Translators working in the diplomatic field must be high-level specialists not only in linguistics, but also in other areas, such as: economics, sociology, history and culture, political science, and so on. After all, their main task is to correctly convey this or that idea on the international field between multilingual interlocutors. Sometimes an erroneously spoken word can not only provoke a conflict, but even unleash a war.

Sometimes, in order to accurately translate a speech, it is better not to translate it at all.

However, even though only intellectuals are taken as translators for diplomats, sometimes even intellectuals have curious and awkward situations. Australian diplomat and writer – Richard Arthur Woolcott, who headed the Commonwealth Department of Foreign Affairs, wrote a book (not yet published) “Undiplomatic work”, in which he described various oddities that happened at diplomatic meetings. A rather awkward moment happened to an Austrian diplomat during a visit to France. In his speech, the Englishman tried to convey to the audience how deep was his feeling of boredom in the first stage of his life, when he lived in different countries of the world, and his joy in the second stage, when he moved to Paris. And everything would be fine, but the translator formulated this rather unpretentious thought in this way: “Looking back at my ass, I see that it consists of two parts.”

“Sometimes, in order to accurately translate a speech, it’s better not to translate it at all” – in support of his words, Woolcott spoke about the minister of a well-known Asian country, who, at a celebration in Seoul, began to tell a long anecdote, and, as a funny anecdote is supposed to, he laughed at the end . The translator into Korean did not understand the essence of the joke, but did not show it either. He just uttered a couple of phrases, and the audience, realizing that they were expected to have fun, burst out laughing and applauding,” Woolcott writes.

Where to find a competent interpreter in Kharkov

Having told these funny stories, we also understand that not all participants had a real fun. In order not to get into an unpleasant situation at a business meeting with foreign partners, colleagues from other countries, it is always cheaper and more profitable to hire professionals who will help translate and make even the most complex thoughts understandable to the interlocutor.

Write and call (097) 003-22-77, we work on weekdays from 9 to 19 without a break and we are the Translation Agency in Kharkov, which works on Saturdays from 9 to 16.