Poll: "Different accents have a vital role during interpreting."
Autor da sequência: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
STAFF DO SÍTIO
Aug 23, 2025

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question ""Different accents have a vital role during interpreting."".

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Buteau Rudolph Jean Pierre
 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 02:37
Membro (2007)
Inglês para Português
+ ...
Other Aug 24, 2025

I’m not an interpreter, but I suppose it will make the job more difficult if the accent happens to be very thick and the interpreter is not used to it…

Peter Simon
Ian Keith Jones Williams
Sebastian Witte
Paulo Roberto
Carmen Valentin-Rodriguez
Oscar Núñez Alfaro
Buteau Rudolph Jean Pierre
 
Shahrzad Salimian
Shahrzad Salimian
Local time: 05:07
Inglês para Persa (Farsi)
+ ...
Accent is of great importance Aug 24, 2025

I believe the key element in precise interpretation is "understanding" what the speaker is saying. If there is any problem with understanding or even any delay in understanding, that will harmfully affect the process and precision of interpretation.

 
Daryo
Daryo
Local time: 02:37
Sérvio para Inglês
+ ...
Definitely true Aug 24, 2025

Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida wrote:

I’m not an interpreter, but I suppose it will make the job more difficult if the accent happens to be very thick and the interpreter is not used to it…


Definitely true. You can't get very far if you can't understand the speaker to start with.

But that potential problem has only a tenuous connection with the poll question as asked.

The way it's worded the poll question makes about as much sense as 'Le cadavre exquis boira le vin nouveau'. Someone decided to turn poll questions into a tribute act to 'les surréalistes'??

If you want to go into purely technical details, what definitely has 'a vital role during interpreting' is to reduce or eliminate any background noise, and to have a properly working equipment if boots are used.

I can't see in which way the presence or absence of 'different accents' (whatever it's in fact supposed to mean) could/would/should(?) have some 'vital role' in the business of interpreting.

Maybe whoever dreamed up this poll question could shed some light on the logic behind this question, because I can't see it?


IrinaN (X)
Maria Laura Curzi
 
Luca Adie
Luca Adie
Alemanha
Local time: 03:37
Alemão para Inglês
+ ...
... Aug 25, 2025

I imagine it does. As a Scot, I know very well about accents. I'd imagine that to interpret well, you'd have to create some kind of neutral accent so that people do not know where you are from.

How interesting!


 
Denis Fesik
Denis Fesik
Local time: 04:37
Inglês para Russo
+ ...
I wonder if there are languages other than English... Aug 25, 2025

... that can beat English in the accent game. I mean, the game of keeping an insane number of accents, some of which are mutually unintelligible. Okay, it's not so bad, really. There's a fat chance that, if your English is good enough, you'll never hear someone talking with a completely unintelligible accent unless you watch a video with an elderly countryman whose accent scores ten out of ten on the scale of unintelligibility. This time I'm not just guessing: I heard tons of different accents a... See more
... that can beat English in the accent game. I mean, the game of keeping an insane number of accents, some of which are mutually unintelligible. Okay, it's not so bad, really. There's a fat chance that, if your English is good enough, you'll never hear someone talking with a completely unintelligible accent unless you watch a video with an elderly countryman whose accent scores ten out of ten on the scale of unintelligibility. This time I'm not just guessing: I heard tons of different accents and could almost always understand what the person was saying. I remember our English teacher in university saying that, if you are a good interpreter, it'll be easier for you to work from rather than into your native languageCollapse


 
Ikram Mahyuddin
Ikram Mahyuddin  Identity Verified
Indonésia
Local time: 08:37
Inglês para Indonésio
+ ...
Sure Aug 25, 2025

Accents other than the "usual" ones can be harder to understand during interpreting.

 
IrinaN (X)
IrinaN (X)
Estados Unidos da América
Local time: 20:37
Inglês para Russo
+ ...
Some wordings just leave you speechless Aug 25, 2025

Whose accent? Speaker's? Interpreter's? Vital for whom? What is "vital" in this puzzling context?

Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Daryo
Jennifer Levey
 


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Poll: "Different accents have a vital role during interpreting."






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