Translators & Bilingualism
While many translators are bilingual, most bilinguals are not translators. Translation takes a specific skill set as well as professional training and practice. Bilingualism is fascinating and admirable, but does not necessarily a translator make. For further discussion of this idea, see a review of the book Bilingual: Life and Reality by Francois Grosjean. Grosjean dispels the myth that bilinguals are born translators. For example, a bilingual may not know the vocabulary used for a particular subject in both languages.
In Raising Bilingual-Biliterate Children in Monolingual Cultures author Stephen Caldas emphasizes the same idea when he discusses how he and his bilingual son can discuss certain subjects such as computers only in English, and not in their second language, French, since they lack the correct vocabulary to do so.
Make sure the translator working on your project is a professional who knows how to properly craft your text and guide you as you reach out to international customers.
Related post:
Profile of a Professional Translator
Tags: Bilingualism, Books, Professionalism, Translation
