COMMITTEE DRAFT ISO/CD 18841-1 Date 2014-11-21 Supersedes document Reference number ISO/TC 37 / SC 5 N 0125 WARNING: This document is not an International Standard. It is distributed for review and comment. It is subject to change without notice and may not be referred to as an International Standard. Recipients of this draft are invited to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant patent rights of which they are aware and to provide supporting documentation. ISO/TC 37 / SC 5 Title Translation, interpreting and related technology Circulated to P- and O-members, and to technical committees and organizations in liaison for: discussion at [venue/date of meeting] on comments by 2015-01-22 [date] approval for registration as a DIS in accordance with 2.5.6 of part 1 of the ISO/IEC Directives, by Secretariat ASI (Austria) 2015-01-22 [date] (P-members vote only: ballot form attached) P-members of the technical committee or subcommittee concerned have an obligation to vote. English title Interpreting - General requirements and recommendations - Part 1: Overview, terms and definitions French title Reference language version: English French Russian Introductory note According to Resolution 4/2014-06 taken at the SC 5 plenary meeting in Berlin, Germany, 2014-06-27 (see document ISO/TC 37/SC 5 N 0116), ISO/WD 18841 had been revised and sent for a third WD to all WG 2 experts before CD. Two virtual meetings of WG 2 were held and the experts agreed upon forwarding the document elaborated to the SC 5 secretariat for circulation as a CD. Please submit your comments on the draft presented by 2015-01-22 via your National Standards Bodies using the ISO electronic balloting portal, CIB (Committee Internal Balloting). FORM 7 (ISO) Page 1 of 1 Version 2007-04
ISO 2014 All rights reserved Reference number of working document: ISO/TC 37/SC 5 N 0125 Date: 2014-11-21 Reference number of document: ISO/CD 18841-1 Committee identification: ISO/TC 37/SC 5 Secretariat: ASI (Austria) Interpreting General requirements and recommendations Part 1: Overview, terms and definitions Élément introductif Élément principal Partie n: Titre de la partie Warning This document is not an ISO International Standard. It is distributed for review and comment. It is subject to change without notice and may not be referred to as an International Standard. Recipients of this draft are invited to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant patent rights of which they are aware and to provide supporting documentation. Document type: International standard Document subtype: if applicable Document stage: (30) Committee Document language: E
Copyright notice This ISO document is a working draft or committee draft and is copyright-protected by ISO. While the reproduction of working drafts or committee drafts in any form for use by participants in the ISO standards development process is permitted without prior permission from ISO, neither this document nor any extract from it may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form for any other purpose without prior written permission from ISO. Requests for permission to reproduce this document for the purpose of selling it should be addressed as shown below or to ISO s member body in the country of the requester: [Indicate : the full address telephone number fax number telex number and electronic mail address as appropriate, of the Copyright Manager of the ISO member body responsible for the secretariat of the TC or SC within the framework of which the draft has been prepared] Reproduction for sales purposes may be subject to royalty payments or a licensing agreement. Violators may be prosecuted. ii ISO 2014 All rights reserved
Contents Page Foreword... iv Introduction... v 1 Scope... 1 2 Fundamentals of interpreting and interpreting services... 1 2.1 Professional interpreting... 1 2.2 Professional Interpreting Service Providers... 1 2.3 Requesters of interpreting services... 1 2.4 Settings and specialisations... 2 2.4.1 Interpreting settings refer to the place and conditions in which interpreting takes place, including but not limited to:... 2 2.4.2 Interpreting specialisations refer to areas of professional expertise that require specific training and qualifications... 2 3 Terms and definitions... 2 3.1 Terms related to interpreting modalities of delivery... 2 3.2 Terms related to interpreting Settings... 4 3.3 Terms related to interpreting Specialisations... 4 3.4 Terms related to language, people and qualifications... 5 Annex A (informative) Alphabetical index... 8 ISO 2014 All rights reserved iii
Foreword ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work. ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of electrotechnical standardization. International Standards are drafted in accordance with the rules given in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2. The main task of technical committees is to prepare International Standards. Draft International Standards adopted by the technical committees are circulated to the member bodies for voting. Publication as an International Standard requires approval by at least 75 % of the member bodies casting a vote. Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. ISO 18841-1 was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 37, Terminology and other language and content resources, Subcommittee SC 5, Translation, interpreting and related technology. ISO 18841 consists of the following parts, under the general title Interpreting General requirements and recommendations: Part 1: Overview, terms and definitions Part 2: Interpreters Part 3: Interpreting service providers (ISPs) iv ISO 2014 All rights reserved
Introduction This International Standard responds to the urgent need to lay down clear requirements for the provision of quality interpreting. It offers guidance for the delivery of spoken or signed communication across languages in all interpreting specialisations, among them business, court, community, conference, media, medical, military and technical interpreting, among other specialisations. Interpreters render spoken or signed communication across languages. Interpreting differs from translation, the rendering of written content into another written language. To help assure consistent and reliable delivery of effective interpreting services, this International Standard provides requirements and recommendations in two further parts to address the two critical categories of stakeholders, or participants, who work together: Part 2 - the interpreter, who can also be the interpreting services provider; Part 3 - the interpreting services provider (ISP) acting as an organizational entity, whether it is public, private or not-for-profit, and whether or not the ISP is organizationally autonomous. Collectively, the three parts of this International Standard address the main participants involved in the delivery of quality interpreting. This International Standard includes minimum requirements to be met by all interpreters and ISPs claiming conformity or compliance to the standard. It also provides recommendations of good practice for provisions that are not suitable to be set as requirements. This International Standard will also help interpreters and those who work with them to define performance quality, set professional requirements and establish optimum working conditions for interpreters, thereby increasing awareness and recognition of the profession as a whole. In this International Standard, the following verbal forms are used: shall indicates a requirement; should indicates a recommendation; may indicates a permission; can indicates a possibility or a capability. ISO 2014 All rights reserved v
COMMITTEE DRAFT ISO/CD 18841-1 Interpreting General requirements and recommendations Part 1: Overview, terms and definitions 1 Scope This part of ISO 18841 establishes requirements for the provision of interpreting services. Additionally it provides recommendations of good practice. This part of ISO 18841 introduces and delineates the areas addressed in all three parts and includes the related terms and definitions. 2 Fundamentals of interpreting and interpreting services 2.1 Professional interpreting This International Standard provides an overview of the basic elements of professional interpreting. Professional interpreting assignments shall not be performed by any individuals who do not meet the requirements specified in this standard. 2.2 Professional Interpreting Service Providers Interpreting Service Providers (ISPs) provide interpreting services and help to coordinate the effective delivery of those services. ISPs can be independent self-employed interpreters, language companies, government services that provide interpreters, hospital interpreting departments, not-for-profit interpreter services, community language banks, employee language banks or any other organization or department that provides interpreting services. ISPs may be autonomous organizations or housed within larger organizations such as language companies, government agencies, international organisations, hospitals and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This International Standard applies to all ISPs, regardless of their size or resources, including the independent, self-employed interpreter who constitutes, in effect, a one-person ISP. The requirements and recommendations listed in both Parts 2 and 3 of this International Standard therefore apply to independent, self-employed interpreters claiming conformity or compliance to Parts 2 and 3 of the standard. 2.3 Requesters of interpreting services Requesters of interpreting services can be individual persons or institutional representatives who contact an ISP to ask that an interpreter perform a specific assignment. Requesters typically represent the person or institution that will pay for the interpreter s services and may or may not be customers or end users of those services or benefit directly from the interpreting services provided. This International Standard offers clear guidance to any requester of professional interpreting services that intends to treat his or her role in the process as professionally as other participants in the delivery of interpreting services, whether the requester is an individual or part of a large or small organization or ISO 2014 All rights reserved 1
government entity. This International Standard can be helpful when drafting requests for bids that refer to or include the provision of interpreting services. 2.4 Settings and specialisations 2.4.1 Interpreting settings refer to the place and conditions in which interpreting takes place, including but not limited to: a) business, b) government, c) media, d) conflict zone, e) community services. 2.4.2 Interpreting specialisations refer to areas of professional expertise that require specific training and qualifications a) conference, b) court, c) medical, d) community, e) military. NOTE 1 Court interpreting is part of a larger area of specialisation called legal interpreting, but in most countries where this specialisation exists the interpreters who practice it are referred to as court interpreters. NOTE 2 Medical interpreting is part of the larger specialisation of community (also known as public service) interpreting but in some countries it is emerging as a separate specialisation. 3 Terms and definitions For the purposes of all parts of this International Standard, the following terms and definitions apply. NOTE A term in a definition or note that is defined elsewhere in this clause is indicated by italic font followed by its entry number in parentheses. Such an italic font term may be replaced in the definition by its complete definition. 3.1 Terms related to interpreting modalities of delivery 3.1.1 interpreting rendering a spoken or signed message into another spoken or signed language (3.4.3), preserving the register and meaning of the source language content (3.4.15) 3.1.2 spoken interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) between two oral languages 2 ISO 2014 All rights reserved
3.1.3 signed language interpreting sign language interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) between signed languages (3.3.3) or between signed and spoken languages 3.1.4 team interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) performed by at least two interpreters (3.4.7) taking turns to reduce interpreting fatigue, enhance accuracy and/or offer a wider language cover 3.1.5 distance interpreting information and communications technology (ICT)-enabled interpreting (3.1.1) of a remote speaker in a different location from the interpreter NOTE 1 to entry: The end users of distance interpreting may be together at one location with the interpreter, at a separate location, or all persons involved may be at separate locations with the interpreter at one or none of these locations. NOTE 2 to entry: In distance interpreting, the interpreter may or may not have a view of non-speaking participants. 3.1.6 mode established method for the delivery of spoken or signed interpreting (3.1.1) NOTE to entry: The two accepted modes of interpreting are consecutive mode (3.1.7) and simultaneous mode (3.1.8). 3.1.7 consecutive mode mode (3.1.6) of interpreting (3.1.1) performed after a speaker pauses 3.1.8 simultaneous mode mode (3.1.6) of interpreting (3.1.1) performed while a speaker is still speaking or signing 3.1.9 sight translation technique of interpreting (3.1.1) performed by rendering written content into another spoken or signed language 3.1.10 summarization practice of briefly recounting the main points of a message expressed in another language, performed in emergencies or other situations of last resort when interpreting (3.1.1) is no longer feasible NOTE 1 to entry: Summarization is often necessary in challenging situations and emergencies that most commonly arise in community interpreting (3.3.1), conflict zone interpreting (3.2.2) and military interpreting (3.2.5). NOTE 2 to entry: Summarization is typically necessary where time is cut short, speakers are impaired, several speakers speak at once or surrounding events spiral out of control. 3.1.11 note-taking technique in consecutive interpreting used for conceptualizing and summarizing information by using a mixture of symbols, abbreviations, words, diagrams, etc. NOTE to entry: Note-taking is highly individual. The symbols used contain mnemonic elements, which mean something to the interpreter by association. Interpreters cannot perform using somebody else s notes. ISO 2014 All rights reserved 3
3.2 Terms related to interpreting Settings 3.2.1 business interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) for commercial transactions, negotiations and meetings, or for commercial visitors or visiting groups 3.2.2 conflict zone interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) in regions disturbed by war, armed conflict, oppression or displacement EXAMPLES Interpreting between peacekeepers and insurgents or between humanitarian relief workers and refugees. 3.2.3 government interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) for government agencies or officials 3.2.4 media interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) in real time or in recordings for any form of spoken or signed-language public mass communications EXAMPLES Interpreting for television, radio or Internet podcasts. 3.2.5 military interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) for armed forces personnel NOTE to entry: Military interpreting can take place in many settings including, but not limited to, conflict zones. 3.3 Terms related to interpreting Specialisations 3.3.1 community interpreting public services interpreting bidirectional interpreting (3.1.1) that takes place in communicative settings (3.3.4) among speakers of different languages for the purpose of accessing services NOTE 1 to entry: Community interpreting may involve both private and public services provided by private or public interpreting service providers (). Community interpreting is not limited to accessing social services and includes, for example, services to tourists and disaster victims. NOTE 2 to entry: Public services interpreting is a term commonly used in some European nations to refer to the profession of community interpreting as defined above. 3.3.2 conference interpreting specialisation of interpreting (3.1.1) used for multilingual communication, typically but not exclusively in a conference environment, performed by appropriately trained and qualified interpreters with the highest-level skills in simultaneous and consecutive interpreting, as well as a high level of proficiency in their working languages, including an excellent command of their native language NOTE to entry: Conference interpreting is mainly practised at international summits, professional seminars and bilateral or multilateral meetings of heads of state and government as well as any kind of important technical, political, scientific and other meetings. 4 ISO 2014 All rights reserved
3.3.3 court interpreting sub-specialisation of legal interpreting (3.3.4) performed in formal judicial settings such as trials, depositions and hearings 3.3.4 legal interpreting interpreting (3.1.1) for legal proceedings that can affect the administration of justice EXAMPLES Interpreting for court cases or for lawyers, defendants, witnesses, plaintiffs, asylum applicants, community-based legal service providers, forensic medical examiners, immigration representatives or law enforcement. NOTE 1 to entry: Legal interpreting is a broad field that encompasses many settings and can involve interpreting in courts or out-of-court settings. NOTE 2 to entry: In some countries, legal interpreting is considered a sub-specialisation of community interpreting (3.2.4) whereas in other countries the opposite is true; in many parts of the world there is controversy and no agreement on this subject. 3.3.5 medical interpreting healthcare interpreting specialisation of interpreting (3.1.1) carried out in a communicative setting (3.4.4) that deals with medicine and/or healthcare and where interpreters (3.4.7) facilitate communication between patients and their families, healthcare providers and healthcare administrators NOTE 1 to entry: The communicative setting can be a doctor s office, a hospital, a health clinic or other medical or healthcare institution. NOTE 2 to entry: Interpreting for medical conferences falls under the conference interpreting (3.3.2) specialisation. 3.4 Terms related to language, people and qualifications 3.4.1 language systematic use of sounds, characters, symbols or signs to express meaning or to communicate meaning or a message [SOURCE: ISO 639-4:2010, definition 3.6] 3.4.2 language proficiency the ability of an individual to understand and/or perform in a specified language (3.4.1) NOTE to entry: Language proficiency typically refers to an individual s oral performance, oral comprehension, reading comprehension and/or written skills. 3.4.3 signed language sign language language (3.4.1) composed of visual gestures and signs used by deaf or hard-of-hearing people for communication NOTE to entry: Signed language may be a national signed language with legal status or an informal signed language used by a large or small group. 3.4.4 communicative setting environment where an interaction between parties takes place ISO 2014 All rights reserved 5
3.4.5 language service provider LSP person or organization that provides translation (3.4.19), interpreting (3.1.1) and/or other language (3.4.1) related services NOTE 1 to entry: The concepts of language service provider and interpreting service provider (3.4.6) are connected by a generic relation, with language service provider being the generic concept and ISP the specific concept. ISPs generally provide only interpreting services. NOTE 2 to entry: LSP is also an abbreviation for Language for specific purposes ; in this standard, LSP refers only to language service provider. [SOURCE: ISO/TS 11669:2012, definition 2.2.1.3] 3.4.6 interpreting service provider ISP interpreter (3.4.7) or organization providing interpreting (3.1.1) services 3.4.7 interpreter individual who renders a message from a source language (3.4.14), be it spoken, signed or written, into a target language (3.4.16), spoken or signed as a professional service NOTE to entry: The interpreter is expected to adhere to a professional code of ethics and standards of practice. 3.4.8 requester customer person or organization requesting a language service from an LSP (3.4.5) NOTE to entry: The requester can be an end user. 3.4.9 licence licensure recognition of competence to practice a given occupation or profession, conveyed to a person or organization by a regulatory body [SOURCE: ISO/TS 17027:2014, definition 2.58] NOTE to entry: In some countries, such regulatory bodies do not currently exist. 3.4.10 certification third-party attestation related to products, processes, systems or persons [SOURCE: ISO 17000:2004, definition 5.5] NOTE 1 to entry: NOTE 2 to entry: Certification for interpreters is conferred by a recognized authoritative body. In many countries, certification for interpreters does not currently exist. 3.4.11 credential evidence of qualification or authority NOTE to entry: In some countries, such credentials for interpreters do not currently exist. 6 ISO 2014 All rights reserved
3.4.12 protocol rule, official procedure or common practice that guides the conduct of members of a profession EXAMPLES Taking an oath in court to perform accurate interpreting, using direct speech when interpreting, and notetaking (3.1.11) in consecutive interpreting. NOTE to entry: Certain specialisations of interpreting (3.1.1) have established protocols. 3.4.13 language content information in any linguistic medium 3.4.14 source language language (3.4.1) from which content is rendered into a target language (3.4.16) 3.4.15 source language content language content (3.4.13) to be interpreted (3.1.1) or translated (3.1.18) 3.4.16 target language language (3.4.1) into which source language content (3.3.16) is rendered 3.4.17 target language content language (3.4.1) content that has been interpreted or translated from source language content (3.3.16) 3.4.18 translate render source language content (3.4.15) into target language content (3.4.16) 3.4.19 translation rendering source language content (3.3.15) into target language content (3.3.16) in written form ISO 2014 All rights reserved 7
Annex A (informative) Alphabetical index B business interpreting 3.2.1 C certification 3.4.10 communicative setting 3.4.4 community interpreting 3.3.1 conference interpreting 3.3.2 conflict zone interpreting 3.2.2 consecutive mode 3.1.7 court interpreting 3.3.3 credential 3.4.11 D distance interpreting 3.1.5 G government interpreting 3.2.3 L language 3.4.1 language content 3.4.13 language service provider 3.4.5 language proficiency 3.4.2 legal interpreting 3.3.4 licence 3.4.9 licensure 3.4.9 LSP 3.4.6 M media interpreting 3.2.4 medical interpreting 3.3.5 military interpreting 3.2.5 mode 3.1.6 N note-taking 3.1.11 S sight translation 3.1.9 sign language 3.4.3 signed language 3.4.3 signed language interpreting 3.1.3 simultaneous mode 3.1.8 source language 3.4.14 source language content 3.4.15 spoken interpreting 3.1.2 summarization 3.1.10 T target language 3.4.16 target language content 3.4.17 team interpreting 3.1.4 translate 3.4.18 translation 3.4.19 H healthcare interpreting 3.2.5 I interpreter 3.4.7 interpreting 3.1.1 interpreting service provider 3.4.6 ISP 3.4.6 P protocol 3.4.12 public services interpreting 3.2.4 R requester 3.4.8 8 ISO 2014 All rights reserved