Where the need is greater: TTATT in Spanish

by Londo111 95 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  ABibleStudent

  Hi ILoveTTATT, Have you tried using www.freetranslation.com? I was just curious if it translates better than Google translate.

  Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

  Robert
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  A.proclaimer

  Hey there!

  I speak Spanish and am willing to help with translating the jwFacts Website. I have access to old watchtower publications as far as those from the 1960's. I've actually figured out most of the formula for where each English and Spanish watchtower are located In that past Because as Jwfacts said, they were released much later. I have also started translating pages from jwfacts website on my own time if anyone wants to use them. i can help Out
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  joe134cd

  Well there you go Paul.
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  hijosdelawatch

  Spanish is my mother tongue so I could help with the translation.

  The problem with the Spanish-speaking exjw community is that there's a lot of information on the Internet but most of it in blogs and personal pages, with all the personal bias it introduces. I think it would be necessary to have something similar to jwfacts in Spanish.

  There's also a forum with inside info (even people who were in Bethel until recently or are still inside).

  But the main problem I have found in all this sites is the diversity of the Spanish-speaking community. In Spain, the WT is on the decline (as in the rest of Europe and North America) while in Latin America they're growing fast. In the forum we are 50% Spanish and the rest from Latin America (more or less) with Spaniards overrepresented. Maybe the way to approach Latin Americans should be different.
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  Londo111
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  ABibleStudent

  BTTT

  To maintain the integrity of JWfacts, I feel that at least 3 translators would need to translate one webpage. The first translator would translate the page; the 2nd translator would review what the 1st translator wrote and make grammer, spelling, and translation differences; and the 3rd translator would resolve any disagreements in translations, grammer, and spelling. It would probably help if all the translators would at least sign thier translation with at least their first name and last initials followed by (last name withheld because of reason) on each webpage.

  I feel that more than one translator is needed because look how Bible translators disagree with each other of words like pornea. Some peope translate pornea into fornication and others into sexual immorality. To me there is a major difference between fornication and sexual immorality.

  Best of wishes for those Spanish speaking people who contact JWfacts to help him translate JWfacts webpages.

  Peace be with you and everyone, who you love,

  Robert
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  Simon

  I've wondered about the automated translations - they have got better over time and although they are never going to be perfect perhaps 'something is better than nothing' for an initial version? If nothing else it can help to judge demand ...

  Google also provide an API for the translation - I've thought about allowing posting in any language with each post translated as required to the viewers language. Obviously, when the conversation is all within the same language users it would be better but it would possibly allow more to join in arbeit at the risk of some misunderstandings.

  The problem is probably with the subject which is a very vertical niche and probably has language and expressions that the systems wouldn't cope so well with when compared to normal everyday speech.
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  ABibleStudent

  Simon - I've thought about allowing posting in any language with each post

  Hi Simon, If a native-speaking person would volunteer to be a moderator for a non-English forum, would you be willing to create at least one forum in another langauge? It should be easy enough to start a friends forum in another language where people can introduce themselves, vent their frustrations, and/or ask for help.

  I use Google Chrome and its translation features to get the gist of non-English webpages very frequently.

  Regards,

  Robert
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  DesirousOfChange

  jwfacts has an exhaustive amount of information. I'm sure it must have take Paul months to originally compile and years to keep it up-to-date. Translating it in its entirity would be a daunting challenge.

  Start with just a few of the most frequently read areas of interest. Paul would know what those are. Or perhaps, what pages are the first to be read by a new lurker (if that is possible to determine). I would suspect the Generation changes are a big issue presently, as well as the changes concerning the F&DS, and finally, the failed doomsday dates for Armageddon (so many new publishers do not even know of 1975 as WT keeps it secret).

  JMHO

  Doc
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  ILoveTTATT

  I'm in for moderating a Spanish version of JWN... Simon, you would have to teach me all your acquired moderating wisdom.

  Also,

  I totally ditto what hijosdelawatch said... Spain is definitely the #1 Spanish-speaking exJW source. Latin Americans are behind when it comes to actually coming out of the JW's. Also, there are GREAT Spanish resources, but they are all scattered. In some cases it is very bad: If you look up "Testigos de Jehová vacunas" (Jehovah's Witnesses Vaccines) on Google, the first website is a JW apologist website!!

  There are differences in the Spanish-speaking world that have to be accounted for. For those who speak Spanish, an amazingly funny but true video showing the differences in many countries of ONE word, "chucho", will demonstrate how hard it is to translate to a neutral Spanish (the video itself is translated to English):

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LjDe4sLER0

  The Spaniards are obviously much richer and they're in a much more secular culture (Europe) than Latin America. This makes it easier for them to come out of the JW's. I would say second country is Chile, third Argentina, and then in the other countries it is almost unthinkable to leave JW's. Mexico is the fastest-growing JW country: There are 600 thousand of them in Mexico, and in certain areas the entire town, except for one or two families, is a JW.

  Like always, there is a direct relationship between poverty of a country and the growth of JW's... (more poverty = more growth)

  I am having great success with my page on Facebook, many people LOVE the Photodrama, ignoring all mistakes and errors in it. But I am sure a lot of them also have doubts and are uneasy with my page.