Translation

and
multilingualism

Translation
Contents
Mission2

Organisation4

How DG Translation works 5

Web translation 9

External translation 9

Translation and workflow tools 11

Training14

Open to the world 15

New Member States — new languages 17

Work opportunities 18

Traineeships20
2
Mission
Why does the The European Commission’s
EU not work in Directorate‑General for Translation
just a couple (DG Translation) is one of the world’s
of languages, biggest translation services. It aims to:
like other
international nnprovide the European Commission
organisations? with high‑quality translation and other
language services;
nnsupport and strengthen
multilingualism in the European Union
by making sure the Commission
produces clearly written documents in
all the official languages;
nnmake the Union’s policies more
accessible for the public.
DG Translation works in all the official
languages of the EU. As new countries
join the EU, their languages are added
to the repertoire. Why do we have such
a complicated system, instead of using
just a couple of languages, like other
international organisations?
Part of the answer is legal. It lies in the
Commission’s role as guardian of the
treaties that provide the EU’s legal basis.
EU law is either directly applicable or
transposed into national law and all EU
citizens are bound by it. Publishing EU
law in all EU official languages means
that the general public and national
courts can read and understand it.
But long before proposals become law,
they have to be aired, so that there is
the widest possible debate at all levels
— European, national and local — in
forms accessible to non‑linguists and
non‑diplomats. Everyone in the EU is
entitled to contribute to the discussion
in the official language of his or her
choice. This is to ensure democracy and
transparency.
This is why, from the very start of the
project that evolved into the European
Union, there was a decision to make all
of the Member States’ languages official
languages. This was laid down in the first
regulation the European Community ever
published in 1958.
At that stage, there were four official
languages, Dutch, French, German
and Italian. Regulation No 1 (1958)
is amended each time a new country
joins the EU to include its language or
languages.
 3

But legislation is not the whole story.

The EU institutions have to be accessible
and open to the general public, as well
as to government departments and
interest groups of all kinds. One of the
Commission’s duties is to support and
encourage a democratic culture in which
individual, local, regional and national
characteristics are respected and
safeguarded.

This, too, is reflected in Articles 20 and

24 of the Treaty on the Functioning of
the European Union, which stipulates that
citizens of the Member States have the
right to communicate with EU staff in one
of the official EU languages.

Equal status for the official languages In the interests of cost‑effectiveness,

does not, however, mean that all texts
are translated into all the official
languages.
A letter to an individual or an internal
memo, for example, will be sent in just
one language, which may or may not
involve translation. A committee may
decide to work in a limited number of
languages until it produces a proposal
for wider discussion, which then has
to be made available in all the official
languages.
the Commission conducts its internal
business in English, French and
German, going fully multilingual when
it communicates with the other EU
institutions, the Member States and the
public.
As the EU grows, there are more practical
difficulties in according equal status to
all official languages, but a system that
did not offer key texts in all the official
languages would run counter to the EU’s
philosophy.

For the public and national courts to be able to read and understand
EU law in their own language, the law has to be published in the official
languages of all Member States.
Everyone in the EU is entitled to contribute to discussions on proposals in
the official language of his or her choice. This is a matter of transparency
and democracy.
The EU institutions also have to be accessible and open to the general public,
as well as to government departments and interest groups of all kinds.
 4

Organisation
Within the language DG Translation is organised into Individual language departments are
departments, translation directorates and others also in charge of terminology and
individual translators that support them, dealing with documentation. They are responsible
often specialise administrative issues and strategy. The for keeping linguistic standards high
in translating translation directorates are divided and consistent in each of the official
documents on along language lines, with a separate languages.
particular subjects. language department (or unit, as in the
case for Irish) for each of the EU’s official DG Translation has about half its staff in
languages. Brussels and half in Luxembourg.
 5

How DG Translation works

Types of document

Translators handle legislative texts, as

well as many other types of document.
The range of texts to be translated is
very wide, and includes:

nnspeeches and speaking notes;

nnbriefings and press releases;
nninternational agreements;
nnpolicy statements;
nnanswers to written and oral
parliamentary questions;
nntechnical studies;
nnfinancial reports;
nnminutes;
nninternal administrative matters;
Translators have to be able to capture
nninformation for staff;
the right register for each type of
nnscripts and captions for films and translation. As well as having a perfect
other promotional material; command of the target language, they
need to be flexible and to have sound
nncorrespondence with ministries,
judgement, along with the ability to grasp
companies, interest groups and
varied and often complex issues.
individuals;
nnall kinds of webpages and publications Within the language departments,
for opinion‑formers and the general individual translators specialise in
public. particular subjects.
6
The specialist subjects are as follows:
nnexternal relations;
nnemployment and social affairs;
nneducation, culture and youth;
nnthe internal market and services;
nnenergy and natural resources;
nnmaritime affairs and fisheries;
nnresearch, science and technology;
nnhealth and consumer protection;
nntrade;
nnthe information society and the media;
nnagriculture;
Quality
There are mechanisms to ensure the
quality of translated texts. Translations
are revised, checked and supervised, and
translators receive ongoing training and
information on developments in the field.
All translations carried out by external
translators are also systematically
assessed, and the translators are given
feedback.
Translation memories and databases
of core EU terminology help to ensure
consistency in terminology.
One vital prerequisite for a good
translation is a well‑written original
text. Clear, concise documents written
to a high standard are essential for any
public authority, especially a multilingual
organisation in which most drafters are
not working in their own languages.
nnjustice and citizens’ rights;
nnregional policy;
nnstatistics;
nntaxation and customs;
nnthe environment;
nnentrepreneurship;
nntransport;
nnadministration;
nncompetition;
nneconomic and financial affairs.
In recent years, English has replaced
French as the main drafting language at
the Commission.
Unlike its translators, many of the
Commission’s authors work in a language
that is not their mother tongue. To make
sure originals are up to the standard
required, DG Translation has an Editing
Unit, whose task is to correct and edit
texts and to provide authors with advice
on clear writing and good drafting.
DG Translation runs campaigns to
promote clear, concise writing at the
Commission. Editors also run courses
on clear writing for colleagues in
other Commission departments, or
directorates‑general, and there are
annual awards for outstanding examples
of well‑written work.
 7

Staff numbers Pages

DG Translation currently has around
2 500 members of staff (including
translators, editors and those
with management, secretarial,
communications, IT and training roles).
Over the last 10 years, the number of
pages (1) translated by DG Translation
has risen consistently.
The breakdown by source language
(Graph 1) clearly shows the trend towards
drafting in English.

In 1997, French and English were still

roughly equal, including texts drafted
outside the Commission. Now most texts
are drafted in English.

Graph 1 — Trends
12.5 %
Draed in other languages 13 %
Draed in German
Draed in French
2%
Draed in English 2.5 % 4.5 %
12 % 81 %

9% 72.5 %
3%
26 %
9%
5.5 %
40.5 %

62 %

45 %

1997 2004 2008 2013

1.1 million pages 1.3 million pages 1.8 million pages 2.02 million pages

(1)  DG Translation’s definition of a page is 1 500 characters without spaces.

 Graph 2 — Breakdown by source language, 2013
1 800 000
Pages

1 500 000

The influence of English as 1 200 000

a source language is growing.

900 000

600 000

300 000

BG CS DA DE EL EN ES ET FI FR GA HR HU IT LT LV MT NL PL PT RO SK SL SV

Other
Graph 3 — Breakdown by target language, 2013

With regard to output, however, the breakdown 250 000

across the official languages is more even, Pages
as the same amount of legislation has to be
translated into each. Nevertheless, output
200 000
figures for English, French and German are still
considerably higher than the average, since
many texts are only translated into one or more
of these three languages for the Commission’s 150 000
internal use.

100 000

50 000

BG CS DA DE EL EN ES ET FI FR GA HR HU IT LT LV MT NL PL PT RO SK SL SV
Other
 9

Web translation
The Commission increasingly
communicates with people via the web.
This has led to the development of
a specialist branch of translation and
editing for the web.
Web translators usually work on short
documents to tight deadlines. These
include articles for the Commission’s
homepage. Longer assignments can
include a full revamp of a website, for
example. Web translators also carry out
website checks to ensure all language
versions are correctly uploaded.
Web translation helps directorates‑general
throughout the Commission to provide
content on their websites in language that
is easy to understand and pitched at the
right level, with formats and processing
tools for web content. The everyday work
of web translators includes testing new
tools and working together on developing
writing for the web at the Commission.
Web editors often work closely with
other directorates‑general on designing
websites, even before any content is
created.

Translators from language departments To make its websites more consistent,

work together seamlessly and flexibly,
interweaving the editing of original texts
with translation and revision to ensure
high quality.
relevant and cost‑effective, the
Commission has been redesigning them
and making them more user‑friendly.
With fewer, better sites and fewer pages,
it is easier to make content available in
more languages.

External translation
Political events can lead to fluctuations
in the volume of translation. Such events
are not always predictable, and DG
Translation has limited capacity. So it
regularly calls on external translators. At
the moment, about 25 % of its output is
translated externally.

DG Translation has a computer system

to manage external translation
contracts and to process all requests
for these. To ensure transparency, equal
treatment and efficiency, all transactions
with contractors are carried out via
a web‑based portal called eXtra.
 10

Selection Support for external

DG Translation periodically launches
calls for tender or calls for expressions
of interest, published in the EU’s Official
Journal and posted on the Europa
website.
Translation companies and individual
freelance translators can submit tenders.
Those selected are entered in a ranking
list according to the price and quality of
their services. They conclude a framework
contract with the Commission, but do not
receive any guarantee as to the volume
or frequency of work.
translators
As the Commission works in all the
official languages of the EU, translations
often have the same value as the
original documents. The quality required
is therefore very high. To help external
contractors work as efficiently as
possible, DG Translation provides support
in the form of background information
and help with terminology.
Evaluation
Translations supplied by external
contractors are checked for quality and
evaluated by the translating teams that
requested them. Contractors are ranked,
and this ranking is regularly adjusted to
take into account evaluations of all the
work they provide.

Graph 4 — Trends 26.3 %

26 %

Translated externally
Translated internally
23 % 73.7 % 74 %

16.4 %
77 %
83.6 %

1997 2004 2008 2013

1.1 million pages 1.3 million pages 1.8 million pages 2.02 million pages
 11

Translation and workflow tools

Our translators have a wide range of
electronic tools at their disposal, some of
which are available to other Commission
staff and translators in other EU
institutions and bodies.

There are also workflow tools to manage

the logistics of an operation producing
around 2 million pages a year. These
tools monitor and document the
production process.

Translation tools

Translation memories

Since 1997, translators have had

a computer application enabling them to
create their own electronic translation
memories. This is particularly useful
for translating very repetitive texts,
since it enables translators to search for
identical or similar passages in previously
translated documents and to incorporate
these into their own translations.
As texts drafted in the Commission are
often based on previous texts or existing
legislation, reusing previously translated
words or passages saves considerable
time and helps to make terminology
consistent, which is very important in
legislative texts.
Euramis
Euramis, the European advanced
multilingual information system
developed at the Commission, is a set of
web applications combined with e‑mail
to give access to a whole range of
language‑processing services.
Euramis works on a shared platform,
linking all of DG Translation’s translation
aid systems.
12
One of the most important tools
available is the central translation
memory. Whenever a translation request
is accepted, the original document is
sent automatically to Euramis, and any
previous translations of phrases and
passages are extracted from the central
memory.
The result can be imported directly into
a local memory. Once the translation is
complete, the translator then uploads the
revised local memory back into Euramis
for use in future translations.
Machine translation
The European Commission has been
using machine translation (MT) since
1976. The first system it used offered
18 operational language pairs and could
produce 2 000 pages of raw translation
per hour. In 2013, the Commission
launched a new system called MT@EC,
which was developed entirely in‑house.
MT@EC is a data‑driven system. This
means that instead of requiring manual
development of dictionaries, rules, etc.
by humans, it uses existing language
resources (text corpora, dictionaries, etc.)
and implements statistical algorithms
to fine‑tune a system that then
automatically produces a translation.
It builds on the Commission’s archive
of high‑quality human translations, one
of the biggest in the world. MT@EC is
specifically designed to deal with the
Commission’s documents and vocabulary,
covering all official EU languages.
Technical teams closely follow the
latest research and developments, and
contribute to ongoing improvements.
The service is available to staff in all EU
institutions and will become available for
public administrations in EU countries.
Depending on the length of a document,
a translation can usually be sent back to
the requester within minutes.
Machine translation is principally used
to give a basic understanding of a text,
but also serves as a stopgap when
translations are required at very short
notice. In the latter case, raw machine
translation should always be corrected or
approved by humans.
Machine translation is a tool that
increases translators’ efficiency and helps
Commission officials who have to deal
with incoming information in languages
they do not understand, so that they
can quickly assess a text and process it
appropriately.
DG Translation’s library
DG Translation has its own library, with
branches in Luxembourg and Brussels.
The library aims to help translators find
the documentation and resources they
need.
 13

The collection includes:

nnspecialist and general dictionaries;

nnreference works and encyclopaedias;
nnperiodicals and newspapers in all EU
languages, plus selected others;
nnEU documents (the Official Journal,
reports from the Court of Justice of
the European Union, reports issued by
the Commission, EU newsletters, etc.).

The library also has a large number

of electronic dictionaries and other
resources accessible via DG Translation’s
intranet.
DG Translation has also created
a multilingual virtual library called
MultiDoc, which contains documentation
in all official languages. This takes
the form of thousands of links to
websites and databases maintained by
universities, government departments,
autonomous agencies and international
organisations all over the world.
Terminology
Terminology work at DG Translation
is the responsibility of the language
departments, whose terminologists
provide support for all the EU’s official
languages. This support includes:
nnresponding to requests for help with
terminology from translators and
other EU staff;
nnproactively preparing terminology for
technically demanding documents
prior to translation;
nncooperating with colleagues in
terminology services in other EU
institutions, as well as with national
bodies and terminology organisations;
nnfeeding IATE (see below) and
managing and consolidating its
content.
Terminology work is coordinated by
a central body.
IATE
IATE (Inter‑Active Terminology for Europe)
is an interinstitutional terminology
database that is available not only to the
staff of the Commission and other EU
institutions, but also to the general public.
Information about terms in all the EU’s
official languages, plus Latin — used
mostly for taxonomy (scientific names
of plants and animals), but also for legal
expressions and other purposes — is
available to the public. Information in other
languages is only available to EU staff.
IATE combines terminology data from
all the EU institutions and bodies and
contains approximately 8.7 million
terms and 500 000 abbreviations.
The content of the database is created
and updated by translators and
terminologists in all EU institutions. IATE
contains terminology from all fields of
activity in EU institutions.
14

Sources of further Computerised workflow

information
All staff at DG Translation have
a computer, equipped with the usual
range of office programmes and access
to the Internet.
To manage its workflow, DG Translation
has tools to track a document from
the moment a department requests
a translation, right up to delivery of the
end product in all languages required.

Translators also have access to Other tools are used to monitor

internal and external databases via the production over time and to compile
Commission’s internal network and the production‑related statistics on a weekly,
Internet. The most widely used tools are: monthly and yearly basis.

DGTVista, an electronic document archive,

containing roughly 2 million documents in
all official EU languages;

EUR‑Lex, the EU law database, which

contains the EU treaties, all other
EU legislation (e.g. directives and
regulations), judgments of the European
Court of Justice and legislative proposals.

Some tools are also accessible to the

public via the EU’s Internet portal,
Europa, and are of particular interest to
freelance translators.

Training
Since all technical and policy areas of
the Commission are covered in texts
to be translated, and since IT plays an
ever greater role in translation work,
DG Translation provides internal training,
as well as offering staff the opportunity to
go on wider Commission‑run or external
courses (such as language courses).

Open to the world
There is widespread interest in the EU’s
language policy, and DG Translation
receives many visitors who want to see
how parity of status for all official EU
languages works in practice. We have
visitors not just from EU Member States,
but from all over the world.
As well as sharing its knowledge,
DG Translation wants to learn from
others and to promote the translation
profession. That is why there are several
outreach projects.
Visiting translator
scheme (VTS)
The visiting translator scheme (VTS)
gives translators an opportunity to go
to a university, a public institution or
a private company for 1 to 4 weeks as
part of their continuing professional
development. The aim is to improve their
knowledge of, for example, a language
from which they translate, or specific
terminology or processes linked to their
specialist subjects.
15
In return, visiting translators give
translation workshops to students and
make presentations on DG Translation’s
work to students and university staff.
Translators who visit a public institution
(for example, a ministry or government
agency) or a private company translate,
exchange good practice with the host
organisation’s staff and can consult
experts on terminology issues. Visiting
translators act as ambassadors for
DG Translation, and raise awareness
of the way in which EU institutions are
multilingual.
European Master’s
in Translation
The European Master’s in Translation
(EMT) is a partnership project between
the European Commission and higher
education institutions offering translation
programmes at master’s level.
The project aims to establish a label for
university translation programmes that
meet agreed educational standards.
University programmes can apply for the
label and, if successful, become members
of the EMT network.
16
The EMT aims to ensure that members’
programmes are based on an up‑to‑date,
skills‑orientated competence framework.
The EMT translator skills profile — drawn
Juvenes Translatores
The European Commission runs
a programme for schools, the Juvenes
Translatores translation contest, to
promote multilingualism and make
young people aware of the translating
profession.
In this contest, 16- and 17-year‑old
students can try their hand as translators.
They translate a page‑long text from one
of the EU official languages into another
official language of their choice. The
winner in each Member State is invited to
Brussels to an awards ceremony at the
European Commission’s headquarters.
up together with a group of European
experts — sets out the skills translators
need to work successfully in today’s
market.
In the longer term, the
EMT aims to improve the
translation profession’s
status in the EU.
DG Translation’s
translators visit
universities in the EMT
network through the
visiting translator scheme
as part of outreach
activities across the
network.
DG Translation’s local offices
To facilitate communication with the
public, DG Translation has set up
local offices in each of the Member
States. Staff in these offices adapt
public information from Commission
headquarters to their local context and
target audiences. They also develop links
with civil society organisations and help
to put into practice the EU’s outreach
policy, raising awareness about what the
EU is and does.

Staff organise exhibitions, conferences
and other events, and take part in
seminars and workshops on language
questions.
They also contribute significantly to the
success of the Juvenes Translatores
translation contest, the EMT project and
the European Day of Languages (EDL),
an annual event organised to celebrate
New Member States —
new languages
DG Translation has had to cope with
several enlargements in the course of its
history:
Most of these Member States brought
with them new official languages.
To prepare for accession, each country
with a new language sets up a unit under
one of its ministries to translate the
whole body of EU law into its language.
Before accession, DG Translation does its
bit in the country by:
nnproviding technical assistance,
training, professional advice and
support for the national translation
unit;
nnsetting up a local office and liaising
with it;
nnexploring and developing the
commercial translation market;
nnencouraging and advising universities
on the content of training courses for
17
linguistic diversity and language learning.
In addition, they encourage translator
training institutions in the Member States
to consider DG Translation requirements
when designing their courses.
They also keep in touch with all
sectors of the language professions,
especially with translators’ professional
associations.
1973 Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom;
1981 Greece;
1986 Portugal and Spain;
1995 Austria, Finland and Sweden;
Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary,
2004 Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and
Slovenia;
2007 Bulgaria and Romania;
2013 Croatia.
translators, thus helping to ensure
that their graduates meet the present
and future needs of DG Translation
and the language industry in general.
Every year, DG Translation also hosts
a number of trainees from future
Member States.
18

Work opportunities
Translators can work at the European if their profile matches DG Translation’s
Commission as permanent staff, requirements (qualifications, languages
temporary staff or contract staff. and specialised knowledge).

Recruitment procedures for General requirements

permanent staff (officials)
To enter an open competition for
Like other permanent staff at the translators, you must:
Commission, translators are recruited
by open competition. Competitions for nnbe a citizen of an EU Member State;
translators are held to recruit staff with
nnhave graduated from a higher
a specific main language.
education establishment after at least
3 years’ study (in any field).
Competition notices are published in the
EU’s Official Journal, in the press in the
When new countries are due to join the
country or countries concerned, and on
EU, their nationals can sit competitions to
the Internet. The European Personnel
recruit translators into their languages,
Selection Office (EPSO) looks after all
but those who pass cannot be appointed
practical aspects of recruitment (http://
to permanent posts until their countries
www.eu‑careers.eu).
have become EU Member States.

Translation competitions consist of:

nnpre‑selection tests done on
a computer (verbal and numerical
reasoning);
nntranslation tests into the main
language;
nna day of interviews and tests in an
assessment centre.
Translators are recruited to grade
Administrator (AD) 5. All new recruits
start on the lowest step in their grade.
For recruitment in grade AD 5, no
professional experience is required.
However, experience of working in one
or more of the EU’s spheres of activity
(economics, law, administration, etc.) may
be useful.

The process usually takes 8 to 10

months.

Successful candidates are put on

a reserve list from which translation
departments can recruit if they have
a vacancy. But getting a place on the
reserve list does not automatically mean
a candidate gets a job. As vacancies arise
in translation departments, they are filled
by recruiting candidates from the reserve
list. They are interviewed and selected
 19

Candidates have to have perfect Successful applicants sign a temporary

knowledge of the target language and contract for a period of up to 3 years.
demonstrate a thorough knowledge of at
least two other EU official languages. Contract staff

Knowledge of additional languages is DG Translation also recruits contract

an advantage. Other than in special, staff. Those interested can register
well‑defined circumstances, translators their CV and application on the website
work exclusively into the language of the European Personnel Selection Up‑to‑date
they regard as their main language, Office (EPSO). When DG Translation has information on
generally their mother tongue. For a vacancy, it will search the database for recruitment of
certain languages, however, an ability candidates whose profile best matches all staff, including
to translate out of the main language is the requirements, and invite them for translators,
regarded as an asset. a translation test and an interview. assistants and
managers, is on
Temporary staff Successful applicants are offered the EPSO website:
a 1-year contract, which may be renewed http://www.
From time to time, DG Translation up to a total duration of 6 years. eu‑careers.eu
publishes calls for expressions of
interest for temporary staff. Candidates
have to meet the same basic criteria
as permanent officials, but do not need
to take part in an open competition.
The candidates who best match
the requirements are asked to take
a translation test and come for an
interview.
20

Traineeships
DG Translation offers 5-month There are two traineeship sessions
traineeships in both Brussels and per year at the European Commission,
Luxembourg for graduates with EU starting on 1 March and 1 October.
citizenship (and a small quota for non‑EU
nationals) who wish to gain in‑house
professional translation experience after
completing their studies.

Successful applicants are usually The deadlines for submitting

assigned to a translating unit. They applications are:
do the same work as their colleagues,
translating into their main language from  end of August for a traineeship
at least two other EU official languages. starting in March;
Their work is revised by experienced
 end of February to start in
senior staff. Some trainees are assigned
October.
to terminology work or to other
translation‑related tasks. For detailed information on
traineeships, see:
Trainees receive a monthly allowance to http://ec.europa.eu/stages/
cover living expenses.

You can find more information and publications about the Directorate‑General
for Translation of the European Commission and our contact information on
http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/translation
 Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers
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More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu).

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2014

ISBN 978-92-79-36797-7

© European Union, 2014

Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

Photo credits: Pages 2 © iStockphoto/Gulcan Yasemin Sumer, 3 © iStockphoto/AntiMartina;

Pages 5, 9, 13, 16, 20 © European Union;
Pages 4, 11, 19 © Phovoir.

Printed in Luxembourg

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HC-04-14-307-EN-C