The Importance of a GlossaryThis article was originally published on the Acclaro blog.

Category: Marketing, Websites, Software, Documents, Training & eLearning, Multimedia,Localization Tips

Those of you who are new to localization may think

that a glossary is only used for term papers and

reference books. You have yet to discover how this

very simple item can revolutionize your daily work life

by sparing you countless redundancies and/or

inconsistencies in the original English, as well as in the

foreign language versions of your products and

documents.

Creating a glossary of approved terms in each target language at the beginning of your

translation project is essential. It will not only save you time and money (not to mention

headaches and sleepless nights), it will also guarantee successful branding of your products in

foreign markets.

A glossary (from the Greek glossa, meaning obsolete or foreign word), ensures a consistent style

and voice, an accurate rendering of the original text and a level of translation quality that is

even throughout. Glossaries are especially critical in the case of technical translations

and marketing communications, but should really be employed for any localization

project.

Let’s take the example of a social media game. Say you have designed a Medieval fantasy game

set in the 21st century that has met glowing success in the U.S. You naturally decide to take this

game to other language markets, such as Europe and Latin America, to increase revenues. You

begin the process of translation into Spanish, French, German and Italian, assuming that

adapting the game to these markets is as easy as translating the script in a linear fashion from

beginning to end…until you initiate the testing phase and realize there are major inconsistencies

throughout the game.

You discover that “warlock” was translated three different ways in German and that the

variations are used randomly throughout the game in dialogues. “Sorcerer” is sometimes

referred to as “witch” in French. Even the name of the game itself, “Potion”, is translated

inconsistently — though the title is always correctly referred to as “Potion” in Spanish, the word

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itself is used interchangeably with other terms within the game, such as “magic brew” and

“concoction”. 

To your chagrin, you notice that these same vocabulary inconsistencies are rampant in your

public relations campaign, which has already been launched. One press release uses the tagline

“Casting a spell on the 21st century” for the Italian translation, while a later one reads,

“Bewitching the 21st century”. Subtle difference? Perhaps, but the branding of your game

contributes to its success and multiple versions of a tagline demonstrates an inexpert and

possibly, ineffective, global marketing campaign.

While synonyms are highly prized in literature, using the same word consistently throughout

your product and its supporting materials is clearly necessary. Such consistency is only possible

if there is a single translator working on the entire project across all languages (highly unlikely)

or if you have invested in a glossary with predetermined foreign language equivalents for your

key English words.

Before establishing a glossary for the translation process, however, it is often important to begin

with an English glossary and company style guide. If the English version of your communications

is inconsistent, the foreign language versions are certain to be as well!

This may seem cumbersome or daunting at first glance, but detailed work in the beginning will

save you missed deadlines and expensive blunders over the course of your localization project.

So make sure your translation partner works with you on creating a glossary before translation

begins — you will reap the benefits of consistency both abroad and at home!

About Acclaro: Acclaro is an international translation and localization company that helps the world’s leading brands succeed across cultures. We specialize in website translation, marketing translations, document translation and software localization to give clients an authentic voice in key language markets.

North America: 1-866-468-5106 Worldwide: +1-914-468-0222 www.acclaro.com sales@acclaro.com

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