Journalisti.fi, the online version of the professional Finnish journalism periodical, published an article last month about the translation journalists are forced to do in their work. The context is the vast amount of English-language sources Finnish journalists use every day and the occasional unidiomatic ways journalists render foreign languages in Finnish. The article’s headline asked: “Is translation part of every journalist’s basic skills? Media companies say yes, but little training is on offer”.
To our delight, NEaT member Minna Kujamäki, a University Lecturer in English (translation and interpretation) at the University of Eastern Finland in Joensuu, was consulted as a source for this article. It is excellent news that Journalisti asked a professional educator about some of the basics of translation, which are not always apparent to everyone.
Kujamäki told Journalisti.fi that the unidiomatic Finnish produced by journalists when producing news based on foreign-language sources can be compared to the errors first-year translation students make.
‘One good example is former British prime minister Theresa May’s “Let me be clear”, which was translated in Ilta-Sanomat as “Antakaa minun olla selvä”,’ Kujamäki said. This may make some sense in Finnish, but is still totally unidiomatic because the verb ‘be’ is translated literally as ‘olla’, not as a verb such as ‘puhua’, which would mean ‘to speak’.
The article explained how some Finnish news organizations help their staff deal with the work they do with foreign-language sources. News agency STT is the only one that includes specific instructions about translation in its style guide (here, in Finnish). “STT is not a translation agency. […] Say it in your own words and make sure you that you say it in Finnish. Take special care with direct quotations.” The public broadcaster Yle, the news service of the commercial TV station MTV 3, and the newspapers Helsingin Sanomat and Iltalehti said they did not have special instructions for working with foreign-language sources, but that individual departments may. Most of the media companies that Journalists.fi contacted said they did not test new recruits’ translation skills or provide translation training.
Translation is not generally taught to Finnish journalism students: only the Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences includes a compulsory module on journalism translation and professional English in its journalism course.
In NEaT’s opinion, translation is a job for professionals with the relevant skills and experience. Not everyone is a translator merely by virtue of having to use materials in a foreign language as a raw material at work.
Are journalists’ translation skills also discussed in other Nordic countries and further afield? Let us know in the comments!
Between 18 December 2019 and 31 January 2020, we invited our members to respond to an 11-question survey on Continuing Professional Development (CPD). The survey was open to members of NEaT and our sister organizations Mediterranean Editors and Translators (MET), the Institute of Translation and Interpreting (ITI) and the Society of English-language professionals in the Netherlands (SENSE). With a total of 364 responses, members of NEaT were strongly represented. Thirty-nine (39) NEaT members responded to the survey, of which 82% lived in Finland and 13% in the Netherlands.
A Snapshot of NEaT Members
The NEaT respondents were an educated group: 11% held a PhD, 26% had a master’s degree and 19% had a bachelor’s degree. Just over 70% had earned their degrees in languages, and 21% had degrees in translation studies.
NEaT respondents describe their professional activities with a broad range of job titles. The most commonly used were translator (47%), editor (23%) and language professional (26%). In practice people use several titles to describe their work, so this question gives a mere snapshot.
A large majority (72%) of respondents said English was their source language, while 54% said Finnish was. Swedish was in third place with 26%. Respondents could choose more than one answer to this question. At first glance this would seem to show that most respondents worked exclusively with English, i.e., as monolingual editors or revisers. This may seem to contradict the apparent low share of self-identified editors shown by the previous question. However, it must be remembered that many members are native Finnish speakers who translate into English, and that some members at least anecdotally identify as translators although most of their work is not in translation.
When asked
about their “target/native languages”, another question which permitted
multiple responses, respondents overwhelmingly (97%) indicated English, with
Finnish a distant second at 34%.
Professional Membership
NEaT members are part of a wide-ranging international professional network. Respondents were asked which professional organizations they were members of. All indicated NEaT, and the most popular other organizations were MET (26%), the Chartered Institute for Editors and Proofreaders (CIEP, formerly SfEP, 15%), SENSE (13%) and ITI (10%). Others included our sister organization, the European Association of Science Editors (EASE), Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL), the Finnish Association of Translators and Interpreters (SKTL) and Kieliasiantuntijat (formerly KAJ, Finnish language experts, a member of the Akavan Erityisalat trade union).
Respondents networked most often at professional association events (90%). Other in-person meetings were also popular: for example, language group events and client events were each indicated by 36% of respondents. Members also network through online channels: 56% named LinkedIn, the same proportion named Facebook, and 36% stated they used online forums.
Professional Development
NEaT members are interested in a broad range of continuing professional development (CPD): the survey allowed them to choose more than one. The most popular were editing (64%), revision (64%), translation (62%), tools/apps (62%), writing (56%), grammar (44%) and punctuation (41%). The free-form “other” responses contained many specialist fields people would like to learn more about, including medicine, technology and social sciences.
When asked to “describe one CPD event you found useful” and explain why it worked, at least five respondents mentioned either NEaT events in general or English Today in particular. They wrote that the programme was informative, current and practical. Several respondents highlighted the hands-on nature of events they had attended:
Rewriting English texts. That is what we
non-natives mostly need. Marketing, business or similar workshops are less
helpful – they tend to turn out somewhat homespun. You really cannot learn
business in an afternoon. Besides, there are specialized agencies for that:
uusyrittäjäpalvelut and the like.
A recent statistics seminar where we compared
how we would approach different problems. I learn best when I see how other
editors solve the same problems I confront.
Native proofer/editor/translator’s briefing on
problem points in translating from Finnish into English. Very useful as he
pointed out ways to tackle the problems, we got to ask questions etc.
MET meetings are great because of in-depth
topics and hands-on workshops. Tired of marketing and business hype. Text analysis
and subject-special case stories are my favourites, and grammar is always fun.
Joy Burrough-Boenisch workshop on editing
non-native English writing: perfect combo of theory and praxis; imparted
concepts and principles and skills in how to apply them to real examples; let
us try our hands at it.
Several
responses also touched on the sense of community that good CPD events created:
An English Today session with professionals
talking about their work. The benefit of these events for me has more to do with
the feeling of belonging to a community, not so much anything to do with
substance.
Professional events with peer presentations are often useful, give new ideas for specialization, running my business etc. – networking at events often as important as topics
SENSE Professional Development Day A variety of presentations on a range of topics, by members for members. A full day of learning experiences.
NEaT members are preprared to invest in their professional development. The final question asked people how much they spent on CPD annually in euros, excluding travel costs. Thirty-two per cent said between €0 and €50, 26% said €51–100, and 19% said €151–300.
Shaping our Future CPD
The NEaT board and committees are using this important feedback to shape our future CPD programme. Thank you again to everyone who responded to the survey.
The Annual General Meeting of Nordic Editors and Translators ry (NEaT) will be held on Tuesday 21 April 2020 from 17:00 to 18:30 EEST online using Zoom.
To join the meeting on that date and time, you willl need the login and password, which will we will email to all members. If you have not received the password by the day of the meeting, please email info@nordicedit.fi or call Ian Mac Eochagáin at +358 44 313 2816.
The agenda, as laid out in our constitution, is as follows:
Call to order of the meeting.
Election of a chairperson, a secretary, two individuals to scrutinize the minutes and two individuals to count the votes at the meeting where necessary.
Declaration that the meeting is lawful and that those present form a quorum.
Approval of the agenda for the meeting.
Presentation of the financial statements and the annual report by the treasurer.
Decision to confirm the financial statements and discharge the Board and other accountable persons from liability, subject to the auditor’s report.
Presentation of the activities in 2019 and the operating plan for 2020 by the chairperson of the NEaT board, Ian Mac Eochagáin. The treasurer, Daryl Taylor,will comment on the budget for 2020.
Approval of the operating plan and the budget.
Approval of the membership subscription.
Reports on education and cooperation by the chairpersons of the Education and Cooperation committees.
Election of the Chairperson, three (3) other full members, and four (4) deputy members of the Board for the following year.
Election of one auditor and one deputy auditor. Lauri Mäkelä has agreed to be the auditor for 2020.
Consideration of any other business laid out in the invitation to the meeting.
The NEaT constitution also allows for members to submit items for consideration at the AGM. Please email the NEaT board at info@nordicedit.fi no later than Friday, 17th April if you would like to submit such business.
Meeting etiquette. To ensure a smooth meeting and as a courtesy to fellow participants, please:
arrive at the meeting on time (if you haven’t used Zoom before, you can come a few minutes early and we will help you to get set up)
on a phone or tablet, download the Zoom app first to ensure the sound works
mute your microphone on entry and when you are not speaking
raise your hand to get the chair’s attention if you wish to speak
use headphones if possible to reduce echo
use the chat to message the host or group
File and screen sharing are disabled for this meeting and the link is password protected to ensure people’s privacy. Please do not share the meeting ID with non-members.These things will make the meeting more comfortable – and easy on the ears! – for everyone. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you at the AGM.
Making a Living out of Language: Translating and Editing in the 2020s
University of Eastern Finland, Joensuu
Date to be announced
Join members of NEaT, the pan-Nordic association of editors and translators, to learn about and discuss how professionals make a living out of their language skills in the modern business landscape. We will hear about some recent research into professionals’ work life and professional development and then have a group discussion about language skills, the modern business and technological environment and professional development. This discussion event is aimed at both NEaT members and anyone interested in a profession involving language, both now and in the future, including students. It is free of charge. We look forward to seeing you there!
The event will be followed by informal networking over a drink locally.
The discussion will be led by chairman of the board of NEaT, Ian Mac Eochagáin and university lecturer at UEF Minna Kujamäki.
Further information: Ian Mac Eochagáin, +358 44 313 2816, iainmace at gmail.com.
