Technical translation English to Chinese

Chinese as a factor for success

The Chinese economy continues to grow, albeit not as strongly as in previous years. And the Chinese value the Germans as a trading and economic partner despite major cultural differences. Language builds bridges to business partners and customers. Therefore, the translation from English to Chinese is equally a bridge builder.

In the past, China was more of a supplier with its high labor potential. In contrast, the country is now considered an attractive sales market. The market for English-Chinese translations is growing accordingly. This also applies to the technology sector in particular.

We at PRODOC recognize this too. This is why the English-Chinese language combination is one of the most popular in our translation agency.

Challenges for English-Chinese translators

China is a huge empire with a very long history. This is also reflected in the language. More than one billion people speak Chinese today. But a unique Chinese does not exist. The spelling system comprises more than 12,000 characters.

Nowadays it is written in two versions:

• in the traditional, sometimes very complex characters, and
• in the simplified characters introduced in thescript reform of 1956.

Chinese is based on a syllabic alphabet. Futhermore, latin letters were also integrated as economic contact with Western cultures increased. Therefore, the sound of the characters is transmitted using these letters.

Moreover, translation from English into Chinese is made more complex by numerous dialects. Of course, China also has a high-level language, Mandarin. However, only 73% of Chinese people speak this variant.

There are also seven main dialects, which are subdivided into numerous sub-forms. Dialects that are also spoken in large economic centers are particularly important. This refers to Cantonese.

Therefore, the challenge in technical translation from English into Chinese lies not only in the script. In addition, “Mandarin or dialect” is an important decision. Because there is no such thing as the translation into Chinese, there is also no such thing as the translator.

English – Chinese translator

The Chinese are very performance-oriented. They are very critical when it comes to translations from English into Chinese. They do not forgive mistakes. Therefore, the translator must be absolutely accurate. This applies to language aspects such as typical formulations and established idioms. Cultural aspects of the language are also important.

PRODOC not only translates from English into Chinese, but also from German. So if you want to translate German into Chinese, you don’t have to take the indirect route via English. This is not the case with the PRODOC translation agency for German-Chinese. Our translators are native speakers. They can translate directly from German into Chinese.

Among other things, we translate:

• Application reports, operating instructions and data sheets
• Brochures and flyers
• CMS data
• Software and user interfaces
• Websites

These translations from English into Chinese require language skills at the level of a native speaker. Our translators always have a technical background. In this way, we ensure that even complex correlations are always understood correctly. This means that they are also translated correctly.

Chinese is written in horizontal lines from left to right. Therefore, no changes need to be made to the layout for the font direction and captions. This also simplifies the adaptation of websites, user interfaces and other digital products when we translate them from English into Chinese.