Cover not available
Article published In:
Localization around the globe
Edited by Minako O'Hagan and Julie McDonough Dolmaya
[The Journal of Internationalization and Localization 7:1/2] 2020
► pp. 95–121

Neural machine translation and the evolution of the localisation sector

Implications for training

| Dublin City University
| University of Antwerp

The localisation sector is highly technologized and evolves rapidly. Though significant consideration has been given to third-level training in localisation for Translation Studies students, the nature of the industry is such that this topic demands regular attention. Our objective was to survey employees and executive managers to understand what impact recent technological developments, including but not limited to neural machine translation (NMT), might have on future skills and training requirements for localisation linguists. Our findings are that linguists in localisation take up a variety of roles, including transcreation, data mining, and project and vendor management. NMT is considered an important advancement, and its introduction has emphasised the need for a critical use of technology, while opening new career pathways, such as data curation and annotation. Domain specialisation is recommended for those who translate, and transferable soft skills are more essential than ever. Increased industry and interdisciplinary collaborations in training are also considered valuable.

Keywords: localisation, training, employability, translation graduate skills
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Related work
  • 3.Methodology
    • 3.1Survey with employees
    • 3.2Interviews with executive managers
    • 3.3Coding and analysis
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Demographic profile and background
      • 4.1.1Survey respondents
      • 4.1.2Interviewees
    • 4.2Evolution of the localisation sector and implications for training
      • 4.2.1Market
      • 4.2.2Technological advances
      • 4.2.3Profession
      • 4.2.4Skills and competences
      • 4.2.5Training
  • 5.Conclusions and discussion
    • 5.1Profiling the localisation sector
    • 5.2What does it mean to be a linguist in localisation today?
    • 5.3(N)MT and implications for future training
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 6 January 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/jial.20005.obr
References
Al-Batineh, Mohammed, and Loubna Bilali
2017 “Translator Training in the Arab World: Are Curricula Aligned with the Language Industry?” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (2–3): 187–203. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Álvarez-Álvarez, Susana, and Verónica Arnáiz-Uzquiza
2017 “Translation and Interpreting Graduates under Construction: Do Spanish Translation and Interpreting Studies Curricula Answer the Challenges of Employability?” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (2–3): 139–159. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Astley, Helen, and Olga Torres Hostench
2017 “The European Graduate Placement Scheme: An Integrated Approach to Preparing Master’s in Translation Graduates for Employment.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (2–3): 204–222. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Baños, Rocío, and Pier Antonio Toto
2013 “Challenges and Constraints in Designing a Localisation Module for a Multilingual Cohort.” In Conducting Research in Translation Technologies, edited by Pilar Sánchez Gijón, Olga Torres Hostench, and Bartolomé Mesa Lao, 185–205. Oxford: Peter Lang.Google Scholar
Braun, Virginia, and Victoria Clarke
2006 “Using Thematic Analysis in Psychology.” Qualitative Research in Psychology 3(2): 77–101. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Cadwell, Patrick, Sharon O’Brien, and Carlos Teixeira
2018 “Resistance and Accommodation: Factors for the (non-)Adoption of Machine Translation among Professional Translators.” Perspectives 26 (3): 301–321. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Castilho, Sheila, Joss Moorkens, Federico Gaspari, Iacer Calixto, John Tinsley, and Andy Way
2017 “Is Neural Machine Translation the New State of the Art?” The Prague Bulletin of Mathematical Linguistics 108 (1): 109–120. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Castilho, Sheila, and Sharon O’Brien
2016 “Content Profiling and Translation Scenarios.” The Journal of Internationalization and Localization 3 (1): 18–37. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dunne, Kieran
2011 “From Vicious to Virtuous Cycle: Customer-focused Translation Quality Management Using ISO 9001 Principles and Agile Methods.” In Translation and Localization Project Management: The Art of the Possible, edited by Kieran Dunne and Elena Dunne, 153–188. Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
European Master’s in Translation
2017 EMT Competence Framework 2017. [URL]
European Union Association of Translation Companies
2019 Language Industry Survey – Expectations and Concerns of the European Language Industry. [URL]
Folaron, Debbie
2020 “Technology, Technical Translation, and Localization.” In The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Technology, edited by Minako O’Hagan. Abingdon, United Kingdom: Routledge.Google Scholar
Gaspari, Federico, Hala Almaghout, and Stephen Doherty
2015 “A Survey of Machine Translation Competences: Insights for Translation Technology Educators and Practitioners.” Perspectives 23 (3): 333–358. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Ginovart Cid, Clara, Carme Colominas, and Antoni Oliver
2020 “Language Industry Views on the Profile of the Post-Editor”. Translation Spaces (Online). [URL]
Jiménez Crespo, Miguel
2018 “Localisation Research in Translation Studies: Expanding the Limits or Blurring the Lines?” In Moving Boundaries in Translation Studies, by Helle Dam, Matilde Brøgger and Karen Zethsen, 26–44. Abingdon: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Jiménez Crespo, Miguel and Maribel Tercedor
2011 “Applying Corpus Data to Define Needs in Web Localization Training.” Meta: Translators’ Journal 56 (4): 998–1021. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kenny, Dorothy, and Stephen Doherty
2014 “Statistical Machine Translation in the Translation Curriculum: Overcoming Obstacles and Empowering Translators.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 8 (2): 276–294. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
King, Hayley
2017 “Translator Education Programs & the Translation Labour Market: Linear Career Progression or a Touch of Chaos?” T and I Review 71: 133–151.Google Scholar
Kiraly, Don
2005 “Project-Based Learning: A Case for Situated Translation.” Meta: Translators’ Journal 50 (4): 1098–1111. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Lafeber, Anne
2012 “Translation Skills and Knowledge-Preliminary Findings of a Survey of Translators and Revisers Working at Inter-Governmental Organizations.” Meta: Translators’ Journal 57 (1): 108–131. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
LeBlanc, Matthieu
2017 “ ‘I Can’t Get no Satisfaction!’ Should we Blame Translation Technologies or Shifting Business Practices?” In Human Issues in Translation Technology, by Dorothy Kenny, 63–80. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Marshman, Elizabeth, and Lynne Bowker
2012 “Translation Technologies as Seen through the Eyes of the Educators and Students: Harmonizing Views with the Help of a Centralized Teaching and Learning Resource.” In Global Trends in Translator and Interpreter Training, edited by Séverine Hubscher-Davidson and Michal Borodo, 69–95. London: Continuum.Google Scholar
Massey, Gary
2019 “Learning to Learn, Teach and Develop: Co-emergent Perspectives on Translator and Language-mediator Education.” InTRAlinea: Online Translation Journal. [URL]
Matthews, Bob, and Liz Ross
2010 Research Methods: A Practical Guide for the Social Sciences. New York: Pearson Longman.Google Scholar
McDonough, Julie
2007 “How do Language Professionals Organize Themselves? An Overview of Translation Networks.” Meta: Translators’ Journal 52 (4): 793–815. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Mellinger, Christopher
2017 “Translators and Machine Translation: Knowledge and Skills Gaps in Translator Pedagogy.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (4): 280–293. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
2018 “Problem-based Learning in Computer-assisted Translation Pedagogy.” HERMES – Journal of Language and Communication in Business 571: 195–208. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Moorkens, Joss
2018 “What to Expect from Neural Machine Translation: A Practical In-class Translation Evaluation Exercise.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 12 (4): 375–387. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Moorkens, Joss, and Sharon O’Brien
2017 “Assessing User Interface Needs of Post-Editors of Machine Translation.” In Human Issues in Translation Technology, edited by Dorothy Kenny, 109–130. Abingdon: Routledge.Google Scholar
O’Brien, Sharon
2012 “Translation as Human-Computer Interaction.” Translation Spaces 1 (1): 101–122. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
O’Hagan, Minako
2006 “Training for Localization (Replies to a Questionnaire).” In Translation Technology and Its Teaching, edited by Anthony Pym, Alexander Perekrestenko, and Bram Starink, 39–44. Tarragona, Spain: Intercultural Studies Group Universitat Rovira i Virgili.Google Scholar
Olohan, Maeve
2007 “Economic Trends and Developments in the Translation Industry: What Relevance for Translator Training?” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 1 (1): 37–63. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Pym, Anthony
2014 “Localization, Training, and Instrumentalization.” In Translation Research Projects 5, edited by Esther Torres-Simón and David Orrego-Carmona, 37–50. Tarragona, Spain: Intercultural Studies Group Universitat Rovira i Virgili.Google Scholar
Rodríguez-Castro, Mónica
2016 “Intrinsic and Extrinsic Sources of Translator Satisfaction: An Empirical Study.” Entreculturas 7–81: 195–229.Google Scholar
Rodríguez de Céspedes, Begoña
2017 “Addressing Employability and Enterprise Responsibilities in the Translation Curriculum.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (2–3): 107–122. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Rodríguez de Céspedes Begoña, Akiko Sakamoto, and Sarah Berthaud
eds. 2017 Employability in the Translator and Interpreter Curriculum. Special Issue of The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (2–3).Google Scholar
Salmon, Gillie
2019 “May the Fourth Be with You: Creating Education 4.0.” Journal of Learning for Development 6 (2): 95–115.Google Scholar
Sánchez Gijón, Pilar, Joss Moorkens, and Andy Way
2019 “Post-Editing Neural Machine Translation Versus Translation Memory Segments.” Machine Translation 331: 31–59. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Sánchez Ramos, María del Mar
2019 “Rethinking Professional Translation Roles: The Localisation of Mobile Applications.” Sendebar 301: 121–139.Google Scholar
Schäffner, Christina
2020 “Translators’ Roles and Responsibilities”. In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Erik Angelone, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow, and Gary Massey, 63–90. London: Bloomsbury Academic. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Schnell, Bettina, and Nadia Rodríguez
2017 “Ivory Tower vs. Workplace Reality: Employability and the T&I Curriculum-balancing Academic Education and Vocational Requirements: A Study from the Employers’ Perspective.” The Interpreter and Translator Trainer 11 (2–3): 160–186. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Shreve, Gregory
2020 “Professional Translator Development from an Expertise Perspective.” In The Bloomsbury Companion to Language Industry Studies, edited by Erik Angelone, Maureen Ehrensberger-Dow, and Gary Massey, 153–178. London: Bloomsbury Academic. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Toral, Antonio, Martijn Wieling, and Andy Way
2018 “Post-Editing Effort of a Novel With Statistical and Neural Machine Translation.” Frontiers in Digital Humanities. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Torres del Rey, Jesús
2019 “The Proper Place of Localization in Translation Curricula: An Inclusive Social, Object-Driven, Semiotic-Communicative Approach.” In The Evolving Curriculum in Interpreter and Translator Education. Stakeholder Perspectives and Voices, edited by David B. Sawyer, Frank Austermühl, and Vanessa Enríquez Raído, 229–258. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Valero Garcés, Carmen, and Daniel Toudic
2015 “Technological Innovation and Translation. Training Translators in the EU for the 21st century.” Verbeia. [URL]
Van Egdom, Gys-Walt, and Mark Pluymaekers
2020 “Quality According to Language Service Providers.” In New Empirical Perspectives on Translation and Interpreting, edited by Lore Vandevoorde, Joke Daems, and Bart Defrancq, 139–156. New York and London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Vieira, Nunes Lucas
2020 “Automation Anxiety and Translators.” Translation Studies 13 (1): 1–21. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Wang, Xu, Chunyang Chen, and Zhenchang Xing
2019 “Domain-specific Machine Translation with Recurrent Neural Network for Software Localization.” Empirical Software Engineering 241: 3514–3545. DOI logoGoogle Scholar