Language is as interesting as it is strange. According to Wikipedia, approximately 359 million people speak English as their first language on this planet, and it is not even the most common language world-wide (Mandarin tops the chart). On the other end of the scale, there are approximately 2,000 languages that are spoken by 1000+ people each. Strange, complex, yet beautiful, here are top 3 bizarre languages still spoken around the world.

Archi

A language popular in a small village named Archib in southern Russia, Archi is spoken by a population of 1, 200 or less. Although, the language is no different from two other languages spoken in the village – namely Avar and Lak, linguists consider Archi to be one-of-a-kind language. One feature that makes this language interesting is – for any given verb, there are around 1, 500, 000 separate conjugations. One more reason why this language deservers a mention in our list.

Sentinelese

The language is as unique as its name. One interesting reason why this language is a part of our list is that we do not really know much about it. In the world, where we have explored or at least tried to explore almost everything, there is still a small island in the Indian Ocean where entry of outsiders is a big no-no. The residents of North Sentinel Island have a strict foreign relations policy, which is, shoot arrow at a stranger who tries to enter the island.

Silbo Gomero

This one tops the charts when we talk about uniqueness. While most languages incorporate complex letters, verbs, adjectives and what not, Silbo Gomero, a language of La Gomera on the coast of Spain, is remarkably simple – it is a whistle language. The understanding of people is amazing because whistles function similarly the way other languages function. Now, this is one language that we would love to learn.

World is filled with uniqueness. Do you know any language that is unpopular but interesting? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

Newspapers love to report translation blunders and the readers enjoy reading them; however, there is nothing funny about a language translation blunder that cased a company to lose money, brand value, and customers. In this post, we have mentioned a few language translation errors that embarrassed business owners.

‘Deadly’ Translation Mistake

Well, this mistake is indeed deadly!  In Epinal, France, a group of medical professionals interpreted a medication dose for prostate cancer without using the services of a professional translator. This mistake took the life of four people.

When ‘Colgate’ Turned Into a ‘Porn’ Magazine

Well, not literally! However, when Colgate’s new toothpaste named Cue didn’t sell in France, the reason was far from the quality of product. The reason was the name of the product. The company didn’t realize that ‘Cue’ was the name of a popular porn magazine in France.

Turn it Loose. May Be Not!

Most translation errors occur when businesses try to translate idiomatic phrases without any professional help. ‘Turn it Loose’ worked extremely well while selling Coors beer in America; however, it didn’t work as well in Spain. The popular phrase associated with Coors beer, when translated, promised of diarrhea for everyone who consumed it. Not a great reason to enjoy a cold beer.

Every business has a limited marketing budget and it is understandable that they want to save money. But losing your customers or recreating a campaign is much more expensive. If you are reaching international audience, make sure to take help of professional translators.

Read a translation blunder that amused you? Share with us in the comments section.

The Internet and World Wide Web have brought us all together; however, whenever people that speak different languages are involved, miss-communication will always be a problem. In this post, we have mentioned top 3 legendary historical translation errors that became a major part of dining table conversations for at least a few months.

The Middle-East Blunder

This story goes back to 2006 when most people thought that the President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called Israel to be ‘wiped off the map.’ However, it was later found that there was a translation mistake. What the President actually said was “the regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time.” By the time translation error was reported, damage was done.

The Vietnam Incident

Just prior to Vietnam War, intelligence officers falsified documents about a dispute attack. Later, a report was submitted, which stated that the officers at the NSA made honest mistakes in translating the documents. The controversy over the release of the article was first reported in The New York Times. Although, there were numerous reasons for the US to enter into Vietnam War, it still remains unclear just how things would be different without this translation error.

The U.S. President Incident

When Jimmy Carter, the US President in 1977, traveled to Poland to hold a United States’ first-ever news conference, the visit went horrendous. President Carter took the help of a not-so-accurate translator, the statement “I left the United States this morning,” was translated to “when I abandoned the United States.’’ You can imagine the embarrassment.

Above mentioned translation errors are not just hilarious; they must have embarrassed some of the most popular names in history. Avoid such errors by consulting a professional translator because being in the news for wrong reasons is not a very good experience.

Enjoyed the post? Read our post about automobile translation blunders – Car Names That Sound Hilarious in a Different Language.

Have a story related to translation blunders that you would like to share with us? Mention in the comments section.

If you enjoyed reading our first post named “International Boundary Blunders: Is Your Automobile Name a Source of Embarrassment, you are sure to enjoy this one.

Marketing can make or break brands, especially, if international customers are involved. Any brand name planning to attract international customers struggles with difference in culture and demand; however, the most challenging hindrance is language barrier. If you want know the importance of accurate translation, ask some of the most popular brands that have faced humiliation and financial loss because of translation blunders. Numerous tales are popular about intercultural blunders. This is a list of a few most unfortunately hilarious car names that embarrassed the brand owners.

Nissan Moco (in Spanish: ‘booger’)

Nissan faced embarrassment when they reached Spanish speaking countries with a car named Nissan Moco. They later realized that the name translates as ‘mucus’ in Spanish. The car is no longer sold in Spain and Spanish speaking markets because people do not want to drive something that means ‘Booger’ or to simplify ‘mucus.’

Chevrolet Nova (in Spanish: ‘It Doesn’t Go’)

Will you buy a car that just ‘does not go’? General Motors faced humiliation by marketing Chevrolet Nova in Central and South America because ‘No va’ in Spanish means, ‘it doesn’t go.’

Opel Ascona (in Spain and Portugal: ‘female genitalia’)

Now, this is not just hilarious, it is extremely humiliating. If Opel Ascona meant something like ‘little flower,’ it won’t be as embarrassing for the brand as ‘female genitalia.’ It embarrassed the brand owners among Spanish speaking countries and definitely falls under ‘the worst mistakes’ category.

Final Thoughts

Although, the above-mentioned blunders are funny, we are sure that no brand owner wants to end-up facing a situation like this. For correct language translation, contact us.

Have examples of car names gone wrong? Let us know in the comments section.

“If you have always done it that way, it is probably wrong.”
– Charles Kettering

The possibility of going global with a brand has never been as favorable as it is now. Today, it is easy to establish an international customer base and the who’s who of the corporate world are entering the international market in a hope to expand customer reach and sell their products globally. However, for a business to succeed overseas, it is important to appeal to their international customer base.

                                                                                                      (Image Citation: http://www.mixfight.nl/)
If not done properly, marketing techniques can have devastating outcomes. Unfortunately, numerous businesses have learned the hard way that their marketing campaign offended customers instead of charming them. Mentioned below a few crazy marketing translations gone horrible wrong –

KFC

A name that is popular among people of all ages, KFC tried to expand its customer reach to China. When the company opened its outlet in Beijing, the brand translated its popular slogan ‘Finger-lickin’ good,’ which didn’t turn out to be as delightful in Chinese as it sounds in English. The translated words were “Eat your finger off.” No less than a blunder.

HSBC Bank

What do you do when your campaign turns out to be an exact opposite of what you had expected? This is exactly what happened with HSBC Bank and its global private banking campaign. The bank spent millions of dollars to market its “Assume Nothing” campaign but the problem arose when the slogan reached overseas. It was translated as “Do Nothing” in numerous countries.

Coors

Another name in the list is the popular American beer maker Coors. The ever-popular “Turn it Loose” campaign of Coors didn’t turn out as well as planned. The owners figured out that the slang does not always translate well, especially in Spanish. When translated, it was interpreted as “Suffer from diarrhea.” Definitely not a good way to market a soft drink brand.

In Conclusion

Culture affects whatever we do; therefore, it is important to understand the religious practices followed by majority of people, find out if there is any dominant political ideology, or economic ideology before marketing your brand in a particular country. All of these, if left unexamined, may impact a brand launch.

A lot of other popular names also made some embarrassing intercultural mistakes. Read more about it on our post – Intercultural Blunders.

For intercultural translation services, contact us. Any brand name we missed? Let us know your favorites.

Inspect of Paper Writing Service with regard to High school students

Termpapersworld.com – in depth Term Paper Writing Company review article

Are you want good term paper expert to write down college school assignments from the beginning? Continue reading “Inspect of Paper Writing Service with regard to High school students”

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” –  –Benjamin Franklin

They say that money has no language; however, numerous popular quotes are present on money matters in almost every language. Regardless of whether you are interested in knowing what other cultures have to say about something that has become a significant part of lives of many people, or need a different perspective on money, Spanish proverbs present in this article provide a great combination of sage advice and witty expressions.

There is absolutely no substitute to knowing them and if you can use them in day-to-day life, even better. Mentioned below is the list of popular Spanish proverbs about money, along with English translation and explanations.

                                                                     

(Image Courtesy: www.babble.com)       

Proverb #1: No todo lo que brilla es oro

English Translation: Not everything that shines is gold.

Meaning: If you are an English speaker, you must have heard the popular saying, “All that glitters is not gold.” It means that in life it is important to look for the true value and understand the true worth of something or someone, and one should not be lured in by a shiny façade.

Proverb #2: Más vale pájaro en mano que ciento volando

English Translation: A bird in the hand is worth more than a hundred flying.

Meaning: Although, this proverb is not about money, it can prove to be a great advice for businessmen and entrepreneurs. It means that one should make the most of what they have, rather than waiting for enough resources or the right time.

Proverb #3: Acabándose el dinero, se termina la Amistad

English Translation: With the money ending, the friendship ends.

Meaning: This is a great lesson to learn in life. It is rightly said that we just need to know which hand to shake and which hand to hold. Be sure that your friends like you for the person you are, not because of your wealth and power.

Proverb #4: Honra y dinero se ganan despacio y se pierden ligero

English Translation: Honor and money are earned slowly and lost quickly.

Meaning: It simply says that one should reach for the stars but keep their feet on earth. Always be in control of your finances and behavior. Save money and preserve your reputation.

Make these proverbs a significant part of your life and attain desired success because knowledge in any language should be welcomed.

Which is your favorite Spanish proverb? Share with us in the comments’ section.

In the past few years, numerous business owners and governments have realized that language translation is challenging. Unfortunately, they have learned it the hard way that translation mistakes can be awfully embarrassing and may cause losses in billions.

Like most translation blunders, recent linguistic missteps are cringe worthy and some are humorous. This article is a reminder that it is important to take required precautions while working in another language. Hopefully, professional help and some extra care will make the coming year, a year of translation success!

An example of a funny translation blunder

(Image Citation: abc-lang.com)

Here is our list of top 3 blunders in the past few years that gathered‘attention.’

The Lumia Incident

According to reports, it was a conscious blunder. Mobile giant Nokia was aware of the fact that Lumia is an obscure Spanish word. Regardless of that, they chose to name its new range of mobile phones ‘Nokia Lumia.’ The cellular company took this decision the moment it realized that most Spanish speakers are not aware of the old meaning of the word. However, the risk didn’t turn out to be safe. When the press discovered the old definition of the word, the buzz spread globally.

The Rihanna Incident

This is an old story, but still deserves a mention. In one of the articles published in a popular Dutch magazine ‘Jackie,’ an article referred to singer Rihanna with a combination of sexist and racist insults. The article, except the offensive words, was written and published in Dutch. Although, the magazine claimed that it did not know the exact meaning of the words because they were written in a different language, the editor had to apologize and resign over this incident.

Finding the Chinese Police Incident

The job of police is to help people. However, this is not the case in China, at least, according to one of the sign boards. In an awfully failed attempt to be helpful, one signboard in China read, “difficult to find police.” Can you guess what they wanted to say? Well, what they meant was, “In case of difficulty, call the police.”

We all make mistakes; however, on a global level, even a minute translation error can greatly affect a brand and its reputation. Consulting a professional translation company could have saved these big brands a lot of money and resources. Now that’s what we call prudent advice!

Have any interesting stories? Share with us in the comments section.

October is the time of year when kids wear Halloween costumes and trail around the neighborhood, knocking the doors and asking for treats. This is an old Halloween tradition; however, very few people know the origin of the phrase ‘Trick or Treat.’ Let’s find out where did it come from?

Most traditions associated with Halloween are borrowed from four different festivals, namely:

–          The Roman Pomona festival

–          The Roman Feralia festival

–          The Celtic festival

–          All saints’ Day

Image Courtesy  – http://www.ledgeviewwisconsin.com/                                                    

The practice of wearing masks and dressing up as evil spirits comes from the Celtic tradition. The Celts believed that dressing in white costumes and impersonating evil spirits will help the dead overlap and roam the earth again as they enter the new year. By dressing up like evil spirits, the people decided to fool actual spirits.

The tradition of ‘trick or treating,’ or ‘guising,’ began in the Middle Ages. At that time, children and poor adults used to dress-up in the aforementioned costumes and roam around the neighborhood during Hallowmas, begging for money or food in exchange for songs and prayers. It was believed that these kids and adults were doing so on behalf of dead.

An example of song from 19^th century is as follows:

“A soul! a soul! a soul-cake!

Please good Missis, a soul-cake!

An apple, a pear, a plum, or a cherry,

Any good thing to make us all merry.

One for Peter, two for Paul

Three for Him who made us all.”

Interestingly, this practice didn’t continue for a long time. It re-emerged after 1920 and paused for a while during WW II. However, it’s now back in full force. Now that you know a little more about the tradition, it is time to ‘trick or treat.’

Have any Halloween costume ideas? Share your ideas in the comments section. Need translation for Halloween messages? Contact us!

According to Census Bureau, over 5.5 million students in the US learn the English language. In all, students speak more than 400 different languages but around 80% of them speak Spanish at home. Considering the popularity of both the languages, we have decided to focus on the basic differences in order to help learners avoid confusion.

        (Image Citation: www.spainforpleasure.com)

Apart from a common difference that Spanish is close to Latin and English is a Germanic language, a few other variances separate both the languages. In this article, we will focus on top three.                                                 

Noun Gender

English language does not have a concept of noun genders, however, Spanish does. Spanish has masculine and feminine nouns that are used to differentiate between the genders. The alphabet ‘O’ is used for masculine nouns, and ‘A’ for feminine nouns.

Pronunciation

Spanish native speakers make rolling ‘rr’ sound while speaking, a sound that English speakers aren’t required to produce. If you are a native English speaker, you might require some practice to produce the rolling ‘rr’ sound. The simplest way to learn the pronunciation quickly is to listen to native Spanish speakers and imitate them. You may also listen to audio(s) and practice.

Special Characters

Spanish has several special characters that English language does not. Some letters are used with an accent mark of some sort at the top.

Final Thoughts

Regardless of whether you are a student, or someone who likes to learn and read about different languages, learning basic differences between Spanish and English will help you speak both the languages fluently.

Do you want us create to another post stating the differences between two languages? Let us know in the comments section.

Need English to Spanish language translation? Contact us!