In the day-to-day practice of a Spanish translation agency or a professional translation agency, it is essential to use language that does not favor one gender over another. This not only responds to a social trend, but to the requirement for linguistic and professional consistency that applies to professional translation services, sworn translation, and any commission entrusted to a leading company in professional translation.
Why do translators need to adopt a neutral approach?
The use of gender-neutral language forms is backed by institutional guidelines that now suggest the need to avoid terms that suggest that the masculine gender is the norm. For example, a European Parliament directive states that “the purpose of gender-neutral language is to avoid word choices which may be interpreted as biased, discriminatory or demeaning by implying that one sex or social gender is the norm”.
For a business-to-business translation company, this becomes even more relevant when working with bilingual documents, technical texts or sworn translations. In these cases, the translator (or the team of professional native-speaking translators) needs to ensure that they do not insert a gender perspective that isn’t there in the original or that doesn’t contribute anything to the message. Studies also highlight that automatic translation tools continue to reproduce biases. For example, a review of an automatic translation shows how the preference for the masculine form persists when the original language was neutral.
Specific techniques to ensure gender-neutrality without losing fluency
A translation agency in Spain that aspires to be relied upon can implement practices such as:
- Using collective terms or gender-neutral nouns instead of gender-specific pronouns. For example, “the team”, “the individual” or “the client” if the context so permits.
- Avoiding the construction “he” or “she” when the gender isn’t relevant or is hidden in the original. Reformulating sentences that unnecessarily specify a gender. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) recommends the following strategies: use passive forms, neutral plurals or reformulate the sentence.
- Reviewing sector-specific glossaries to ensure that the term doesn’t attribute gender: in sector-specific translation (legal, health, or technological), gender implications can affect how the text is perceived.
- Monitoring the final output even when automatic translation technology is used, as automatic translation models tend to reproduce gender stereotypes. A recent piece of research warned that “all models preferred masculine pronouns when there was a professional stereotype”.
For the company offering these services, be it a small or medium-sized translation company or a large consultancy, documenting these decisions in internal guidelines and explaining to the client which gender-neutral approach is being adopted is key. This way, a reliable translation agency can clearly show the client how it approaches gender-neutral language, in what context, and what the limits are. At the end of the day, the goal is to convey the original message accurately, not to re-interpret it.
Finally, when it comes to choosing translation providers, if you are looking for the best translator in the world, take into consideration not only their language skills, but also their ability to handle gender-neutral language, cultural nuances, and sector-specific requirements. This way, a business-to-business translation company or a sworn translation commission will benefit from an inclusive, professional, and technical approach.
In summary: gender-neutrality in translation is not an optional extra; it is a professional and methodological decision. A professional translation agency that is committed to precision, consistency, and inclusivity stands out in the market. Professional translation services must ensure that the message reaches its audience without any implied gender specificity and with the highest degree of reliability.
