Tojolabal interpreting and translation

Tojolabal interpreters for health, law and community life

Because Tojolabal is relatively uniform, dialect matching is less of a concern than for many Mexican languages, and an interpreter from Las Margaritas will usually be well understood by a client from Comitán. What we do watch for is confusion with neighbouring languages: Tojolabal is not mutually intelligible with Tzeltal or Tzotzil, so interpreters for those languages are not substitutes.

Many Tojolabal speakers are bilingual in Spanish, and we ask which language the client would rather use. When Tojolabal is chosen, the interpreter normally joins by video, on the SILA Linguists® app or your preferred meeting software, with Spanish relay into English; a phone connection can be set up at any hour for urgent matters. Community decisions are often taken collectively, so consultation meetings need time for discussion before answers are given, and our interpreters respect that rhythm. Individual clients can ask for a male or female interpreter.

Translation that serves the whole region

Tojolabal is written in the Latin alphabet, with apostrophes for glottalised consonants, as in Tojol-ab'al, and written materials exist for education and community use. Because the language is relatively uniform, one translation can usually serve readers across the whole region, which makes printed leaflets, school resources and recorded announcements especially effective. We translate from English or Spanish into Tojolabal and from Tojolabal into English.

Mexican identity documents and court records are issued in Spanish. When an English version is needed for official use, we translate from Spanish and certify it with a signed declaration of accuracy, accepted by UK authorities such as courts, the Home Office and universities, and by employers.

Transcription and research

Tojolabal is known for expressions that place speaker and listener on an equal footing. Researchers and teams documenting community life can ask us for time-coded Tojolabal transcripts with an English rendering in which these expressions are explained rather than flattened.

Where we can help in Tojolabal

Our vetted, trained and qualified Tojolabal linguists can support health services, courts and legal advisers, schools and bilingual education programmes, universities and community development projects in Chiapas and beyond. Each request is handled by one SILA Linguists® coordinator, and every linguist signs an NDA and respects UK GDPR, so personal and community information stays protected.