The value of Spanish translations

Finding a Spanish translator isn't difficult but it might be difficult to find the one who will not interprite what you tried to say but transfer the exact meaning of all intended phrases.

You could take the simple route and hire a native Spaniard who has a good working grasp of the etymology of the English language; you could buy an online translation tool to translate that document; you could go to one of the many agencies that inhabit the Internet and offer 'English to Spanish translation' but so much depends on why you are looking.

Language spread

At the last count there were around 25 million results for the search phrase "Spanish Translation Services" and almost ten million for 'English to Spanish translation services' all of which claim to be 'fast', 'most comprehensive' or 'professional' all with guarantees as to their accuracy.

You may be looking for legal, commercial, marketing translations or simply for someone to take your words and just make it readable through English to Spanish translation. Just remember that, like our diverse population with its different dialects and linguistic variations, and then Spain too has its regional variations - Catalan, Castilian, Basque and any mix of all of them. Thus looking for a simple 'Spanish translator', you need to look very carefully.

It isn't simply the regional variations but also the specifics of the document you want to translate, it could be that you actually need a native Spanish speaker with a very good grasp of the legal system and American English to be able to make the English to Spanish translation of that contract for services.

Tips on choosing translation agency

Looking for a Spanish translator, you will need to look at a number of translation agencies to find the most appropriate English to Spanish translation, the following steps might help you do it:

• Find an agency that employs native speaking Spaniards with a good grasp of English and who can demonstrate real and quantifiable experience in your required field.
• Look for an agency that can clearly show that its English to Spanish translations are checked both ways to ensure they are correct.
• Your chosen agency needs to be able to show that they employ Spanish translators with experience of all the regional dialects of Spain.
• Ask for some affidavits from clients in your line of work having a great English to Spanish translation for a marketing document won't suffice when you are looking at contractual and legal documents.
• Don't go for the cheapest, give them a difficult sample to test the mettle of the system, see how long it takes to turn round and then see how accurate it is.

A final word or two, having your documents translated into any language can be fraught with danger, if you find a good translating agency, stick with it.