We're Experts in African Translations

Our team of experienced professionals is your bridge to African translations, unlocking the power of diverse languages and cultures - quickly, accurately, and at a great price.

Excellent

4.8 out of 5 Based on 2289 reviews

See Prices

African Translation Services

Where languages cross borders, they may also come up against sensitive cultural differences. By using our team of mother-tongue speakers to support your African translations, you’ll ensure you’re speaking to your audience not simply in words they recognise, but also in concepts they understand. We’re proud to have worked on numerous African translation, localization, audio transcription, and subtitling projects for Oxfam, Save the Children, Christian Aid, Castrol, Discovery Channel, Red Cross, Shell, Unilever, BBC and Channel 5.

ISO

ISO17100, ISO9001
ISO18841 & ISO18587

Pioneering UK translation company, first to achieve ISO 17100 accreditation, among many industry quality certifications.

10KSB

Goldman Sachs
10KSB Member

Selected by Goldman Sachs to be an exclusive member of its £500 million innovation programme for better customer experiences!

ATC

ATC & EUATC
Member

As ATC and EUATC members, we prioritise your satisfaction by upholding the highest standards in business ethics and translation quality.

20+

20 Years’
Expertise

Celebrating 20+ years, Absolute Translations has mastered the art of providing quality translations at transparent, low prices to meet your language needs.

GDPR

Information Security
Systems Regulated

Absolute Translations is GDPR compliant, with independently regulated information and security systems, putting your data security first.

Native African Translators

Our team of translators and interpreters are based not only across diverse African countries but all around the world too. This global network of African translators delivers high-quality, professional translations and localization services in your target language. It is this “glocal” approach that allows us to respond rapidly to your African translation needs across all industries, even in the remotest of African countries and in the rarest of dialects. Plus, all our translators have a minimum of five years of experience, so we can guarantee they'll accurately convey your message.

Professional African Translation Services

Our specialist African language translation services are provided by teams of native speakers and subject matter experts from all industries including finance, medical, life sciences and legal. The result is African translations that convey the language of your speciality as well as the language of your customers and intended audience. Our subject matter experts include business consultants, marketing professionals and designers, as well as qualified engineers, life scientists, legal and technical experts.

COMMITMENT TO QUALITY

We’ve earned our ISO 17100:2015 certification, and are members of The Association of Translation Companies (A.T.C.) which not only guarantees the quality of our translation service projects but also the consistent management of all our processes.

INDUSTRY EXPERTISE

For more than 20 years, we’ve been providing personal and business translation services into many other languages, through a specialist team of linguists, to clients all over the world.

INFORMATION SECURITY

We value your confidentiality and are committed to your privacy. Whether you need medical documents translated for personal purposes or you need to translate government documents for official use, your translations will remain confidential. Our translators will sign additional NDAs whenever necessary, to further guarantee the security of your information.

DEDICATED ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

We put our customers’ needs first ensuring clear communication through your account manager, with project managers on hand to support them through the whole process and ensure their translation project is successful and cost-effective.

AFTER-SALES SUPPORT

Absolute Translations are your one-stop shop providing translation services including Interpreting and Translation, Transcription and Subtitling, Proofreading and Editing, Website Localization, Copywriting, Voice-over and a closed captioning service in over 200 languages. Our African translation services do not end when we make a sale though. Repeat business customers can benefit from our translation memory service which reduces the cost of future translations.

IS AFRICAN A LANGUAGE?

African refers to the thousands of languages spoken across the African continent and not just to one single tongue.

WHAT LANGUAGE DO AFRICANS SPEAK?

The African continent has more than 2,000 living languages. Nigeria alone accounts for around one-quarter of those languages. Our experienced team of native speakers are able to provide accurate translation of all kinds of documents in all African languages, including the most rare languages.

WHAT LANGUAGE IS THERE IN SOUTH AFRICAN?

South Africa has 11 official African languages. IsiZulu and isiXhosa are the most commonly spoken languages. Though a large portion of the South African population speaks multiple languages.

WHAT IS THE MOST COMMON AFRICAN DIALECT?

The most spoken language in Africa is Swahili which is estimated to have around 100 to 150 million speakers.

IS ENGLISH SPOKEN IN AFRICA?

Although 27 out of 54 countries on the African continent use English as their official or secondary language just 130 million people in Africa converse in English.

DO SOUTH AFRICANS SPEAK A FOREIGN LANGUAGE?

South Africa is often considered to be one of the most multilingual countries in the world as many people there are speakers of multiple African languages.

WHAT DO PEOPLE IN THE CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC SPEAK?

The official languages of the Central African Republic are French and Sangho.

HAS LATIN INFLUENCED MODERN AFRICAN LANGUAGES?

African languages owe a large part of their vocabulary and structure to Latin. According to a recent study, approximately 20% of the words in modern Swahili are derived from Latin.

WHAT IS THE OLDEST AFRICAN LANGUAGE?

The Khoisan family of languages is believed to be the oldest of the four language families in Africa.

WHAT IS THE EASIEST AFRICAN LANGUAGE TO LEARN?

Swahili is said to be the easiest African tongue for an English speaker to learn.

WHAT IS AFRICA’S MOST HARDEST LANGUAGE TO LEARN?

Many African dialects are complicated to learn but Taa, formerly ʻSouthern Khoisan’, is thought to be one of the world’s most difficult dialects.

IS ARABIC AN AFRICAN LANGUAGE?

Arabic didn’t originate in Africa, but is one of the most commonly spoken languages in Africa today.

IS SWAHILI AN AFRICAN LANGUAGE?

Yes and our experienced team are native speakers of Swahili, Afrikaans, French, and many more African languages.

WHAT IS THE AFRICAN CLICKING LANGUAGE CALLED?

The Khoisan languages and the Niger-Congo languages, such as Zulu and Xhosa, have clicked.

IS ZULU A WRITTEN LANGUAGE?

Yes. Zulu is written using Latin script.

WHAT COUNTRIES IN AFRICA SPEAK ZULU?

Zulu is spoken mainly in South Africa were there are over nine million speakers.

ARE AFRICAN LANGUAGES WRITTEN?

The Latin alphabet is used to write in Western, Central, and Southern Africa. The Arabic alphabet is used in North Africa, and the Ge’ez/Ethiopic script is widely used in the Horn of Africa.

ARE MANY AFRICAN LANGUAGES SIMILAR?

Many of the African languages spoken today are similar to one another, so it's important when choosing interpreters or a translation service to choose a native translator who can ensure the accurate translation of your message.

HOW MANY AFRICAN LANGUAGES EXIST TODAY?

There are thousands of African languages alive today which is why you will benefit from the translation skills of expert translators and interpreters.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN LANGUAGE FAMILIES IN AFRICA?

There are 6 major African language families: Nilo-Saharan, Khoisan, Niger-Congo, Afro-Asiatic, Austronesian and Indo-European.

WHAT ARE THE MAIN ETHNIC GROUPS IN AFRICA?

The three largest ethnic groups in Africa are Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba.

HOW MANY COUNTRIES DOES AFRICA HAVE?

There are 54 countries in Africa.

WHAT ARE THE TOP TRANSLATED AFRICAN LANGUAGES AT ABSOLUTE TRANSLATIONS?

As an industry-leading translation service, we regularly translate the languages spoken most commonly across the African continent. For example, translating Swahili, Afrikaans, Amharic, and Yoruba into English and vice versa. Increasingly, our interpreter service is requested for Amharic due to the growth of Ethiopian communities across the globe.

WHAT OTHER AFRICAN LANGUAGE SERVICES DO YOU OFFER?

Absolute Translations provide a full range of services including translating, interpreting, and transcribing. We translate a wide range of documents for the vast African market. From official certificates, legal contracts, training manuals and management reports, to design briefs, documentaries and charity interviews our professional African translation services have you covered.

THE WORLD'S ONLY CARBON NEGATIVE TRANSLATION COMPANY

As part of our ongoing efforts to protect the environment for future generations, Absolute Translations is proud to have achieved carbon negative status!

learn more