SuperFast
Translations

Be sure to include information that you already know about the item to be translated such as proper names, town names, dates of an event, and incidental facts. Also, any known background for the document is very helpful. This will greatly reduce the translation time for the entire document!

If it is modern German or Gothic (Fraktur**) German, printed or written, I can translate it. If it is old German, written in "Kroeburn Kupferstich" or "Suetterlin", I'll do it if it is a very legible copy and the writing conforms to either of the two styles. Click Here for a readable example of one of the old printing styles (they aren't all the same!).

Don Watson
dons-translations .. <at> .. cox . net
(adjust the E-Mail addy to the correct format).

FREE!

No charge for E-Mail translations of printed modern or printed Gothic (Fraktur) German up through 100 words* (not applicable to more than one E-Mail in a series). Everything else is.....

6 cents per word!  

All translation fees are due upon receipt of a return E-Mail clearly
stating the fee required. Cash, Cashier's Check, Money Order, or PayPal.
I can no longer accept personal checks!

Old script handwriting, sent as an E-Mail attachment, must be entirely legible, unless you want me to translate only the legible portions.

By regular mail, modern written or printed or printed Gothic (Fraktur**), legible, 6¢ per word, $10 minimum fee, you enclose a postage-paid, self-addressed envelope. Old script, same terms. I must see a sample of the old script that you want translated before I agree to do it. In some cases I will refer you not to a translator, but to a language analyst, due to the exceptional difficulty of pre-1800s German script. The younger generations of Germans do not want to learn the old script ~ not many persons can read it anymore. It is a dying art - but I have a few contacts if I can't do it myself, and I can offer a discount in the latter case.

Do I have competitors? Yes! The nearest one to my fee schedule charges a flat 10 cents per word beginning with word 1, and they have a minimum fee!  I do 100 words for free* ~ others charge $30 to $40.  I translate 500 words for $30, including insights. Their lowest rate is $75 (minimum fee), and they offer NO insights! I will assist you AFTER you receive your translation, THEY won't!

Contact me for rates on printed or old written script, faded, difficult to read documents, translations longer than 500 words. You must provide a sample, either via the internet, or regular mail. Include your self-addressed, stamped envelope of the right size for a response by regular mail. Be sure to include information that you already know about the item to be translated such as proper names, town names, incidental facts. This greatly accelerates understanding and therefore provides a finished product without unreasonable delay. Please understand that these old, difficult documents often produce only limited information, but I still have to spend TIME analyzing them. Want your translation to look like a formal document, in old German script? Contact me about my rates for producing a document like that.


Same-day-service, often instant,  if  I am not back-logged. You may ask questions about the finished product or any portion thereof at any time.

*Not the original 100 words in a document.

*It is impossible to translate German to English or English to German word-for-word. I charge for the number of words found in the original version, not the translation, which may produce more or less words. Please note that insights added to the translation can be profoundly helpful to you. They provide cultural, environmental, seasonal, occupational, and other forms of information not found in the original text, but which I understand or perceive (including "reading between the lines"), based upon my experience. This advanced style is known to translators as the "Dynamic Equivalent." If you want insights included, my fee will still be the number of words in the original document , plus the insight words, times 6 cents (I have to read and interpret all words in context in the original, of course!). You can tell me to exclude insights if you wish. Here is a sample of the Dynamic Equivalent method:

King James Bible: Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort, Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.

Dynamic Equivalent: Let us give thanks to the (one and only) God and Father of our (Savior; Messiah) Lord Jesus Christ, from whom all help comes, enabling us to help others.***

The insights are enclosed in parentheses. I might also include them in an
explanatory paragraph at the end of the translation.

Please note that reasonable translations for charitable organizations and in hardship cases are free.
I won't know it is charitable or a hardship case if you don't tell me! Don't be bashful! I do have to exclude long and/or difficult translations from this offer. I'll carefully review each request.

Free Language Insights

**Gothic or Fraktur in printed format is NOT the same as handwritten old script!

***Many newcomers to translation wrongly believe it is an exact science, and mistakenly assume a firmly defined one-to-one correlation exists between the words and phrases in different languages. That is not the case. Dynamic equivalence provides a less rigid and more analytical method to arrive at a translation that captures the intent of the original. Some will argue that translation is an art, while others will describe it as a craft. In any event, the translator requires not only the craft of good language skills and research techniques but also the art of good writing, cultural sensitivity, and communication. You won't get that with a computerized translation!

Remember, when you contact Germans by E-Mail,  they have to pay an access fee, a monthly fee, internet taxes, and for every second they are online using E-Mail, sending or receiving! It's vital for them to understand the information up front! They won't be happy if they have to have your English letter or E-Mail translated, and they most likely won't understand your request if you you use a computer-generated translation! They, for the most part, produce gibberish, some of which may be VERY embarrassing for you, upsetting for them! I don't have those problems,

Would you like to know the origin of your surname or a particular word in a document? Is your surname or that word translatable? FREE service to everyone. Simply E-Mail dwats <at> cox.net. Change the <at> to @.

NOTE!!
I've been at it since 1961. I was among the first on the internet, long before mailing lists and helpful links to ancestral information. It is time to scale back. I WILL STILL DO TRANSLATIONS, but I can no longer do exhaustive research by telephone, fax, letter. If you convince me I should in your case, a $100 non-refundable minimum research fee is required, no personal checks.

It has been a blast, believe me!! I can't thank enough all the nice folks who have such a blessing to me and my wife all these years! I just need more time for R&R from research, but Remember: I still do translations!!
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Since 1 Jan 2007