Some thoughts about the translation

[Fantaw Tesema]

Hello everybody,

The list of some words we have been talking about will soon be uploaded to Google Sheet. Please read this email to see what to expect in the list. Also, please expect some miner changes to a few corrected words we have made last time. The reason for this is I have checked some places and ask people whom I know.

If we want the translation to be as correct as possible, we should not be afraid of some changes. Without change it will not be better especially now when we don't have standards. For example there are words which are not translated, words translated in a hasty manner without checking some similarities and comparatives while in use and so on. There are also words like email and statistic which are not translated but only mimicked. 

I want also to remind all of you that no matter how widely these kind of words are used does not make them correctly translated. I do not see a valid reason to continue using them without a translation when we have Amharic words. We live today but not the past.

If we just mimic these kind of words, we are settling for less and living the past. Moreover we are not using the Amharic language while we can. Email should be ኤ-ደብዳቤ (can't be simpler than this) and statistic should be ስነሁኔታ or if we want to be more creative then we can call it ሁነታቲክስ or something else since we have called status is ሁኔታ. Think about it.

Water and liquid are not the same while in use:
Example 1:
If you want to discover more, for example, Tag and Account are translated as መለያ before. It does not make sense whether we read ለ softer or stronger. This is what I call a hasty translation. Account is another thing and Tag is other ting while in use. If you ask me Account can of course be መለያ whether we read ለ softer or stronger is correct. But let Tag be መለያ-ምልክት or just መለዮ even though it is not a solider. Like last time (Post and Paste), in principle, I do not agree using the same Amharic word unless it is a special case and am short of words. The reason for this is we are not only using a single word the whole time. When this words are used in a sentence, which they usually do, and when you have only one Amharic word, the user will be confused and lose interest in the translation product. One can discover this situation when translating and meet those sentences. This also includes Tag and Account.     

Example 2:
Run is translated አሂድ. Am not sure we have such an expression in Amharic. Any way, I think Run or running in a computing means something is going on like loading, configuration, installation etc. So how can we translate this process? Well, I think Run is አካሂድ and Running is እየተካሄደ ነው። If we say አሂድ and እየሄደ ነው does not make much sense.

Example 3:
Load and Install are translated as ጫን which I think is a joke which leads confuse a user. So what can we do about it? Load can of course be ጫን/ጭነት and Install can be ትከል. If you say embed is ትከል, embed is ክተት or something else.   

Example 4:
How about better words?
Browser is አሳሽ before. In the attachment Tegegne has sent us some months ago, that genius man called Browse is መጎብኛ። I find this fascinating. We should adopt that. Actually am using መጎብኛ in the translation. Then we have Navigate = ዳስ።  Calling Browser = መጎብኛ will eliminate the misunderstanding between አስስ and ዳስስ። This is  what am talking about the user perspective view, ie correct translation but simple to understand. Cleaning up this kind of situation will only make the translation more interesting and logical. We should not make a hole to mislead the user thinking which is which.  

We should also include combining words more often like ስነxxxxx, እደxxxxx, ባለxxxxx, ያለxxxxx like in English xxxxtics, xxxxxion, xxxxxtion xxxxlogy xxxxable etc.
For example:
Status >  xxxxtics > Statistics then in Amharic ሁኔታ > ስነxxxxx > ስነሁኔታ or ሁነታቲክስ። 
I may be wrong exactly here but there is a point if we think about it.  Remember though this is a suggestion.

There are more example words. If you remember, sometime ago, I have mentioned that a translation should be simple for the user to understand. By that I meant not the translation to be simple but correct and simple to understand. We should always think from user perspective and take care of the Amharic to use to it's fullest extend. For this to work one can use methods like checking different dictionaries, books, articles, ask people we know (conversation) and use enough time etc. One may think there is no Amharic word to represent a particular English word. In my opinion Amharic is also flexible. To recognize this, one needs to stay positive and focused as well as thinking in depth and width. Me, I can't even exactly say when to use the combining words like እደ or ስነ and others. The only problem is that I have a limited knowledge about the language, but am learning. Remember we do not have to translate Toyota other than mimicking. 


In the end like I have mentioned before, here are the four self proclaimed points I usually follow.
1) What is the idea behind the English word? Make an association with real life from the user perspective if possible.
2) What task is going to be executed? If you say something or click on something, what will happen or how it is understood for the user.

3) Understand the above two points and try to make a simple translation and double check the translation. Use time as long as necessary. The more time and thoughts you use the more correct result.

4) Pay attention not to use the same Amharic word to translate two or more similar English words unless it is very difficult.


I will upload the lists of about 400 words related to WP and non WP to show a compression of relations. Too much writing here but the changes are minimal. It is just to make you aware what's going on.  

By the way, after translating WP 3.8 to almost 100%, WP 4.2 was mirrored to only 75%. Then when WP 4.2 was translated to 97%, WP 4.3 was mirrored only 59%. Now WP 4.3 is translated 69%. As you can see, I am working the hard way because something is not working right in the transition. At the same time, am aware  every string can not be the same between versions. But, I have learning a lot and it is good for the translation. Hope the next version transition will be better if WP 4.3 is finished before WP 4.4 is out. Now, I have collected words which are more related and not related but necessary to WP which you will see in the coming days. Once we have discussed about the examples, hope we will find a direction how we go about.

Even though, there is always a room for improvement, let us make the next translators harder to improve but easy to understand and see the picture. So they do not find a hasty and not accurate translation. This is good not just for the user but also for the language. 

Please be active and have your say to help. Cheers. //FT  

[Belay Tekalign]

Fantaw:

Your way is very low tech and might not work. I have a plan. Eyob and I could build some kind of applet, a kind of dictionary. We will load all dictionaries to the database. I remember Tegene sent us some excel spreadsheat from Addis Abeba University. it is pretty good. Can we work it out as a group. We are only four people. The others are listening.

Eyob:

Care for a swing? This is your options for J?

Belay

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[Fantaw Tesema]

It is nice to work together. I also have been asking for advice and help quite many times.

I do not believe my way is low tech. I have explained things with reasons in that long letter.

You have not even seen the list of words yet but saying low tech.

May be it is much better if you explain. //FT

[Fantaw Tesema]

Hello everybody,

I have sent the invitation to the Google Sheet file a while ago. Please look at it and have your say.

Belay, I am sorry if i did misunderstand you saying yesterday, and what you are thinking to work. Please look at the Sheet. It is only a small list of words, so the list Tegenge has sent us is still the main list, but of course with some obvious errors. At the same time, like I always say, they have done a very good job in those times. This small list is only in relation to WP and a little more for similarities and comparing. 

Everybody: The invitation is to our group mail (not individual). Everybody can edit. If something is not working, please let me know. Thanks and cheers. //FT

[Belay Tekalign]

Dear Fantaw:

I apologize for the bad word "Low Tech". A low tech is something that requires heavy duty manual labor, not share-able, and above all is not smart in delivery. I just saw your list of 500 or so words and that is not low tech. I am not sure why I didn't gaze at this marvel before, at times when the thread is too long I tend to skip things. Again my apologies. My Amharic is not upto date from 33 years of absence from the mother country and no one to talk to here in the American wilderness, so don't expect much from me. 33 years is the age of Jesus.

I think we should proceed this way. Collect as much dictionary and buy if we have to. I will finance all the buying process. Let us write to Addis Ababa University if they have something to offer. I hear there are 30+ universities in the country. Few might have some kind of dictionary. Can we write them all. All I need is address. I will do the writing. I see few attempts online, can we harvest those harvestable and buy those that need purchasing. This way we collect big data.

Fantaw, brother:

I will tell you a story of this Polish professor in my school : UCLA. His name is Wolf Leslau. He wrote three large volumes of Gurage Dictionary and it is amazing. I still use his Ge'ez dictionary. He is of course fluent not only in English but in Hebrew, Amharic, Gurage, Weyto, Agaw, Arabic. I see you to be him. Keep at it and dodge insulting people like me.

Peace.

[Fantaw Tesema]

There is noting to apologize Belay. Actually, I was thinking about the
method I was working after writing the last email in this post. I mean
not the working but the process or methods how to find out mirroring
the translated strings to the next version. I have even asked in the
WP forum but did not get a direct answer other than Amharic got less
attention because of less voluntaries.

May be there is not much I can do about mirroring. Anyway, got a
little more experience for translating. Hope things will be better the
next time around. It may take some time.

No problem about the finance here with me as well once we know what we
want to buy. I hope Tegenge and Eyob will help for information like
books or AU contacts.

Thanks for beautiful words, if I can go that far!!! He he. //FT