To write appealing German you need a good level of mastery in the language. As with every culture, it’s the small nuances of expertise that make a translated text stand out. That defines the quality of Lichi Translations in Israel when handling German translation.
Although there are a number of linguistic and cultural differences (Standard, Austrian, Swiss German) when undertaking English to German translation, they are easily manageable when you follow a good localization plan and use a professional translation agency like Lichi.
One of the considerations is selecting the right ‘tone of voice’. Do you want your German text to be chatty, informative, , convincing, respectful? ? The translator should be guided here so he or she can use the right constructions.
Another aspect is word length. German is well-known for being one of the longest languages, with a volume typically 35% greater than the corresponding English texts. If the texts are long, some editing may be required to make them fit a limited space.
In a German to English translation should you use ‘loan words’ like SchadenFreude, Hinterland, Zeitgeist and then italicize them, because they’re well know? Sometimes you’ll need to do some glossing i.e. help your readers with an explanation. Example: Deutsche Bahn, the German national railway operator.
Then, again, what about colloquial German phrases that don’t translate directly? If somebody says “Das Blaue vom Himmel versprechen”, you might think it means “Promise the blue of the sky”. It means “to over-promise”. Here’s another one: “Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof!” Forget about any ‘train station’. It means “I didn’t understand any of that!”. Here’s ‘transcreation’ at work!
These kind of expressions bring color and liveliness to a German text.
Ach – so is this object special? “Nein, das ist nullachtfünfzehn” (08/15). Translation: “No, it’s nothing special!” Why the numbers? This was a type of German WWI machine gun that became outdated by WWII. So it became the slang for ‘nothing special’.
But German translation at Lichi Translations in Israel IS something special. Try it out.
Lichi translation agency in Israel has unique skills in German translation and interpretation. We serve a wide range of businesses and undertake translation projects of every kind.
