Translating organization names with acronyms Thread poster: anamartaT
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anamartaT
United Kingdom
English to Portuguese
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I'm translating a text from English to Spanish about the **Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew).** I wanted to keep the English name and acronym as they are official and shouldn't be translated, but also add a Spanish translation to facilitate understanding. Which version would be more correct:
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, RBG Kew (Real Jardín Botánico de Kew)
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Real Jardín Botánico de Kew (RBG Kew)
Real Jardín Botánico de Kew, ... See more I'm translating a text from English to Spanish about the **Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew).** I wanted to keep the English name and acronym as they are official and shouldn't be translated, but also add a Spanish translation to facilitate understanding. Which version would be more correct:
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, RBG Kew (Real Jardín Botánico de Kew)
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Real Jardín Botánico de Kew (RBG Kew)
Real Jardín Botánico de Kew, RGB Kew (Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew)
Also, when it comes to universities, my understanding is that you can translate the name, so I thought the first option below would be correct, does anyone confirm?
**Arizona State University (ASU)**
Universidad Estatal de Arizona (ASU)
Arizona State University, ASU (Universidad Estatal de Arizona)
Muchas gracias in advance ▲ Collapse
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 12:18
Spanish to English
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I wouldn't bother translating the Kew Gardens item at all, as I don't really think you need to to "facilitate understanding" in this case.
As for the names of universities, I mainly translate from Spanish to English, and many of the Spanish universities don't want their names translated, which is a blessing for the translator in the case of words like "Complutense"...
| | | | Samuel Murray 
Netherlands
Local time: 12:18
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
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anamartaT wrote:
I'm translating a text from English to Spanish about the **Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (RBG Kew).** I wanted to keep the English name and acronym as they are official and shouldn't be translated, but also add a Spanish translation to facilitate understanding. ... Also, when it comes to universities, my understanding is that you can translate the name...
Firstly, it depends on whether there is a tradition between your two languages and/or a tradition in your target country. How do newspapers etc. in Spain typically deal with such items when they report news about it?
Secondly, it depends on the type of text. E.g. in a legal document, there are special rules that you are not allowed to deviate from even if your common sense tells you to.
Thirdly, it depends on the expectation of your client and of your target reader, and obviously also on the type of text and the place where it will be published.
In my target language, the general principle for general texts is that names of institutions and organizations (not companies) should be translated, as long as the translation is quite literal and as long as a back-translation would yield the original name again. It doesn't matter whether something is the "official" name of something. It matters more if the thing is a commercial or a non-commercial entity, and/or whether it is a public body or a body that operates for public benefit.
Now, the line between commercial and non-commercial can be blurry, but in the case of the Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, they have a board of trustees, so it's not a company. In my target language, I would translate it without giving the English form at all. Or, if the English abbreviation is exceptionally well-known, I might add "(commonly known as RGB Kew)".
The issue with universities and schools is that you sometimes get universities with very, very similar names that you can't translate with distinct names in the target text, and in such a case it might be good to add the original name in brackets.
In my own target language, we follow a principle that if the university's official name is English, we retain the English name, but if it is not English, we translate it and give the original name in brackets, but that is a special rule that applies specifically to my target language due to historical reasons -- like I said, it depends if there is a specific tradition in your target country.
Another principle that applies in my own target language is that if the name of an institution is also a literal description of the function of that institution, and it is a generic institution, then you are allowed to translate it as a description (i.e. as common nouns instead of proper nouns). In the case of RGB Kew, it would be acceptable in my target language to translate it as the "Kew royal botanical gardens", as long as there is only one royal botanical garden in Kew (so, the translator would have to dig before he commits pen to paper).
| | | | anamartaT
United Kingdom
English to Portuguese
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TOPIC STARTER
Thank you for the tips!
I have checked Spanish-language newspapers and they use both the original and translated names but they do tend to use the English name more, so I think I will maintain it. It also matches the acronyms which makes sense.
Considering that I'm specifically translating descriptions of the organizations as part of a partnership, I feel that it is important to maintain the English name in some way, as it is most accurate to how they refer to themselve... See more Thank you for the tips!
I have checked Spanish-language newspapers and they use both the original and translated names but they do tend to use the English name more, so I think I will maintain it. It also matches the acronyms which makes sense.
Considering that I'm specifically translating descriptions of the organizations as part of a partnership, I feel that it is important to maintain the English name in some way, as it is most accurate to how they refer to themselves and is the name associated with their website and content (there isn't an official translated name).
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer, your tips were really helpful and I'll definitely use them again in the future.
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