Find out what Google Translate is, Google’s instant translation tool for translating texts, documents and websites with support for more than 130 languages
OR Google Translator is an instant translation tool developed by Google and allows people from all over the world to easily communicate and understand information in different languages. The service is compatible with more than 130 languages and is accessible via web or mobile and also offers a APIs to allow developers to create solutions based on theirs technology.
Origin and evolution of Google Translate
The story of Google Translate began in 2006, when Big Tech saw an opportunity to create a tool that facilitated global communication. The initial version used a statistical translation system, which counted how many times a word’s translation appeared in publicly available data, such as online dictionaries.
According to what was reported by the company itself in blog official, the platform presented many limitations in the first years of activity. The text you entered “had to be translated into English before being translated into the selected language.” Furthermore, the statistical approach tended to be very literal, with word-for-word translation, and was unable to deal with homonyms.
Initially, the tool supported nearly 60 languages. Over the years, Google has increased this number and reached 133 supported languages in 2022. The translator got its version of the app for Android in January 2010 and for iOS in February 2011.
In 2014, Google acquired the Word Lens app to improve the quality of visual and voice translations. This technology allows you to scan documents or images and translate them instantly using your phone’s camera. Additionally, the system automatically identifies foreign languages and translates speech without having to tap the microphone button every time a translation is needed.
In November 2016, Translator underwent a significant change by adopting a neural machine translation method: Google Neural Machine Translation (GNMT). This engine uses deep learning techniques to translate entire sentences at once, with greater understanding of the context and better quality and fluency of the translations.
How Google Translate works
The Google Translate translation process involves the following steps:
Data collection
The tool uses a large set of data obtained from multilingual sources available on the Internet, including official texts, documents and web page contents.
Machine learning
Google Translate uses machine learning and artificial intelligence techniques to analyze language patterns and contexts and perform translations.
Neural translation
GNMT technology divides text into smaller blocks and translates each block based on the overall context of the sentence for more natural and consistent results.
Continuous improvement
The platform is continuously improved based on user feedback and innovations in the field of artificial intelligence.
What does Google Translate do?
Google Translate lets you translate different forms of text and media, including speeches, documents, and text in images. The main functions are:
- Translation of written texts: translates words or written texts into another language;
- Website translation: translate entire web pages into selected languages;
- Document translation: allows you to upload documents in formats for translation;
- Voice Translation: Instantly translate speech into the selected language;
- Image translation: translates text into images uploaded by users;
- Transcription: transcribes and translates speech into a different language;
- Conversation: Translate a dialogue into different languages in real time.
For most of these features, Google Translate also offers pronunciation mode, dictionary and the ability to listen to the translation.
Where is Google Translate available?
Google Translate is available almost everywhere in the world, but there are some exceptions. In China and Iran, access to the tool is blocked due to government restrictions on Mountain View’s Big Tech services.
The list of approximately 130 languages supported by Google Translate is:
- Afrikaans
- Aymara
- Albanian
- German
- Amharic
- Arabic
- Armenian
- Assamese
- Azeri
- Bambara
- Basque
- Bengali
- Belarusian
- Burmese
- Boiapuri
- Bosnian
- Bulgarian
- Kannada
- Catalan
- Kazakhstan
- Cebuano
- Chicheua
- Chinese
- Chona
- Sinhala
- Korean
- Course
- Haitian Creole
- Croatian
- Kurdish (kurmanji)
- Kurdish (Sorani)
- Danish
- Divei
- Dogri
- Slovak
- Slovenian
- Spanish
- Esperanto
- Estonian
- Philippine
- Finnish
- French
- Frisian
- Scottish Gaelic
- Galician
- Welsh
- Georgian
- Greek
- Guarani
- Gujarati
- Hausa
- Hawaiian
- Jewish
- Hindi
- Hmong
- Dutch
- Hungarian
- Igbo
- Yiddish
- Ilocano
- Indonesian
- English
- Yoruba
- Irish
- Icelandic
- Italian
- Japanese
- Javanese
- Jeje
- Khmer
- Krio
- Laotian
- Latin
- Latvian
- Lingala
- Lithuanian
- Uganda
- Luxembourgish
- Macedonian
- Maithili
- Malayalam
- Malaysian
- Malagasy
- Maltese
- Maori
- Marathi
- Meiteilon (Manipuri)
- Mizo
- Mongolian
- Nepalese
- Norwegian
- Oria
- Oromo
- Covenant
- Persian
- Polish
- Portuguese
- Punjabi
- Quichua
- Kinyarwanda
- Kyrgyzstan
- Romanian
- Russian
- Samoan
- Sanskrit
- Sepedi
- Serbian
- Sessoto
- Sindhi
- Somali
- Swahili
- Swedish
- Sundanese
- Tajik
- Thai
- Tamil
- Tartar
- Czech
- Telugu
- Tigrinia
- Tsonga
- Turkish
- Turkmen
- Tui
- Ukrainian
- Uighur
- Urdu
- Uzbek
- Vietnamese
- Xhosa
- Zulu
See also how to use Google Translate with texts, links and photos.
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Source: Terra
Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.
