It is interesting the way jobs come in sometimes.A lot of times some
agencies are not interested/ will not respond to my email etc.But at
other times some agency would contact me out of the blue saying that
they have got my details from a colleague/internet and ask 'would you
be prepared to do a job for us today/tomorrow?
I try my best not to disappoint anyone and take jobs on even at last minute's
notice.But by doing that I feel good that I have helped someone out and the
other party also remembers this and my reputation goes up.
I also get to gain experience on different aspects of the profession.
I have done translation and transcription work this way and ofcourse interpreting !
So if you have bumped into my blog this way (searching for Bengali/Sylheti interpreters)
then you are welcome to contact me on 07832371577 and I will try my best to help you.
You can rest assured that I am properly qualified and on the NRPSI register.My registration
no. is 13248. I live in North west London but I am prepared to travel anywhere practical.
Thursday 27 December 2007
Monday 24 December 2007
Experience so far
O.K. It's nearly two years now I have been doing interpreting work.
It is interesting and rewarding work.In my life I have worked in a
lot of different industries/businesses and I must say that this has been
most interesting!
One gets to work with so many different types of people and in so many
different areas of life! Sometimes I have worked in county courts in family/
children's matters; Sometimes at crown courts dealing with cases where people
can taste the long arm of the law.
Sometimes at contact centres getting to know the families' involved quite well.
At times in Hospitals and medical centres and also at people's homes dealing with
quite sensitive matters.
But as an interpreter we always have to follow the codes of conduct and maintain
strict professionalism.Must always remember the role we are playing;the job we
are doing. We have to maintain strict neutrality and sometimes remind parties our
roles as well.We are there to just act as a conduit between two different language
speakers.People ask for advice or opinion. I can not offer either .I can not help
them with any information either.My role forbids me to do that. Sometimes
people try to manipulate us psychologically.I have to be aware of that and take
care not to fall into any trap.
So you can see it can be challenging. But that's where the training comes into use !
It's easy to get into a lengthy conversation with the non English speaker. But that would
be unprofessional ! And people do notice that.And praise you for being good.I believe
that doing your job properly is a good advertisement for business as well. Because if
you are good at what you do, more and more people would want your services.On the
other hand if you are sloppy, nobody would want to do business with you or atleast not
if they can help it.
It is interesting and rewarding work.In my life I have worked in a
lot of different industries/businesses and I must say that this has been
most interesting!
One gets to work with so many different types of people and in so many
different areas of life! Sometimes I have worked in county courts in family/
children's matters; Sometimes at crown courts dealing with cases where people
can taste the long arm of the law.
Sometimes at contact centres getting to know the families' involved quite well.
At times in Hospitals and medical centres and also at people's homes dealing with
quite sensitive matters.
But as an interpreter we always have to follow the codes of conduct and maintain
strict professionalism.Must always remember the role we are playing;the job we
are doing. We have to maintain strict neutrality and sometimes remind parties our
roles as well.We are there to just act as a conduit between two different language
speakers.People ask for advice or opinion. I can not offer either .I can not help
them with any information either.My role forbids me to do that. Sometimes
people try to manipulate us psychologically.I have to be aware of that and take
care not to fall into any trap.
So you can see it can be challenging. But that's where the training comes into use !
It's easy to get into a lengthy conversation with the non English speaker. But that would
be unprofessional ! And people do notice that.And praise you for being good.I believe
that doing your job properly is a good advertisement for business as well. Because if
you are good at what you do, more and more people would want your services.On the
other hand if you are sloppy, nobody would want to do business with you or atleast not
if they can help it.
Friday 13 April 2007
Tuesday 27 March 2007
Art In Interpreting
There is an art in Interpreting.A lot depends on the individual interpreter's skill, experience,
grasp of both the languages involved and relevant cultures.Choice of words makes a huge difference in the quality of interpreting.
I dont necessarily mean using complicated or large words;rather just the right words.I alwys believe in using simple words and using simple sentences. I believe this style makes a speech or a written article much more enjoyable and fluent.In other words attractive. If a reader or listener finds an article easily readable/understandable rather than very complicated they are more likely to continue reading /listening. Otherwise they might get bored or distracted.
Though I believe in an interpreter having a rich repertoire of words.Which enables the interpreter to use a variety of words rather than making the speech sound dull and boring by repeatitive use of a word or words.
The actual style of delivery of the individual interpreter makes it either excellent or just passable .Experience also helps the interpreters to refine their style and delivery.
As both English and Bengali are very rich languages, interpreting between these two languages can be quite an enjoyable work.
Copyright : Author Mohammad Mogni Choudhury.
London NW7 (mob.07832371577)
email : mognichoudhury@yahoo.com
grasp of both the languages involved and relevant cultures.Choice of words makes a huge difference in the quality of interpreting.
I dont necessarily mean using complicated or large words;rather just the right words.I alwys believe in using simple words and using simple sentences. I believe this style makes a speech or a written article much more enjoyable and fluent.In other words attractive. If a reader or listener finds an article easily readable/understandable rather than very complicated they are more likely to continue reading /listening. Otherwise they might get bored or distracted.
Though I believe in an interpreter having a rich repertoire of words.Which enables the interpreter to use a variety of words rather than making the speech sound dull and boring by repeatitive use of a word or words.
The actual style of delivery of the individual interpreter makes it either excellent or just passable .Experience also helps the interpreters to refine their style and delivery.
As both English and Bengali are very rich languages, interpreting between these two languages can be quite an enjoyable work.
Copyright : Author Mohammad Mogni Choudhury.
London NW7 (mob.07832371577)
email : mognichoudhury@yahoo.com
Monday 26 March 2007
Learning Languages
Language and learning are fascinating subjects. In my psychology course I learnt different theories on 'Children's ability to learn languages'. Whether children are born with the ability to percieve different sounds in their parents' language or are they able to percieve sounds in all languages. Also whether they are born with a repertiore of some sounds or is it universal to all babies born in whatever culture .Its all interesting.
On a practical scale, I have noticed in case of my own children and those of close relative's that children have really an exceptional ability to learn languages and several of them without getting confused or mixed up at all.
For insatnce, my first son, would speak Bengali at home ( because thats what we speak at home ) .He would speak Gujrati with his childminder as she is Gujrati and at Nurseries/Schools he would speak English. He would never speak Gujrati with us or Bengali with his childminder.And neither of these two at school.Also he never confused any Bengali word with Gujrati or English and vice versa.
So, basically he was learning three languages simultaneously without any problem what so ever.I have seen the same happening with all the other relative's children and believe that must be the case in all cases. I have not heard anything to suggest otherwise.
On a practical scale, I have noticed in case of my own children and those of close relative's that children have really an exceptional ability to learn languages and several of them without getting confused or mixed up at all.
For insatnce, my first son, would speak Bengali at home ( because thats what we speak at home ) .He would speak Gujrati with his childminder as she is Gujrati and at Nurseries/Schools he would speak English. He would never speak Gujrati with us or Bengali with his childminder.And neither of these two at school.Also he never confused any Bengali word with Gujrati or English and vice versa.
So, basically he was learning three languages simultaneously without any problem what so ever.I have seen the same happening with all the other relative's children and believe that must be the case in all cases. I have not heard anything to suggest otherwise.
Saturday 24 March 2007
Funny Story As Promised
Right, I am sorry if I offended anyone by mentioning my opinion about the surnames in Bangladesh. I did not intend to offend anyone personally.But that is my view.I think that
happens because a lot of people trying to be fashionable, import a lot of Arabic or Arabic sounding names and insert those into their names. (e.g. Binte, Ibne etc.)
Another reason could be that a lot of people trying to be humble, remove the surname from their name. (e.g. they remove choudhury,khan etc.) but why? If that is your surname, you
should keep it.
O.K. the funny story I promised yesterday goes like this. :
In Sydney, this person I knew had his daughter admitted in hospital for some illness.
Now, we all know lot of Bangladeshi girls have Begum as their last name.
So when this guy went to see his daughter in hospital, th edoctors and nurses started addressing
him as Mr.Begum.
You see what can happen because of lack of cultural knowledge ?
By Mohammad Mogni Choudhury (Bengali/Sylheti language Interpreter)
happens because a lot of people trying to be fashionable, import a lot of Arabic or Arabic sounding names and insert those into their names. (e.g. Binte, Ibne etc.)
Another reason could be that a lot of people trying to be humble, remove the surname from their name. (e.g. they remove choudhury,khan etc.) but why? If that is your surname, you
should keep it.
O.K. the funny story I promised yesterday goes like this. :
In Sydney, this person I knew had his daughter admitted in hospital for some illness.
Now, we all know lot of Bangladeshi girls have Begum as their last name.
So when this guy went to see his daughter in hospital, th edoctors and nurses started addressing
him as Mr.Begum.
You see what can happen because of lack of cultural knowledge ?
By Mohammad Mogni Choudhury (Bengali/Sylheti language Interpreter)
Friday 23 March 2007
Role of Culture in Interpreting
Most people know that Interpreting is not just literal word for word translation of one language
to the other.Done that way,the proper meaning may not be conveyed and even might confuse the person listening.
Thats why a good understanding of both the cultures are required.Getting to know other cultures is fascinating !Somebody mentioned that learning a foreign language and the culture of that language speakers is one of the most remarkable things one can achieve !
I will add a couple of very interesting stories here.
I left my native country Bangladesh at the age of 18.I went to Australia .I was one of the 30 boys who qualified for the scholarship given by the Austarlian government to bangladesh.
It was exciting time ! We were young; Bangladesh was young ; Just recovering from the independence war,expenses of reconstruction ,oil crisis of the seventies,flood damage,famine and political upheaval.
All of us were academically bright. We already could speak English.But there was something.
We learnt it at school the old fashioned way; with proper grammar,tense etc.But we discovered that Australians dont speak that way.There was a big difference between written and spoken English.
On top of that there was the added matter of accent and slangs.
We had to pick up those things in a natural way. That is by listening and observing.And that was the fun thing ! I think those things can not be taught in a classroom environment.Or if taught, there would be no fun in it and there would be no element of pride in the learner's mind.(because s/he did not work it out for themselves.)
In Bengali culture, we never call anybody older than us by their name.Its taken as impolite and rude.So, at work one would address their older colleagues as elder brother/sister or uncle/aunt (according to the age of the person). Where as in western (and Australian) culture, one would call their colleagues (or anybody for that matter) by their first name to show warmth and closeness.So if someone's name is David Martz, I would call him 'Dave' if I am close to him.
If not , then as a show of respect and as a formal way of address, I would have to call him as Mr.Martz.
In Bangladesh on the other hand there is no fixed rule. If someone's name is Mogni Choudhury;
he can be called either Mogni Vai, or Choudhury Shaheb or even Mogni Shab. And all of those would be alright.
Also I think in Bangladesh a lot of people have messed up their surnames.And no rule is followed.So in the same family, one brother can be named as say 'Faisal Ahmed' and the other brother can be 'Habibur Rahman'. So what's the surname here?Can get very confusing can't it?
Tomorrow I will add an amusing story about this mixed up surnames.
Copy Right of this article is owned by the writer Mohammad Mogni Choudhury and no part of this article should be used by any other person without written permission from the author.
If anyone wants to use it or part of it, contact the author at mognichoudhury@yahoo.com
to the other.Done that way,the proper meaning may not be conveyed and even might confuse the person listening.
Thats why a good understanding of both the cultures are required.Getting to know other cultures is fascinating !Somebody mentioned that learning a foreign language and the culture of that language speakers is one of the most remarkable things one can achieve !
I will add a couple of very interesting stories here.
I left my native country Bangladesh at the age of 18.I went to Australia .I was one of the 30 boys who qualified for the scholarship given by the Austarlian government to bangladesh.
It was exciting time ! We were young; Bangladesh was young ; Just recovering from the independence war,expenses of reconstruction ,oil crisis of the seventies,flood damage,famine and political upheaval.
All of us were academically bright. We already could speak English.But there was something.
We learnt it at school the old fashioned way; with proper grammar,tense etc.But we discovered that Australians dont speak that way.There was a big difference between written and spoken English.
On top of that there was the added matter of accent and slangs.
We had to pick up those things in a natural way. That is by listening and observing.And that was the fun thing ! I think those things can not be taught in a classroom environment.Or if taught, there would be no fun in it and there would be no element of pride in the learner's mind.(because s/he did not work it out for themselves.)
In Bengali culture, we never call anybody older than us by their name.Its taken as impolite and rude.So, at work one would address their older colleagues as elder brother/sister or uncle/aunt (according to the age of the person). Where as in western (and Australian) culture, one would call their colleagues (or anybody for that matter) by their first name to show warmth and closeness.So if someone's name is David Martz, I would call him 'Dave' if I am close to him.
If not , then as a show of respect and as a formal way of address, I would have to call him as Mr.Martz.
In Bangladesh on the other hand there is no fixed rule. If someone's name is Mogni Choudhury;
he can be called either Mogni Vai, or Choudhury Shaheb or even Mogni Shab. And all of those would be alright.
Also I think in Bangladesh a lot of people have messed up their surnames.And no rule is followed.So in the same family, one brother can be named as say 'Faisal Ahmed' and the other brother can be 'Habibur Rahman'. So what's the surname here?Can get very confusing can't it?
Tomorrow I will add an amusing story about this mixed up surnames.
Copy Right of this article is owned by the writer Mohammad Mogni Choudhury and no part of this article should be used by any other person without written permission from the author.
If anyone wants to use it or part of it, contact the author at mognichoudhury@yahoo.com
Thursday 22 March 2007
Finding a good Interpreter
Finding a good Interpreter can be hard.There are a lot of unqualified people working in the field.
Using their services can affect the quality of the job in a very bad way.
That's why one should alwys try to get a properly qualified person for any interpreting job.
In the U.K, the recognised qualification is DPSI.There are quite a few DPSI holders available now.
Most of them are also registered on the NRPSI register.
You can be confident of the quality of the job when you use any of these qualified interpreters.
Using their services can affect the quality of the job in a very bad way.
That's why one should alwys try to get a properly qualified person for any interpreting job.
In the U.K, the recognised qualification is DPSI.There are quite a few DPSI holders available now.
Most of them are also registered on the NRPSI register.
You can be confident of the quality of the job when you use any of these qualified interpreters.
Tuesday 20 March 2007
Bengali Interpreter
PERSONAL DETAILS CONTACT DETAILS
Name: Mohammad Mogni Choudhury
Address: 30, Barnet Way
Mill Hill ,London NW7 3BH
Gender: Male
Phone: 0208 9063979
Mobile : 07832371577
Date of Birth: 06.07.1961
Email: mognichoudhury@yahoo.com
Nationality: British
EDUCATION
Passed DPSI (diploma in public service interpreting) exam in September 2006.
NRPSI interpreter registration no. 13248 (language Bengali)
Institutions Attended: Open University U.K(1994-1995)
Qualification Gained : Passed the ‘Introduction to Psychology’ course (70% marks obtained)
New South Wales Institute of Technology Australia (1980 -1982)
Qualification Gained : Qualified as Aircraft Maintenance Engineer.
Notre Dame College (Dhaka, Bangladesh) (1976-1978)
Passed HSC (Higher Secondary Certificate) in First Division with the following subjects: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Bengali and English.
Khilgaon Govt. High School (Dhaka, Bangladesh) (1971-1976)
Passed S.S.C (Secondary School Certificate) in First Division with the following subjects :
Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Bengali, English and Religious studies.
Employment History
Working as Freelance Interpreter/Translator for various government departments since 2006.
Running my own successful restaurant Business since 1992.
British Railways (1986-1992)
Worked as diesel locomotive maintenance engineer at Old Oak Common depot.
Bangladesh Airlines (1983-1985)
Worked as DC10 maintenance engineer at Dhaka.
PERSONAL PROFILE
I am interested in people and get along nicely with most people. I am equally at ease in both team environment and working on my own. I am well organised, responsible, punctual and methodical at my work. Being in a customer service business and handling all sorts of people over the years I can tackle most challenging situations calmly and in a professional manner.
Name: Mohammad Mogni Choudhury
Address: 30, Barnet Way
Mill Hill ,London NW7 3BH
Gender: Male
Phone: 0208 9063979
Mobile : 07832371577
Date of Birth: 06.07.1961
Email: mognichoudhury@yahoo.com
Nationality: British
EDUCATION
Passed DPSI (diploma in public service interpreting) exam in September 2006.
NRPSI interpreter registration no. 13248 (language Bengali)
Institutions Attended: Open University U.K(1994-1995)
Qualification Gained : Passed the ‘Introduction to Psychology’ course (70% marks obtained)
New South Wales Institute of Technology Australia (1980 -1982)
Qualification Gained : Qualified as Aircraft Maintenance Engineer.
Notre Dame College (Dhaka, Bangladesh) (1976-1978)
Passed HSC (Higher Secondary Certificate) in First Division with the following subjects: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Bengali and English.
Khilgaon Govt. High School (Dhaka, Bangladesh) (1971-1976)
Passed S.S.C (Secondary School Certificate) in First Division with the following subjects :
Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Bengali, English and Religious studies.
Employment History
Working as Freelance Interpreter/Translator for various government departments since 2006.
Running my own successful restaurant Business since 1992.
British Railways (1986-1992)
Worked as diesel locomotive maintenance engineer at Old Oak Common depot.
Bangladesh Airlines (1983-1985)
Worked as DC10 maintenance engineer at Dhaka.
PERSONAL PROFILE
I am interested in people and get along nicely with most people. I am equally at ease in both team environment and working on my own. I am well organised, responsible, punctual and methodical at my work. Being in a customer service business and handling all sorts of people over the years I can tackle most challenging situations calmly and in a professional manner.
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