Japanese translation: what to know

What the job involves, what changes the price, and what to ask a pro.

What japanese translation is

A Japanese translator converts text between English and Japanese, adjusting politeness levels, writing systems and cultural context to suit your audience. Japanese is written with three scripts, hiragana, katakana and kanji, and the level of politeness depends on who is reading and why.

Signs you need it

  • Your readers are in Japan, and you need text that uses the politeness level a Japanese customer or official would expect.
  • You have a contract, certificate or notice that must be read in Japanese with exact terms.
  • You are publishing a website, product guide or course in Japanese, and the wording must sound natural to readers.
  • You have a Japanese document that must be read in English for a business, legal or personal purpose.
  • A machine translation has used a politeness level that is too casual or too stiff for the document.
  • You need a translation of a business document where honorific language and the choice of formal terms matter.

What the pro does

  • Confirms the readers, the purpose and the politeness level the document needs.
  • Builds a glossary of names, product terms and titles, with the Japanese form and the spelling of each.
  • Translates the text and chooses the right writing system for each term, kanji, hiragana or katakana.
  • Adjusts the sentence order and the honorific language so the Japanese reads naturally to Japanese readers.
  • Reviews the translation for natural phrasing, then returns the file with notes on the choices you should approve.

What changes the price

Every job is different, so we do not publish prices. These are the things that move the quote up or down.

  • Word count or page count, and the number of documents.
  • Politeness level needed, such as a casual notice or a formal business document.
  • Subject complexity, such as legal, medical, technical or marketing text.
  • Formatting, such as tables, forms or design files, since Japanese text can run longer or shorter than English.
  • Whether a second reviewer checks the Japanese text.
  • Deadline for delivery.

What a written quote should spell out

  • The word count or page count, and the language direction.
  • The politeness level the translation uses.
  • The glossary step, and who approves the names and terms.
  • Whether a second review is included.
  • The file format returned, and whether the layout is recreated.

Questions to ask before you hire

  • Who will read the Japanese text, and what politeness level do they expect?
  • How do you decide which terms to write in kanji and which in katakana?
  • Will you romanize names, and how will you spell them?
  • Will a second person review the Japanese text?
  • Can you keep the layout of my forms or tables?
  • Can you show a sample passage on a subject like mine?

Red flags

  • Uses one politeness level for every document without asking the purpose.
  • Writes names in several different forms through the document.
  • Changes names, dates or figures in the translation.
  • Sends a machine translation with no human review and presents it as professional work.
  • Cannot explain the politeness level or the writing choices in the text.

What you can do yourself

You can list the readers, the names and terms that must stay the same, and whether the document is formal or casual, then have a Japanese speaker read a draft. Hire a translator when the document is official, will be published or sent to customers, or contains legal, medical or technical terms where a wrong word changes the meaning.

Licenses and permits

Japanese translation is not commonly licensed, so a license is usually not required for this work. Check with the office or organization that will receive the document, since some set their own rules for accepted translations, and ask the translator for Japanese samples in your subject as proof of skill.

Japanese translation questions

How polite should the translation be?

It depends on the document and its readers. Official and business documents usually use a formal level, while a casual notice or a friendly page may use a softer one. Tell the translator who will read it and why.

Why are names written in different scripts?

Japanese uses kanji for many names, and katakana or romanization for foreign names. Agree the form for each name in the glossary, so the document uses one form throughout.

Will the Japanese be longer than the English?

It can be shorter or longer, depending on the text. If your layout has a fixed size, tell the translator so the Japanese can be fitted.

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