言語の崩壊

先日医薬品に関する質問表を翻訳している間に色々「行政用語」にもであった。
その中に文献の所で「基発」と言う妙な言葉があった。多数の辞書やリソースを調べても、妻に聞いても分からなかった。翻訳会社に問い合わせた所：
「基発」とは
「厚生労働省労働基準局長から各都道府県労働局長宛の通達」
と言うそうだ。

たった二文字から上記の何と26文字分は私の能力ではどうにも導き出せない。
私は言葉はAとBが互いに理解出来る通信手段（ひつとの大事な役割）だと思う。
上記の「省略」は言葉＝通信手段を破壊しているような気がする。

The disintegration of language

The disintegration of language - demonstrated by a project manager of a translation agency.

* Forget about capitalization at sentence begin of of proper nouns.
* Forget about complete sentences.
* Speak "abbrevi-English" = gibberish.
* Not to speak of properly addressing the people spoken to or naming/signing by the author.
* Please - anybody - explain to me what exactly is gained by this disintegration of the language. Does it "look cool"? Not to me.
Does/did it save the author time because of all the missing things?
If it did so, what did the author do with that time?

Erich From put this into the wonderful following words:
Modern man thinks he loses something - time - when he does not do things quickly.
Yet he does not know what to do with the time he gains -- except kill it.




cited from a mail received:
>> hello!
I hope you are having a nice friday!
can you help with a new EN>DE translation job? this is about 2k words. could you finish by 8am est 1.30 SUN?

LMK if you can take this and I will send the files! if you need some extra time to finish I will try to accommodate.
best,<<

「白衣」と言う単語について：

先日 和英訳した所で「白衣」の言葉に関して質問がされました。
私は "white coat (robe)" を使ったが、アメリカ人がそれはアメリカでは普通（？）/頻繁に "lab coat" と称するそうだ。それはあるかもしれないが、私は（飽くまでも***個人的に***）その表現が好まない。それを切っ掛けにして「白衣」に関して一言を言いたい。

下記の参考サイトで記載されている事も念頭にして、通常白衣、或いはさらに広い意味で「作業服」は作業している人を色々な意味で「守る」役割を果たしてしまう。白衣などの場合それを着る人の普段着の「汚れ」を防ぐ事が多い。患者への感染防止の役割は然程考えなくても良いと思います。手術に使うもの意外には白衣は別に滅菌済みでもないし、一日何人の患者を付き合う間に気が遠くなるほどの「汚れ」が付着し、そのまま患者に移ると想像できる。ならば、医療従事者を守る。患者から！「あなた（患者）は私（医療従事者）を汚すから白衣を着ます。」
そのような場面は確かにありますが、ここでは「内科」や「鍼灸」の仕事を考えてそれは通常では起きにくいしょう。

私はもう昔から原則として白衣を着ない。病院内で動く必用がある場合のみ。患者と治療者を意図的同レベルで接触出来る環境を提供したいからです。

まして、上記の "lab coat" の場合は状況更に悪化する。"lab" = laboratory = 研究室/実験室の事だ。患者を出会える場所は実験室ではない！もし「治療室」にいる患者を実験室にいるハムスターと取り違える人がいましたら、今一度反省して欲しい。

上記の訳で私は通常の辞書にも使われる、常識と信念にあった "white coat/robe" をお勧めするし、"lab coat" を使う人に再度考えて頂く事を促したい・・・
（「常識」に付いて後日に触れたい）

申し訳ない。


参考サイト/記述
http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%99%BD%E8%A1%A3
白衣（はくい、White Coat）は、業務等において着用する主に白色または淡色の外衣のことである。
主に医療従事者、衛生・調理従事者、実験従事者等が着用する。学校の給食の配膳などの場面では児童・生徒も着用する。白衣の着用には、衛生、災害予防、制服としての機能があり、薬品に耐えるよう綿で作られているものもある。
ドイツ語では「Laborkittel」英語でも「Lab. coat」と呼ばれる。また、黒い白衣(Schwarzes Laborkittel)はドイツにおける伝統的な死刑執行人の服装である。
see also the English entry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_coat

http://ejje.weblio.jp/content/%E7%99%BD%E8%A1%A3
はくい 白衣 = a white robe [dress]
〈医者などの〉 a white coat [apron]
白衣の天使 = an angel in white, a nurse.
白衣高血圧 = white coat hypertension

http://www.websaru.info/%E7%99%BD%E8%A1%A3.html
白衣 = white robe, (doctor's) white gown

http://smart.fm/items/922493-lab-coat
lab coat - 実験用白衣
英語 → 日本語

http://www.dict.cc/?s=lab+coat
lab coat    Laborkittel {m} [mantelartig]    
cloth. lab coat [coll.]    Labormantel {m}
medical scrubs [coll.]    Arztkittel {m}    
cloth. (doctor's) white coat    Arztkittel {m}

http://dict.leo.org/ende?lp=ende&lang=de&searchLoc=0&cmpType=relaxed&sectHdr=on&spellToler=&search=lab+coat
Substantive (5 of 5)
      lab coat [coll.]         der Arztkittel   
      lab coat [coll.]          der Kittel [ugs.]   - Laborkittel   
      lab coat [coll.]         der Kittel   - fuer Aerzte, Schwestern etc.   
      lab coat [coll.]         der Laborkittel   
      lab coat [coll.]          der Labormantel
（つまり：lab coat [coll.]　⇒　それは口語であって、更に上品の言葉は優先的に使われる（べき）でしょう。

Chinese quality

First, I get what everybody would consider spam:

"... Ltd is a dynamic, growing translation agency ... translators, with rich practical experience, are certified in China. ... We do our best to provide first class quality, because satisfying the needs of our clients is our main goal.
Your early reply is appreciated!

I did answer:

>China?
>No thank you.

Response:
Hi Sir:
Can you tell me why? Why do you refuse Chinese company?

>I am wasting my time, but since you ask ...
> From personal experience I know, that Chinese just love to spread false
>information (less politely = lie) and deceive (= cheat).
>I would never volunteer to work for Chinese again.
>
>Have a look at your national TV: they proudly announce that they again
>"succeeded" in "using" foreign intellectual property (patents,
>trade marks, characters etc., which is naturally protected as
>intellectual property on a global scale) -> that means THEFT!
>
>Try and buy ANY piece of software (music, PC), books, branded articles
>(Rolex) from China.
>You get about 100% PIRATED products. That also means THEFT!
>
>A bunch of pirates (Chinese even admit that themselves!). I don't like
>pirates.
>
>And ... since I am a service provider myself, I naturally don't care
>about your "services".
>But of course, since you probably send these mails to millions of people
>(that is called "spam". I don't like that either), you did not notice.
>
>(Did you notice that your "high quality English" is rather funny?
>"Hi Sir" -> "Hi" is used colloquially among friends, "Sir" is a formal,
>honorific address. These do not fit together.
>But, well, Chinese quality ...

Dear Sir:
Thank you for teaching me a lesson. If you don't absolutely know our Country's
condition, you can't stand the position to address the follow words.

I suppose, this last sentence means, that I have not enough information/knowledge to judge China. Would that include the worldwide known fact, that almost all products from China are pirated? All those "copied" Chinese products - I find it extremely hard to imagine, that the respective Chinese makers are paying the holders of the real brands any premiums.
Personally, I have not yet seen ANY product of really good quality, that had on its back somewhere "Made in China". This goes from acupuncture needles, over books, consumer products to some special order-made cast iron parts for a coal mill, worth several million dollars(!!!) I had the privilege to investigate during an interpretation job. And, naturally, that goes also for translations. I know of books, that have been "translated" into Chinese, significantly altering the content, so that it suits the communist party rules, and is on sale in China, but the Chinese pay no royalties whatsoever to the author. Even though I do not have any concrete further information myself, I find it hard to believe, that this is exception.

So, and now this (and other) translation agency comes along and wants me (everybody) believe in their sincere efforts, honesty, credibility and high quality. Well, I can speak only for myself. In case anybody would like to place their orders with the mentioned company I gladly pass on the address ...

** Two days later I got the EXACT SAME mail from the same person, who thereby verified herself, that she is distributing spam. Naturally low quality spam. (The highly educated, certified  supertranslators apparently were not able to find, that "Frammaker" is misspelled. But I am sure, every other piece of work will always be flawless ...)

"Translation industry's leading workplace"

Recently, again for the x-th time, I got a mail from Proz.com asking me to renew my membership, which expired 1-2 years ago.
> *Thank you for using ProZ.com*.
>
> *During good times and bad, as a smart business person, it is important to keep your client flow going, and maintain a high-profile presence in the marketplace--* even if you are fully booked at the moment. As the translation industry's leading workplace, ProZ.com is the number one source of new clients for translators. As you know, the best way to market your services on the site is to be a full member (the site is designed to promote members before non-members).

Well, my personal view is, that based on the very nature of sites like Proz.com, they are basically slave markets, where outsourcers from around the world look for "best rates" = cheapest labor.

So, I answered the lady, who sent me that mail as follows. I can speak ONLY for myself, but believe, quite a number of translators may harbor similar feelings ...

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Thank you for your mail, but ...
I heard all this before. Yet, 10 years of experience with Proz.com has proven beyond any doubt that Proz.com is basically a slave market, where the outsourcers always are looking for "best rates" (= cheapest). And since the market includes the entire world, there are enough places, where people can make a living on rates considered elsewhere to be signficantly substandard.
As far as I can remember I got NEVER ANY job through Proz.com.
That includes the period of my paid membership (waste of money!).
The founder of Proz.com, with a little luck Henry remembers me, has lived and worked in the past in Japan.
I refuse to believe, that HE would ever work for what is offered on Proz.com.

ALL offers - no exceptions - coming through Proz.com have ALWAYS considered me to be too expensive.
Fine. But living in Japan I cannot afford to work for peanuts.
If I were to accept jobs through Proz.com at the offered rates, I would be working (maybe even overtime) and still starving with my family to death.
No thank you.

There has  been no satisfaction with my last membership.
It is highly unlikely that a renewed membership would suddenly produce any mirracles.
None of the funny calculation Henry offers, like if you get one big client in 10 years, even the membership for 10 years would pay off, do work.
I have never ever seen any glint of hope, that this may actually happen.

Dropping the bars ...

Today - again - Edisense in India is bombarding the net via multiple translator sites with its fabulous job offers. Today's offer:
Japanese-English translation; volume: 50,000 pages !!!!!!!
(let's say, they pay 25 USD/page --> 1,250,000 USD !!! WOA.. That would be almost 200 times of my annual income! Let's go get this job.)

AND, hold on to your hat, they publish DIFFERENT job offers in different fields of expertise, ALL OF WHICH have a volume of 50,000 pages (at least 3 -> that would make 150,000 pages, worth something in the neighborhood of FOUR MILLION dollars. Incredible! (exactly: you cannot believe this)

But the requirements have significantly decreased:
* Should have minimum 1 year experience in Academic Translation
-> only ONE year. This used to be at least 5 years. But I guess, they cannot find the required specialists

* Should be a native speaker of either Japanese or English with proven Japanese skills
-> Since this is a translation INTO English, I have difficulties understanding the necessity for being a native JAPANESE?
I guess, the logic in India works differently from the rest of the world ...

用語を統一する

時代の流れでしょうが「用語は全て統一する」のは人間を馬鹿にする一方だと私は信じる。
特許でもない、技術論文でもない文章などを読んでいる人は極めて単調の文章を「楽しんでいる」とはとても思えない！
しかし、もう既に人間は機会（コンピュータ、CATツール等）で左右（支配？）され、言葉/コミュニケーションの良さ/楽しさ失いつつであるようだ。
そのような単調の文章で作製されたアンケート（良く仕事として要求される）を答えながら「嫌だなこれ！」と思う人々から快適な答えが得られるチャンスは低下する一方であろう・・・
同じく所謂「取扱説明書」もそのような単調の文章で書かれていると該当する機械などの使用者は先ず「こんなの読みたくない」と思うであろう。


別にその類の文章を少し面白く、humorously などに書けば（翻訳すれば）損することは何もないし、読んでいる人が好評を受ける可能性はある：「あの会社の商品も良いし、説明書を読んでよく分かるし、面白い」。
得するのはメーカーの筈だ。

私は自分の商売の中でこのような人間をロボット化に企む時代の流れに抵抗し続けるつもりだ。