African Transcription Services

You’ve been sourcing African transcription services, but have found very few companies able to deal with such a wealth of dialects and tongues. Don’t fret! We’ve been transcribing content from widely spoken African languages to some of the rarest African dialects for 20+ years. Our clients include government organisations and international charities such as Oxfam, Save the Children and Christian Aid, to media organisations such as Channel 5, the BBC and Discovery Channel.

A very clear outline of the process. The documents were delivered in a very impressive portfolio faster than I expected.

— Amin Elyas

Happy to comply with requests when possible and generally very pleasant to communicate with.

— Danielle O.

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.

African transcription for global brands

We are trusted by some of the world’s most recognisable brands to deliver accurate, fast transcriptions and subtitling in a huge range of African languages. From international broadcasters and filmmakers to global market research companies and government agencies, we pride ourselves on delivering the highest quality transcription to our clients, who trust us to ensure accuracy, speed and value for money. What's more, we can offer flexible and expediated turnaround times including same-day transcription for urgent and time-sensitive projects.

African Transcription for all your projects

From news footage, documentaries, official information films, promotional media and interviews, to focus groups, meetings, conferences, speeches and even courtroom transcriptions, Absolute Translations can handle your full range of audio-visual transcription projects. All our translators are native speakers familiar with regional variations, vocabularies and dialects. They're often also specialists in a particular field, so if for example you need a courtroom transcript from an African language, we can connect you with a specialist legal translator who is used to legal vocabulary and requirements.

HOW MANY LANGUAGES ARE SPOKEN IN AFRICA?

The African continent has the highest linguistic diversity in the world, with an estimated 2,000 spoken languages and an additional 8,000 dialects that fall into six major linguistic families each with a different geographic distribution: AFRO-ASIATIC, NILO-SAHARAN, KHOISAN, NIGER-CONGO, AUSTRONESIAN, and INDO-EUROPEAN

Our network of local native speakers supports your business with its African language goals with a comprehensive and reliable transcription service in the majority of Africa’s languages and dialects.

WHAT IS THE MOST SPOKEN LANGUAGE IN AFRICA?

Swahili, known as a ‘Bantu’ language is said to have originated from other languages such as Arabic and is the most spoken language in Africa. With around 150 million speakers, Swahili is the official language of Tanzania, and Uganda, as well as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Kenya. The Swahili language is also spoken in many other countries like Somalia, Ethiopia, Burundi, Rwanda, Sudan, northern Mozambique, and the Comoros Islands.

Along with Arabic which is the world’s sixth most spoken language and also has 150 million Arabic speakers in Africa, Swahili is thought to be Africa’s most spoken language.

WHAT AFRICAN LANGUAGES AND DIALECTS CAN BE TRANSCRIBED?

Absolute Translations is the UK’s leading translation company for African transcription services, with 20+ years of experience transcribing content in many African languages. From widely spoken African languages such as Arabic, Somali, Yoruba, Shona, Swahili, Aramaic, or Tswana, to rarer African languages or dialects such as the Ethiopian dialect Sidaama or the Benin tribal language Bariba. So if you’re looking for African transcription in a rare language or dialect, our professional team will work to connect you with a native speaker, even where other agencies may have failed.

HOW CAN I GUARANTEE THE QUALITY OF MY AFRICAN TRANSCRIPTIONIST?

Our translators and transcriptionists all have a minimum of five years’ experience translating in their native language, and our unique ISO 17100:2015 certification, which is awarded only to linguistic service providers of the highest quality, is your guarantee that we’ll always deliver the best standard of work for the most affordable prices.

Our extensive translator network covers even the rarest African languages but our emphasis is always firmly on customer service, that’s why we invest in new technologies to increase efficiency and aim to deliver a premium service whatever your requirements.

So, whether you need transcription from Amharic or Oromo, spoken in Ethiopia and by 2 million Ethiopians living elsewhere in the world, or from Swahili, the official language of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, or Yoruba with its numerous dialects, spoken in Nigeria, Togo and Benin, we can connect you with a local experienced transcriber who will be able to translate your content accurately and fast.

THE ONLY CARBON NEGATIVE TRANSLATION COMPANY IN THE WORLD

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

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