Translation Events – August 2015

Posted On July 31, 2015By TranspanishIn Tips for Translators/ 

translation conference

2-7

Summer Interpreting and Translation Research Institute
Gallaudet University, University of Maryland, Washington, D.C. USA

3-Sept 21

Localization Project Management Certification. The Localization Institute. Online, Santa Clara, California USA

7-9

Website Translation and Localization Course. Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey online/ Monterey, California USA.

11-14

Computer-Assisted Translation Course. Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. Monterey, California USA.

12

Using Metrics to Master the Art & Science of Translation Management. The Content Wrangler, Kinetic the Technology Agency
online

Perfecting Your Web Content Localization Strategy to Reach Foreign Audiences. Ingeniux Corporation, Venga Global online

22

Seminario regional de ProZ.com en CABA, Argentina

25

Localizing Digital Marketing Round Table. Rockant Localization Training & Consulting, The Localization Institute. Washington, D.C. USA.

31-Sept 1

Integrating Multimodality in the Study of Dialogue Interpreting
Institute of Advanced Studies, University of Surrey
Surrey, UK

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New Spanish Certification Test Created

Posted On July 28, 2015By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators/ 

Students of most major foreign languages can demonstrate their skill level via a variety of internationally-recognized tests, including the TOEFL and IELTS for English, the DALF for French and the Goethe-Zertifikat for German.

 

Spanish Certification

 

Until just a couple of months ago, however, Spanish had no international exam for certifying proficiency.

This unfortunate situation has now been remedied with the creation of the SIELE (Servicio Internacional de Evaluación de la Lengua Española) exam, developed jointly by Spain’s Cervantes Institute and the prestigious National Autonomous University of Mexico and University of Salamanca, the two largest and oldest centers of higher learning in the Spanish-speaking world, respectively.

Presented by Spain’s King Felipe – who said “We were missing a flexible, highly respected certificate of proficiency in Spanish as a foreign language along the lines of those offered for the English language” in his speech delivered in Mexico City this past July 2 – this new exam has a pan-Hispanic approach, specifically including Spanish’s different linguistic varieties and different geographic variations. It is hoped that this will allow it to become a globally recognized language certificate.

The SIELE will be available at the start of the next academic year in three countries: Brazil, with 120 test centers, the U.S. with 100 test centers, and China, with 61. The forecasts are for some 300,000 candidates the first year alone, with that figure predicted to rise to 750,000 within the first five years. The cost for all four parts of the exam is expected to be about $100, though this may vary from country to country.

Thoroughly modern, this exam – which tests the four core communication skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening – will be taken on-line and can be administered practically anywhere in the world. Not a level-based pass/fail exam, the SIELE is an adaptable placement test that picks the exercises test-takers complete based on their previous responses, returning a proficiency score ranging from 0 to 1,000. Candidates may choose to take any or all of the sections.

The reading and listening portions will be evaluated immediately, while the writing and speaking tests (this latter is recorded in case the grade is contested) will be evaluated by qualified experts using grading scales and will be available within three weeks. Disputes will be settled by a second evaluator. Those taking all four sections will receive a certificate, while those taking one to three sections will receive the graded exams. Results will be valid for two years. The scores given will correspond to the six levels of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, with the award of an A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 or C2 certificate, depending on the level of mastery achieved, for those taking the entire exam.

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The U.S. – Number One in Spanish Speakers by 2050

Posted On July 16, 2015By TranspanishIn Spanish Language, Tips for Translators, Translation Buyers/ 

Español en USA

Today, more than 548 million people – or 6.7% of the world’s population – speak Spanish, and for 470 million of these, Spanish is their native or dominant language, according to the “El Español: Una Lengua Viva” report issued by Instituto Cervantes.

Mexico tops the list with almost 121 million Spanish speakers, followed by Colombia and Spain, with 48 million and 46 million, respectively. In the US, there are 41 million people with Spanish as their native or dominant language, but if you include the 11.6 million second- and third-generation “limited competence” speakers, the total surpasses the number of Spanish speakers in Mexico, Colombia and Spain. The highest concentrations of Spanish speakers can be found in the country’s south and south-west, where 47% of New Mexico residents, 38% of California and Texas residents, and 30% of Arizona residents are Spanish speakers. In the east, 18% of New Yorkers are Spanish speakers. Surprisingly, 6% of Alaska residents also speak Spanish.

For demographic reasons, the growth of Spanish is outstripping that of English and Chinese (the overall percentages of speakers of these languages are decreasing) globally, while some 21 million people are studying Spanish worldwide (7.8 million in the US); Spanish is also the third-most used language used on the Internet. According to this report, by 2030, 7.5% of the world’s population will speak Spanish, and it is predicted that this figure will reach 10% within two or three generations.

In the US, the number of Spanish speakers (native speakers, limited competence speakers and students of Spanish) is expected to reach 138 million, or about 30% of the population by 2050.

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