Below is our first guest blog of 2012 from Saira Akhtar, a freelance writer and blogger (Saira’s blog can be accessed here: www.translationr.com). Saira discusses the growing importance of good Chinese translation as the country grows in economic and cultural strength and international influence:

China is not only known to have the largest population in the world but it is also finally being recognized as a leading frontier when it comes to its products. We can find the works of the Chinese people in almost every part of the world, and there is a growing need for a Chinese translation.

Translating one language to another has always been considered a hard job. It doesn’t matter if you are trying to interpret Chinese into English or vice versa. Chinese is regarded as one of the most difficult languages, when it comes to translation as the languages are based on very different systems.

If you are required to translate Chinese papers into English as part of your job there would be no time for you to learn Chinese first. This is the reason that there are a variety of facilitates obtainable on the sell today that can surely assist you in such scenarios.

But do we really need to go to the trouble to translate the Chinese language? You might find it unnecessary now, but this will change in time and the language barrier can really be a pain. It can be frustrating and a source of miscommunication. In this era where China is slowly influencing many aspects of western life, we should know a thing or two about their language. Here are some of the things that increasingly require translations from Chinese.

1.       Chinese movies – Nowadays, the Chinese movie industry is getting awards for its brilliance. People are interested on what the Chinese can offer for movie buffs. For example, Chinese movies like “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon” or “House of Flying Daggers” were popular around the world when these movies were released despite the language barrier. But thanks to subtitles in a wide range of languages being added a wider audience has been able to enjoy the film.

2.       Equipment made in China – China is known for its innovative craftsmanship and its products are consumed worldwide. The creativity is  superb, which is why people are using Chinese products. Chinese people are very loyal to their roots and most of them are not fluent in speaking or reading English so it is understandable that their inventions are written in Chinese. For this reason, some manufacturers translated some of the Chinese characters into English to accommodate the much larger market.

3.       Talking to a Chinese citizen – Due to the fact that Chinese people are everywhere, knowing a little something about their language can give you an upper hand . If you are in the field of business and you are engaging a deal with a Chinese person, it is better to know their language, rather than relying too much on any assigned interpreters. This might be the purpose of an interpreter, but if the client sees you as someone who will make an effort to bridge the language gap, this will definitely impress your client.

Learning a language like Mandarin or Cantonese does take a lot of time and dedication. But this should not discourage you – it is never bad to learn something new. You never know when you can use the knowledge that you get from learning Chinese.  Get to know more on Chinese translation.