German Translation Services

German is the classical and modern language of linguistics, science and philosophy, and one of the top working languages of the European Commission as well as in today’s business world.

German Around the World

Some 128 million people speak German across all 5 continents. This significant number of German speakers places it as the 11th most spoken language in the world. With such a commonly-spoken, modern working language, many folks voluntarily choose to learn German, and others simply choose it as a second language in their school curriculum. Certain international German language organizations like the Goethe Institute, have cultural outreach branches in different countries to enable further learning of the German language and culture all over the world outside of Germany.

Modern German-speaking communities also flourish all around the world. Eastern European Jewish communities in Paraguay and Brazil, and Amish communities in many parts of the United States, are a few well-known examples of German speaking centers using German as their daily language at home and around the globe.

German-speaking enclaves also dot the landscape of Europe. In Italy, German-speakers comprise the Friuli and Aosta Valleys plus many parts of the northern border with their German-speaking neighbors Switzerland and Austria; in France, the Alsace and Moselle areas are well identified with German-speaking cultures. For Belgium, many German-speakers are clustered around the cities of Saint-Vith and Eupen. In addition, three European nations wholly count German as their official language: Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

German in the Professional Sphere

Germany’s industrial might, determined work ethic, and economic push is widely recognized across Europe and the entire world. German industries have made their mark on the world during the last few centuries, keenly adaptive to the languages of their peers, but resolutely proud of their native tongue in everyday familiar dealings. Business partners and colleagues aspiring to join a major German business are still always well served by their ability to speak German and relate on their specific cultural and working level. A good command of the working German language can’t be underestimated as an valuable skill in relating, negotiating, and connecting for business and beyond – and your translation agency partner should expertly supply this.

German is the language of science and medicine, especially since the beginning of the 20thcentury. Research documents created in this era remain highly relevant today. Proficiency in German language, whether spoken, in writing, or for reading, is therefore still an important asset for scientific and medical fields. The original works of many brilliant science minds of our times such as Freud, Einstein, or Kant as some of the most popular, endure as working references today in each of their fields of study.

The Subtleties of the German language

For people that are less familiar with this language, German can sometimes look daunting, with some extreme examples of certain words appearing as very long strings of many letters. For example, the word “Donaudampfschifffahrtselektrizitätenhauptbetriebswerkbauunterbeamtengesellschaft”, topping out at a total of 79 letters, is a legitimate single word that affirms this perception. A well-trained German-speaker can give the correctly worded translation, which is formed of quite a few different words in English: “company for subordinated state employees of the main control office for electricity constructions/building for Danube Steamboat shipping”.

To add some more complexity to the German language, there are actually 33 variations in Germany alone. A German native will know the differences among their dialect varieties. They’ll know that in the former German Democratic Republic, the word “broiler” describes a roast chicken, whereas the dish is actually called “frittiertes Hühnchen” around other regions. To give another example, plastic material is called “das Plastik” or “der Kunststoff” once again in their Eastern region, and “die Plaste” on the Western side of the country. Depending on the content and the intended audience, it’s helpful to know these types of German language subtleties for translation of technical documents, corporate collateral, literary manuscripts, journalism news articles and the like, among other highly utilized written materials for the business and science fields.
Contact us for your German translation quote today.