The Need for Translation Services in Asian Countries

The name Asia is classical, and its source has been differently defined. The Greeks used it to indicate the lands located to the east of their homeland. The continent of Asia is the world’s largest and most populated continent with over 4.5 billion people calling Asia home. Asia also holds the world’s most populous country, China, and the world’s largest country, Russia. Asia joins Africa and Europe to the west and the Pacific Ocean to the east.

Asia is rich in diverse species, cultures, and languages. Many of the world’s major religions came out of Asia including Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism.

Asia has a significant impact on world culture and the world’s marketplace. Countries such as Russia, China, Japan, and India produce products and services that are used by every country in the world. Asia is also rich in natural resources. Oil in the Middle East is a significant supplier of much of the world’s energy.

In Asia, the language spectrum is much more extensive and includes Indo-European, Sino-Tibetan, Dravidian, and Altaic. Asia is characterized by mountains, vast plains, islands, and jungles, a feature that allowed communities to isolate and develop languages without external influence. However, a majority of Asians speak the common languages associated with the continent; Chinese, Hindi, English, Russian, Indonesian, Bengali, and Japanese.

Translation Services in Asia

Translation services in Asia are mostly offered by freelance translators and several translations agencies, with a rare few having full-time in-house translators. Unlike European, translation services in Asia are adopted by businesses often as a reconsideration. Though with Asia economies increasing at breath-taking speed, the demand for English translation services is rising, and companies are starting to adapt translation as a critical connection policy.

The benefits of a multilingual communication policy are the real returns of investments such as stronger brand loyalty and the benefit of a more significant market share. Additionally, with populated countries such as China, India and Indonesia, the returns which businesses will yield from investments into a multilingual approach would greatly exceed the returns from strategies which target only a single linguistic market.

English Language

English is a West Germanic language spoken formerly in England and is now the most widely used language in the world. It is used as a primary language by a majority of the residents of several nations, including the UK, the US Canada, Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand. It is the third common native language in the world, after Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. It is the top language practiced on the internet and is the first language in over 50 countries. It is generally studied as a second language and is an official language of the European Union, several Commonwealth countries and the United Nations, as well as in various world organizations.

Today there are many variants of English, with the main variations being connected to location and affecting vocabulary, grammar, idioms, dialects, etc. The main variants are American English, British English, Australian/New Zealand English, Canadian English, Caribbean English, and South African English.

English translation services in Asia are commonly used for the following purposes:

• Marketing: Consumers outside the U.S. are making cross-border investments. Asian companies reaching the US market need English translation services such as business document translation, website translations, etc. Though, other documents such as advertisements and presentations need to be translated into English as well.
• Tourism: The English speaking nations continue to be among the top destinations for global tourists. And Asians are among the top travelers in the world, and translation services help these tourists by translating cities’ maps, activities, brochures, hotel signage, weather alerts, restaurant’s menus, and many other tourist information into English to assist non-English speaking visitors. Asian countries can enjoy their visits to the U.K, U.S., and Canada without the barrier of language.
• Academics: The number of Asian students wants to study in international universities. Academic translations into the English language for these followers are essential to their success.  Material that needs to be translated includes educational forms, college information, course records, and websites.  Translating education material is necessary for Universities looking to reach out to prospective international students. For the rising number of Asian students who are applying to schools in the U.S, and Canada, they will need certified translations of their transcripts, diplomas and more.
• Immigration/USCIS application: English translation services of official documents such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, and divorce decrees are essential to facilitate the USCIS application process. A certified English translation is essential to be acceptable for USCIS purposes.
• Employment Applications: For Asian immigrants who are applying for work in the U.S., translation of documents such as professional documents, letters of recommendation, resumes, and records must be translated into English to assist them in approval of their job application process.