http://rbth.ru/rubrics/found_in_translation.html Russia Beyond the Headlines en http://rbth.ru/articles/2010/07/22/when_spies_become_intelligence_officers.html Разведчик: an intelligence officer, prospector, scout, explorer Thu, 22 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/12/16/161209_isms.html When the congress of United Russia declared that Russian conservatism will be the party’s ideology, I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, it is entirely proper for a political party to have an ideology. Until recently, United Russia didn’t even try to choose one. But, on the other hand, we Russians seem to have an abiding dislike of any “-isms.” It may be the legacy of too much ideology in Soviet times, when Marxism-Leninism was mandatory in the media, universities and public speeches. Now, when people hate something or someone, they just tend to add an “-ism” to a person’s name. Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/12/03/031209_proverb.html Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/11/18/181109_liberal.html Is there an objective way to translate the word "liberal"? Wed, 18 Nov 2009 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/10/30/301009_rewards.html For simultaneous interpreters, there is one common thing: all words have precisely one equivalent in other languages. They have to be learnt, and given that most do not belong to the common word stock, learnt by rote. Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0300 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/10/22/221009_translation.html By now, most readers are almost certainly familiar with US Secretary of State Hillary Clintonґs embarrassing gaffe with Sergei Lavrov, which saw the eager-to-impress Clinton present Foreign Affairs Minister Lavrov with a red button featuring the Russian word "peregruzka" (overcharge) instead of the desired "perezagruzka" (reset). And, of course, weґve all heard of Khrushchevґs indignation when, having agreed to an interview on American TV, the interpreter somehow mistakenly informed Mr Khruschev that the interviewer had accused him of "baying like a hound." Or the now-infamous blunder at a Moscow hotel, where a sign written in English informed visitors: "You are welcome to visit the cemetery where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists, and writers are buried daily except Thursdays." The point is that these bloopers are inevitable. In essence, the art of translation is no different from walking on eggshells. Each word carries several different meanings and cultural connotations, and their combinations almost never coincide in different languages - meaning, unfortunately, that mistakes are bound to happen, and when they do, it may be best to use the opportunity to take note of these cultural and linguistic differences. Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/10/02/021009_suffix.html Fri, 02 Oct 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/08/28/280809_realno.html Is this apparent "negativism" a matter of culture? Is Russian culture the opposite of Japanese, in which they donґt say "no" even when they mean no? My answer is: perhaps. Fri, 28 Aug 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/07/01/010709_winged.html The word "liberal" means different things in Europe and in America, in politics and economics, and in different languages. Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/06/11/110609_trans.html When I was growing up, my elders used a lot of what linguists call "phraseology". My grandmotherґs speech, for example, was full of proverbs, sayings and metaphors. Itґs not the same anymore: one rarely hears those colourful phrases, some of which were so Russian I would probably have been stumped to find a good rendering in English. Fortunately, at that time, it was the last thing on my mind. I was just enjoying listening to grandma. Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/04/29/290409_leadership.html It is more a cultural than a linguistic problem and needs clarifying. Translators and students of foreign languages are familiar with the problem of what the French call faux amis (translatorsґ false friends), words that have the same origin and often look and sound the same but mean different things in different languages. Examples include the English word anecdote and the Russian "anekdot" (a joke) or velvet-in Russian "velvet" stands for corduroy. Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2009/04/02/020409_dazzle.html Yet, the use of red for "Republican" still sounds odd to most Russians, and may well be forgotten until the next elections in the United States. Thu, 02 Apr 2009 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2008/06/26/Sports_Created.html Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2008/06/25/Authorґs mistake.html Wed, 25 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2008/04/30/2008_04_WP_07_Sketches_Russia.html Born in 1950, Victor Veber is one of the prominent Russian translators of modern British and American literature. Among the works he has translated are over 400 novels and stories of American, Australian and English writers. These include John Dos Passos, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Frederick Forsyth, Graham Green, Stephen King, Somerset Maugham, Alan A. Milne, John B. Priestly, Mario Puso, Irwin Shaw, Morris West. He is currently translating "Duma Key," Stephen Kingґs latest novel. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/article.php?id=10015 Thu, 25 Oct 2007 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/article.php?id=54 Wed, 26 Sep 2007 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/article.php?id=55 Wed, 26 Sep 2007 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/article.php?id=19 Sat, 25 Aug 2007 00:00:00 +0400 http://rbth.ru/articles/2007/08/25/250807_rueng.html Sat, 25 Aug 2007 00:00:00 +0400