“How many languages do you speak?”
As my workload had eased off a bit at the end of August, I jumped at the chance to finally have a go at creating another video log (or vlog) and release it. It’s about 3 common misconceptions about what a translator is or what a translator does. You can find it on YouTube or watch it here on my blog.
The inspiration for this vlog came from a brief conversation which I overheard while checking into my accommodation ahead of the ITI Conference in Edinburgh a few months ago. Another translator, who was also checking in, mentioned her profession to the friendly receptionist, who then immediately asked: “How many languages?”
It’s a question I, too, am frequently asked whenever my job as a translator comes up in small talk. It’s a vlog-worthy topic in my opinion as people usually are surprised (or disappointed) to learn that I do NOT speak 5 or 10 languages.
A translator is not an interpreter
I’m a translator (not an interpreter), I work with two foreign languages, and I don’t have to speak much as part of my job. Translators work with the written word, whereas interpreters handle the spoken word.
