An onomatopoeia (according to Webster’s definition) is “the naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it.” These are used linguistically to describe sounds (boom, bang, click) and can even serve to express a thing or idea visually instead of aurally, like “zig-zag” or a “tick.”

Onomatopoeias are often used to describe the sounds animals make. And every language has its own way to express these sounds. Some are very similar in English and Spanish, like the sound a duck makes: “cuac” (Spanish) and “quack” (English), and the sound a cat makes: “miau” (Spanish), “meow” (English). Others however, are quite different. Spanish-speaking dogs say “guau,” while English-speaking canines say “woof.” A rooster in Ecuador crows “kikiriki” and birds sing “pi-pi” or “pío-pío,” but an Australian rooster says “cock-a-doodle-doo” and birds say “tweet.”

Other sounds expressed through an onomatopoeia also vary, such as the “beep” or “pip” of an answering machine and the “toc-toc” or “knock-knock” at the door. An interesting aspect of this (and something quite complicated when translating from English into Spanish) is that a lot of onomatopoeic words in English are used not just to represent a sound, but are verbs express the production of that sound and/or noun. In Spanish for example, one would say “cerró la puerta de un portazo/ dio un portazo,” but it’s English translation is simply “slam the door (shut),”using “slam,” an onomatopoeia for “portazo” as a verb. Another example can be seen when someone is at the door. English uses the verb “knock,” while a verb form of “toc toc” doesn’t exist in Spanish. In English, a clock “ticks,” while in Spanish one would say that the clock “hace tic tac o marca el paso del tiempo). Some examples of these onomatopoeia verbs are: “clink,” “swish,” “swoosh,” “splash,” “pop,” “honk,” “roar,” “yawn,” etc.

This Wikipedia page has a list of useful onomatopoeic sounds for animals, along with the Spanish verb to describe them (a sheep “bala,” coyotes “aúllan,” etc.

Onomatopoeias are also often seen in comic books, especially these verb forms, splashed across the screen in the famous fight screens of the sixties.

The idea of machine translation was introduced to the general public on the 7th of January, 1954. The project was a collaboration between the University of Georgetown and IBM, who provided a model 701 to serve as the “brain” for the translation. The machine was fed over 60 relatively simple sentences in Russian and provided a fairly accurate English translation. Keep in mind that this experiment took place at a  time  when computers were just being introduced to the world and were frequently called “robots” or “giant brains,” so the results were astounding and in some circles, frightening.

Here is an example of one of the more general translations:

Russian: “Mi pyeryedayem mislyi posryedstvom ryechyi”

English: “We transmit thoughts by means of speech”

So why did the scientists and linguists choose Russian into English? Perhaps this next example will make things a little clearer.

Russian:  “Dyinamyit pryigotovlyayetsya xyimyicheskyim protsyessom yiz
nyitroglyitsyeryina s pryimyesjyu yinyertnix soyedyinyenyiy”

English: “Dynamite is prepared by chemical process from nitroglycerine with admixture of inert
compounds”

Cold War, here we come.

The act of translating can be a very gratifying experience…or a pain in the neck.

Talking about the satisfying side is easy (and rather boring), and because the enjoyment is personal and distinctive for each one of us, it doesn’t do us much good in regards to learning or improving our skills.  The problems we face while translating however, if we were to share them, discuss them with colleagues and try to solve them, could help us grow in our profession.

What are some common problems that we face as translators? We have gone to great lengths to master the twists and turns of our own language, its rules and idiosyncrasies. Not to mention a new language, one that we grasp almost as our own, that we know so much about, but always with so much more to learn.  And we have a specialty, or a topic we prefer, or one that comes easily to us. But we also have the thousands of topics that we know nearly nothing about, that are hard for us to figure out, and that the mere thought of having to translate frightens us.  Even in best case scenarios, no translation is “ideal.” We have all had experiences with the client who doesn’t understand what we do, the time and the effort that we put into it. Not everyone understands that we are not machines that you enter words into and then a little while later the translation pops out automatically.

And the texts we work with? How does one deal with “clippings” with no context that give no clues as to the appropriate meaning/verb tense/pronoun? How many times would we give “our kingdom for a glossary” that wasn’t provided?  There is also the client that asks for explanations once the work is finished, or even returns the work “corrected.” And of course we have the small day to day decisions: “This sentence is correct, but… who is the translation for?” Things like not using the formal “usted” for elementary students, and tailoring our translations to a specific audience, be it Latinos in the US or Argentineans in Buenos Aires, or on the other side of the coin, British English versus American English. And if there are two choices for the same term (baúl/maletero or trunk/boot) we must select the proper “flavor” for our intended audience.

Although records of translations date back more than two thousand years, the Information Age has sparked quite a boom in the need for translation. The world has become more interconnected through international commerce, improved communications, and of course, the World Wide Web. This is especially true for Spanish and English, as things like NAFTA, the record numbers of Spanish-speaking immigrants in the U.S., and the loosening of trade restrictions has made increased communication between English and Spanish speaking countries essential. One can reach almost the entire world if they use the right channels, and the implications of this are enormous for both the Spanish and English speaking communities.

From a business perspective, the ramifications of this are unparalleled. The number of potential customers can jump exponentially overnight, and corporations have known this for years. Now we are seeing it trickle down to mid-size and even local companies, who use translations and a little cultural awareness to reach a new audience. With more than 300 million Spanish speakers in the world, companies are opening their doors to new potential customers by marketing directly to the Hispanic consumers. And with English as the world’s current lingua franca, Spanish speaking countries are doing likewise by translating into English.

In this blog, we are going to be talking about Spanish into English and English into Spanish translations. I hope to keep the topics varied enough so that everyone can learn a little about this specific style of translation, how it’s done, and why it’s important. Our goal is to provide information for everyone: an author looking to translate his or her work for the first time, a professional translator who wants to learn a little more about their trade, essentially anyone interested in Spanish-English translation.