dc.description.abstract | In view of the "Hakka Basic Law" formulated by the government to create a Hakka language-friendly environment and to establish regional language areas where Hakka is the common language. The Hakka Affairs Council has been training interpreters of Hakka since 2008 and has compiled a list of Hakka interpreters. In this study, a qualitative research method was mainly used, involving in-depth interviews with six interpreters of Hakka and telephone interviews with 34 interpreters of Hakka. These interviewees are invited to share their experiences in handling their cases. Finally, it is hoped that the results of this study can serve as a reference for the government’s Hakka-related policy.
The interviewees in this study received cases from various sources, with the highest proportion coming from contacts with organizers (61%), followed by cases from interpretation agencies (37%), and finally, cases through introduction from peers (1%). The research results indicate that the "simultaneous interpretation" mode, "Mandarin-Hakka" translation, and the "Sixian Accent" are mostly used in current Hakka interpretation activities. So far, Hakka interpretation cannot be replaced by AI, and on-site interpreters of Hakka are still necessary. Typically, most interpreters of Hakka work part-time, and the hourly price is relatively low. A full-day price is generally about NT$12,000, and whether the reward is worthwhile depends on the nature of the activity. For a long period of time, the number of hours of Hakka interpretation accumulated by the interviewed interpreters of Hakka is "less than 10 hours," followed by "more than 100 hours." In addition to finding the fewer total number of Hakka interpretation activities, this study speculates that part of the routine activities are executed by designated interpreters of Hakka in cooperation with related agencies.
Interpreters of Hakka must have a wide range of professional knowledge and must improve their familiarity with different accents to shorten the response time. However, some activities face a shortage of Hakka interpreters. It is troublesome for most interpreters of Hakka that there are no simultaneous interpretation rooms, unstable voice volume from lecturers or people at activities with Hakka interpretation, and being asked to translate the whole event.
Since the government mostly commissions private public relations agencies to handle Hakka interpretation activities, this study is unable to collect ideas from these agencies. This study suggests that in the future, the government should help the interpreters of Hakka to establish related associations or groups so as to voice their opinions. Regarding matchmaking platform for Hakka interpretation services, it is recommended that the Hakka Affairs Council can refer to the reservation method for interpretation services provided by the National Immigration Agency. For each event, the government must strictly supervise whether manpower for Hakka interpretation is appropriate and whether the interpretation is executed according to the length and nature of the event, and finally it should assist in setting up simultaneous interpretation rooms in the event space. Based on comprehensive consideration, we expect the government to develop a certification examination for interpreters of Hakka, to strengthen the training of interpreters of Hakka in academic aspects, and to create demand for the service of interpreters of Hakka. After each event, the government is supposed to hold an activity or a meeting, inviting units involved in Hakka affairs to observe and communicate with each other.
It is recommended that future researchers contact more people and event organizers who handle Hakka interpretation activities. We expect them to be able to track, analyze, and discuss the application of Hakka interpretation in the environment and local governments, learning more about generalizing the application of regional language areas where Hakka is the common language so as to construct a more comprehensive picture of Hakka interpretation. | en_US |