I was surprised to discover Dictionary Review Peter A. Gergay

Dictionary Review
Portuguese Business
Dictionary
Authors:
Morry Sofer and MariCarmen Pizarro
Publisher:
Schreiber Publishing
www.schreiberlanguage.com
Publication Date:
2006
ISBNs:
0-88400-321-3
978-0-88400-321-2
Price:
$24.95
Reviewed by:
Giovanna L. Lester
Compiled by
Peter A. Gergay
[email protected]
I was surprised
to discover
that the authors of this dictionary are
not Portuguese translators. Ms.
Pizarro is a Spanish into English
translator, and Mr. Sofer’s name
appears as the author or editor of
books on translation for a variety of
language combinations: Chinese,
German, Spanish, French, Japanese,
and English.
The dictionary is very simple and
straightforward, and it fits easily into
one’s briefcase. Its glossy paperback
cover, bright white paper interior, and
nice font size are easy on the eyes. I do
question the use of the word dictionary
in the title, though, since, in my
opinion, this work is more of a bilingual glossary.
Entries are in alphabetical order
and most of them have an equivalent
in the other half of the book. The main
entries appear in bold and their targetlanguage equivalents are in regular
typeface. Most entries take up only
one line, and the few longer ones carry
explanations for terms for which an
equivalent in the target language was
not found. There are no illustrations,
appendices, or tables.
The authors did not provide any
sample sentences to indicate word
usage, nor did they include pronunciation or grammatical guidelines. I also
found some entries to be rather cryptic
(e.g., M-CAT = M-CAT without any
explanation of what it refers to). Other
entries have spelling issues: remição
(remissão, page 26), aumentoa
(aumento, page 162). In some cases,
masculine articles precede feminine
nouns (page 168: cessão do apólice
como garantia: apólice is a feminine
noun). I found instances of preposition
Table 1: Examples of Mistranslations
40
Main Entry
Translation
Correct Translation
Adjusted tax basis
base de taxação ajustada
base de cálculo (de tributo) ajustada
Analysis of variance
análise de variança
análise de variação
Affirmative Action
Ação judicial cabível contra discriminação no mercado
de trabalho em função de cor, sexo ou religião; ação
antidiscriminatória
No actual translation is given, and the explanation provided
is inaccurate. The translation, Ação Afirmativa, is not provided.
Accrual method
método de provisão
regime de competência
Abusive tax shelter
abrigo tributário excessivo, cobertura tributária excessiva
Deduções fiscais/tributárias abusivas
Charge buyer
Comprador encarregado
Comprador que cobra no cartão, que usa cartão de crédito
Hacker
pirata (…)
Cracker is the term used in Brazil in the computer field. The term
pirata with that meaning is more common in Spanish.
House to house
A domicílio
House to house: transporte de mercadoria do sede to exportador
à do importador (not translated)
Luxury tax
Imposto sobre bens suntuosos; imposto sobre
supérfluos; imposto sobre bens de luxo; imposto suntuário.
Imposto sobre supérfluos is the form used the Brazil.
Market timing
procura do* investidor de um melhor retorno
*The correct term here is pelo.
Market timing (alteração da agressividade da carteira em
função de previsões sobre o mercado) is a term that is usually
not translated in Brazil.
The ATA Chronicle
■
March 2008
and article contraction where none is
required (Opção ao descoberto, page
94). There are also mistranslations,
some of which are detailed in Table 1.
The back cover claims that this dictionary “is designed to facilitate business between Portuguese and
English-speaking countries,” and that
“it is an invaluable tool for communicating in the global market.” However,
I found very few entries followed by a
letter “P” to indicate that they were
specific to Portugal, as readers are
informed in the “How to Use this
Dictionary” section (page 8).
The many shortcomings described
here indicate an inattention to detail,
which is detrimental in this type of
work. I am looking forward to a
revised edition.
ATA Translation Company Division
9th Annual Conference
July 17-20, 2008
The Inverness Hotel and Conference Center
Englewood, Colorado
Highlights:
• Thursday evening reception and banquet.
• Two days (Friday and Saturday) of educational sessions
tailored to the needs and concerns of translation company
owners and managers.
• Topics will focus on industry trends, workflow tools,
project management, sales, marketing, behavioral
interviewing, and more.
• Plenty of time and opportunity for networking,
networking, and more networking!
• Optional Friday or Saturday evening activity in Denver
(www.denver.org)
• Sunday morning buffet breakfast
Advertising, exhibit, and sponsorship opportunities available.
Stay tuned to www.ata-divisions.org/TCD for more
information!
Kim Vitray
TCD Administrator
[email protected]
512-472-6753
Ellen Boyar
TCD Assistant Administrator
[email protected]
215-386-0100 ext. 1331
The ATA Chronicle
■
March 2008
Beatriz Bonnet
Local Conference Organizer
[email protected]
303-779-1288
Giovanna L. Lester is the immediate past
administrator of ATA’s Interpreters Division (ID).
She served as the president and director of the
former Florida Chapter of ATA, and as the
assistant administrator of the ID. She has
worked in the translation and interpreting
industry since 1980. Contact:
[email protected].
TIP-Lab 18th Distance Spanish
Translation/Revision Workshop
July to December 2008
Open to English into Spanish translators.
Excellent command of Spanish and English
required. Registration on a first-come-firstserved basis. For information, call, fax, or
e-mail: TIP-Lab, c/o Alicia Marshall
(847) 869-4889 (phone/fax);
[email protected]; or
www.tip-lab.org.
24th Cambridge
Conference
Simultaneous
Interpretation Course
August 17-29, 2008
Cambridge, United Kingdom
www.cciconline.net
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