then, shall we? Here's a list of some infamous and hilarious translations.I hope you tootle with vigor today!

 The Dairy Association's huge success with the campaign "Got Milk?" prompted them to expand advertising to Mexico. It was soon brought to their attention that the Spanish translation read "Are you lactating?"

      In a Zurich hotel: Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggested that the lobby be used for this purpose.

      In an East African newspaper: A new swimming pool is rapidly taking shape since the contractors have thrown in the bulk of their workers.

     In a Czechoslovakian tourist agency: Take one of our horse-driven city tours -- we guarantee no miscarriages.

     In a Paris hotel elevator: Please leave your values at the front desk."

     Coors put its slogan, "Turn It Loose," into Spanish, where it was read as "Suffer From Diarrhea."

       

     Scandinavian vacuum manufacturer Electrolux used the following in an American campaign: "Nothing sucks like an Electrolux."

     In a Tokyo bar: "Special today for the ladies with nuts."

    

     In a Rhodes tailor shop: "Order your summers suit. Because is big rush we will execute customers in strict rotation."

       Puffs tissues tried to introduce its product in German only to learn that "Puff" in German is a colloquial term for a whorehouse.

     Advertisement for donkey rides in Thailand: "Would you like to ride your own ass?"

     In a Rome laundry: "Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time."

     A hotel notice in Madrid: If You Wish Disinfection Enacted In Your Presence, Please Cry Out For The Chambermaid

      An American T-shirt maker in Miami printed shirts for the Spanish market which promoted the Pope's visit. Instead of "I saw the Pope" (el Papa), the shirts read "I Saw the Potato" (la papa).

       Pepsi's "Come Alive With the Pepsi Generation" translated into Pepsi Brings Your Ancestors Back From the Grave" in Chinese.

      The Coca-Cola name in China was first read as "Kekoukela", meaning "Bite the wax tadpole" or "female horse stuffed with wax", depending on the dialect. Coke then researched 40,000 characters to find a phonetic equivalent "kokou kole", translating into "happiness in the mouth."

      When Parker Pen marketed a ball-point pen in Mexico, its ads were supposed to have read, "It won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you." The company thought that the word "embarazar" (to impregnate) meant to embarrass, so the ad read: "It won't leak in your pocket and make you pregnant!"

     In an advertisement by a Hong Kong dentist: Teeth extracted by the latest Methodists.

      The American slogan for Salem cigarettes, "Salem-Feeling Free", was translated into the Japanese market as "When smoking Salem, you will feel so refreshed that your mind seems to be free and empty".

      Ford had a problem in Brazil when the Pinto flopped. The company discovered that the word Pinto was Brazilian slang for "tiny male genitals".

      When Kentucky Fried Chicken entered the Chinese market, they discovered that their slogan "finger lickin' good" was translated as "eat your fingers off".

      Frank Perdue was no better off. This chicken magnate's slogan: "It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken" was rendered in Spanish as "It takes a hard man to make a chicken aroused."

     In a Budapest zoo: Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty.

     In the office of a Roman doctor: Specialist in women and other diseases.

     In an Acapulco hotel: The manager has personally passed all the water served here.

      When American Airlines wanted to advertise its new leather first class seats in the Mexican market, it translated its "Fly In Leather" campaign literally, which meant "Fly Naked" (vuela en cuero) in Spanish.

      From a brochure of a car rental firm in Tokyo: When passenger of foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage then tootle him with vigor.

     Two signs from a Moroccan shop entrance:  - English well speaking   /  - Here speeching American.

     Tokyo hotel's rules: Guests are requested not to smoke and do other disgusting behaviors in bed.

     In the window of a Swedish furrier: Fur Coats Made For Ladies From Their Own Skin.

     Sign in a German hospital: No Children Allowed In The Maternity Wards.

       The sign at the concierge's desk in an Athen's hotel:" If You Consider Our Help Impolite, You Should See The Manager.

     A notice in a Vienna hotel: In Case Of Fire Do Your Utmost To Alarm The Hall Porter.

     Detour sign in Kyushi, Japan: Stop: Drive sideways.

2012 Translation Resolution

Happy 2012! What are your resolutions for this year? My main personal resolution is to remember to slow down and enjoy my life at least once every day. That means that even in the midst of my busiest days, I have to stop at some point, even if it is just for five or ten minutes, to smile, be grateful, and BE HAPPY. It is working so far. Professionally, I want to spread the word about my services in a much bigger way, using this blog, social media, and my Elance page (if you haven't visited Elance, check out my Elance widget to the right). I just read an article today in which the author commented that as good as a translation is, it always varies from translator to translator and never says exactly what the original text says.I understand the author's point;the very word "translation" implies variance from the original. Yet, is that a negative frustrating thing? The author seems to think so. I, however, disagree. A translator's work is to understand the source text completely and convey it in a new way, in a new language, for a new audience. An exact copy of what is being said wouldn't be desirable in that it would probably not resonate in the same way with the new audience as it did with the original audience. Therefore, a translator must take some license to make choices that convey the original message as accurately as possible FOR THE NEW AUDIENCE and in the new language. What do you think?

The Art of Translation

Translating is a unique art form in that it does not require the formation of original materials, as writing or painting do; however, it is possible that for the same reason the process of translating is an even more delicate type of creation. Not only must the translator be intently focused on capturing the meaning and spirit of the original text, as well as any messages that the author may have conveyed indirectly, but he or she must then imbue this faithful rendition of the original with a new spirit which makes it accessible to a completely different culture and a reader with a very different perspective, background, and thought processes.

Bea Basso, an Italian/English translator who was interviewed by NPR several years ago, commented on the process of vocabulary use in a way that gives it a sort of choose-your-own-adventure mystique: "There is no such thing as a literal translation, by nature of choosing one word or another, you influence the next step." While this is true, a finished translation involves much more than changing words, phrases, sentences and paragraphs from one language to another. Tone, context, punctuation rules and standards, norms for abbreviation usage, target audience, customs, traditions and so much more all become integral aspects of a phenomenal translation. Basso noted this as well: "All of a sudden I was a translator of gestures, traditions, customs, ways of behaving even — how many kisses do you give to people when you enter a room."

Read NPR's interview here.