Shortlist Revealed for Translated Literature Prize

Apr 18, 2010
The shortlist has been announced for a fiction award that aims to recognize both novelists and translators. The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize is open to contemporary literary works that have been translated into English from any other language and published in the UK within the past year. The winning …        » read more

Language Barrier a Possible Factor in Fatal Polish Plane Crash

Apr 18, 2010
Language problems may have been to blame for the plane crash that killed the President of Poland. The Polish Air Force plane went down near Smolensk, in Russia, on April 10^th. President Lech Kaczyñski, his wife and several other top …        » read more

Pioneer in Literary Translation Dies at 85

Apr 18, 2010
A British translator who introduced French literature to the English-speaking world and had a lengthy affair with Samuel Beckett has died at the age of 85. Barbara Bray translated works by many of the great French writers of the twentieth century, including Marguerite Duras and Jean-Paul Sartre. As a script editor at …        » read more

German Legislators Debate Merits of Allowing Hearings in English

Apr 11, 2010
Two German states have drafted a bill to adopt English as the official second language of Germany's court system. North Rhine-Westphalia and Hamburg are proposing that special chambers be provided for hearings in English, where both …        » read more

Researchers Say Mistranslation Is a Problem for Pharmacy Customers

Apr 11, 2010
Many pharmacists are providing poorly translated information that could seriously harm their customers, a study has found. In a survey of pharmacies catering to Spanish-speaking customers in the Bronx, New York, half of the …        » read more

Doctors Must Be Able to Speak English, Say British MPs

Apr 11, 2010
Members of Parliament in the UK are calling for stringent regulation of foreign doctors, following the death of a patient due to his doctor's inability to speak English. Dr Daniel Ubani accidentally killed David Gray, 70, by giving him an overdose of painkillers. It was Dr Ubani's first shift as a General Practitioner (GP) …        » read more

Is Google Now Translating Animal Talk?

Apr 04, 2010
Google last week announced a new cell phone application for pet lovers – Google Translate for Animals. Evidently buoyant from the success of its conventional auto-translation program, the company declared itself "excited" to unveil the new application, which promised "greater interaction and …        » read more

Vatican Blames Bad Press on Mistranslation

Apr 04, 2010
The Roman Catholic Church says that the latest accusations against Pope Benedict XVI are due to poor computer translation of a vital transcript. The Associated Press and the New York Times, among others, reported that the Pope had failed to discipline a priest from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who sexually …        » read more

Census Bureau Reaches out to Minorities

Apr 04, 2010
The US Census Bureau has ramped up efforts to communicate with ethnic minorities facing language barriers. To promote this year's Census, the Bureau published posters in over 20 different languages. It also launched Questionnaire Assistance Centers (QAC) for the first time, where non-English …        » read more