The Observer selects Umberto Eco’s book on translation, Mouse or Rat? Translation as Negotiation, as the paperback of the week, though without making it sound like a fun read.

bq. He starts with what may seem a rather obvious conclusion – that Babelfish and its like are doomed to failure because translation requires the ability to understand a language as a cultural system, with nuances and contextual associations beyond the dictionary definitions. From this starting point he moves into far more complex territory; how, for example, do you even begin to go about translating poetry, where meaning is so often conveyed by a rhythm and musicality unique to the poet’s original language? How do you translate regional dialect, or the language of past ages – a problem Eco set for the various translators of his last novel, Baudolino?

There is a review by Arle Lommel at the LISA site. He finds the book worth its cover price, and that was the hardback. Apparently the translation is into British English. ‘Negotiation’ means compromise:

bq. In each case, a decision of which word to use is made that requires some information to be lost (size of the rodent, distinction from other similar rodents, etc.), while other information is preserved in the translation. It is in this sense that Eco uses negotiation: something must be lost for something else to be gained, and the basis for the negotiation is generally not within the text itself, but rather in factors external to the language of the text. Although in the Globalization, Internationalization, Localization and Translation (GILT) industry we are generally dealing with texts that try to control language, such issues are never entirely eliminated, and we frequently deal with materials, such as marketing collateral, where these issues are at the forefront. What might seem like theoretical pondering on Eco’s part can have real impact on how we conduct business.

The Guardian has already published a review of the book by Michael Hofmann , an interesting essay on translation in its own right (via Isabella).

You can order the JURAcon-Jahrbuch free online. I believe it’s intended for trainee lawyers – it contains descriptions of 40 law firms and other material of interest to translators. Thought is even given to those who want to order from outside Germany.

bq. Bestellen Sie jetzt innerhalb der Bundesrepublik Deutschland kostenfrei Ihr persönliches Exemplar des neuen JURAcon-Jahrbuchs!
Für Bestellungen außerhalb der Bundesrepublik Deutschland senden Sie uns bitte einen frankierten und adressierten Rückumschlag.
– jetzt 192 Seiten Karriereinformationen für Juristen
– karriererelevante Fachbeiträge Kennern des Rechtsmarkts
– 40 detaillierte Kanzleiportraits
– NEU: Praxisbeiträge namhafter Kanzleien
– 400 Kanzleistandorte im Registerteil

(Via Christian Säfkens, via jurabilis)

Bad news that Viktor Yushchenko was poisoned, but nice to hear the Austrian doctor. Some of the local colour got lost in translation, however.

Der Standard (Juschtschenko):

bq. “Wir schließen ab mit der Zusatzdiagnose ‘Verdacht auf Fremdverschulden'”, sagte Zimpfer weiter. Eine weitere Abklärung obliege den zuständigen Behörden. In Blut und Gewebe des Patienten habe man mindestens das Tausendfache der normalen Konzentration gefunden. “Das entspricht einer Dosierung im Milligramm-Bereich bzw. im unteren Gramm-Bereich und ist sehr leicht z.B. in eine Schlagoberssuppe zu verpacken.” Auf Grund der Schäden im Verdauungstrakt gehe man von einer Einnahme über den Mund aus. “Ob er das gegessen oder getrunken hat, ist nicht herauszuarbeiten und macht auch keinen Unterschied”, so Zimpfer weiter.

The Guardian:

bq. “We suspect involvement of an external party, but we cannot answer as to who cooked what or who was with him while he ate,” Zimpfer said, adding that tests showed the dioxin was taken orally.
Zimpfer said Yushchenko’s blood and tissue registered concentrations of dioxin 1,000 times above normal levels.
“It would be quite easy to administer this amount in a soup,” Zimpfer said.

BBC News:

bq. It is still not clear whether the poisoning was deliberate, though Dr Zimpfer said it was likely to have been caused by “a third party”.
The question of who was responsible was a matter for the judicial authorities, he said.
Dr Zimpfer said the substance was soluble and could have been administered in something like soup.

I seem to miss the Schlagoberssuppe. Schlagobers or Obers is Austrian for cream.

Try this:

Here are some sample pages.

Klaus Zwerger’s ‘Das Holz und seine Verbindungen’ compares wood joints in Japan and 18 European countries. It was translated by Philip Thrift as ‘Wood and Wood Joints‘. The hardback appeared in 1997 and there was a second print run and later paperback editions. Philip recommends it ‘For anybody who has had to cut the odd mitre or housing or some other woodworking joint’.

The subject came up on an internal ITI mailing list when the following context was given for the word Gratleiste:

‘Durch das Einarbeiten von Gratleisten wird ein Verziehen großer
Holzoberflächen eingeschränkt.’

The translator’s problem was that she knew what the thing was (a piece of flashing or a batten fitted into a furrow drilled across the grain of the wood, to stop the wood warping; only used in quality furniture) and had found several suggestions for it, but she did not know which, if any, of those suggestions was right.

The list suggested: burr, flash, hip rafter, arris fillet, tilting fillet (see sign language dictionary!), metal bracket, and purfling (around the edge of a violin), and for Gratleiste der Schwalbenschwanzgverbindung: dovetail key, wooden clamp.

Fortunately a list member whose husband is a furniture designer suggested fillet, and that the cut across the grain is called a housing rather than a groove; and Philip Thrift made a suggestion at the same time: fortunately these experts agreed with each other.

(Posted as an example of a translator’s daily queries)

When the attorney Becky Klemt Macmillan in Laramie, Wyoming wrote to fellow-attorney Stephen G. Corris in Irvine, California asking him to enforce a judgment, she was not expecting the reply she received:

bq. Without sounding pretentious, my current retainer for cases is a flat $100,000, with an additional charge of $1,000 per hour. Since I specialize in international trade and geopolitical relations between the Middle East and Europe, my clientele is very unique and limited, and I am afraid I am unable to accept other work at this time.

Ms Klemt need not have spent time on a reply, but her letter is described as the most-photocopied lawyer’s letter in the USA. An excerpt:

bq. Steve, I’ve got news—you can’t say you charge a $100,000.00 retainer fee and an additional $1,000.00 an hour without sounding pretentious. It just can’t be done. Especially when you’re writing to someone in Laramie, Wyoming where you’re considered pretentious if you wear socks to Court or drive anything fancier than a Ford Bronco. Hell, Steve, all the lawyers in Laramie, put together, don’t charge $1,000.00 an hour. …

bq. Another thing you should know, Steve, is that the firm has an extensive foreign language background, which I believe would be useful to you. Hoke took Latin in high school, although he hasn’t used it much inasmuch as he did not become a pharmacist or a priest. Vonnie Nagel took high school German, while Paul has eaten in Italian restaurants. I, myself, majored in French in college, until I realized that probably wasn’t the smartest career move in the world. I’ve forgotten such words as “international” and “geopolitical” (which I’m not too familiar with in English), but I can still hail a taxi or find a restroom, which might come in handy.

bq. Steve, let us know when we should join you in California so that we can begin doing whatever it is you do.

Read the rest here. The Laramie firm is Pence & MacMillan. Steve Corris’s real hourly rate was apparently $500. And the judgment has still not been enforced. Via Bag & Baggage, here and here.

According to the Independent, a bill is being introduced in Britain to put an end to the male primogeniture system. This would affect Prince William’s children, it’s said. Also note the past examples given at the end of the article.

bq. Almost 30 years after the passage of the Sex Discrimination Act, aimed to ensure equality between the sexes, an attempt is to be made to end the system of male primogeniture. Lord Dubs, a Labour peer and former minister, will today publish a Succession to the Crown Bill, which would also abolish the bar on the monarch or an heir to the throne marrying a Catholic and scrap the 1772 Royal Marriages Act, which requires the heir to get the monarch’s permission before marrying.