Professional German translation services from Lingovo
German has more native speakers than any other language in the European Union. It is the official language of Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein, and one of the official languages of Switzerland and Luxembourg. German also ranks among the more widely spoken languages worldwide. According to estimates, more than 95 million people speak German as their native language.
The Germanic tribal languages gave rise to the so-called pre-Old High German dialects. Latin, as spoken throughout the Roman Empire, had an important influence on this development.
It is difficult to put an exact figure on the number of words in German: new compound words can be formed almost without limit, so the language has no fixed vocabulary size. Estimates put the standard German vocabulary at 300,000 to 400,000 words, although everyday speech draws on only a fraction of these. The Duden has recorded German spelling since 1880, when Konrad Duden’s first dictionary contained around 27,000 headwords. The current edition (the 29th, 2024) lists around 151,000.
Lingovo: your German translation specialists in Hamburg
Some words have no simple equivalent outside German. One example is ‘fremdschämen’. It describes the embarrassment you feel on someone else’s behalf. Another example is ‘Fernweh’: a longing to travel and explore, the opposite of ‘Heimweh’, or homesickness. German also has a distinctive feature in its writing system. Although German uses the Latin alphabet, it has an additional consonant: the ß, known as ‘Eszett’. The letter stands for a double s, is written after a long vowel or diphthong and never appears at the beginning of a word.
Lingovo provides specialist translations to and from German, as well as many other languages. Our experienced, vetted translators handle your documents with care and precision, and our international network covers a wide range of subject areas, so we can match your project with relevant expertise.
Professional German translations by native speakers
From legal and certified translations to technical documents, websites and annual reports, we offer expert support across a broad range of content. We follow our Native-Speaker Principle: every translator works into their native language. We deliver translations on time, tailored to your requirements and to any formal standards that apply.
Our prices are fair, and whatever the source language, from German to Arabic, our international network helps us find a native-speaking translator with the right subject expertise.
Looking for a professional German translation agency?
Call us, email us or use our website contact form. We’ll be happy to provide a free, no-obligation quote tailored to your project. We look forward to hearing from you.
