About
Welcome to Christine’s blog on translation and languages!
About me:
I work as a freelance translator and terminologist in Luxembourg. I translate from German, Spanish and English into French and Luxembourgish and specialize in sworn, legal and business translations. I hold degrees in translation and terminology from the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and a law degree from the University of Paris, France. I am also a sworn translator before the Superior Court of Justice of Luxembourg.
My professional website is www.christineschmit.com.
Apart from languages, I also have a passion for travel and photography. You can see my travel photography on my other blog, Christine’s Travel Photography.
My languages
I have always been a language geek and my goal is to become fluent in at least 10 languages, or more if I can, and dip into as many as possible. I confess that I like collecting language diplomas.
Luxembourgish: native language. The first language I have learned and the one I speak with my parents. I translate into Luxembourgish.
French: native language. Second language I have learned since childhood, together with German. French is the language I feel most at home in, the one I write and think in most of the time. I translate into French, am a sworn translator for French, studied translation into French at the University of Geneva and French law at the University of Paris. I speak French, as well as Spanish, with my husband.
German: near-native level, fluent. Second language I have learned since childhood, together with French. I translate from German, am a sworn translator for German and studied translation from German into French at the University of Geneva. I have a German grand-mother and live about 20 minutes from the German border.
Spanish: fluent. I started learning Spanish at age 16 and hold the highest level of the Instituto Cervantes’s official Spanish diploma, Diploma de Español como Lengua Extranjera (DELE). I translate from Spanish, am a sworn translator for Spanish and studied translation from Spanish into French at the University of Geneva. I spent a semester as an exchange student at the University Pontificia Comillas in Madrid, Spain. My husband is Mexican and we speak a mixture of French and Spanish together.
English: fluent. I started learning English at age 15 and hold the Certificate of Proficiency in English from the University of Cambridge. I translate from English, am a sworn translator for English and studied translation from English into French at the University of Geneva. I spent 3 months in Ontario, Canada, as an exchange student and attended a summer school in English and translation at the University of East Anglia, in the UK.
Latin: 6 years in secondary school in Luxembourg. I used to have a high level, but since I never use Latin anymore, it has become quite rusty.
Italian: intermediate level. Learned entirely by self-study. I hold the second level of the Università per Stranieri di Perugia’s Italian language diploma (CELI 2). I continue to work on my Italian, mainly by reading and working through advanced level textbooks.
Dutch: low intermediate level. I’m currently learning Dutch through self-study.
Russian: low intermediate level. I studied Russian for about 3 years with interruptions, first at the Centre culturel A.S. Pouchkine in Luxembourg, then at the Institut de Formation pour Adultes in Geneva, Switzerland. I passed the Moscow State University’s Test of Russian as a foreign language at the preliminary level. I plan to resume studying Russian later and obtain the first level TRKI certificate (level required to study in a Russian university). I would love to spend some time studying in Russia, either in Moscow or Saint-Petersburg.
Next languages on my list: Portuguese, Indonesian, Japanese, Catalan, modern Greek, Norwegian or Swedish.
About Polyglot Blog:
I started Polyglot Blog in October 2008 as a collection of Internet resources for translators, interpreters and language enthusiasts in general. My aim is to gather as much information as possible about translation, interpreting and languages such as translator training, translator and interpreter associations, publications for translators, software, online glossaries, resources for language learners and much more to come. I try to keep the information as up to date as possible, so check back often for new links and information!
I can be reached at christine [at] polyglot-blog.com. Feel free to let me know about broken links or suggest new websites or information to be included in the blog.
Thank you for visiting Polyglot Blog!
Dear Christine,
Great blog!
New event for translators: ASETRAD conference (13-14th May 2010): http://www.asetrad.org/jornadassev/programa.htm
Regards,
Emmanuelle
Thanks Emmanuelle! I will add it.
Dear Christine,
My name is Fendi Munoz and I work for Funny Translator
(http://funnytranslator.com/translation/), a site similar to the
classic game of telephone, only using machine translation. Using up to
56 different languages, the site translates text users enter back and
forth between the foreign languages and English. The final translation
back to English is generally completely different from the original
and always very funny to see. Better still, the translator allows
users to easily post their translation on our page so everyone can
view it. The complete translation process is saved, so viewers can see
exactly where everything goes wrong.
Its popularity has grown over the last few weeks, even being featured
on other blogs such as
http://www.seo-translator.com/machine-translation-and-how-well-it-works/.
I’m writing to you to let you know about the site, as I believe it’s
something your readers would be interested in. Machine translations
are useful for getting a general idea about what text written in a
foreign language means. However, “general idea” isn’t exactly
accurate; the translator literally translates (word for word) the text
which often results in grammatically incorrect, if not completely
incoherent, text. We’ve developed Funny Translator to show just how
funny things can get. Enter any text in English then click
“Translate!” to start. The program translates the text back and forth
using Google Translate, then displays the final English translation.
Here is an example:
Original:
Will you translate this?
56 Translations Later:
Payment?
Here is the link for the website: http://funnytranslator.com/translation/
Check it out if you get a chance!
Thanks,
Fendi Munoz
http://funnytranslator.com/
fendi@funnytranslator.com
Hoi Christine, Ik weet van dat je Nederlands leert dus ik wil je graag uitnodigen om op mijn Nederlandstalige blog te kijken die over het leren van vreemde talen van een polylgot of polyglots in het algemeen gaat. Deel van deze blog maken daarbij mijn ervaringen bij het leren van het Turks en het Deens. Fasulye
http://fasulyespolyglotblog.blogspot.com
Dank je wel Fasulye. Dat is heel interessant, ik zal je blog zeker lezen!
Ik kan vanuit mijn blogwebsite jouw blog meevolgen. Als je nieuwe bijdragen post, dan word ik geinformeerd. Dat is handig, want dan hoef ik niet in het internet rondtesurfen. Ik heb meer algemene belangstelling en eigen ervaring met het beroepsmatige gebruik van vreemde talen (Nederlands en Engels). Ken je dat juridsche woordenboek:
Edgard Le Docte, Dictionnaire de termes juridiques en quatre langues, Uitgeverij Maarten Kluwer, 1982
Talen: Frans, Nederlands, Engels, Duits
- Het zal wel ondertussen wat verouderd zijn.
Fasulye
dear christine,
thanks for your kind help to other translators. your website is helping me a lot to find what i need regarding getting my degrees in translation , one more thing chris, how can you speak with your husband in mix languages . thanks and keep that website always
with respect to you
marah sharif
saudi arabia
Hi Marah,
Well, when I met my husband, we spoke Spanish to each other (his native language). Later, when we lived in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, we tried to switch to French (one of my native languages) to help him improve his French, but it felt strange to change the language and now the natural way we communicate is that he speaks Spanish all the time and I speak French (although I sometimes switch to Spanish without even noticing it).
Moien Christine!
Ech sin duerch Zoufall op denger offizieller Website geland fir een Recherche Projet a fannen et ganz interessant wats du alles gemach hues, zumols well een iwwer Letzebuerger Iwwersetzer an Interpreten nit ganz vill um Internet fennt.
Ech sin an engem aehnlechen Fall, awer nach am gang ze studeiren, an hun emmer rem de selwechten Problem mat der Mammensprooch. Meng as Letzebuergesch, mee ech hun och 4 Jaar zu Genf gelierft an sin do an d’Schoul gang, an hun dun main BA an England gemach (Franseisch-Spuernesch) mat engem Jaar a Spuenien, an si lo rem zreck a Spuenien wou ech u mengem Masters schaffen. Obwuel ech di Sproochen fleissend schwaetzen an och an de Laenner gelierft hun kreien ech emmer gesoot ech wier jo awer nit ‘native speaker’, wei hues du den Problem geleist?
Da wollt ech dech och nach froen ops du eppes iwwer ONGs wees di zu Letzebuerg Iwwersetzungs- oder Interpretatiounsservicen offreiren am Bereich vun den Services Publics, also zum Beispill fir Immigranten, Auslaenner am generellen, op Platzen wei um Policebureau, an der Klinik an aneren Deeler vum Secteur Public. Ech machen eng Spezialisatioun an traduccion e interpretacion en los servicios publicos an et interesseiert mech ze wessen wei dat a mengem Land funktioneiert.
Ech hoffen du kanns mir puer gutt Reit gin an wenschen dir vill Succès mat denger Arbecht an dengen Blogs!
Christine
Moien Christine!
Freet mech eng zukünfteg Kollegin kennenzeléieren!
Wat déi Saach mam “native speaker” ubelaangt iwwersetzen ech nëmmen op Franséisch an op Lëtzebuergesch. Ech gesi Franséisch als meng zweet Mammesprooch un, hunn zu Genf meng Licence an der Iwwersetzung an d’Franséischt gemaach an hunn zu Paräis franséischen Droit studéiert (ech maachen haaptsächlech juristesch Iwwersetzungen), dofir hunn ech domat am Fong kee Problem. Ech géif der op alle Fall roden nëmmen op deng stäerkste Sprooch ze iwwersetzen (maximal op zwou) an eventuell mat engem Kolleg zesummenzeschaffen deen déi Sprooch als Mammesprooch huet an iwwerliese kann. D’Spezialisatioun ass och immens wichteg, wat’s de dech mat engem Thema besser auskenns, wat et méi einfach gëtt, och vun der Sprooch hier.
Wat ONGen ubelaangt weess ech just datt d’ASTI en Dolmetscher-Service ubitt. Fir bei der Police oder viru Geriicht ze dolmetsche muss een normalerweis assermentéiert sinn. Et muss een och assermentéiert si fir schrëflich wwersetzunge vun offiziellen Iwwersetzunge maachen ze kënnen (fir Gemengen asw.). D’Demande fir assermentéierten Iwwersetzer an Dolmetscher ze gi kann’s de beim Justizministère maachen (http://www.mj.public.lu/professions/expert_judicaire/index.html).
Du kanns mech gäer per Email kontaktéiere wann’s de nach weider Froen hues.
Hi,
after perusing such an informative website, I feel compelled to leave a comment to compliment the author! Being a fellow language freak, I thought I had gathered, read and organised in my mind pretty much all the information on translation and interpreting available on the internet, but I have just been dumbfounded, it seems. Great blog, neatly organised and a really pleasant read at that! I love the design, too. I shall come back often indeed, thank you for providing us language freaks with this place to go to for information or for a break between morpheme-chasing sessions.
Best wishes,
FLF (Fellow Language Freak)
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