CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Interpreting in Macao and Hong Kong

Macao has a rapid development in its economy since the opening of the license for the gaming industry in 2002. In line with the economic boom of the city, a large number of hotels, convention centres, exhibition venues and resort centres were built in these years. In order to raise the international status of Macao, international events and activities have been frequently organized. These include international conferences held by government and private sectors, regular trade fairs (e.g. Macao Investment Fair), film festivals and business meetings, and important meeting such as the ministerial forum of the Portuguese-Speaking Countries.

Portuguese and Chinese are the two official languages in Macao, while English is not an official language but is increasingly used in day-to-day communication. With the influx of foreign investment in the last decade, there is a soaring demand for Chinese-English interpreters in response to the language situation in Macao. Chinese-English interpreters became critically important to liaise between foreign investors and domestic public and private sectors; between foreign employers and local employees; and between foreign entrepreneurs and Chinese customers.

Hong Kong, compared to its neighbour Macau, has a relatively much more established interpreting market as well as well-trained practitioners. Chinese and English are the official languages in Hong Kong, and interpreting between the two languages is by far the predominant language pair. The Hong Kong government is the largest employer of interpreters, e.g., sizable interpreting teams are kept in the legislature and the law courts. On the other hand, freelance interpreters are particularly active in industrial and commercial sectors.

With the aim to train professional practitioners in the interpreting market, interpreter trainers should benefit from effective guidelines, teaching approaches and technology tools. This book provides trainers with essential Consecutive Interpreting (CI) techniques, and training guidelines which they can adapt to suit their own training situations. In addition, students and self-learners can enhance their interpreting skills by following the instructions and practices provided in the book. The training examples and exercises are related to the cultural and economic background of Macao and Hong Kong, and extend to cover scenic spots in China and overseas. Through the guided instructions, students and self-learners would not only acquire the skills for consecutive interpreting, but also broaden their knowledge about the socio-economical activities of their local societies and beyond."

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Interpreting in Macao and Hong Kong

Macao has a rapid development in its economy since the opening of the license for the gaming industry in 2002. In line with the economic boom of the city, a large number of hotels, convention centres, exhibition venues and resort centres were built in these years. In order to raise the international status of Macao, international events and activities have been frequently organized. These include international conferences held by ...

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 2
INTERPRETING

CHAPTER 3
TRAINING ON MEMORIZATION

CHAPTER 4
NOTE-TAKING SKILLS

CHAPTER 5
NUMERIC CONVERSION

CHAPTER 6
COMPUTER-ASSISTED INTERPRETING TRAINING

CHAPTER 7
CONCLUSION

REFERENCES

CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

CHAPTER 2
INTERPRETING

CHAPTER 3
TRAINING ON MEMORIZATION

CHAPTER 4
NOTE-TAKING SKILLS

CHAPTER 5
NUMERIC CONVERSION

CHAPTER 6
COMPUTER-ASSISTED INTERPRETING TRAINING

CHAPTER 7
CONCLUSION

REFERENCES