Britons Lacking in Foreign Language Skills

“So just why are we so bad at learning another lingo?” wonders the BBC. “And do Britons really deserve their bad image abroad?” Apparently they do. European Union research conducted in 2005 placed the British second to the last in Europe linguistically, with Hungary bringing up the rear. Only 30% of Britons speak a second language. In comparison, 91% of the Dutch, 88% of the Danish and 45% of the French speak a foreign tongue.

Britons – rather like some Americans – have long felt that “everybody else” speaks English. And while it is true that English is studied all over the world, other languages now play a key role in successful trade. "Today's economy is global and more and more jobs have an international dimension,” explains Isabella Moore, director of the National Centre for Learning Languages. "The idea that English is enough is looking increasingly old-fashioned and arrogant - and it doesn't lead to good business."

For the moment, it is likely that few of your company’s employees speak one or more foreign languages fluently. And even if they do, they may not have specialized skills in translation, interpretation and localization. That’s where a qualified translation company such as Language Translation Inc. comes in. We can help you do better business in the global marketplace, because “We speak your language…and theirs.”

Betty Carlson