Looking for expert Afrikaans translation services? Since 2003, Green Crescent has been providing professional translation services between English and Afrikaans to clients worldwide. We specialize in industries such as legal, technical, marketing, and business sectors. Our team guarantees accurate, high-quality translations tailored to your specific needs. Request a fast, free Afrikaans translation quote today!
Our Comprehensive Afrikaans Translation Services
Green Crescent’s skilled team of Afrikaans translators includes subject matter experts for industry-specific needs. We provide translations tailored to all major uses of the Afrikaans language, including:
- Standard Afrikaans (South Africa)
- Regional variations of Afrikaans (spoken across Southern Africa)
- Business and formal Afrikaans
We specialize in both English to Afrikaans and Afrikaans to English translations, offering the following services:
Simple Translation
Our simple translations in the English/Afrikaans language pair are designed for basic communication needs. These translations are completed by a single Afrikaans translator without the involvement of an editor or proofreader, and therefore should not be considered final or Afrikaansed work for most professional or formal use cases. While they are typically of high quality, simple translations are essentially "rough drafts" that do not go through additional editing, proofreading, or other quality control processes. These translations are ideal for personal letters, informal communications, initial drafts that will later be revised, or for situations where you need to quickly understand the general meaning or "gist" of an Afrikaans text.
Standard Translation (TEP)
Our Standard Afrikaans Translation service is designed to provide high-quality translations for everyday use, including business correspondence, websites, reports, presentations, and similar content. This service includes translation, editing, and proofreading (TEP) to ensure the highest level of accuracy and clarity in your Afrikaans communications.
Organization Critical Translation (TEP+)
Our Organization Critical Afrikaans Translation service is designed for situations where perfection is essential. This option is recommended for texts intended for large-scale printing, technical documents, legal contracts and patents, medical documents, or any case where an error could be critical or costly. Each translated line is reviewed by a minimum of three linguists, with multiple rounds of proofreading. Subject matter experts (SMEs) may be involved as needed throughout the Afrikaans translation, editing, and proofreading (TEP) process.
Bilingual Editing
Bilingual Editing for Afrikaans Translation is the process of editing a translated text by comparing both the source and target texts in the English/Afrikaans language pair. The editor, fluent in the source language and a native speaker of Afrikaans, ensures that the translation is accurate, consistent, and faithful to the source text while also maintaining clarity and fluency in Afrikaans. This step occurs after the initial translation in our TEP (Translation, Editing, Proofreading) Organization Critical and Standard Translation services. We also offer this service as a standalone option for translations completed by individuals or organizations not affiliated with Green Crescent.
Proofreading
With each additional round of editing and proofreading, the error rate of a document approaches the perfection horizon. Our proofreading service for English to Afrikaans and Afrikaans to English translations involves reviewing a single-language text to identify and correct surface-level errors, such as spelling mistakes, grammar issues, punctuation errors, and formatting inconsistencies. This step is the final phase in our TEP (Translation, Editing, Proofreading) Organization Critical and Standard translation services. We also offer proofreading as a standalone service for translations completed by individuals or organizations not affiliated with Green Crescent.
Legal Translation
Green Crescent's elite team of linguists, each with subject matter expertise in specialized legal fields, is ready to assist you with the translation of a wide range of judicial, administrative, and private legal documents between Afrikaans and English. Nearly all countries recognize that submitting documents for translation does not compromise attorney-client privilege. Furthermore, we can implement enhanced security measures to ensure strict confidentiality upon request.
Technical Translation
Technical translations involve any text that features specialized vocabulary or language registers, necessitating additional research and terminology verification. Common technical subject matter includes legal, medical, scientific, engineering, and IT topics, but any text that utilizes industry-specific terminology or neologisms may be considered technical in nature. These translations cannot be executed by generalists alone; they require the expertise of linguists with in-depth knowledge of the relevant technical field in both Afrikaans and English.
Medical Translation
Green Crescent has established protocols to ensure compliance with HIPAA and HITECH regulations, which you can learn more about here. Our Afrikaans medical translations are treated as "organization critical," unless otherwise specified, and we are committed to implementing the necessary digital security measures and legal safeguards for every project subject to HIPAA and HITECH requirements. Our team of skilled linguists, specialized in medical terminology, ensures that your translations are both accurate and secure.
Localization
Our translation services are tailored for specific target markets that require non-standard varieties or dialects of the Afrikaans language. Green Crescent is equipped to accommodate requests for localized Afrikaans translation, ensuring that your content resonates with the intended audience. Our experienced linguists are well-versed in the nuances of these dialects, allowing us to provide translations that are not only accurate but also culturally relevant and engaging. By focusing on the unique linguistic characteristics of each Afrikaans dialect, we help you effectively connect with your audience and enhance the impact of your message.
Website, App, and Software Localization for Afrikaans
At Green Crescent, we leverage our extensive experience in software development to provide specialized Afrikaans localization services. We excel in adapting your website, app, or software’s content, design, and functionality for Afrikaans-speaking audiences. Whether you need a fully multilingual solution or specific adaptations for Afrikaans, our services encompass translating text, adjusting images, and modifying layouts. We also adapt and program code for both mobile and desktop applications, ensuring that your app functions seamlessly across Afrikaans-speaking regions while adhering to platform-specific guidelines. Let us help you create an engaging and culturally relevant experience for your Afrikaans-speaking users.
Back-translation
Back-translation is often a crucial component of the quality control process, particularly when translating highly technical documents or for critical translations in the Afrikaans/English language pair where an error could have significant consequences. This process involves an independent linguist translating a previously translated text back into its original source language—either Afrikaans or English—without reference to the original document. The resulting text is then compared to the original translation to verify its intelligibility, accuracy, and suitability for its intended use. Back-translation is also relevant in situations such as the translation of legal documents, medical texts, and marketing materials, where precise wording is essential. It can be particularly beneficial when adapting content for different cultural contexts, ensuring that the intended message is preserved and resonates appropriately with the target audience in both Afrikaans and English.
Peer Review
Green Crescent offers professional focus group services that include a comprehensive "read-through" conducted by one or more linguists who were not involved in the original translation process. This approach allows for an unbiased assessment of the translation's quality, style, and overall fitness for its intended purpose. The focus group can evaluate various aspects of the text, including linguistic accuracy, cultural relevance, and the effectiveness of the messaging in reaching the target audience. Feedback is provided on how well the translation conveys the original intent and nuances of the source material, ensuring that it resonates with readers in both Afrikaans and English contexts.
SME Review
Subject Matter Expert (SME) review is a specialized form of peer review conducted by non-linguist professionals with deep expertise in specific fields. This process is particularly important for Afrikaans to English or English to Afrikaans translations of highly technical texts, ensuring that the content is both linguistically accurate and technically precise. In fields such as legal, medical, scientific, and engineering, SMEs help verify the correct use of industry-specific terminology, adherence to regulatory or technical standards, and the contextual relevance of the translated material. By incorporating SME review into the translation process, we ensure that your final product is not only fluent and culturally appropriate but also technically sound and ready for professional use in both Afrikaans- and English-speaking markets.
Transcreation
Our Afrikaans Transcreation Service goes beyond simple translation by creatively adapting your content to resonate with Afrikaans-speaking audiences. At Green Crescent, we ensure that your brand’s messages, campaigns, and communications maintain their original intent, emotional impact, and tone, while aligning with the cultural and linguistic nuances of the target market. Whether it’s marketing, branding, or advertising, we reimagine your content to feel authentic and compelling in Afrikaans, helping your brand connect meaningfully and effectively with Afrikaans-speaking audiences.
MTPE-Full (Machine Translation Post-Editing - Full)
MTPE-Full (Machine Translation Post-Editing - Full) refers to the comprehensive post-editing of a machine-translated text between Afrikaans and English, ensuring the final product meets the highest standards of linguistic quality. In this process, once the machine generates the translation, a skilled human editor thoroughly reviews the entire content, ensuring that it is not only accurate in meaning but also flows naturally and fluently in the target language. This detailed editing process includes correcting grammar, syntax, and terminology, adapting the text for the intended audience, and ensuring it adheres to any stylistic preferences or regulatory requirements. MTPE-Full is suitable for business-critical texts where precision and quality are paramount.
MTPE-Light (Machine Translation Post-Editing - Light)
MTPE-Light (Machine Translation Post-Editing - Light) is a more streamlined version of post-editing, designed for situations where speed and cost-efficiency are prioritized over linguistic perfection. In this process, the human editor focuses primarily on fixing major errors and ensuring that the overall meaning of the machine-translated text is clear and understandable in the target language (Afrikaans or English). While MTPE-Light may not deliver a translation that is fully Afrikaansed or ready for publication, it provides an efficient and cost-effective solution for internal documents, reports, and communications where basic comprehension is sufficient.
Additional Language Services and Options for Afrikaans
Certified Translation
Green Crescent provides certified translations of a wide range of legal documents, including birth, marriage, and death certificates, diplomas, school transcripts, passports, and much more, in both Afrikaans and English. Our certified translations are recognized for their accuracy and compliance with legal standards, making them suitable for official use. You can receive hard copies of our standard certificate of translation mailed directly to your home or business.
Rush Service
If you require expedited service, Green Crescent can usually accommodate such requests. However, please note that rushing translations often comes with trade-offs, which may affect both price and consistency. Please consult with a project manager for more details.
Discounts
Volume discounts are available for large projects, long-term clients, and for non-profits, charities, NGOs, and government organizations.
Minimum Fee
There is a minimum project fee of $75.00 USD per language, which can be reduced or waived for regular clients.
Additional Language Services
In addition to translation, Green Crescent offers a range of other Afrikaans language services, including interpretation, transcription, website design and development, and desktop publishing.
About the Afrikaans Language
Afrikaans is spoken by around 17 million people, primarily in South Africa and Namibia. It evolved from 17th-century Dutch and has been influenced by various languages, including Malay, Portuguese, and indigenous African languages. Afrikaans is unique in its simplified grammar compared to Dutch and other Germanic languages.
Afrikaans: Cultural Context and Linguistic Features
Afrikaans developed during the colonial period in southern Africa, blending Dutch with influences from Malay, Khoisan languages, and other African languages. Its structure is more streamlined compared to Dutch, with simplified verb conjugations and no gendered nouns. Despite this, Afrikaans maintains a rich literary tradition, with notable authors such as Breyten Breytenbach and André Brink contributing to its cultural depth.
The language is predominantly spoken in South Africa and Namibia but has speakers across the world due to migration. Afrikaans plays a key role in South African media, education, and politics, making it essential for translation services tailored to specific regional and cultural needs.
The Writing System and Simplified Grammar
Afrikaans uses the Latin alphabet, similar to English, but with notable phonetic differences that must be considered in translation. For example, words like "gesondheid" (health) or "vryheid" (freedom) are phonetic but reflect Dutch roots in their structure.
Simplified Grammar: Unlike English, Afrikaans lacks verb conjugation based on tense or subject. For instance, "is" (to be) remains unchanged for "I am," "he is," or "they are." This simplicity can sometimes pose challenges in translating nuanced or complex English sentences into Afrikaans without losing meaning.
Loanwords and Neologisms: Afrikaans has incorporated many loanwords from English, indigenous African languages, and even Malay. This adds to the richness of the language but requires careful consideration during translation to maintain the proper cultural context. For example, "baie" (meaning "a lot") is often used in both informal and formal contexts, where in English, multiple expressions might be used.
Key Linguistic Differences Between Afrikaans and English for Translation
When translating between Afrikaans and English, several linguistic differences need to be addressed to ensure clarity and accuracy. Below are some of the main distinctions:
Sentence Structure: Afrikaans follows a Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) structure similar to English, but with much more flexibility. For example, the sentence "Ek eet appels" translates directly to "I eat apples." However, word order can change without significantly altering the meaning, depending on emphasis or context.
Verb Conjugation: Afrikaans verbs do not change based on tense or subject, unlike English. For instance, "het" (have) remains the same for "I have," "he has," and "they have." This requires careful translation to avoid ambiguity, especially in complex texts.
No Articles: Afrikaans often omits articles like "a" and "the" that are common in English. This lack of articles simplifies sentence structure but requires the translator to carefully decide when and how to add these elements in English translations to ensure clarity.
By adapting to these linguistic differences, Green Crescent ensures that our Afrikaans translation services are accurate, culturally relevant, and effective. Whether translating legal documents, marketing materials, or technical manuals, our team is ready to help you connect with Afrikaans-speaking audiences through high-quality, precise translations.
An Insight into Afrikaans Wit and Expression
This passage is from Fiela se Kind by Dalene Matthee, a renowned 20th-century Afrikaans novel. The story revolves around identity and belonging, exploring the emotional journey of a boy raised by a woman in the Knysna Forest.
- Afrikaans: "As jy nie weet waar jy hoort nie, dan kan jy ook nie weet wie jy is nie."
- English Translation: "If you don’t know where you belong, then you cannot know who you are."