About sondos
I am a…
Artist, Educator/Teacher, Writer/Editor
Bio
I'm an English-Arabic translator based in Gaza. My background is in literary and academic translation, and I've been focusing more lately on audiovisual translation and subtitling. I have a BA in English Language and Translation from Gaza University, where I graduated ranked second in my class. I currently volunteer as a translator with Translators without Borders.
I'm passionate about
Subtitling and audiovisual translation, and how much thought goes into making something sound natural in another language, not just correct. I'm also interested in how Arabic subtitling handles culturally specific content, things that don't have a direct equivalent in English.
An idea worth spreading
Translation shouldn't just carry the words across, it should carry the meaning. A lot gets lost when translators focus only on grammar and forget the culture behind the language, especially with content that's specific to a place or a people.
Areas of expertise
Audiovisual translation, humanitarian translation, literary translation, subtitling
The TED story
I've actually known about TED for a long time. Back when I was taking English courses, they used to show us TED clips for listening practice, so TED was part of my English learning journey from early on. Volunteering to translate for TED now feels like it's closing a loop that started a while ago.
Things you might not know
Painting, especially landscapes. I also love learning new languages and getting to know other cultures, and I'm into cooking and journaling too.