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Poll: How do people typically react when you tell them you are a linguist or translator? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How do people typically react when you tell them you are a linguist or translator?".
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In general people are impressed and want to know more, but over the years I have heard my lot of misconceptions about the profession, the most common ones being the fact that a lot of people do not know the difference between a translator and an interpreter and that they think that I translate texts into languages other than my native language.
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They do the same as I do when anyone tells me their profession which is to try and look interested and rack their brain for an intelligent next question. Usually they ask 'What languages?'.
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Andrea Quintana 
Argentina
Local time: 09:49
Member (2006)
English to Spanish
+ ...
| Translator vs. interpreter vs. teacher | Jun 10 |
Most common reaction: "Oh, I should learn English! Can you teach me?"
Another common reaction: "So, you accompany people and translate for them?"
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...here in Germany know better than you what it involves to be a translator and they soon lose interest (and respect) when you tell them that you translate "only" into your language. And sitting all day at home isn't respected either here, especially when you are a male person.
When translating part-time, e.g. in the evenings or weekends, be prepared that some neighbors will call the financial authorities on you.
All that changes when you are also a retired military member and when ... See more ...here in Germany know better than you what it involves to be a translator and they soon lose interest (and respect) when you tell them that you translate "only" into your language. And sitting all day at home isn't respected either here, especially when you are a male person.
When translating part-time, e.g. in the evenings or weekends, be prepared that some neighbors will call the financial authorities on you.
All that changes when you are also a retired military member and when you park a big car in front of the (your own) house. As an alternative, it helps to wear graphic tattoos on well-trained muscular arms.
[Bearbeitet am 2024-06-10 10:27 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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Iulia Parvu
United Kingdom
Local time: 13:49
Member (2022)
English to Romanian
+ ...
Many people believe they can easily become translators and often ask me how to get started. There's a common misconception that anyone who speaks two or more languages can immediately begin translating. This misconception frustrates me, as it reflects a lack of respect and understanding for the profession. It's well-known that truly skilled translators are exceedingly rare.
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Alba Gila
Spain
Local time: 14:49
English to Spanish
+ ...
Most people simply say something like "That's nice". But, I encountered many people who show curiosity for this job and the most asked questions usually are: "What languages?" or "and what exactly do you translate?". Thankfully I never encountered anyone who wasn't kind about this.
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Alex Lichanow
Germany
Local time: 14:49
Member (2020)
English to German
+ ...
Most are very curious about how the job works and then seem a little underwhelmed once I've explained it. Then again, many are not aware of the difference between "translator" and "interpreter", so a lot of their being underwhelmed stems from the fact that, no, I do not travel around the world and do live interpretation from a booth.
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Recently I have noticed that people are more aware about the translator’s job importance and worth. I have had more people than ever ask me for translation services once they find out I am a Translator. I think that is great especially at a time when people start thinking that AI 🤖 will take over our jobs.
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What is this recent obsession with the word linguist in this business?
I wouldn’t dream of telling someone I’m a linguist. I’m not even sure that I am.
If I want to impress people I say I’m a writer.
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Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 15:49
Member
English to Turkish
| They won't take you seriously | Jun 10 |
While working as an in-house I would get sent on interpreting assignments a lot and had the chance to meet quite a few people from different professions. The overwhelming impression I got from those people was that translation is something that university students do to earn themselves some pocket money until they found themselves a 'real job' or that 'everybody knows/speaks English these days, how is that even called a profession?' or something along those lines (some even untactfully vo... See more While working as an in-house I would get sent on interpreting assignments a lot and had the chance to meet quite a few people from different professions. The overwhelming impression I got from those people was that translation is something that university students do to earn themselves some pocket money until they found themselves a 'real job' or that 'everybody knows/speaks English these days, how is that even called a profession?' or something along those lines (some even untactfully voiced this opinion to me).
People here don't take you seriously unless you wear a suit and tie and have some underlings to lord it over. I've been out of circulation for over 7 years now, but I doubt that perception has changed. They don't consider anything that doesn't offer 'career advancement' a proper job.
This used to bother me while working as an in-house, but then they had a point. Because I was working for peanuts back then, and they generally tend to have a low opinion of not so rich people.
It wasn't until I discovered Proz and decided to go freelance that I started to make real money (thanks to FX differences). Now that I'm making good dough while others are suffering from AI, I don't give a shit about what they think of my 'profession' - let them think I'm a 'pathetic middle aged student who's failed to find a respectable job'.
That said, I'm by now means in love with this profession. There are many things about freelance translation that I truly detest. But it pays well. ▲ Collapse
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Virtually always, the first question I get is what languages I translate. Most people don't express more interest than that, and no one thinks I'm poor - probably because they don't know the general state of the profession and especially if they know something about my personal financial situation (buying one's ex-spouse's half of the house in a divorce is a clear sign that "poor" isn't a proper description  )
[Edited at 2024-06-10 07:36 GMT]
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Mary Keramida
Local time: 15:49
Member (2012)
English to Greek
+ ...
At first they are impressed and then they typically ask how many languages I speak. They expect a linguist to speak at least three to four languages.
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Baran Keki
Türkiye
Local time: 15:49
Member
English to Turkish
Edith van der Have wrote:
What languages?
I bet they get even less impressed when you say English, as it's practically the second language over there?
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Some say they use Google Translate and others think and give me the idea that it's easy and not a specialist job/task.
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