The Native Speaker's Touch

The science in localization is creating technically accurate translation, but the art in localization is creating a relevant translation of the message, rather than the words.

A native speaker of French will immediately recognize phrases that simply don't make sense to a French audience. Guided by TrueLanguage project managers, the native speaker will understand your message and the key points you want to share -- then they'll recreate a message in French that matches your intention perfectly.

Here's an example of automated translation that misses the mark:

A US Government agency wanted to translate a form into French.

The title of the form:  Meal Benefit Eligibility Form

French Automated Translation:  Formulaire d’éligibilité aux coupons de repas

Problems with the translation:

1. The literal French translation for "form" is "formulaire" -- this is really an application, which would be translated as "Demande"
2. The translation assumes that the benefits are paid in the form of coupons -- they are not
3. "Eligibilité" is an Anglicism -- a word borrowed from English and forced into another language. It carries no real meaning in the other language.

The correct translation would be: Demande d'aide alimentaire

  See what happens with a translation for Spanish and for German.