Types of Interpreting

A. Definition of Interpreting

Language interpretation or interpreting is the facilitating of oral or sign-language communication, either simultaneously or consecutively, between users of different languages. Translation studies deal with the systematic study of the theory, the description and the application of language interpretation and translation. When people who are Deaf (and who use sign language) and people who are not Deaf (and who use a spoken language) want or need to talk to one another, that’s when interpreters do their work.

B. Types of Interpreting

1. Conference

Conference interpreting is the interpretation of a conference, either simultaneously or consecutively.Conference interpretation is divided between two markets: the institutional and private. International institutions (EU, UN, EPO, et cetera), holding multi-lingual meetings, often favour interpreting several foreign languages to the interpreters' mother tongues. Local private markets tend to bi-lingual meetings (the local language plus another) and the interpreters work both into and out of their mother tongues; the markets are not mutually exclusive.

2. Judicial

Judicial, legal, or court interpreting occurs in courts of justice, administrative tribunals, and wherever a legal proceeding is held (i. e., a police station for an interrogation, a conference room for a deposition, or the locale for taking a sworn statement). Legal interpreting can be the consecutive interpretation of witnesses' testimony, for example, or the simultaneous interpretation of entire proceedings, by electronic means, for one person, or all of the people attending.

The right to a competent interpreter for anyone who does not understand the language of the court (especially for the accused in a criminal trial) is usually considered a fundamental rule of justice. Therefore, this right is often guaranteed in national constitutions, declarations of rights, fundamental laws establishing the justice system or by precedents set by the highest courts. However, it is not a constitutionally required procedure (in the United States) that a certified interpreter be present at police interrogation.

3. Escort

In escort interpreting, an interpreter accompanies a person or a delegation on a tour, on a visit, or to a meeting or interview. An interpreter in this role is called an escort interpreter or an escorting interpreter. This is liaison interpreting.

4. Public sector

Also known as community interpreting, is the type of interpreting occurring in fields such as legal, health, and local government, social, housing, environmental health, education, and welfare services. In community interpreting, factors exist which determine and affect language and communication production, such as speech's emotional content, hostile or polarized social surroundings, its created stress, the power relationships among participants, and the interpreter's degree of responsibility in many cases more than extreme; in some cases, even the life of the other person depends upon the interpreter's work.

5. Medical

Medical interpreting is a subset of public service interpreting, consisting of communication among medical personnel and the patient and his or her family or among medical personnel speaking different languages, facilitated by an interpreter, usually formally educated and qualified to provide such interpretation services. In some situations medical employees who are multilingual may participate part-time as members of internal language banks.

The medical interpreter must have a strong knowledge of medicine, common medical procedures, the patient interview, the medical examination processes, ethics, and the daily workings of the hospital or clinic where he or she works, in order to effectively serve both the patient and the medical personnel. Moreover, and very important, medical interpreters often are cultural liaisons for people (regardless of language) who are unfamiliar with or uncomfortable in hospital, clinical, or medical settings.

6. Sign Language

An interpreter must accurately convey messages between two different languages.An interpreter is there for both the Deaf, which refers to the culture and being of an individual who is legally deaf, and a hearing individual.The act of interpreting is when a hearing person speaks, an interpreter will render the speaker's meaning into the sign language, or other forms used by the Deaf party. The other end of interpreting is when a Deaf person signs, an interpreter will render the meaning expressed in the signs into the oral language for the hearing party, which is sometimes referred to as voice interpreting or voicing.

This may be performed either as simultaneous or consecutive interpreting. Skilled sign language interpreters will position themselves in a room or space that allows them to be seen by the deaf participants and heard clearly by hearing participants. As well as be in a position to hear and/or see the speaker or speakers clearly. In some circumstances, an interpreter may interpret from one language to another whether that is English to English Sign Language, English to American Sign Language, Spanish to English to American Sign Language and so on.

7. Media

By its very nature, media interpreting has to be conducted in the simultaneous mode. It is provided particularly for live television coverages such as press conferences, live or taped interviews with political figures, musicians, artists, sportsmen or people from the business circle. In this type of interpreting, the interpreter has to sit in a sound-proof booth where ideally he/she can see the speakers on a monitor and the set. All equipment should be checked before recording begins. In particular, satellite connections have to be double-checked to ensure that the interpreter's voice is not sent back and the interpreter gets to hear only one channel at a time. In the case of interviews recorded outside the studio and some current affairs programme, the interpreter interprets what he or she hears on a TV monitor. Background noise can be a serious problem. The interpreter working for the media has to sound as slick and confident as a television presenter.

Baca Berita Lainnya