Italian-English translator; English-Italian translator

Italian and English: target languages in high demand in the Swiss market

Target language Italian – language variants

Italian is one of the four official languages of Switzerland and is spoken by a large part of the population in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino and in parts of the southern canton of Graubünden. According to the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), more than half of the Italian-speaking population lives outside Italian-speaking Switzerland. This is partly due to immigration from Italy in the 1960s and 1970s. Switzerland is also home to the third largest community of Italians living abroad.

Although Italian is a minority language, it is very present throughout Switzerland. The demand for English-Italian and Italian-English translations is correspondingly high.

Swiss Italian is spoken in Switzerland, and Italian is also spoken as a second language in parts of the United States and Canada. There, the Italian-American and Italian-Canadian communities have developed their own varieties of Italian.

What is the difference between Swiss Italian and Italian?

Although the Italian spoken in Switzerland is generally similar to the Italian spoken in Italy, there are some differences in vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar.

One major difference between Italian and Swiss is the use of certain words and expressions.

• In Switzerland, Italian has been strongly influenced by the other national languages (German, French and Romansh) and by local dialects in Ticino and Graubünden. This has led to the development of some unique words and expressions that are not commonly used in Italy.
• There are also some differences in pronunciation between Italian spoken in Italy and Italian spoken in Switzerland. The Italian spoken in Switzerland tends to have a more neutral accent, with less emphasis on the particular intonations and regional accents that are common in Italy.
• Grammatically, the differences between Italian and Swiss Italian are generally minor, although there may be some differences in usage and syntax. For example, certain verb forms are used more frequently in Switzerland than in Italy, and there are differences in the formation of certain grammatical structures.

The Italian spoken in Switzerland is broadly similar to the Italian spoken in Italy, but there are some notable differences in vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar.

We process your translation assignments into Italian, taking into account your specific linguistic requirements in terms of terminology, style and language variants.

Target language English – language variants

Switzerland is considered one of the world’s top 20 economies and is renowned for its international business orientation. English is the most widely spoken language in commerce and business worldwide. Along with Portuguese, Spanish, Serbian, Croatian and Albanian, English is one of the most widely spoken foreign languages in Switzerland. The English language therefore plays an important role in communication between private and public organisations in our country.

English is spoken by millions of people around the world as a native language and by many others as a second language. There are several main varieties of English, which differ in pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar.

Some of the main varieties of English are:

• British English: spoken in the United Kingdom, with several regional variants such as Scottish English, Welsh English and Northern Irish English.
• American English: spoken in the United States, with several regional variants, including South American English, Midwestern American English and California English.
• Canadian English: Spoken in Canada, with some differences from British and American English.
• Australian English: spoken in Australia, with some differences from British English.
• New Zealand English: spoken in New Zealand, with some differences from British and Australian English.
• South African English: spoken in South Africa, with some differences from British English.
• Indian English: spoken in India, with some influences from Indian languages.
• Singaporean English: spoken in Singapore, with influences from both British English and the various languages of the country.
• Nigerian English: spoken in Nigeria, with influences from Nigerian languages and Pidgin English.

There are also varieties of English spoken in other regions, such as Jamaican English, which is spoken in Jamaica and has influences from African languages and Jamaican Creole. Within these main varieties, there are numerous dialects and accents of English, depending on the region and background of the speaker.

We ensure that your translation assignments and projects are carried out in accordance with your requirements, taking into account the spelling and idiosyncrasies of each language variant.

Professional and certified translations English-Italian and Italian-English

Since 2012, our Zurich-based translation agency has been working successfully with numerous Swiss and foreign companies and organisations in the field of English-Italian and Italian-English translations.

In these language combinations, we handle a wide range of formats and documents in a variety of subject areas, such as:

Certified translations

Certified translations are usually required for documents to be submitted to the authorities. These documents include various contracts (e.g. sale and purchase agreements, wills, marriage contracts, certificates, diplomas, birth certificates, expert reports, extracts from the commercial register, criminal records, driving licences, marriage certificates, divorce certificates and similar legal documents).

We have been providing certified (sworn) English-Italian and Italian-English translations for individuals and organisations for many years. Our sworn translation service also includes an apostille upon request.

We can also provide apostilles upon request. Our certified translation services, together with our personalised customer service, are consistently rated highly by numerous private and institutional clients.

Quality assurance and translation technology

We process all translation assignments and projects in accordance with the recognised industry standards for translation services (ISO 17100:2015 for translation services). For short-lived content, such as content produced for internal use only, simplified editing processes may be applied in consultation with you.

We use bespoke translation and terminology software (including machine translation tools) to manage your language data and ensure consistency of content. This enables us to handle a wide range of document formats.

If required, we can put together a team of translators specifically for your project. Our specialist translators and proofreaders are also continually evaluated to ensure the quality of all projects and to optimise processes.

Fast turnaround times and excellent value for money are guaranteed.

Other language services for the target languages Italian and English

Our translation agency also offers other language services in the language combinations English-Italian and Italian-English.

Satisfied customers - Proven expertise

Renowned clients at home and abroad have relied on our expertise for many years to translate long and complex texts and content from Italian into English and from English into Italian.

We have long-standing relationships with:

• a Zurich-based financial institution of systemic importance to the Swiss financial centre,
• a leading Swiss transaction bank,
• a major pension fund service provider,
• a telecommunications provider,
• a well-established architectural firm with offices in Switzerland, Germany and Austria,
• a Swiss institution in the field of research funding,
• an international organisation in the field of environment and biodiversity,
• a non-profit organisation active throughout Switzerland,
• law firms and notaries’ offices,
• numerous offices of the cantonal and federal administration.