Polish translation: what to know

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

What polish translation is

A Polish translator converts text between English and Polish, handling grammatical cases and formal tone for your readers. Polish nouns, adjectives and names change their endings with their role in a sentence, and the choice of formal or informal address changes the wording throughout.

Signs you need it

  • Your readers are in Poland or a Polish community abroad, and you need text that reads naturally to them.
  • You have a contract, certificate or notice that must be read in Polish with exact terms.
  • You are publishing a website, product guide or course in Polish and want it to read naturally.
  • You have a Polish document that must be read in English for a business, legal or family purpose.
  • A machine translation has produced wrong endings on names and nouns, which native readers would notice.
  • You need a formal letter or application that follows the usual conventions for a Polish reader.

What the pro does

  • Confirms the readers, the purpose and the formal or informal address the document needs.
  • Builds a glossary of names, product terms and titles, with the Polish form of each and the endings it takes.
  • Translates the text and gets the grammatical cases right, so names and nouns read correctly in each sentence.
  • Checks the Polish diacritics on every word, such as ą, ę, ł and ż, and keeps names spelled the same way throughout.
  • Reviews the translation for natural phrasing, then returns the file with notes on any term 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Every job is different, so we do not publish prices.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.
  • Subject complexity, such as legal, medical, technical or marketing text.
  • Formal or informal tone, and how many forms of address the text uses.
  • Formatting, such as tables, forms or design files.
  • Whether a second reviewer checks the Polish text.
  • Deadline for delivery.

What a written quote should spell out

  • The word count or page count, and the language direction.
  • The tone and form of address the translation uses.
  • The glossary step, and who approves the terms and name forms.
  • 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 Polish text, and what tone do they expect?
  • How do you handle the endings of names and places?
  • Will you use the formal or the informal form of address?
  • Will a second person review the Polish text?
  • Can you keep the layout of my forms or tables?
  • Can you show a sample passage on a subject like mine?

Red flags

  • Leaves names in an English form with no case endings where Polish grammar requires them.
  • Drops the diacritics from Polish words.
  • 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 tone or the forms of address used.

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, then have a Polish speaker read a draft and check the endings. Hire a translator when the document is official, will be published or sent to customers, or contains legal, medical or technical terms where one wrong word changes the meaning.

Licenses and permits

Polish 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 Polish samples in your subject as proof of skill.

Polish translation questions

Why do Polish endings matter?

Polish uses grammatical cases, so the endings of nouns, adjectives and names change with their role in a sentence. A translation with the wrong endings reads poorly to native speakers, so checking them is part of the work.

Should names be changed into Polish?

Personal names are usually kept as they are, with the endings added where Polish grammar needs them. Place names may have a Polish form. Agree each form in the glossary before translating.

Which form of address should be used?

Formal address is common in official documents and business letters, while informal address suits personal messages and some marketing. Decide before translating, since changing it later means editing the whole text.

Pro reviewers

Pros who offer polish translation remotely can improve this guide, like Wikipedia. We check every edit before it goes live. Every approved edit is credited in the edit history and on the pro's profile.

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