English to Polish freelance translator

Polish love phrases

admin — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 12:45:27 +0000

I often receive emails or posts on my forum in which people ask me to translate words or sentences for their partners who happen to be Polish. For this reason, I decided to compile a list of the most basic “love” phrases used in Polish. I hope that you will find it useful and will impress your loved ones!
Let us start with the most popular phrase:
1. I love you – kocham Cię
2. I miss you – tęsknię za Tobą
3. I like you – podobasz mi się
4. I like it when you smile – lubię, gdy się uśmiechasz
5. I can’t wait to see you – nie mogę się doczekać, gdy Cię zobaczę
6. I would like to ask you out – chcę Cię gdzieś zaprosić
7. You are beautiful – jesteś piękna
8. You are handsome – jesteś przystojny
9. You are my love – jesteś moją miłością
10. I want you to be my wife – chcę, żebyś została moją żoną
11. I want you to be my husband [well, you never know] – chcę, żebyś został moim mężem

from London Greens = od Londyńskich Zielonów?!?

admin — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 10:57:55 +0000

As some of you may know, 21st October 2007 was the day of Polish parliamentary elections. The queue to my polling station in London was extremely long, and, believe it or not, it took me about 4 hours to cast a vote! Feeling the national spirit, I obediently queued with hundreds of other voters. As we were getting closer and closer to the entrance door, I noticed a man holding a sign that made me laugh out loud. Here is what it said: “Polish voters welcome to London from London Greens.” And right next to it was a sign with the translation that read: “Polscy wyborcy witają do Londynu od Londyńskich Zielonów.” (apologies that only speakers of Polish can appreciate this.) You have to admit it sounds quite amusing! Especially, the “Zielonów” bit, which I still keep wondering about, as to what it can possibly mean.

This is a classic example of “how not to translate”, or that checking words in a dictionary and just writing them down as they stand cannot result in a good quality translation, which in this case should say “Londyńska Partia Zielonych wita polskich wyborców w Londynie”. I just wonder how many more words, phrases, sentences, texts etc. translated in such a manner circulate somewhere out there?

Trados for MacBook

admin — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 22:17:01 +0000

There are translators who use Mac OS X as their Operating System (recently including myself), yet most of translation tools that we use in our work are designed for Microsoft Windows. Same applies to Trados. But is it really impossible for Mac users to work with Trados? Luckily it is not!

Trados and Mac OS X

As far as I know, there are two very simple solutions to the problem stated. All Mac Users who have Intel-based machines can instal two operating systems (Mac OS X + Windows XP/Vista) and select the one they want to use when they turn the computer on.

The second solution (preferred by me) is to use the Parallels Desktop application, which allows us to use Windows XP as a MAC OS X application. In this way, we use our Macs just as we do everyday, and whenever it is neccessary to use Trados, we open Windows XP and then just open Trados. Easy! The latest version of Parallels Desktop allows users to share files between Windows and Mac OS in real time.

Trados for Leopard

I hope that soon there will be a version of Trados available straight for Mac OS X Leopard, as I am becoming a MacBook fan! Any questions about using MacBooks for translation? Please send me an email at mylingua (at) mylingua.pl and I will try to help.

myLingua.pl selected best website!

admin — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 18:02:27 +0000

In the October issue of the Translation Journal, myLingua.pl was ranked as second best translators’ website.
Me and my husband (lots of credit actually goes to him) are really pleased with this recognition by a professional journal and are motivated to further improve the site to make it even more informative and user friendly.
Full ranking can be found at http://accurapid.com/journal/42sites.htm.

Quick update

admin — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 17:52:25 +0000

After a long holiday, I am finally back to my “normal” work routine. Those of you who visit my website regularly have probably noticed that my surname is now different. This is due to the fact that recently I exchanged vows with my husband!
Originally, the name is spelt Źróbecka, however, as English does not have the two letters that have diacritical marks, Zrobecka is what I have to stick with.
In terms of pronunciation, we agreed with my English-speaking friends that something along the lines of /Schoo-roo-betska/ should suffice, as Źróbecka is a real tongue twister!

Polish sworn translator in the UK

admin — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 10:47:03 +0000

Due to the number of enquiries regarding sworn translations in the UK, I would like to demystify a popular belief that prevails amongst Polish people. In the UK, the institution of a sworn translator is non-existent, which means that this country does not issue translators with seals which are then used to authenticate a translation. We may, of course, still find in the UK sworn translators of other countries (e.g. Poland, Germany and France), but their stamp is often unnecessary for a translation to be recognised by a certain authority. Depending on the purpose of the translation, there are three other types of certified translations.

The most common type of certification is a clause written by a translator or a translation company, which states that the document is a true and accurate reflection of the original presented. This type of certification is accepted by majority of authorities and educational establishments in the UK.

With the second type of certified translations, an affidavit is sworn by a translator in the presence of a notary public or a solicitor to confirm that the translation has been executed to the best of the translator’s knowledge and ability. This is normally required for court proceedings, such as divorces.

The last type of certification is when the translation is apostilled by a government department to prove that the document is a genuine and true reflection of the original so that it can be used abroad.

To sum up, before deciding on a given type of certification, it is best to clarify with a particular organisation or authority what type of translation they require. It is also important to note that that an affidavit and apostil can only be obtained for an extra fee paid by a commissioning party.

Now also working in SDL Trados…

admin — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 18:43:06 +0000

…to make your English to Polish translations even better and quicker.

After a 30-day trial, during which I got to know the basic features of this powerful CAT tool, I have decided to purchase a full license for the SDL Trados Freelance software.

Apart from the ever-popular Workbench, I also like the WinAlign component, which allows me to reuse my old translations and create a translation memory, which I can then merge with others in the same subject area.

I am still exploring all the difference features and am hoping to become a proficient user over the next couple of months.

I really hope that Trados will help me improve my consistency in the use of terminology and will improve my efficiency as an English to Polish translator.

English to Polish - free translation

admin — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 18:58:25 +0000

Maja Halewska is a freelance English to Polish translator. On the Free Polish Translation forum, you can ask simple and short questions relating to the subject of English to Polish translations. Your questions will be answered as soon as possible. Feel free to post your English to Polish related queries!

Free English to Polish translation

admin — Mon, 14 May 2007 11:01:08 +0000

Just to let you know that on 13th May 2007 myLingua.pl has launched a forum (more…)

Continuing professional development

admin — Wed, 04 Apr 2007 10:55:25 +0000

PSG

Recognising the importance of continuing professional development, I am currently taking part in the Peer Support Group (PSG), organised by the ITI (Institute of Translation and Interpreting). The main idea behind the PSG is to provide training and guidance with various translation-related issues and developments. It also offers excellent networking opportunities and is a great platform for discussions.

Overview

This online course lasts 5 months and although it is not a full-time commitment, tasks we are required to complete do take time. Everyday there are many dynamic discussions taking place and some of them really open our eyes to things we would never consider (e.g. time zones in translation business).

The course is divided into 9 modules, including CV writing techniques, marketing, invoicing and CAT tools. To date, we have completed modules 1 and 2 and are awaiting feedback on our quantifying exercise.

Mantees and mentors

In the group, there are 25 participants. We all come from different backgrounds with varying years of experience within the translation business (some of us have been freelancing for over 20 years!) With such a versatile group, we can learn from each other’s valuable experiences and skills.

Our tutors include prominent translators and interpreters, as well as people who run translation companies. It is very interesting to see how translators are perceived by the latter, and what is quantified when choosing a translator for a particular job.

Further information

I really recommend this course to everyone who understands the importance of ongoing development and reflection. If you would like to acquire more information, please refer to the ITI website .