> Languages > Thai Translations & Typesetting Services
Thai language translations can generally be completed without significant difficulty. Nevertheless the very different nature of Western and Thai culture, history and tradition can create difficulties when translating texts dealing with certain concepts and subject areas. With training and experience the Thai-English translator will learn and then hone the techniques and approaches needed to overcome these issues.
The Thai alphabet has forty-four consonants, at least twenty-eight
vowel forms and four tone marks. Thai is usually written with
no space between words, and the end of sentences is marked by
a space. Thai also does not distinguish between lower case and
capital letters.
Several Thai fonts are supplied with Windows 2000 and XP, so Thai translations can be supplied as standard Microsoft Office documents – Word, Excel, PowerPoint. However because Thai does not have spaces between words, word wrapping can cause files to display differently on different computers. For this reason Thai translations created in Microsoft Word are generally supplied as pdf files.
Thai Typesetting
Typesetting Thai is tricky!
The first issue is that most graphic design programs simply cannot handle Thai fonts, and the very few that do often have font display problems. For example Thai has two levels of superscripted diacritics and the lower level diacritics are often incorrectly displayed “floating” in the upper level.
Another problem area with Thai typesetting is word wrap. Thai only has a space at the end of a sentence and not between words, but line ends must wrap at the end of a word, not mid-word. Depending on the typesetting methodology used, this may have to be done manually.
Frequently there are also space issues involved in typesetting Thai. Thai’s two levels of superscripted and one level of subscripted diacritics means much more vertical space per line is needed than for English text. This in turn means fewer lines of text can fit in a text box. Where space is tight greater leading and/or smaller point sizes need to be employed.
There are solutions to all these issues, but Thai typesetting invariably involves more time, and is therefore more expensive, than typesetting in most other languages.
With the required knowledge and software Thai can be typeset directly into InDesign and Illustrator, then outlined to curves for delivery to the client. For other applications the Thai text is normally typeset in Illustrator and placed in the original design file as outlined eps files.
Thai Translations & Typesetting - Our Advantages:
The Best Thai Translators
We use only experienced, professionally qualified Thai translators with a proven track record of consistent professional-quality work.
Quality Assurance
All Thai translations undergo full checking and proofing procedures to ensure accuracy and eliminate ‘human error’. All typesetting is double checked and subject to translator sign off before delivery.
Confidentiality
Full confidentiality of all material is guaranteed at all times.
Thai Language Experience!
We have over 20 years experience translating and typesetting all types of materials in over 80 languages.
