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Localisation Faux Pas (Archive)
December 2003 |
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A Canadian importer wished to adapt a line of Turkish shirts, which were destined for the French-speaking market of Québec. The importer decided to use a dictionary to help him translate the label "Made in Turkey", into French. The translation he finally chose was: "Fabriqué en Dinde." "Dinde"
does indeed mean "turkey", so what was the problem?
The problem is that "Dinde" refers to the bird (commonly
eaten at Christmas time) and not to the country! In French, the country is
translated as "la Turquie". (Adapted from: Xtend eNews, "5 Global Marketing Gaffes - Don't Let Your Global Business Efforts Get Lost in the Translation" by Laurel Delaney, President, Global TradeSource. http://www.welocalize.com/english/newsletter/Xtend%20eNews4.htm) |
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