Attention to detail is a vital aspect within this, and it doesn’t only apply to spelling and punctuation, although that is of course important, but rather also to cultural and linguistic localization.  Indeed it is the planning process, which is crucial, and some of the very best professional document translation services have even created software systems to ensure the presence of such quality is omnipresent in their work.

Such systems include ComTranslations’ ‘TrRank’ and ‘Translation Management System’, which together ensure that each project is matched with the most suitable team of translation experts and that timing and efficiency too is enhanced.  The systems work using a range of specifications, including; timescale, knowledge of source and target cultures, sector and industry experience, and writing style, and keeps them at the peak of professional document translation services.

Fundamentally, the most positive change within online marketing in particular, over the past 12 months, has been an increased focus on quality.   The web has, for a long time, been turning into a spam land and this has decreased the online user experience.  Google, however, through the introduction of various algorithm tools, have begun to use artificial intelligence to combat this lack of quality, with regards to content, and now businesses really need to raise their content game.

The necessity for quality translation services has too, of course, gone hand in hand with this process.  If you truly want to reach multi-lingual markets then too you need your foreign language content to be as high quality as the original.  Previously this was a necessity simply for the purpose of connecting with a new audience, but now too it is crucial in order for your website to even be located using a foreign language search.

The good news is that as the demand for quality foreign language content has increased, so too have the leading professional companies evolved their document translation services to fulfill the necessary expected standards.  This means that truly now a professional translation agency can act as a foreign language content team, rather than a simple word for word translation service, and in this way, become fully integrated within a company’s communications department.

According to l’Organisation internationale de la Francophonie (OIF), French too is growing, and in particular in francophone Africa, where globalization is leading to the demise of a number of local languages in favor of the official language of the capitals.  Continued urban migration, improved literacy, and high birth rates, are too assisting in this progression.

French Canadian

One of the remotest French speaking countries, with regards to its proximity to other francophone states, is Canada.   Almost seven million Canadians speak French as a first language, just over one fifth of the total population, and although usually English takes precedent at a federal level, New Brunswick is officially bi-lingual and Quebec only recognizes French.

Just in Canada alone, there too are a number of different variations of French, with Quebec French, for example, having unique elements when compared to Acadian French, with Metis, Newfoundland, Brayon, and New England French (US) also offering linguistic variations.  There are even unofficial French dialects, such as Joual, spoken in working class districts of Quebec, and Chiac, which combines Acadian French with English.

Already you can see why French translation can be such a complex procedure, and this is before you have even considered the unique aspects of African French, South-East Asian French, Swiss French, Belgian French and Caribbean French.  Simply, in today’s globalised world, where multi-lingual communications are key, translation services have had to go beyond language and rather too become cultural interpreters, offering a localized translation.

The Differences Between French Canadian and Parisian French

Although official French-Canadian and Parisian French are mutually intelligible, their differences can be compared to those that exist between American English and the Queen’s tongue.  Some grammar is different and too vocabulary can vary drastically between the two dialects.  This again illustrates the necessity for a fully localized service when dealing with French translation globally.

Examples of Vocabulary Variations

To Shop

French Canadian: Magasiner

Parisian France: Faire les courses

Ski Lodge

French Canadian: Pavillon de ski

Parisian France: Chalet

Street Lights

French Canadian: Lampadaires de rue

France: Réverbères

There are of course many more examples, but just these few show why a French translation service should always consider the location of the target language.

More Than Words

Of course as well as language there are also cultural differences and idioms in each of the dialects.  Especially when translating humorous marketing, it has to be considered that what is funny in one part of the world is offensive in another.

Even brand names sometimes get it wrong.  When, for example, Hunt-Wesson introduced the Big John product range in French Canada as ‘Gros Jos’ they were unaware that the term was slang in the region for ‘big breasts’.  It is exactly this kind of knowledge that is necessary to ensure that a French translation is beneficial and not detrimental.

Fundamentally, all translation services should be carried out by experts who have an in depth knowledge of both the cultural and linguistic quirks of both the source and target location.  When dealing with less common language pairings then this may involve having multiple translation experts collaborate to ensure a professional and quality service.

The introduction of the language by Google, in partnership with the Cherokee Language Technology Department, follows a similar partnership with Apple in 2010, which provided full language support for iPods, iPads and iPhones.  The developments, with Google, now mean that both emails and web searches will be able to be conducted in the language, as is the case with the other 56 languages.

Some of the other more unusual languages made available by the multinational corporation, include; Gujarati, Basque and Catalan, Telugu and Welsh.  These languages are also available using the ‘Google Translate’ website translations tool, which although doesn’t yet accommodate Cherokee, allows users to translate any webpage into their chosen language.

Endangered Languages

In addition to these developments, which could be seen as helping to support a semi-endangered language, Google has also backed the ‘Endangered Language Project’, in an attempt to save more than 3000 languages from extinction.

Google launched the project last June (2012), in collaboration with scholars, researchers and language communities.  This follows on from research, which suggests that only half of today’s existing languages will still be around in 2100.  Google will look to create technology, in order to preserve the languages, and will hand over control to the First Peoples’ Cultural Council and The Institute for Language Information and Technology, once the project is up and running.

Extinct languages are considered as those with one or no remaining speakers.  Recently extint languages include; Aka-Bo (2010), Black Isle Dialect (2012), Akkala Sami (2003) and Kakadu (2002).  Certainly the ability to search, email and obtain website translations in Cherokee will help to maintain the language.

Cherokee Language

The most complex part of Google’s adoption of Cherokee is its unique syllabary writing system.  The language uses 85 unique characters, which roughly resemble the Latin letters that they are derived from, but are phonetically completely different.  This presents numerous issues, regarding website translations, as they will struggle to limit the impact on layout and design.

There are three major modern dialects, with the ‘Lower’ dialect having already become extinct, somewhere around 1900.  The ‘Overhill’ or ‘Western’ dialect is the most common today, with approximately 9000 speakers, situated in Oklahoma and the Snowbird Community in North Carolina, whereas the ‘Middle’ or ‘Kituhwa’ dialect is spoken by the Eastern band on the Qualla Boundary.

Some Cherokee Words (using English Alphabet)

English	Cherokee	Cherokee (phonetic)
Communicate		Di da dv go ta nv
Language		Ga wo ni hi s di
Translation		A ne tlv do di

Final Thoughts

Although the inclusion of Cherokee as a new Google language will only really impact a maximum of 16,000 individuals, it is the cultural support that it offers, which is truly behind the gesture.  Google comes under a lot of scrutiny, as the company where over half of all internet searches are conducted, and thus the addition of Cherokee searches, email and automated website translations may well be seen as being a part of their corporate social responsibility.

So what makes and MMORPG massive?

Fundamentally, there are two things that separate an MMORPG from a normal online role-playing game, and they are; volume of players and the creation of a permanent virtual world.  In MMORPGs the virtual setting of the game remains active even when a player is not physically playing, creating, if you like, a sort of parallel sub-reality.

‘World of Warcraft’ is probably the most famous and popular MMORPG, with over 10 million users, and when ‘Star Wars: The Old Republic’ was released, in 2011, it became the fastest growing, with over a million users joining up within the first three days.

Despite the universal popularity of such gaming platforms, the one giant obstacle, that gaming translation services are striving to overcome, is language.

MMORPGs and Language

With such virtual world’s aiming to connect users all over the world, communication is a crucial aspect of their appeal, and increasingly social networking capabilities are enhancing this.  The one missing piece of the puzzle, however, has been how to connect a diversity of languages over one platform.

Initially, Google Translate was used in an attempt to do the gaming translation service automatically, simply by using a plug-in within the chat facility.  This, however, came up against the usual problems associated with automated translations, in that it was riddled with inaccuracies, cultural insensitivities and regularly produced nonsensical interpretations.  Fundamentally, this approach didn’t solve the problem to an acceptable standard.

There are other platforms, such as Achaea, however, who have overcome the problem of language in another way; by using a unique language (Achaean), which, loosely based on Old English, users have to learn in order to communicate in the game.

Multi-Lingual Developments in MMORPGs

Many of the recent multi-lingual developments, in games such as; Glory Wars, Holy War, Tagoria, A.I. War and Cabal online, have been connected to the games user interface, as well as general chat room language.  Professional gaming translation services have been hard at work trying to ensure that the usability is the same regardless of language.

With automated gaming translation services still a long way off from offering an effective solution, for now at least, it seems that user communications, however, will remain largely in English.  Indeed, many people are even suggesting the use MMORPG platforms as a unique approach to second-language learning.

With such a vast amount of money, well in excess of $1 billion, being made from such gaming platforms, however, it is likely that when increasingly sophisticated real-time translation tools are developed, MMORPGs will be one of the first places to utilise the technology.

Such translation services online, however, are often limited only to web content and rarely do they include the wealth of other online marketing, such as; article writing, blog commenting, guest blogging, link building, infographics etc.  With an increasing focus being placed on both aspects of online marketing, it seems only natural that there should be some cross over between the two.

Multi-Lingual SEO

As SEO has evolved and Google’s algorithm tools been developed, one major change that has occurred within the SEO world, is a shift towards quality.  More time and money is being spent on online campaigns – the $700 million raised online by the Obama 2012 campaign is an example of this – and, as a result, it is crucial to ensure that the full potential of such efforts is truly realized.

If, as a business, you are spending time, money and considerable effort on both SEO and translation services online, then it seems strange not to consider the two as part of the same strategy.

SEO and Localization

Social Networking

To start at first base, one example of localizing your SEO campaign is through social networking.  This is not even solely a language thing, but, as is the case with any truly localized service, it too is a cultural thing.

In Europe and the US, for example, we are aware of which sites to focus our attentions on.  Facebook has an incredible 164,958,520 users in the US alone – that is over 50% of the total population – whereas in Japan, the penetration rate is at just 12.47%.  On the other hand, in Japan, the new and relatively unknown, outside of the Asian country, social network, Line, in July last year had a growth rate of five million users every three weeks, and already by September last year had exceeded 60 million users in the country – that is almost four times as many as Facebook.

Statistics, such as these, prove exactly why localization is a crucial component of online marketing.  Regardless of the quality of translation services online or SEO strategy you receive, without this localized knowledge, you could very well be fishing in the wrong pond.

Keywords

Businesses work tirelessly to discover which keywords are going to produce the highest number of hits, and then embark on lengthy campaigns to ensure that their website appears at the top of such searches.   Again, however it is almost baffling how few of these companies then consider doing the same in other languages.

The first thing to remember is that direct translations of keywords often won’t work, and thus it is important to research (ideally with a translator) the most relevant keywords within other core language groups.  This is especially relevant if you have a specific sizeable market, within another language group.

As an example, the Italian translation of ‘low cost flights’ is, directly, “voli a basso costo”, but the much more common search term is, rather,  “voli low cost”.  Indeed, the latter receives over 1.2 million monthly searches, whereas the direct translation receives just 27,100.  This is a perfect example of why local knowledge is crucial when conducting foreign language SEO campaigns.

Domain Name

Along similar lines to the previous point, it is also crucial that you secure a domain name that is attractive and suitable for a specific location.  Especially within local searches, the domain name is becoming an increasingly important aspect of SEO, and those that make direct reference to a specific keyword will reap the benefits.

Other Aspects

Of course, a similar trend is true for many other aspects of SEO.  Choosing the most appropriate search engine, for example; although Google is dominant in the US and Europe, Yahoo still reigns supreme in Japan, and in South Korea, it is the home grown Naver that attracts the highest proportion of searches.  Link-building, too, can be localized and this can ensure that your trust rank is high in other languages too.

Final Thoughts

There is no denying the importance of both SEO and translation services online, and truly for a fully comprehensive service, the two must go hand in hand.  Localization provides an enhanced level of success and thus all of the above mentioned processes should be conducted relative to location, and not simply language.

Recently, it has been revealed that Google has begun charging businesses to receive machine translations.  Throughout this article, we will look into the evolution of translation, and indeed machine translation, in a bid to discover whether such a cost can be justified.

How Have Translation Services Evolved?

One of the major ways that professional translation services have evolved is through localization.  This is both within a geographical and an industry-specific sense.  This means that a translation service will be conducted with consideration to both the linguistics and culture of a specific location.

Taking the example of French, which is an official language in 29 countries, it is quite clear that the French spoken in West Africa is different to that spoken in Europe, Canada, South-East Asia, the Caribbean and all other French-speaking regions.  Indeed, the dialects and cultures can even vary hugely even within a single state.

With regards to industry, many professional translation agencies now ensure that they have experts within specific industries, such as; medicine, engineering, IT, Law and Science, where specific vocabulary and documentation is used.  This is especially important within sectors where health and safety issues can be the result of poor translation services.

With this in mind, the very best translation agencies now have a comprehensive network of translators, spreading throughout a variety of sectors and locations.  Many also have systems in place to ensure that each translation job is given to the most capable team of translators.  This is especially important when dealing with niche texts, minority languages or rare language pairings.

Machine Translations

The origins of machine translations, hails back to the 17^th century and Renee Descartes, although the first demonstration is thought to have been conducted by a Georgetown research team, in 1954.  As with many technologies, its real growth came alongside the rise of the internet, and in 1997, Alta Babel-Fish was racking up half a million requests per day.

Like many other aspects of the internet world, it was eventually Google who took over with regards to online machine translation services, with the launch of Google Translate, which, as of 2012, claimed to translate enough text each day to fill around 1 million books.

The argument, which rages on, has always been with regards to the quality and accuracy of such translations.  Indeed, a simple experiment of translating a phrase through several languages and then back to the source tongue can prove its inadequacies.  A comedy group even recently put the ‘Fresh Prince of Belair’ theme tune through the Google Translate ‘filter’ and then performed the resultant songs.

Businesses Paying For Machine Translations     

In February 2012, it was announced that Google Translate would be releasing a paid version of the software, for business and commercial use.   Jeff Chin, the manager of Google Translate, announced that companies would pay $20 per million characters – working out at approximately $0.05 per page.

Although this is, of course, much less than one would have to pay for a professional translation service, the quality too is far removed.  Indeed, simply by searching for Google Translate on Google, you’ll find that the majority of the search results are related to humorous anecdotes, which highlight the software’s shortcomings.

Quite simply, when it comes to professional translation services, you can’t beat a human expert.  Even though, of course, human error is a possibility, it is much less likely than machine error, where there is a clear lack of cultural, linguistic and specialist knowledge, and with professional translation agencies evolving their services, for any business serious about its online marketing, machine translations are, quite simply,  a no-go zone.

Evolution of the language out of native’s hands

The internet age is growing and growing.  In the western world, we may feel as though it has already reached all corners, but in the developing world, its rise continues at an incredibly fast rate.  Indeed, in Africa, the number of internet users has grown over 3000% in little over a decade. This figure, however, still accounts for just 15.6% of the total billion plus inhabitants, and thus the growth potential is huge.

With the internet comes communications and with communications comes language.  Professional translation company involvement is growing, in order to bridge the language barrier. Although both English and Mandarin (Chinese) account for approximately a quarter of online users each – with the number of English users slightly higher – the percentage of those browsing in English outside of English speaking countries is much higher than the latter.

Fundamentally, the internet connects the world and increasingly social media (networking and discovery) tools are being developed to encourage enhanced communication and collaboration.  There are all manner of social networking websites and apps, of course the most famous being Facebook and Twitter, and now, too, there is a growing number of social discovery tools.  All of these are increasing the communicability of individuals, globally, and in doing so are influencing the very language we use.

So How is Social Media Changing Language?

First of all, social media, quite simply, is changing the manner in which we communicate.  Both the 140 character limit of Twitter  and the various limits on text messages have led us to say what we want to say in a more condensed fashion.  This has led to the increasing use of acronyms, as well as the creation of new ones.  It can even change the way we spell certain words.

With social media existing at such a fast pace, it is impossible for a professional translation company to constantly translate and – especially with the amount of slang, acronyms and ‘new’ language – automated services are unable to offer assistance.  This is where this new hybrid English is coming in incredibly useful.

An additional element to social media’s impact on language is the number of words that have come along with it; ‘tweeps’, ‘cyberstalking’, ‘twitlit’, ‘Tebowing’, ‘photobombing’ and ‘YOLO’ are all words that have all come to prominence through social media, and it is indeed social media itself that plays a roll in such words receiving recognition.

Dictionary Recognition

The Collins Dictionary, which has become increasingly important since its first edition in 1979, is a well respected print and online English dictionary, published by Hyper Collins.  The editors have used ‘crowdsourcing’ in a bid to keep up with this rapid evolution of language and social media has been their preferred tool.

By requesting individual internet users to submit ideas for new words to be recognised by the dictionary, they ensure that they keep up with current trends.  As these words can then be vetted through social

A referendum is being planned, and soon we could see the full independence for the autonomous territory, which has a total population of over seven and a half million and boasts Spain’s second largest city, Barcelona, as its capital.

Although, in a 2009 study, by the government of Catalonia, it was recorded that the majority of Catalonians claim to primarily speak Spanish, there is a large slice, 35%, who speak Catalan. If full autonomy was to be granted to Catalonia, then you would imagine that this percentage would rise further, with nearly 12% already claiming to speak both.

Indeed Catalan, along with Aranese, which is spoke in the Val d’Aran region, is an official language of Spain, alongside, of course, Spanish itself.

Catalan and Translation

The Catalan people, like many others in territories seeking autonomy, are very proud of their culture and thus their language.  Indeed, this spirit has brought a great deal of support to the Catalan football Club, Barcelona, from a number of secessionist countries, such as Kosovo.

With over seven and a half million people, of which just short of 50% speak Catalan, either alone, or in combination with Spanish, this is a prime example of why localization is key within professional translation.

As far back as 1297, the first Catalan Bible was produced, and indeed, in the modern day it is one of Google Translate’s 66 functioning languages.  With such pride, comes the power of communication and connection, which can be harnessed through language.  It is scary to think how many companies are translating their content into Spanish, but not Catalan, and in doing so, missing out on fully connecting to nearly 15% of the total population of Spain.

Why is this important?

Localization services are a crucially important aspect of translation.  One recent study even suggested that approximately 56% of individuals place native tongue ahead of price, when looking for a suitable website, through which to purchase services or goods.  Indeed the percentage of Chinese who claim to feel ‘more comfortable’ with a Chinese language website is an astounding 95%.

Of course, the Catalan example is different to a lot of localization, which revolves, not around independence or secessionism, but rather dialect and culture.

If you look at the ‘global languages’; French, English, and Spanish, in particular, it is immediately apparent that these languages change as the location does.  French, for example, is spoken, as an official language, in 29 countries, as diverse as; Luxembourg, Canada (Quebec), Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti.  To take the example of English; it is an official language in an incredible 54 countries, namely; Australia, India, Kenya, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines, to name a few.  You could hardly get more diverse. Spanish, too, presents a similar tale.

All of this contributes to the necessity of localization within translation.  It is not as simple as having French translators and English translators and Spanish translators.  Rather, there needs to be location-specific translation experts within an agency.  The example of Catalan is just the tip of the iceberg and rather highlights the importance of research, as opposed to localization, but all of it comes back to the same thing; the ability to connect.

In Conclusion

The Catalan referendum on independence, if successful, may well lead to an increase in the use of the Catalan language, but it is now that companies need to connect.  Although, of course, Catalan is an autonomous territory, it can be overlooked during the translation process and this results in a failure to connect, or indeed, communicate properly with the population.

Further to this, different dialects of languages, and indeed, different cultures, require a unique approach and specific linguistic and cultural knowledge and expertise.  With an increasingly competitive market, within a wide range of sectors, this is crucial, in order to put you ahead of your competitors.

Every company is aware of the importance of communications, and in the modern, globalized world, multi-lingual connectivity is just as important.  It builds trust, and illustrates respect and positive ethos.  Localization can truly help you to build new networks of clients, customers, friends and partners across the globe.

One of the best ways to do this is to use professional translation services to accurately and consistently translate your marketing and promotional materials, technical manuals, websites, blogs, and any other documents that are important to communicating your message to people in different countries.

It is especially important to use professional translation services if your business is trying to expand to another part of the world, not just through the Internet, but through traditional means as well. Solid, professionally-translated business plans and documents can make it or break it as far as expanding overseas goes, especially when there are other investors, businesses, and parties involved.

The key benefit of hiring professional translation services for your business documents is that they work with you in a one-on-one manner. In fact, the best ones will often have a variety of expert translators to choose from, all with specific skills and backgrounds, so that you can select the one that best fits your project. In most cases, the translator that you choose will work with you personally until your translated document is exactly how it needs to be.

The experts who work for quality professional translation services will generally work in their native tongue so that your documents are translated as accurately as possible. For instance, if your business is based out of the United States and you’re planning to expand to Japan, the professional translator that you choose will be a native Japanese speaker who is also fluent in English. They will ensure that your translation reads just as smoothly in Japanese as it does in English.

In addition to providing easy-to-read, grammatically correct, and organized content, a native-speaking translator will also ensure that your completed document picks up any local or cultural influences or references. So many languages have small nuances from region to region and a professional translation service will be able to pick up on these and include them in your completed translation.

Professional translation services are not for everyone. But if you are a business who needs only the best in quality or an individual with similar requirements, then you’d be hard-pressed to find a better method of getting your documents translated in an accurate, consistent, and organized manner.

Languages have grown, developed, evolved, and sometimes become extinct.  There are regional variations, dialects, lingos, and occasional controversies, but as long as there are human beings, too there will be language,

Even modern languages continue to grow, with 150 new words added to the English dictionary in 2011.  Such words are usually connected to technological developments and trends, and in 2011 included; tweet, crowdsourcing, and social media, along with Americanisms, such as bromance and cougar.

Let’s take a look at the ten most widely spoken languages today, and see just how many words each of them has.  Here they are, starting in tenth place, with Portuguese, as the language with the last number of words.

1.English

There is reported to be at least 250,000 words in the English language, with the Oxford English dictionary including 171,476 unique entries in current use, along with 47,156 obsolete words.  There are, however, those who estimate the number to be much higher.  According to the Global Language Monitor, as of January 1^st 2012 there were just over a million words (1,013,913) in total, and this was further backed up by Google’s own research.  The longest word included in the English dictionary is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanokoniosis, and ‘cellar door’ is said to be the most beautiful word in terms of phonaesthetics.

2. Japanese

Japanese is reported to be the most complex written language in the world, with three different writing methods.  In addition to this, the majority of words have two pronunciations, one with Japanese root, and the other with Chinese root.  With approximately 600,000 words, the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test requires a knowledge of 10,000 for level 1 standard.

3.Arabic

Arabic is the official language in over 25 countries across Africa and the Middle East, and is spoken by an estimated 280 million people.  There is much debate about the number of words within Arabic, with some claiming 500 million, but others, more realistically estimating between 60,000 -140,000.  There are some who say that in Arabic you can find 500 separate words for ‘camel’.

4. German

In 2009, the BBC reported that the German ‘Duden’ dictionary had added an additional 5000 words, mainly adopted from the English speaking world.  Words such as ‘After-show party’, ‘no-go area’, ‘it girl’, and ‘babyblues’ were all made official German words.  This took the total number of words within the dictionary to approximately 135,000.

5. Hindi

In India alone there are approximately 415 languages, with 30 of them being spoken by over a million people.  Hindi is by far the most widely spoken Indian language, with an approximate 295 million speakers, and with approximately 120,000 words.  ‘meṃ’ meaning ‘in’ or ‘into’ is the most popular word, followed by ‘hai’ and ‘haim’; is and are, and then ‘nahīṃ’; no or not.

6. Chinese Mandarin

Chinese is the oldest written language in the world, dating back approximately 6000 years.  There are approximately 100,000 characters in Chinese, although knowledge of only 10,000- 20,000 would be required to read a Chinese language newspaper.  A version of Chinese using the Roman alphabet, called Pinwin has been developed to assist western students of the language.

7. Spanish

The DRAE, or Diccionario de la lengua española, has a total of 83,431 words, but it has to be considered that many dialects and slang words are omitted from the text.  The average Spanish vocabulary is said to contain approximately 10,000 words, which thus suggests that only around 1/8^th of the total words are in common use.  Spanish has upwards of three million native speakers in 44 countries making it the fourth most widespread language, but with a total of 329 million individual speakers, it is the second most spoken language after Mandarin.

8. French

Apparently there are approximately 43,000 words in the French language, although it is said that you can communicate 70% of the time by using only the 300-400 most common words.  The most common French words are the variations of ‘the’; le, la, les, and l’, followed by the verb ‘to be’; etre, and the verb ‘to have’; avoir.

9. Korean

According to online research, the average 30-year-old native speaker of English knows approximately 27,808 words, whereas Korean’s were estimated at 30,400 words.  There are even more than ten ways to say ‘I’ in Korean, which can get confusing for anyone trying to learn the language.  Although there is no official recording of the total number of words in the Korean vocabulary, around 55% are said to have been adopted from ancient Chinese, and in total they have 10,000 loaned words also.

10. Portuguese

Non-European speakers of Portuguese outnumber European speakers by approximately 20-1, with a total number in excess of 210 million speakers worldwide, with 192 million in Brazil alone.  It is the most widely spoken language in the southern hemisphere.  The Brazilian dictionary Aurélio lists 25,273 words in total, suggesting that this is the number of commonly used words in Portuguese.

Final thought

It is not yet understood exactly what impact globalisation may eventually have on language.  In the past many have considered that eventually one language will be used by all.  For now though, as numerous languages continue to grow, language translation services have an important role to play in the global environment.