For the most part, a certified translation professional
in Singapore can expect to deal with written documents, which comes with the
usual trials of understanding different languages and conveying the proper
meanings in the correct wording. On rarer occasions though, a translator
working in Singapore may find themselves with work that involves the task of
transcription, which involves other kinds of difficulties.
Transcription (or to transcribe) is the act of making
a written copy of something, which can include recorded audio or video of one
or more persons’ speech. Regarding certified document translation services in
Singapore, this typically means that a client is requesting that a length of
recorded spoken speech be diligently transcribed and translated into a clear
and legible document intended for official purposes. Rather than a PR
application translation or a notarized translation, one may frequently encounter
requests for transcription while in the process of providing legal translation services, where someone’s recorded speech may be used to prove or disprove a
case.
As can be expected, the act of transcription adds a
further level of challenge for the translation company that takes it on. Even
if one was not to consider the effort required for the translation, simply
converting spoken speech to a written document can be quite a task, especially
if the speaker is using informal speech, as slang terms and certain phrases may
not have suitable words or phrases in the language it is to be translated to.
Furthermore, the recorded audio (if it is not a formal speech by one person)
may have background noise obscuring the speaker’s speech, or someone else
interrupting a sentence with their own speech. These and other elements can
hinder one’s attempts to precisely write down the words for a recording,
whether in its own language or another’s.
The entire process may seem overwhelming, but
fortunately if the translation service is being provided by a translation company with multiple staff members available, certain individual steps may be
broken up among multiple people. For instance, someone who only knows the language
that is spoken in the audio that is being transcribed can simply directly
transcribe the audio in its original language. From that point, a translator
may translate the written text while simultaneously referring to the recorded
audio so that the final translated document will have a higher degree of
guaranteed accuracy. Similarly, if the document requires it, yet another
employee of the company can handle the basic job of noting down the timestamps
of each segment of speech in the recorded. The employee would not particularly
require any skill or knowledge of language, as all they need to do is note the
times when someone in the recording begins and ends speaking. This is a small
task on its own but can alleviate some portion of the burden for those who are
handling the transcription and the translation.
The task of transcription can be daunting, warranting various skills for its completion, including a sharp ear to single out and correctly interpret spoken speech, as well as fluency in the recording’s original language and the language it is to be translated to. Hence, to be certain that the audio you are working with is properly transcribed and translated into an accurate and professional document, the best course of action is for you to rely on a certified translation company in Singapore.
