Joshua Leventhal
A great deal of American companies conduct business with organizations in Nigeria. Although English is widely spoken in that former British colony, you should not take for granted that your contact people in Nigerian organizations speak fluent English. You also need to ensure that even the smallest details do not get lost in translation. That means you need to work with a professional translation service fluent in Igbo if you’re conducting business in Nigeria.
Did you know that Igbo is spoken by more than 25 million people in Nigeria? It is an incredibly difficult language to learn. For one, it is tonal, similar to Chinese. It also exhibits vowel harmony, similar to Hungarian or Turkish. And, perhaps most frustratingly for a learner, many of its words change their definition depending on context. Also, there are literally hundreds of different dialects of Igbo distinguished by accent or orthography, even if they are almost all mutually intelligible. This wide variety of spoken dialects has made standardization of Igbo difficult.
That is exactly why you should always utilize a native speaker for your translations needs including the translation of important documents. Igbo is generally spoken in Nigeria, which is the most populous country in Africa and the eighth most populous country in the world. The Igbo and their language are but one of many peoples inhabiting the nation, each having a diverse range of languages, cultures, and religions.
A recent survey of 65 nations reported that Nigerians are the happiest people among the nations surveyed. Perhaps that makes conducting business with Nigerians a pleasant experience. But to ensure that is the case, you should always ensure that the line of communications is not only open, but also properly understood by all parties involved. Only a professional translation service that hires people who speak Igbo as their native tongue can accomplish this for you. That means you cannot rely on just any translation company or online product/service. Only the best will do when you are taking part in an activity that’s as important as conducting business in Nigeria.
