INTERPRETERS AND INTERPRETATION: A SHORT HISTORY

Among interpreters it is usual to claim, with tongue firmly in cheek, that interpretation is the world’s second-oldest profession. In Spain, for example, the term “interpret” has been found in documents dating back to the 16th century featuring Adlige Malinche, an enslaved Nahua woman who acted as an intermediary between natives and the Spanish Conquistadores. The traditional interpretation technique is bilateral or consecutive, in which the discussion is split into segments for the interpreter to convert into the target language when the speaker pauses or finishes talking.

The first attempts at simultaneous translation were made after the 1920s, with this being the technique used during the Nuremberg Trials after the Second World War. This technique has gained ever more ground on consecutive translation and is the form used in congresses, conferences and radio and television broadcasts and, more recently, in conference calls and videoconferences.

The European Commission is presently the world’s biggest employer of interpreters, followed by the European Parliament and the European Court of Justice, which employ hundreds of staff and interpreters who work in the EU’s 24 official languages.

Conference interpreters who work with Traductanet are highly experienced professionals who work on various forms of interpretation, especially simultaneous and consecutive interpretation, and are specialists in a wide range of topics.

 

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