Thursday 21 October 2010

Linguists fight to defend Portuguese Language

In July we wrote an article about the new Orthographic Agreement for Portuguese Language. In that article we informed our valuable costumers and colleagues that a New Agreement for the Portuguese Language had been signed, however we didn't agree with the terms of this agreement and for that reason, and as professionals we would refuse to comply with it.

We also gave our reasons for this disagreement and explained why we believe the Governments of all Portuguese Speaking Countries should simply accept their language differences and discard such document.

This week we came in contact with a great article written by João Roque Dias, a translator who is also against this document and decided to enlighten people about various myths that the Governments have created about it. In his great article we can read all the lies the Portuguese people have been told to justify such loss of identity. We won't obviously be repeating his words as that would be plagiarism but Iwe will leave you the link so you can read it. We can only add to our colleague's words that it is a shame to use a language, something we consider a part of a country's identity and culture, as a political tool. 


There's also a Petition against the Orthographic Agreement. The Updated Words Team has already signed this document and we are now providing the link for all of our colleagues and clients who may also want to join us in this fight for our language and culture.

As we mentioned in our previous article we believe the language is a very important part of a country's identity and culture. Each country has its own development and therefore its language evolves in a very particular way. We believe the Governments of English speaking countries understood that and that's why we can have Australian English, American English and South African English without any prejudice to the British English. And even if we mention geographic areas (just as the Portuguese Governments did), we will find that Australia, the United States and South Africa are geographically bigger than England and even so each country respects each other's culture and language. As our dear colleague mentioned in his article the UN uses Oxford orthography in its documents and no one anywhere in the world creates a problem with it. Why should there be a problem for the Portuguese Language? We truly don't accept it and we are totally against this cultural assassination that this document represents for the Portuguese Language.

* This article was written by the Updated Words Team with permission from João Roque Dias

New Chemistry Translation Course by TRADULÍNGUAS

Tradulínguas announced its new Chemistry Translation Course. A very interesting course for all colleagues who deal with chemistry translation everyday or those who have passion for chemistry.

Its a 30 hour e-leaning course, where participants will learn the basics about chemical terminology as well as basic knowledge about chemical bounds, organic and inorganic compounds and a brief introduction to two of the most important industries in this area: pharmaceutical industry and oil industry.

The Course will start on the 24rd of January 2011 and it will finish on the 9th of February and it will be conducted by Professor Maria José Wyborn.

For more information about this Course consult TRADULÍNGUAS Official Brochure or visit TRADULÍNGUAS Official Website.

*This Article was written by Updated Words Team with permission from TRADULÍNGUAS.

New Legal Translation Course by TRADULÍNGUAS

Tradulínguas has launched its brand new Legal Translation Course. For all the colleagues involved with Legal Translation this could be the right option for "upgrade".

The course will start on the 31st January 2011 and it will finish on the 2nd March. It's a 50 hour e-learning course, where participants will have the opportunity of getting in contact with several practical aspects of Legal Translation at their own pace.  This course will be supported by video conference where the participants will have the opportunity to interact with other participants and lecturers.

The Course will be conducted by Dr. Ana Soares and Dr. Pedro Coral Costa. For more information about this Course visit TRADULÍNGUAS official Brochure or visit TRADULÍNGUAS official website.

* This article was written by the Updated Words Team with the permission from TRADULÍNGUAS.

Thursday 23 September 2010

Updated Words moves its news to a blog

We're always looking for new ways of improving our website and our services. We know that having a very good, reliable and functional page is very important to keep our clients interested and happy.

That's why we decided to move our News section to a blog. We believe a blog is a simpler and more functional way of bringing you the latest news about us and about the world of translation. This way we can also have your feedback, which is also very important to us.

We will keep the same format in our website, but now you will have a link to this blog instead of the former pdf format. We hope our clients find it a better way of browsing through our articles. 

So welcome to our blog and we will be waiting for your feedback.

UPDATED WORDS TEAM

Omega T - the new tutorial developed by TRADUlÍNGUAS

Omega T is a brand new CAT tool available in the market. Thinking about the dificulties presented by the usage of a brand new tool, TRADULÍNGUAS created this new tutorial that will help you get in contact with this CAT tool.

The tutorial is free and it is available at TRADULÍNGUAS website. All you have to do is register .

For more information visit TRADULÍNGUAS or Omega T.

UPDATED WORDS TEAM


*This article was writen by the UPDATED WORDS TEAM with permission from TRADULÍNGUAS







Printed version of Oxford Dictionary may be over by next year

Dictionaries are a very important part of any translator’s job. But they’re also a important part on everyone’s learning. 

Even if you are not a translator it is quite possible that you have a very good dictionary at home. A dictionary that helped you when you were growing and learning new words and still helps you sometimes, when you want to find a better word for that important letter or to help your kids with their homework.

Today is quite a sad day for all the dictionary lovers.  According to an article published in The Australian,  Oxford University Press is thinking about stop printing the very famous and useful Oxford Dictionary.

Apparently, a survey shows people prefer to look up the words in their online product rather than in the printed version. So they are now considering not to print the next edition of this great dictionary.

They also add in this article that the online version had seen a significant increase in the number of subscribers. The current online dictionary services costs $295(US) in the US, while the printed version costs S1,165(US). 

Would this be the end of a good library full of good dictionaries and other useful language tools? We truly hope not.
THE UPDATED WORDS TEAM 



* This article was written by THE UPDATED WORDS TEAM, having  “The Australian”  as a source of information.

Updated Words Joins Facebook

Facebook is a very important part of life these days. Everyone has a page on Facebook where they can contact friends, relatives and even businesses. It gives any business good exposure and it became a very important business tool.
The UPDATED WORDS TEAM is quite aware of this factor. That’s why we joined this Social Network. We can now find us on Facebook
It is another way of having a direct contact with our clients. We remember you that we also have our Forum where you can register and leave your comments, opinions, questions, etc.
So we invite you to visit us on our brand new Facebook Page. We are planning several daily activities that let our clients know a little bit more about our job and this wonderful world of linguistics.
We are waiting for you.
 UPDATED WORDS TEAM

New Medicine Workshop from TRADULÍNGUAS

TRADULÍNGUAS is launching a new workshop. For all colleagues who work with Medical Translation, this could be a great opportunity to learn new terms and improve your professional skills.

It will be a bilingual (Portuguese /English) workshop, focused on Cardiology and Vascular Surgery. The objective of the workshop is to create a better understanding about the cardiovascular system and tackle the main problems when translating on the different contexts.  To facilitate this contextualisation the attendants will be provided with general knowledge of anatomy, physiopathology, tests and pharmacotherapy.  

The Workshop with be on the 9th and 10th of September 2010 at the FCSH – Universidade Nova de Lisboa, in Lisbon, from 4pm to 7.30pm. 

For more information, please contact TRADULÍNGUAS.
THE UPDATED WORDS TEAM 


* This article was written by the UPDATED WORDS TEAM with permission from TRADULÍNGUAS

Legal Translation Course from TRADULÍNGUAS

TRADULÍNGUAS has launched another wonderful e-learning course.  For our colleagues who are interested in Legal Translation, this is the course for you.

This Course will focus on the major areas of Law, and it is aimed to give you a better understanding of the different types of legal language used in different situations.  Helping you acquire new legal vocabulary and improve your legal translation skills.

The course has the participation of Dr. Francisco Telhado. It will start on the 11th November 2010 and will finish on the 27th November. It’s a 30 hour Course. The languages involved in this course will be French and Portuguese.

For all the colleagues interested, you can enrol now at TRADULÍNGUAS official website: www.tradulinguas.com.

For more information about this course visit:

TRADULÍNGUAS also has a wonderful Newsletter that you can subscribe. 

The UPDATED WORDS TEAM will be pleased to inform you of any further workshops, courses or conferences organised by TRADULÍNGUAS.
UPDATES WORDS TEAM




* This Article was written by UPDATED WORDS TEAM with permission from TRADULÍNGUAS.

New Orthographic Agreement of the Portuguese Language

In 2008 the Portuguese Government and the Governments of all Portuguese speaking countries signed a New Orthographic Agreement for the Portuguese Language. According to them, this will unify the language creating a better understanding and a better tool in the fight against illiteracy.

But the measure has already caused some controversy and even a petition has been created, to pursue Governments to abandon the document. Among linguists, including our Team, there is a feeling of loss of identity. Like other languages in the world,  Portuguese is spoken in several countries around the world, from Africa to Brazil. Each one of these countries has its own History, its own culture and therefore developed its language in a different way from the mother language, Portuguese from  Portugal. Portugal itself didn’t stay stuck in time. The country evolved and so evolved its language. 

That’s why this document is causing such a stir in Portuguese speaking communities around the world, who believe their traditions and culture is being jeopardised by the document.

As professionals, we have to respect the rules and codes of each language we work with. We can’t be partial and we always have to obey the law. However, and also as professionals that we are, we can’t agree with this document and we won’t be complying with its rulings until a decision is made and we are officially forced to. Updated Words Team respects the culture of every country, and its right to have its own language. So for that reason we are against this document.

To learn more about the document, visit:

To sign the petition against the document visit:
UPDATED WORDS TEAM

The World of Literature looses a great name

On the 18th June 2010, the world of Literature lost one of its great names, José Saramago. The 87 year old Portuguese writer died at his home in Lanzarote, Spain. According to his editor, Zeferino Coelho in a article published on the Portuguese Newspaper “O Público”, Saramago died around 12.30pm (Lisbon time) in what he describes as a very peaceful way.

He was born on 16th November 1922, in a small village called Azinhaga, in the town of Golegã , Portugal. With only two Saramago moved to Lisbon where he grew up. Before being a great writer José Saramago had several jobs including translator. 

The nature of his work always been very controversial. With very strong views on subjects like religion, politics, etc, Saramago was loved by many and hated by some. But he never felt intimidated by his big enemies, instead he kept his very strong views and went on with his wonderful work.

In 1998, José Saramago was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. He was 76. He was the second Portuguese national to ever be awarded a Nobel Prize. The first was Professor Egas Moniz  who was awarded Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1949.

His amazing work comprises great books like: “Manual of painting and calligraphy”, “Baltasar and Blimunda”, “The stone raft”, and the polemic “The gospel according to Jesus Christ”.
The funeral was held in Lisbon. Thousands of mourners were present to say their last goodbye to this great writer of our times.
THE UPDATED WORDS TEAM
* This article was written by the Updated Words Team with information from Portuguese Newspaper “O Público” and Wikipedia.

New Updated Words Website

Our Team has a brand new website to our valuable costumers. With news colours, new features but the same excellent quality they trust and need.

After two years with the same layout, we decided it was time for a change. We needed to be more competitive and offer our clients a great experience while “walking through our home”. Keeping a simple but interesting layout was from the beginning one of our major goals. We know how important is having a simple and easy to browse space, where the client can easily find what he needs instead of getting frustrated with ours of search.

Apart from simple and very functional we also wanted our website to have a very professional and creative outlook, just as we are. We not only want to bring our clients our best services but we also want them to know a bit about ourselves, and of course about this great profession that is translation.

Here you can find lots of good information about linguistics. Even if you are not a professional it is always good to be updated on the latest changes. The new personal profile also gives you an insight of who we are and what we do. In the Forum you will be able to get a closer contact with us, you don’t have to be a professional to register, everyone is welcome to register and post their questions, opinions, doubts, whatever you want.

Finally we want to welcome you to our new space. We hope you like it and we will be waiting for your feedback.
THE UPDATED WORDS TEAM