Translationparty.com

Here is fun activity when you have a few minutes to laugh.  Go to translationparty.com and type in an English idiom.  Then watch it get translated into another language and back to English.  See how funny the phrase becomes when a machine does the translation.   One phrase to try is; Go forward, don’t look back and embrace life.  After you are done laughing, you will understand why Rapport International only uses the top translators to handle all their projects.  Machines ..read more

Chinglish

Here is an excerpt from an article about a new Broadway show:

The comedy, is about the hilarity and politics that ensue when a U.S. businessman tries to secure a lucrative contract in China for his family’s sign-making firm. The lead producers of “Chinglish,” Jeffrey Richards and Jerry Frankel, are bringing the play to Broadway after a sold-out run at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago.

“In its own way, I would call it a groundbreaking comedy,” Richards said in an interview. “There’s ..read more

Pepsi Slogan

In Taiwan, the translation of the Pepsi slogan “Come alive with the Pepsi Generation” came out as “Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead.”

Body Bags

Almost as good as the confusion among English speakers over the term Fanny Pack, is the humor raised by the German equivalent for knapsack. Companies often use or “borrow” words from other languages to give their product names a certain cachet. Sometimes their choices are a bit odd. German makers of knapsacks refer to them as “Body Bags“.

Funny Translations

In Italy, a campaign for Schweppes Tonic Water translated the name into Schweppes Toilet Water.

Global Proverbs and Idioms

 Here the donkey falls

- German idiom meaning this is the important part

To count stars

-Russian for twiddling your thumbs

To lose the stirrup

-Italian, Spanish for losing your temper

Become famous, then go to sleep.

- South American proverb

Do you have a “yen” for something . . .

When you really want something, it can be said you have a “yen” for it. But the phrase doesn’t actually refer to Japanese currency—it refers to Chinese opium, which was available in Britain and America in the late 1800s. The phrase comes from the Chinese word yan, which can be translated to craving.

Raucous partygoers

A raucous partygoer can be described as going wild or running amok, an expression that derives from the Malaysian word amoq, which, when literally translated, describes the behavior of tribesmen who, under the influence of opium, became wild, rampaging mobs that attacked anybody in their path. The phrase became popular in England during the 17th century, when travelers would try to impress people with their knowledge of foreign cultures.

Found in Translation

Meraki (may-RAH-kee) adj. Modern Greek: To do something with soul, creativity, or love; to put yourself into what you are doing.

Bad Translations

Cultural ignorance and bad translations can have catastrophic consequences. By working with Rapport International, you can save your company embarrassing mistakes. Read about these marketing and translation missteps that were costly. A cookbook intended for sale in the Middle East lists one of the ingredients for a recipe as cranberries. The problem is that cranberries are only found in North America. There is also the clothing packaging designed around the color which represents prostitution ..read more

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