THE DANISH LANGUAGE

Danish (dansk) is one of the North Germanic languages (also called Scandinavian languages), a sub-group of the Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages. It is spoken by around 6 million people, mainly in Denmark; the language is also used by the 50,000 Danes in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany where it holds the status of minority language.

Danish also holds official status and is a mandatory subject in school in the Danish territories of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, which now enjoy limited autonomy. In Iceland and Faroe Islands, Danish is taught as a compulsory foreign language in schools. There are also Danish language communities in Argentina, the U.S. and Canada.

THE DUTCH LANGUAGE

Dutch (Nederlands) is a West Germanic language spoken by around 24 million people, mainly in the Netherlands, Belgium and Suriname, but also by smaller groups of speakers in parts of France, Germany and several former Dutch colonies. Sometimes called the smallest world language, it is closely related to other West Germanic languages (e.g., English, West Frisian and German) and somewhat more remotely to the North Germanic languages.

Dutch is the parent language of several Dutch-based creole languages as well as of Afrikaans, one of the official languages of South Africa and the most widely understood in Namibia. Dutch is also an official language of the European Union and the Union of South American Nations.

THE FINNISH LANGUAGE

Finnish (suomi or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% as of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside of Finland. It is one of the official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a Finnish dialect, are spoken. The Kven language, which is closely related to Finnish, is an official minority language in Norway.

The translation marketplace

Twenty of the largest translation and localization suppliers are located in North America and Europe. Seven are from the United States, four from the United Kingdom, two each from Switzerland and the Czech Republic, and one each from Italy, Luxembourg, Ireland, and France.

The list also includes a consortium of companies with headquarters in Germany, Italy, Belgium, and Spain. Finally, Lionbridge, SDL, STAR, and TransPerfect, are smaller players, but the amounts do not affect the rankings.

Interpretation providers tell us that their work in judicial, over-the-phone (OPI), and other forms of oral interpretation differs enough from mainline translation firms that they need to be discussed on their own merits. LanguageLine leads the U.S. interpretation market, with 2005 revenue exceeding US$140 million.

Then there is a big drop to companies turning over less than US$25 million, including Cyracom, Network Omni, LSA, and Teleinterpreters.

For nearly two decades Ireland was the Mecca of the localization industry, but both suppliers like Lionbridge and large buyers like Microsoft have been gradually transferring operations and staff out of Dublin to lower-wage production and project management centers around the world.

As the nexus of the language service industry shifts eastward and to the south, longtime players will find both new rivals and opportunities in other regions. Some North Atlantic firms will subcontract work to companies in those areas, others will compete head-to-head for business in local languages, and still others will acquire or merge with these up-and-coming firms. Within five years, we expect to see greater representation from these regions in our top 20 list.