Humour is a funny thing…what makes some of us crack up laughing, others find silly, annoying, or just plain stupid!
Daliso Chaponda, the Malawian-born comedian who came third in Britain’s Got Talent in 2018, recently wrote an article for Chortle, the online site that claims to be the ‘most comprehensive, critical and up-to-date guide to the all aspects of comedy in Britain’.
Chaponda’s article considers how humour is affected by culture, and how he changes his stage act based upon the country in which he is touring; ‘sarcasm and biting wit’ apparently do very well in the UK, but not in Canada, while jokes about homosexuality or religion are taboo in the Middle East and some African nations.
Humour, idioms, comedy, and the things we find funny, are intricately linked to our culture. In the UK we have no aversion to jokes made about our royal family or politicians, yet the same jokes in the UAE, Singapore or Malawi for instance, would be heavily condemned and shunned.
For businesses, considering moving into new overseas territories, there’s a lot that can be learned from Chaponda’s article; what tone of voice is acceptable for adverts for a particular target audience? How do you translate phrases, idioms, and expressions that might be understood in one country or region but not in another?
These questions must be explored and understood before translated websites go live, promotional material is sent out, and products are advertised.
Getting it wrong can be costly and disruptive for business and brand reputation.
The following points give valuable advice for businesses considering using humour, anecdotes or idioms, within their translated websites for new overseas markets.
Translation and Localisation
Translating your website is the usually the first step that businesses consider when moving into new markets. However, on its own that usually isn’t enough to secure a high return on investment or attract new customers.
This is because translation does not account for cultural variances between regions and areas, and only deals primarily with language.
However, localisation is able to intricately adapt language, humour, phrases, and so on, so that it fits with a particular target audience or region.
For instance, in the UK if you were discussing how straight forward something is one might say “Bob’s your uncle”, but this would not translate well in other countries as there is a cultural connection that enables comprehension of colloquial phrases or idioms. In France this would be localised to “Et voila”, but a straight forward translation would not account for this difference.
If you use humour, idioms or colloquial phrases within content on your website, advertising material or promotional images then localisation will ensure these aren’t lost in translation.
Chaponda favours a more direct route for his joke translation which includes talking to locals about the area, people and the country in general, and then adapting his jokes to fit. For example, if he has a tale about Katie Price in the UK, he will change it to Patricia Kalyati in Malawi and Zodwa Wabantu in South Africa while keeping the main content the same.
Cultural Sensitivity and Humour
Chaponda also considers the sensitivity of his jokes for particular regions, adapting, or excluding them as necessary based on cultural sensitivity around certain subjects.
For instance, he states “every country has its own set of taboos and a night out with a few locals is usually enough to get the broad strokes” however, he continues saying “I was almost arrested for making jokes about the Malawi president and after shows in Zimbabwe I was threatened by followers of the prophet Eubert Angel. These were more than your garden variety Twitter threats and so I mostly stayed in my hotel room that trip.”
As you can see from his comments, cultural sensitivity is a must when dealing with translation and localisation in new regions. If you don’t understand the complexities of an area and its people, then seek advice from a professional language service provider who knows the intricacies and can assist with insider knowledge about the language, culture and society.
If you require assistance with any translation or localisation project please contact us at Creative Word, where our experts can help with websites, social media posts, App translation, design and more.
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