Sloppy Spanish Translation at Airports
These stories have become so commonplace - it’s amazing. The real question is who is doing these translations? One would think an airport understands the importance of global travel and communication with an international customer base. And they should also never be using translators who aren’t native in their translating language… On the other hand, translation is an art, not a science, so there will be variation. But in a single building, single project, there needs to be consistency. However, these types of stories are always interesting…
With the rise of international travel, language issues also have become critical. Should signs be multilingual? Which language gets top billing?
Share ThisTranslations can be especially tricky because even within the same language, idioms vary from country to country. At Hartsfield, where Delta Air Lines Inc. has been expanding into Latin American markets, officials last year began posting some signs in English and Spanish. But controversy erupted over the Spanish translation for “gate.” Delta finally decided on “salida,” (Spanish for “exit”), but some Spanish-speakers complain the word should be “puerta,” or “door,” says Mr. Yee.
Joe Labozan of Carter & Burgess prowls the world’s airports pondering questions such as, why does one sign say “toilet” and another say “restroom”? Inconsistency is one of his signage peeves. Other common problems include too many signs that create confusing clutter, and a lack of signs at “decision points” such as corridor crossings or the bottom of escalators, where people pause to decide their next move.
US Airways Group Inc. recently called in Mr. Labozan to diagnose problems in its terminals at Philadelphia’s labyrinthine airport, where passengers have such a hard time transferring that the airline has dedicated an employee to giving directions.