Interpreting as a profession has existed since time immemorial; archeological and other historical evidence shows that even in ancient Mesopotamia interpreters were used in diplomatic proceedings. The 20th century, however, ushered in the era of conference interpreting. Beginning with the Paris Peace Conference (1919) and the founding of the League of Nations, consecutive and simultaneous interpretation became necessary as official proceedings and other diplomatic events needed to be interpreted in multiple languages. Professional interpreting has now become the norm, as opposed to the ad hoc interpreting done before the 20th century. The following examples show how conference interpreting impacted key historical events in the past century.
Conference Interpreting At The Paris Peace Conference Of 1919
The Treaty of Versailles that ended the First World War was born out of the Paris Peace Conference. This conference is generally accepted as the first time consecutive interpreting services were used. A wide range of countries participated at the peace conference, with the five major states being the United States, Great Britain, France, Italy, and Japan (these being the victorious Allied powers). Because of the multitude of languages present at the conference, a more formal interpreting service had to be provided. Consecutive interpreting was performed by interpreters working for individual politicians and diplomatic delegations. Prior to this event, there were no professional interpreting services that could be hired. Once the conference was over and the League of Nations was born, it was understood that a new type of formal interpreting was needed.
Simultaneous Interpreting and the Nuremberg Trials
Although the technology for simultaneous interpreting was developed during the interwar period, the first time it was used in a formal setting was during the Nuremberg Trials. The official languages of the trial were English, French, Russian, and German; the defendants were granted the right to speak and listen to the proceedings in their native language. The organizers of the trial were concerned that consecutive interpreting would take too much time and drag out the proceedings. Therefore, they implemented a new mode of interpreting: simultaneous interpretation. Interpreters were split into four sections, with each section containing three interpreters. This way, the whole trial was simultaneously interpreted into the four official languages. After the trial was finished, the judges, some of whom were skeptical of the arrangement, all agreed that it would have been impossible to proceed with the trial without the use of simultaneous interpretation.
Conference Interpreting Today
Conference Interpreting continues to play an important role on the international stage. Interpreting has come a long way since the days of the Nuremberg Trials; many different interpreting companies exist today that provide professional interpreting services, including simultaneous remote interpreting services. The UN would not be able to operate under its current conditions without the use of modern simultaneous conference interpreting. In the age of lighting fast communications, the importance of these interpreting services cannot be understated.
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