Georgian

The roots of the Georgian language can be traced back to the 5th century in the Kartvelian language family. The language would evolve with its own unique script and experience a golden age of literature and poetry in the 13th century.

Other influences would come to further shape the language, with Christianity shaping the language through the translation of religious texts, and both Persian and Ottoman Empire influence introducing certain Turkish and Persian loanwords into the language. The Soviet era would bring efforts to modernize and standardize the language, introducing new words and concepts to describe modern ideas and technology. And, the fall of the Soviet Union would see the Georgian language continue to preserve its status as the official language of Georgia, with ongoing efforts to promote and preserve the language to this day.

Languages form from their own contexts to describe phenomena that, often, are specific to the respective culture and experiences. This is what makes translations between languages rather difficult for many topics, and what makes direct translations often sound silly or even incoherent.

While the Soviet Union’s efforts to modernize and standardize the Georgian language is an example of efforts that help towards simpler translations, there are still vast differences between languages from all around the world. This means that accurate, precise translations need to be done with the cultural understanding that can help a translator know not just what words to use in a translation, but what concepts as well.