Conference Interpreting: A Whole New World of Communication

For many people, the first thing that comes to mind when they hear the term "conference interpreter" is linguists in booths at the United Nations, interpreting the words of the world's leaders.  So, on the eve of the 66th United Nations General Assembly Plenary, we felt this was an opportune moment to shine some light on the history of conference interpreting. 

The United Nations site gives a brief but informative overview of simultaneous interpreting.  (The page also has an interpreting history quiz, for those of you who are already experts and want to prove it). 

Interpreting, in some form or other, has existed for millennia, but the specific form conference interpreting generally takes today, performed by simultaneous interpreters in soundproof booths,  is less than a century old.  The Nuremberg war crime trials made the technology and method famous, though the technology, patented in the mid-1920s, had already been in use for over a decade. 

Since World War II, simultaneous interpreting has gradually (though not completely) replaced consecutive interpreting in many settings.  Currently, the UN still represents an important place, though hardly the only one, where conference interpreters are hard at work.  The UN has only 6 official languages, while the European Union holds debates in over 20 languages. 

Conference interpreters also work in the private sector: Translation by Design's conference interpreters have worked in the scientific, pharmaceuticals, financial investment, high tech industry fields, among others.  TBD is headquartered just down the road from the Monterey Institute of International Studies (one of the only universities to offer an MA in Conference Interpreting), and is proud that its conference interpreting team includes both MIIS graduates and professors. 

The conference interpreting field is still young.  It will be fascinating to see what developments will emerge over the next century.