Read our Translation Blog
Get the latest fun and facts from the language industry with our blog!
Need advice on website translation and localization?
Browse our ONLINE SHOP for ebooks on how to translate a website!
LingoStar’s Blog 
Welcome to LingoStar’s blog! On this page, you can find a lot of interesting and useful information about the translation industry. Explore topics on website translation and localization and how successful localization can influence your business to help your company grow and go global.
Language Blog Topics
On this blog, you can also learn about professional translators and interpreters, multilingual search engine optimization (SEO), the importance of socializing and networking and translators’ professional ethics. Quite often we write posts about the languages of the world, other cultures, and their traditions. Not only do translators convert texts from a source language to a target language, but they also help people communicate with each other, help establish international contacts, and are often prominent figures in the social, economic, and political life. Lastly, of course, we want you to have fun, so on our blog, you can find many posts that will entertain you and, hopefully, make you smile!
We hope you enjoy our blog and discover a lot of interesting things!
Silbo Gomero – A Whistle in the Spanish Language
Silbo Gomero is Spain’s Exotic Whistling Language Languages can use so many different forms of sounds. You probably have heard about languages that use clicks like Xhosa in South Africa. It sounds more or less exotic because only rare languages use them. Even more rare if you think about whistling. But that is exactly what Silbo Gomero, a languages in the Spanish territory, does. Languages of Spain Spain is a European country that is home to many different languages. These languages possess a co-official status with Castilian, the standardised language variety in Spain. In Barcelona, the Balearic Islands, and Valencia, Catalan is the co-official language along with Spanish. The same place takes Euskadi in the Basque Country. In the Iberian Peninsula there are many varieties, dialects and even distinct languages:. These are Aragonese, Galician, Valencian (the variety of Catalan spoken in Valencia), Andalusian dialect, Portuguese. Even English is spoken in Gibraltar. But there is another one far from the mainland, plunged in the Atlantic Ocean and close to Africa. On a small island belonging to the Archipelago of Canary Islands, a language exists that is not a spoken one: Silbo Gomero. The History of Silbo Gomero Silbo Gomero or simply, “el Silbo” (the whistle), takes its name from the Island of La Gomera. The primitive inhabitants of the Canary Islands, the Guanches, settlers from North Africa, developed it since needed a way to communicate across long distances, especially among shepherds. In fact, Silbo Gomero is perceptible up to 5 km away. Nowadays, people still use it to communicate because there are places on the Islands that are not covered... read more
DeepL Translator – The New Wondrous Translating Machine
What Exactly is DeepL? The DeepL Translator has taken off like a rocket and is going strong. It is the new miracle in AI (artificial intelligence) translation because it translates as fast as other translation machines like Google Translate and Microsoft Bing Translator. However, its translations sound more natural. So, what is DeepL? DeepL is a German company founded by the developers of Linguee. DeepL’s focus is to develop more AI products for the language industry. The company released its DeepL Translator in late August 2017 featuring English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, and Dutch language translation. Russian and Portuguese were added in December 2018 due to user demand. They continue to add more languages and next they will release Chinese and Japanese. How Does the DeepL Translator Work? Since DeepL uses linguee.com as a resource, it already has a huge collection of curated translation data at its disposal. It uses neural machine translation. This is one of the many approaches for machine translation, predicting the sequence of words in a sentence. DeepL, however, does not want to talk about the specific model they use. Other companies have made theirs open source. Nevertheless, Jaroslaw Kutylowski, DeepL Chief Technology Officer, says that they keep on top of the current science of machine translation and combine their findings with their own ideas and experiences having developed DeepL. The “Men vs. Machine” Debate The release of this unexpectedly accurate machine translator by DeepL has enflamed the debate about human and machine translation once again. While some translators fear for their jobs, others stay calm. They are rather interested in what is technologically... read more
Translations of Restaurant Menus: The Next Frontier
It Means What?? Weird translations of restaurant menus Have you ever skimmed through a multilingual restaurant menu that was translated into you native tongue? Quite a few thinks can happen: it makes you laugh, it makes you shake your head in disbelieve or it leaves you utterly puzzled. Everyone needs to eat. Also or maybe above all in countries in which you do not understand the native languages. That is why translations of restaurant menus are so important. Google is not your best friend in many cases either. It once wanted to make me believe, that one Turkish dish means “infertile”. Why It Is so Important So, depending on the country and language, food around the globe will have different names and translations. The translation of restaurant menus can be one of the most important marketing strategies for a restaurant. If the exotic names of dishes are not translated, customers will not dare to try them, and thus, they will stick with the same old traditional food. There is no room for innovation at a restaurant where customers always order the same dishes. On the other hand, some restaurants translate their menus using automatic translation tools. As a result, you will find hilariously inaccurate translations. These translation engines often provide literal translations that make customers laugh and, above all, make restaurants look foolish. For example, take bonito a la plancha, a Spanish grilled tuna dish, translated as “beauty to the iron”. Not quite capturing the meaning there! Funny Examples of Translations of Restaurant Menus We thought it might be funny (and educational) to find some more examples to illustrate... read more
Patagonian Welsh – The Language of Little Wales Across the Ocean
Ever heard of Patagonian Welsh? Down in the South of Argentina, in the Chubut province of Patagonia, you will not only hear Spanish or other native languages associated with Southern Argentina. You will also hear Patagonian Welsh. There are about 5,000 speakers. But, how did it end up there? How Welsh Came to Argentina During the industrial revolution, some Welsh people were afraid of losing their cultural heritage. Therefore, and among other reasons, they decided to immigrate to the US. But there they would be assimilated to a new language and lifestyle. So, they went looking for a better place to conserve their language, culture and tradition. They considered Vancouver Island. But they finally decided on Patagonia as it seemed to have everything required. After a two-month journey by ship, about 200 people arrived on the Argentinean coast in July 1865. They struggled greatly at first because of the very different environment and conditions they had to face. Luckily, after some initial mistrust, they received help from and started trading with the native Teheulche Indians. Finally, they established their first permanent settlement called Rawson at the end of 1965. Ten years later, after discussions about the ownership of the land with the Argentinean government, they received ownership of the populated land. The Welsh made the land fertile. It looked as if their dream had come true with schools, chapels and a local government in Patagonian Welsh. However, more and more people were attracted to the prosperity, Welsh as well as non-Welsh. By 1915 about half of the population was non-Welsh. Simultaneously, the Argentinean government made Spanish the mandatory language... read more
Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences at UBC, Vancouver
The Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences will land soon in Vancouver The University of British Columbia will host this year the 88th annual Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences. The Congress takes place from June 1st to June 7th. It is one of the most important academic events related to the above-mentioned fields. Also, the Congress “brings together academics, researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners”. Their aim? “To share findings, refine ideas, and build partnerships that will help shape the Canada of tomorrow”. The World-famous Congress of the Humanities and Social Science will be hosted at the UBC This Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences is organized by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences. Moreover, it usually attracts more than 8,000 attendees among scholars, students, researchers, academic associations and partners. So, for a full week, they offer public lectures, workshops and public events. Last but not least, they share their research findings. As a result, “Luminaries, researchers, practitioners, policy-makers and students from across Canada and abroad meet”. They also “share ideas and engage in discussions that have direct importance for Canada and the lives of Canadians.” The Congress’s Main Theme Even more, this year’s Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences will revolve around the following theme: “Circles of Conversation”. Also, it “will open up much-needed space for dialogue, debate, and dissent”. Plus, it will “showcase creative critical engagements within and across disciplines”. For example, topics will be as diverse as sustainability, accessibility, global mobility, health, culture, education, etc.”. Eventually, it will emphasize the importance of engaging on art to be investigated creatively in relation... read more
Tips for a Successful Website Launch
There are many different things to take into account when launching a new website. You have to think about you audience, what content they would like to read and how to actually make them find and read it.
read more
Translators Without Borders: Helping NGOs to Communicate
Translators Without Borders provide free translations to NGOs in order to help them financially. If you are a translator and you would like to do some volunteer work for a great cause, have a look at this article about Translators Without Borders and find out what this organization is about and what it takes to be a volunteer!
read more
Chilean Christmas and New Year’s at the Southern Hemisphere
Sliding from Chilean Christmas into New Year’s After all the Christmas celebrations, we are looking forward to the next event: The New Year! The New Year approaches in every part of the world, for some sooner, and for some later, like in China or India. But isn’t it interesting how both similar and different traditions and the conditions they are celebrated in around the world can be? With that in mind, let’s have a look at Chilean Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. Christmas in Chile For children, the school holidays have just begun. The hot sun burns your skin during Chilean Christmas while you walk along the beach sipping a refreshing beverage and contemplating the Christmas decorations in the gardens and on the streets. There are people dressed up as Santa Claus in his typical red suit and white beard. It is too hot to hang chocolates on the Christmas trees since they would melt. Also the Christmas trees look like firs but are made of plastic due to the different flora. Chile is a mainly Catholic country and many religious traditions apply here as well as in other Christian countries. They have nativity scenes, for example, and go to a church service after dinner that is called Misa del Gallo. What’s more, Chilean Christmas dinner is quite late around 9 pm to 10 pm, often having an asado, a barbecue outside. There are also dinner types more familiar to minds of Northern Hemispherers, however, like turkey (or any other type of meat) and papas duquesas, Dutchess potatoes. After the late dinner and the church service, Chilean people open... read more
Gibraltar: a dash of Britain in Southern Spain
Gibraltar as a Country Within a Country You drove all the way through Spain. You passed by the dry Andalusian landscape and heard Spanish at every corner. Until you have to stop at the border. But it is not the border to France. It is on the opposite side of the country, at the very Southern tip of Spain. It is just a tiny corner of the Iberian Peninsula at its closest point to Africa: Welcome to multicultural Gibraltar. The Rock of Gibraltar The Rock of Gibraltar has always been a very attractive destination since time memorial. Despite its location, this wonderful gem is actually part of the United Kingdom since 1713 with the signing of the Utrecht Treaty designating it as one of the British Overseas Territories (BOTs). Gibraltar is only 7 km2 of surface and a crossroads of different cultures, religions and languages embracing people from all over the world. You can hear people speaking on the street with their strong conservative British accent while watching the typical Sevillana dance and tasting the Genoese panissa. If you love nature, don’t miss the chance to climb The Rock and see the wild monkeys. Visit one of the 150 caves, or just relax on one of the beaches all around the coastline. English as the Official Language and Spanish Wide Spoken As a part of the United Kingdom, this little isthmus has English as its official language. But its proximity to Spain makes the variety of English highly influenced by an Andalusian dialect. The two different languages find themselves in a diglossia situation. That means they have different roles in... read more
Christmas Spirit, Winter Solstice and Other Holiday Celebrations
There are many different ways to celebrate your winter holidays. This article is about the Christmas Spirit Celebration, mainly celebrated in Hispanic countries. It is about saying good bye to the bad things from last year and welcoming the good things of next year. The rituals are aimed to feel emotions such as forgiveness, tolerance, peace, thankfulness and love.
read more
Global Websites and SEO for Everyone
SEO strategies are important for every successful website and business. But what happens when you target different countries? Different countries mean different search engines you should be aware of. So before you launch your global website for an international audience, make sure you know the differences.
read more
Professional Linguists Behind the Scenes of the Film Industry
What we’ve been up to! It has been a long time since we updated you on our on-going projects! At LingoStar, we like to work on a wide variety of topics and we learn from each of them. All our professional linguists are fully-qualified and come from different backgrounds. Therefore, we always have a team member able to meet your needs. In this new blog post, we shine the spotlight on the role of languages in the film industry. We also introduce you to some outstanding projects we recently completed. To what extent are language professionals involved? The film industry relies on a wide range of linguists. You might think of dubbing and subtitling, which are obvious fields of specialization for professional linguists in the audiovisual industry. But there are others you may not have thought about! For example, production companies hire localization professionals for movies made in other countries, or movies that have plots in which different cultures are involved. Indeed, even if the director might know the target culture, it is likely that the actors, screenwriters, costume designers, etc., will need training on the particular culture in the film to portray a true representation of that culture. Behind the scenes, language specialists can play a big role, too! As professional linguists, we contribute! Currently at LingoStar, we are working on an interesting project for a film series where we play both the role of a tutor and translator. The characters in the series often have to speak Latin, which is very interesting for us as Latin is often referred to as a dead language, but in this... read more
Is the language of Emoji a mirror of our personality?
A decade of change in communications Can you picture yourself answering a simple “Ok.” when receiving a text? Ten years ago you certainly would have and it is likely that you didn’t even know what an Emoji looked like. With the exploding increase in use of smartphones, you won’t have missed that the language of Emoji has been added to the 7,000 languages spoken worldwide. The 7001st language During the last decade, we have seen that people don’t use their phone as a simple tool anymore. It has quickly become a second version of one’s self. Your smartphone is your reflection in the mirror. You can easily tell whether someone likes a little colour in their life or prefers minimalism by looking at their phone case. The apps they download reveal a lot about their lifestyle. The wallpaper hints about their personal life. But what is betraying us in our way of speaking? Guess! The language of Emoji allows us to transcribe our emotions and tone much more efficiently than using words. How and when did the language of Emoji appear? It all started with the emoji’s ancestors : the emoticons. Emoticons were the very first common digital language. Combining existing characters in chatrooms allowed to insert emotions in a message. For example, if something made you happy you would write “:-)”. The first actual Emoji is born in 1999, in Japan, by Shigetaka Kurita, by request of the mobile carrier company DoCoMo. Their aim was to offer their customers a catchy and effective new way to communicate. For example, one could send an icon of a raining cloud... read more
Children and the importance of foreign languages
Academic year resolutions for your children The backpack is ready, the sandwich is in the lunchbox, fall breeze starts to blow… it’s that time of year again: back to school! What resolutions have you made this year for your children? At LingoStar, we think that speaking foreign languages from a young age is an asset in every aspect of life. What is your opinion on the matter? Why is childhood the best time to learn a foreign language? Many studies prove that the best time to introduce someone to a foreign language is before the age of twelve. The language function is in development and soaks up vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation much easier than it will ever do in the future. Now, you might be wondering if it is not confusing for children to be exposed to foreign languages while they are still learning their native language. Scholars have demonstrated that bilingual children have the capacity to differentiate between two languages before even having the ability to talk. Therefore, they won’t mix them up when it is their time to talk, as changes are naturally made in their brain to assign certain words and sounds to the language they belong to. They also claim that it is totally fine to teach children two languages until the age of five. After this age, three new languages can be introduced. Is the study of a new language profitable to my children’s personal growth? Teaching different languages to your children is a very good way of providing education. It will improve their creativity, develop curiosity and give them more general knowledge. The... read moreMachine and Human Translation: Latest Trends
Is machine translation about to replace human translation? Translation companies have always tried to provide the best quality translations possible. So far, using human translation seems to be the best option. However, some companies have recently announced new translation systems that would bring considerable improvements to the industry. Their promise is to provide high quality and natural sounding translations through convenient devices. Recent breakthroughs in the real-time translation field After adding instant image translation to its “Google Translate” service in 2012, Google launched its first headphones in November 2017. They enable users to have direct access to Google Assistant. They can listen to music; ask for traffic information; write emails and have a conversation in another language thanks to Google Translate. Google’s earphones – the Pixel Buds – are a real-time translating device that can translate 40 languages. Although its product gathered impressive press coverage, Google wasn’t the first company to develop this kind of technology. In 2016, Waverly Labs, an American company, produced the first earpiece language translator. Since then, real-time translation has been a trend that no company wants to miss. Several companies worldwide have been developing their own devices such as LeTrans, Travis The Translator, Ili Wearable Translator and Bragi Dash Pro. How do these new technologies compare to human translations? These technologies are very easy to use. For most of them, all you need are earpieces and a smartphone. With the translating earphones, two people who speak different languages can both hear the words in their own language instantly during a conversation, and straight in their ears. These technologies aim at making international communication easier.... read moreTranslation Blog and News
LingoStar has been a language services provider in Canada, the USA, and Europe for more than a decade. We are proud to say that we cooperate with professional translators, interpreters, and other language specialists worldwide and work with over 100 language pairs. If you are looking for a reliable translation company, contact LingoStar! We are always ready to help you with your projects and documentation. Get a free quote online.