Berber (Amazigh) interpreting and translation

Matching the right Tamazight variety for interpreting

A Kabyle speaker from Tizi Ouzou and a Tashelhit speaker from Agadir may only partly understand each other, so we ask about the client's town and what they call their own language. Our Amazigh interpreters cover asylum and immigration interviews, police interviews, court hearings, mental health appointments, family and social services meetings and school discussions, in person, by telephone at any hour throughout the year, or by video via the SILA Linguists® video app or the software you normally use for calls.

Many Moroccan and Algerian clients also speak Darija and French, while Tuareg speakers from Mali or Niger more often use French, Hausa or Songhay. That matters if relay is considered, though a first-language interpreter remains the better choice for evidence and clinical work. Identity matters deeply to many Amazigh people, and our interpreters use the client's own name for their language. Consecutive, simultaneous and remote simultaneous interpreting are available for conferences and cultural events, and you can request a female or male interpreter.

Tifinagh, Latin or Arabic script: translation done properly

Moroccan institutional texts use Neo-Tifinagh, Kabyle readers generally expect Latin orthography, and some communities prefer Arabic script. We agree the script at the outset, choose and test fonts for Tifinagh, and translate public information, health materials, cultural content and personal statements accordingly.

Official documents from Morocco and Algeria are usually in Arabic and French, so certified translation normally starts from those languages. We check Amazigh names for consistent spelling across passports, civil records and court papers, and each certified translation includes a signed statement of accuracy, accepted by UK authorities such as universities, tribunals and the Home Office, and by employers. French or Arabic records for North American authorities can be certified by a provincially certified translator or with a US certificate of accuracy.

Amazigh transcription, subtitling and LADO

Our transcribers produce time-stamped transcripts with English translation for interviews, research recordings and media, matched to the right variety, and we subtitle Amazigh film and video. For protection claims, SILA Linguists® offers language analysis for determining origin (LADO), which can distinguish regional Amazigh varieties.

Sectors we support in Berber

Our vetted, trained and qualified Amazigh linguists can support asylum and immigration teams, courts and police, NHS and mental health services, family and social services, schools, universities, researchers and media producers. You have a single coordinator, Amazigh interpreters and translators we have vetted ourselves, and confidentiality backed by signed NDAs and UK GDPR. Amazigh interpreters can support Canadian and US immigration and refugee hearings, hospitals and schools, matched to the right variety.