Rates
The price of a translation depends on a number of factors such as:
- The format. Translating a handwritten text, a poorly legible PDF or a heavily formatted text is more time‑consuming, and therefore more expensive, than a legible, electronic document.
- The nature of the material. Translating advertising copy demands more creativity, and therefore more time, than a business document or a press release.
- The deadline. If you need the translation within 24 hours, or if the text needs to be translated over the weekend, a rush fee will be charged.
Definitely. If parts of the document are a repeat of a previous translation, those sections will be provided at a reduced rate.
Distinctly Dutch is a small company with minimal overhead, which translates into savings for you.
FAQ
Translation is written whereas interpreting is spoken.
It depends on the size, technicality and nature of the document. Usually, a longer text takes longer to translate but not always. For instance, a 10,000-word glossary requires more time, and costs more, than a 10,000-word text. Translating handwritten texts takes longer than translating electronically provided documents. If the client presents me with a well written, legible source text, I can translate about 2,500 words per day.
First, make sure you really need the material you want to have translated. Aren’t you quite sure what the text says? It may be a good idea to have a translator look at your documents and provide you with a general summary to get a better idea whether your translation dollars will be well spent. Second, write the text to be translated with an international audience in mind. Sports terminology and culture-specific clichés do not translate well. And finally, it is in your advantage to deliver a meticulously drafted text before sending it to a translator. Implementing revisions later on is time-consuming and costs more.
Dutch is the official language of the Netherlands (around 17 million) and of Flanders, the northern part of Belgium (a little over 6 million). It is also the official language of Suriname, Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten. The inhabitants of the Netherlands and Flanders use Dutch as their mother tongue, but that is not necessarily the case for the 400,000+ inhabitants of the islands. However, affairs of state and education are conducted in Dutch on the islands. Approximately 23 million people worldwide speak Dutch as a first language. That does not include the approximately 5 million people in the European Union who speak Dutch as a second language.
Within the 28 nations of the European Union, Dutch is listed as the 8th most spoken language after English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, and Rumanian. There are more native speakers of Dutch than native speakers of Greek.
Dutch is the official language that is spoken in the Netherlands and in Flanders, the northern part of Belgium. Flemish is not a separate language but refers to a variant of Dutch that is spoken in Belgium. The Dutch that is spoken in the Netherlands and Flanders has the same grammar and spelling, but there are words and expressions that are only used in either Belgium or the Netherlands or have a different meaning depending on the country. Even though there is one “Standard Dutch,” the differences between the two variants of Dutch seems to have become more pronounced in the last decades.
People who live in the western part of the Netherlands sometimes colloquially refer to this region as “Holland” and to “Hollands” as the language that is spoken there. Dutch and Hollands refer to the same language and Nederland and Holland to the same geographical region.
Afrikaans, one of the official languages of South Africa, developed from a 17th century Dutch dialect. Many words in Afrikaans are easy to understand for Dutch speakers. Afrikaans gradually evolved into a separate language that is different from Dutch and has its own grammar and dictionaries. In 1920, Afrikaans became the official language of South Africa in 1920, alongside English.