Translated from Spanish by: Julia Egea Ribera
As the world is more and more interconnected due to globalisation, translation becomes a more latent necessity day by day. The number and variety of texts and products that need to be translated across different industries grows with the increase of relations between countries and different cultures.
Just like in other disciplines, that wide variety of text types and their differences make it necessary for translators to specialise. In this article we will look at the main types/specialisations of translation — although the line between them is not completely defined.
Scientific and technical translation
Scientific and technical translation is a very broad category that covers specialised texts from different sciences, such as physics, mathematics or aeronautical engineering; as well as the technical documents that complement many products.
Scientific and technical texts are those produced within the framework of an established discipline, usually written by and addressed to specialists, often following rigid structures, written in a formal tone and using specialised language and terminology of the field in question.
For example, a research article published in an international journal would be a purely scientific text, whereas a instruction manual for a machine would be considered a technical text.
Due to the specialised nature of scientific and technical translation, a high-precision approach and meticulous attention to detail is required. Translators must hence ensure that specialised terms are translated accurately and consistently, leaving no room for ambiguity or misunderstanding.
Legal, court and sworn translation
Contracts, laws, sentences and other legal texts fall into another of the more traditional translation specialities: legal translation.
Although many people use the adjectives ‘legal’, ‘judicial’, ‘sworn’, ‘official’ or ‘certified’ as synonyms, these do not in fact refer to the same thing. Roughly speaking, legal translation encompasses judicial and sworn translation, as it covers the translation of all (mainly) legal texts. Sworn translation requires the signature and stamp of a sworn translator and is considered official before any State body, and judicial or court translation refers to the rest of texts that are involved in legal proceedings.
To translate this type of text, not only do you need to have a good command of both languages, but you also need to know very well how the legal system of each country works. Legal translators are familiar with the terminology. However, they are also often confronted with legal concepts or figures that have no equivalent in the target culture and they have to resolve it in the best possible way.
Medical translation
Medical translation or translation of texts related to the health sciences would be included within scientific and technical translation, but as a sufficiently broad speciality with a lot of weight in the industry nowadays, it is worth mentioning separately.
This type of translation deals with the accurate and coherent transfer of medical and health-related documents, ranging from medical reports, clinical studies or patient records to educational material for health professionals.
Literary or editorial translation
The translation of novels, magazines and other published documents is known as literary or editorial translation. This speciality covers all types of narrative texts, poetry, plays and essays.
The main characteristic of this type of translation is that it deals with texts that tend to last much longer (as opposed to other more ephemeral texts such as websites or technical manuals that are updated over the years) in which it is not only important to transfer the content correctly but also to respect the formal aspects and the specific style of each author.
Literary translation requires an exquisite command of the language and a great deal of creativity to be able to convincingly translate puns, possible neologisms, specific choices of terms or the authors’ singularities.
The special case of comics or graphic novels is worth mentioning at this point, as this is a type of text that is included both in editorial translation, insofar as it is published, and in audiovisual translation, since the text is conditioned by the pictures.
Audiovisual translation
Another speciality in which translators have to make considerable use of their creativity and combine different registers and informal language is the translation of films, series and all kinds of videos, i.e., audiovisual translation.
The subtitles for Netflix and HBO series and the scripts for the dubbing of films and for the voice-overs of reality shows come from the hands of audiovisual translators, who are specialists in conveying the ideas of the characters and their personalities, taking into account the restrictions of each format.
Within audiovisual translation, we could also talk about web localisation or website translation, which is another type of text that straddles two specialities: audiovisual and advertising translation. Websites usually contain both text and images that complement each other, and often use persuasive language and memorable phrases or slogans.
Advertising, marketing or commercial translation
Advertising translation aims to creatively and persuasively deliver the message of a marketing campaign in different cultures. Slogans, puns and concepts must be carefully adapted to achieve the same impact in the target language. Successful marketing translation can make the difference between an effective campaign and one that goes unnoticed.
This type of translation often includes market and keyword research among the target audience, as the focus is much more on the purpose for which the text is written than on the content or form of the text.
And there is more…
We could go on and on talking about other types of translation depending on the subject matter of the texts, such as gastronomic translation, which includes the translation of menus and cookery books; even winemaking translation within this one; economic translation, which includes news and financial texts… and so on and so forth. However, you have to stop at some point. If you are interested in any of the specialities we have mentioned or have any questions about other types of translation, do not hesitate to leave us a comment!
At Lingua we understand the value of effective and clear communication between different languages and cultures. That is why we offer specialised translation services to meet all your language needs. To overcome those language barriers so that you can communicate without borders.
If you have a project in mind, don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll be more than happy to help you.
