15 Min. Read | Jessica Rivera | December 13, 2022 |
With 483 million native speakers, Spanish is the second most common mother tongue in the world. Moreover, 13% of Americans speak Spanish as their main language at home. The United States has the second highest number of Spanish speakers in the world, second only to Mexico.
So, it should come as no surprise that it’s also one of the most popular languages for website translation. Before translating English to Spanish, think about your target audience, local language, and culture.
Although English to Spanish is a common language pair, a Spanish translation still presents several challenges. These include:
Here’s an example of each:
Spanish has ten major variations across the globe. For reference, English only has seven. The variations of Spanish include:
Spain (Peninsular Spanish):
Canary Islands:
Gibraltar:
The Americas:
Africa:
Each dialect has variations in grammar, vocabulary, and cultural norms. U.S. Spanish borrows English words and keeps U.S. formats for dates, addresses, and measurements.
Translation is difficult because you must decide which region(s) you want to target.
Human translators should use a localization approach to ensure the content is grammatically and linguistically correct for each region. Unlike traditional translation, localization gives translators more flexibility with word choice, tone, and makes it easier to adapt content for cultural norms.
Unlike English, Spanish has two levels of formality to address someone. You use “usted/ustedes” to address those you don’t know well or who are in a higher position. You can address friends, family, or children with “tú/vos/ustedes“. In Latin America, ustedes also serves as the informal you all, but in Spain people use vosotros/vosotras instead.
This poses a challenge when it comes to setting the right tone for an English to Spanish translation. Should you use the informal you to sound more personable or err on the side of formality?
Linguists have to strike a happy medium between messaging and formality. To do so, they need a thorough understanding of the cultural preferences of the local-specific markets.
Spanish text is about 20 to 30% longer than English. This is because it often uses additional words to convey the same message. For example, the English word “please” translates to “por favor”.
The longer text length poses a challenge because of space constraints. Formatting, buttons, and dropdowns can restrict character count, making it hard to replicate the message in Spanish.
Internationalization involves creating a website that can adapt to different text lengths, orientations, and special characters. This is in contrast to localization, which focuses solely on one language.
Spanish is a Romance language and English is a Germanic language, so they use different grammar rules. These include:
A professional Spanish translator can easily identify subtle differences in grammar and account for them. This poses more of a challenge if you’re looking for an automated solution such as neural machine translation (NMT).
Culture also has a big impact on translation. Each culture has unique ways of communicating and expressing ideas.
For example, the tone of English language marketing tends to be more enthusiastic and relies on exclamation points to reinforce this. However, doing so in Spanish may seem demanding instead of persuasive.
The concept of time also differs. In Spanish-speaking cultures, time is less rigid and schedules tend to be more flexible. For example, in Spanish, there’s no distinction between evening and night. This can impact how urgent a message sounds.
You’ll need knowledge of cultural norms and preferences to communicate with your Spanish-speaking audience.
Taking a localized approach allows translators to adapt the message to better appeal to Spanish-speaking audiences. Website localization is more than just translating. It also takes into account cultural differences and tone of voice.
False cognates or “false friends” are words that look and sound similar, but don’t have the same meaning. These include:
While false cognates are no trouble for professional linguists, they can trip up non-native speakers.
Hiring a professional translator is key. Even if someone on your team speaks Spanish, they may not have a deep enough understanding to translate everything correctly. Plus, translators have the advantage of using translation software such as a translation memory to assist them.
Negative statements and questions are formed differently in each language. Below are four ways Spanish differs from English:
No auxiliaries
Spanish doesn’t use auxiliary verbs, also called helping verbs, to communicate complicated grammatical concepts such as aspects of time or modalities. To create a negative sentence, you only need the participle “no” and the verb. For example, “I don’t eat meat” translates to “No como carne.”
Double negation vs. Single negation
If you start a sentence with a negative verb, you need another negative element such as nunca (never), nada (none) or nadie (no one). For example, “There is nobody in the house.” translates to “No hay nadie en la casa.”
Yet if the negative word comes before the verb, you only need a single negation. For example, “You never help me.” translates to “Nunca me ayudas.”
Negative Imperative and the Subjunctive Mood.
To give an order in English, use the infinitive verb “don’t” and make it negative. In Spanish, you use the present subjunctive mood that matches the subject. For example, “Don’t go.” translates to “No te vayas.”
Question Tags
In Spanish, question tags primarily serve to confirm the initial statement. Below is a list of common question tags and how to use them correctly.
For example, “It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?” translates to, “Es un lindo día, ¿no cierto?”
To ensure your content is grammatically correct, you should work with translators who are native Spanish speakers. They’ll have the expertise to determine what can and can’t be omitted.
Another thing to consider? Certain words don’t have a direct translation from English to Spanish and vice versa. Here are just three words that exist in Spanish, but not in English.
Translators often need to get creative when there are no direct translations between languages.
There are a few more things to consider when building an English to Spanish website:
You’ll also want to consider how to best translate your website. Below is a look at three different technologies that help you adapt your content quickly and affordably.
The method you choose will depend on your ongoing translation needs and budget.
Translating a website from English to Spanish is a major undertaking. That’s why you should hire a reliable website translation service to ensure accuracy and efficiency.
At MotionPoint, we’ll help you choose the right solution for your needs and goals. With our technology and expert linguists, we have the tools to bring your Spanish website to life.
Want to learn more? Contact MotionPoint today.