Recent Posts

Name Game … it’s serious business

by Jo Stubbings, Herald-Sun, 1992 They look innocent enough. They’re small, modest, compact. People will always start smiling when they’re handed around, handshaking, telling stories, doing deals. Business cards really are the passport to success. But just try translating them. It can be murder. Like the blurb on a best seller, these neat little tags are built to summarise the vital statistics of their owners....
Read more

Non, nyet, nein! The translators are at it again

The recipe from an Arabic cookbook had a deadly serious ring “Fry onions till golden brown. Soak bread rolls in hot milk, then rest in peace for 30 minutes. This will not be the last time you prepare this dish.” It’s a translation of course. Humorous, witty, incisive. Exactly the type of translation you hope will never grace the inside cover of your company report...
Read more

Let’s start with numbers

They say that when you speak two or more languages fluently, the best way to test the language you’re most comfortable in is to try counting money. If you are bilingual, give it a go. No matter how good you are in your second language, chances are you’ll return to your native tongue....
Read more