The document provides a comprehensive overview of translation and interpreting, tracing its historical development from consecutive interpretation to the current prevalence of simultaneous interpretation in international settings. It distinguishes between interpreting and translation, outlines various types of interpreting, and highlights the specific roles and ethical responsibilities of interpreters in different contexts such as community, conference, and court interpreting. Additionally, it categorizes types of translation and emphasizes the importance of specialized knowledge and interpreter ethics.

1. Overview of
Translation & Interpreting
Dr. Mohammed H. Al Aqad
Senior Lecturer
alakkadmohmad@yahoo.com
Management and Science University- Malaysia

2. A glance at its history
 Consecutive interpretation was the first mode of interpretation widely
used at international meetings.
 Some of the finest moments in consecutive interpreting occurred at
the time of the Paris Peace Conference and in the meetings of the
League of Nations at the end of the World War I.
 The pioneers of this method were Paul Mantoux, Antoine Velleman,
Jean Herbert, amongst others.
 By the late 1940s, simultaneous interpretation became the most
used method in the meetings of the main bodies of the United
Nations.
 Today, staff interpreters provide consecutive interpretation for
meetings of Heads of State or high government officials
with Secretary-General, Presidents of the Security Council etc.

3. Interpreting
 A term used to refer to the oral translation of a spoken
message or text.
Interpreting or interpretation:
 The term interpretation is often used interchangeably with
interpreting, yet some writers insist that the former term
should be avoided in this context. The retention of a
distinction between these two notions is particularly
necessary in the case of court interpreting, where
interpretation in the sense of “conveying one’s understanding
of meanings and intentions” is an activity which interpreters
are supposed to avoid.

4. History
 The history of interpreting is not well documented, although it
is generally agreed that as an activity it is older than written
translation.

5. Differences between interpreting
and translation
 The communication skills which it requires are clearly
different, as interpreters need to be expert oral
communicators(speakers).
 While translators often have relatively unlimited opportunities
to make alterations and improvements before submitting a
final version, interpreters are required to create a finished
product in “real time” without the possibility of going back and
making revisions; in other words, interpreting, unlike written
translation, is both non- CORRECTABLE and non-
VERIFIABLE.

6.  Interpreters must ensure that any background knowledge
which they are likely to need has been acquired in advance;
seeking “colleague advice” or consulting reference works is
not generally possible during the actual process of
interpreting.
 Interpreters are “performers” who are constantly making split
–second decisions and taking communicative risks;
consequently they typically experience higher stress levels
while “on the job ” than most translators.

7. Types of interpreting
 Various types of interpreting can be distinguished, either by
the context in which it occurs (e.g. community interpreting
,conference interpreting and court interpreting) or the way in
which it is carried out; in other words, methods ( e.g.
consecutive interpreting ,liaison interpreting, simultaneous
interpreting and whispered interpreting), although clearly
there is a considerable amount of overlap between some of
these categories; however, one further type which is
significantly different from others is signed language
interpreting, since this involves both oral and visual-gestural
modalities.

8. Types of interpreting in terms of
context of use
3.Court
interpreting
2.Conference
interpreting
1.Community
interpreting

9. Community (Dialogue interpreting or
public service interpreting)
 It takes place in the public service sphere to facilitate
communication between officials and lay people.
 Its purpose is to provide access to a public service for a
person who does not speak the majority language of the
community which he or she lives; the settings in which it is
used include ” police, legal encounters, schools, public
safety, employment interviews and health care settings.”
 It normally occurs in one-to-one setting and tends to be bi-
directional ; it is generally performed consecutively.
 It covers both face -to-face situations and interpreting over
the telephone and is probably the most common type of
interpreting in the world.

10. Conference
 A term used to refer to the type of interpreting which occurs
in international conferences as well as other high- profile
settings such as lectures, television broadcasts or summit
meetings.
 The role of conference interpreters is one of mediating
between a knowledgeable speaker and his or her audience;
problems sometimes arise since interpreters cannot always
be expected to share the knowledge background which a
speaker’s audience is assumed to possess.
 Conference interpreters need to be proficient in interpreting
techniques.

11. Court
 The term is widely used to refer to any kind of legal
interpreting, but the courtroom is in fact only one of several
contexts in which legal interpreting may take place.
 It has come to occupy higher position than other types of
legal interpreting.
 What most distinguishes court interpreting from other types
of interpreting is its close attention to ethical issues which
arise from the function of the courtroom.
 In terms of interpreting strategies, this tends to be reflected in
an insistence on fidelity, impartiality and confidentiality.

12. • Does not require any specialized
vocabulary.
• Requires the knowledge of: 1- current
events and trends. 2-the topic the
interpreter might be asked to convert.
General translation
or interpretation
• Refers to domains which require the
interpreter to be well read in the
domain.
• Knowledge (sometimes training) in a
specialized field.
Specialized
translation or
interpretation
Overview

13. Common types of specialized translation
Financial translation and interpretation
Legal translation and interpretation
Literary translation
Medical translation and interpretation
Scientific translation and interpretation
Technical translation and interpretation

14. Categories of Translation:
1. Machine translation: (automatic translation-no human
intervention)
2. Machine-assisted translation: (machine translator and a human
working together)
3. Screen translation: (including subtitling and dubbing)
4. Sight translation: (Document in the source language is explained
orally in the target language)
5. Localization: (to make the product appropriate to the target
country)

15. Interpreter ethics
The interpreter should be playing the role of a
mediator (no interfering – no exaggerating – no underestimating)
The interpreter would not afford rendering
the speech failure of the speaker
The interpreter would conceal the
interlocutor’s confusion

16. “People may speak the same language,
but interpreter renders words
differently.”
Mohammed H. Al Aqad

17. Thank you