So, you want to be a translator?

If you think about it, the world has covered with thousands of different cultures, races and tongues and at some point between each of those, discourse and communication between them was a needed factor, whether for commerce, war or other things. This meant that someone somewhere had to learn a language and culture different from their native one and utilize their skill to create a much needed bridge between people separated by the tower of Babel.

St. Jerome. It's all thanks to his translation that an
organized Christianity exists.

In the long history of civilization, knowledge of a second language has always been a powerful asset. Kings and nobles were always instructed to use this ability and were often taught multiple languages in order to personally establish diplomacy with other major officials. However, not every language could be learned and few kings busied themselves to personally write their decrees outside their kingdom's official language. This lead to a need for people to devote their full time to interpret and translate for others.


In ancient times, this job was very rewarding, but it was also a very long and arduous process. Back then, there were no peers to review your work or easily accessible dictionaries in case you forgot a word. No, back then, you were your own resource, and with the exception of a few other translators in your vicinity, you were the authority of an accurate translation. Because of so little means usable for translation, it would take months and years for projects. an example: The Latin Vulgate, a translation of the New testament from the original manuscripts to Latin, took the translator St. Jerome fifteen years! Yikes!

Nowadays, Translation as an industry has been significantly impacted by the advances of technology, especially the internet. The creation of the printing press and the world wide web are some of the most helpful tools for translators and interpreters around the globe. communication has become easy and cheap, and resources, tools, dictionaries are all able to be found at the click of a button. Interestingly, this has made some people online arrogant with their belief that the need for a professional translator is gone, and they can simply use Google translate for all of their foreign exchange needs. Woe unto them! For while the access to such power is freely open, there is still much that requires a trained mind and experienced knowledge of culture over the impaired usage of a computer program. With such a large population of the world interconnected, translation and localization is thriving and has never been more needed than now.

No, this doesn't exist. No matter how much easier this would

make my future career.

1. Byrne, Jody (2007) Translation and the Internet: Changing the Face of an Industry. Ian Kemble (ed.) (2007) Translation Technologies & Culture. Portsmouth: University of Portsmouth, pp.23-34

2. Biblia Sacra iuxta vulgatam versionem. Robert Weber, Roger Gryson (eds.) (5 ed.). Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft. 2007.