1

NOTE-TAKING STRATEGIES AND TECHNIQUES.

TEACHING AND PRACTICING OF NOTE-TAKING

3.1. What to Note

As to what the interpreter should note, W. Keiser suggests the following:

1. Always ideas, arguments, never just words. But write down all proper names, figures, titles, quotes.
2. Who speaks and about whom or what.
3. Tense of the action, i.e. present, past or future.
4. Whether the statement is negative, positive, interrogative or exclamatory.
5. Connections between ideas and arguments.
6. Emphasis and stress. [cited in: 66]
The ideas below are compiled from pages 50-51, 55 and 68 of Pedagogie Raisonnee de
l'Interpretation (Reasoned Didactics of Interpreting), written by two of the biggest names in the history of
interpreting and interpreter training, D.Seleskovitch and M.Lederer. Originally written in 1989, the 2002
edition is also sponsored by the European Commission. It is also now available in translation as "A
systematic approach to interpreter training" by J. Harmer.

So, D.Seleskovitch and M.Lederer suggest that the interpreter should note the following:

1. The ideas. The essence. A single symbol or word can represent an entire idea.
2. Causality, consequence, links etc. and the relation of the ideas to one another in time.
3. Transcodable terms. Words than must be repeated rather than deverbalised and interpreted.
4. Numbers. Note the numbers immediately, interrupting whatever you are noting to note the number as
they cannot be remembered from context and noted later as ideas can.
5. Proper names. If you don't know a name, note it phonetically and see if you can work out how to say
it properly in your target language later. If you can't then substitute a generic like "the UK delegate"
rather than mangling the name.
6. Technical terms. Specific to the context of the speech.
7. Lists. Lists of words which are not integral parts of the sentences in which they are held overload the
memory. So note them.
8. The first sentence of each new idea should be noted with particular care. This does not mean
verbatim but with care.
9. Last sentence of the speech should be noted with particular care.
10. Striking usage. If the speaker uses a word or expression that stands out he has probably used it
deliberately and will want it to appear in the interpretation. [65]
Notes taken by students have shown that they tend to stick to words. They hesitate to free themselves
to concentrate on meaning by throwing away the lexical form like words and structures etc. They try to
retain each word of the source utterance. Consequently, their short-term memory will be quickly overloaded
with individual lexical items, which may not even form a meaningful sentence. Moreover, their attention
will be wasted on finding equivalent lexical items in the target language rather than the meaning of
incoming message. Clearly, these students may not have recognized that things to be noted are logically
related to “the mental analysis of the speech” (or “sense analysis”, that will be considered further). Notes are
not expected to be complete or organized exactly the same way as in the original speech. Instead they are
expected to provide the cues necessary to remember the information in the speech. Notes can be compared
to the skeleton outline of the speech shaped with main ideas and the links between them.
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3.1.1. Main Ideas

The first thing to be noted should be main ideas. For the fact that the writing speed is always slower
than speaking speed, it is impossible for the interpreter to write down everything spoken by the speaker. The
interpreter is required to have the ability to identify, select and retain important ideas but omit anything
which is not relevant to the understanding of the original speech. Furthermore, by recording the main ideas
in notes, the interpreter easily traces back the structure of the speech; hardly misses out important ideas; and
always keeps fidelity to the original content.

In order to determine the main ideas of the speech, the interpreter has to make sense analysis
(смисловий аналіз) of what the speaker says. As noted by R. K. Min’yar-Beloruchev and O.V. Rebriy,
sense analysis is not a direct structural component of the interpreter’s note-taking, but it is an important
prerequisite of the notes. Notes are impractical without sense analysis, as both written and intellectual
fixations of the source text at interpreting are not mechanical but systematical. This system exercises the
following functions:

(A) ensuring meaningful memorizing which is many times as effective as mechanical memorizing;

(B) identifying the main lump of sense which, in the fixed form, will serve as key point for memory;

(C) transforming the text so that to adjust its syntactic structure to the special nature of the target
language. [14:8]

While making notes in the consecutive interpreting the most important thing is to find those sense
parts in the speech which would fix the basic meaning of the thought. In most cases these are the subject and
the predicate expressed by the corresponding noun group and verb group in the sentence. In the consecutive
interpreting figures and proper names are the most difficult things to remember, thus they should be always
noted. The Professor R. K. Min’yar-Beloruchev points out three major types of notes:

1. Method of choosing words with the biggest sense load.

2. Transformation method using a number of lexical changes.
3. Method of choosing the key word (for example emotionally bound or lexically incomplete) [11:
64-75].
Now we turn to some examples of sense analysis of the source message and taking notes in
compressed, shortened form.

First of all, it is worthwhile to quote Jean-Francois Rozan who was the first to suggest a principle of
noting the ideas rather than the words. Take any French text and give it to 10 excellent English translators.
The result will be ten very well translated texts, but ten very different texts in as far as the actual words used
are concerned. The fact that we have ten good translations, but ten different texts, shows that what is
important is the translation of the idea and not the word. This is even truer of interpretation since the
interpreter must produce a version of the text in another language immediately. He must be free of the often
misleading constraints that words represent. It is through the analysis and notation of the ideas that the
interpreter will avoid mistakes and a laboured delivery.

Here is an example for notes taken in Ukrainian, given by O.V. Rebriy [14:9]:

e.g.: (full message): “Хвиля масового безладдя прокотилася по Індонезії після поширення чуток
про майбутнє підвищення цін на основні продукти найбідніших верств населення – рис та
картоплю.”
 3
The “economical” formulation of the information given above: “Безладдя в Індонезії викликали
чутки про зростання цін на рис та картоплю.”

Here is an example for notes taken in English:

e.g.: (this is the text of information message) “Ukraine lies on the crossroads of the ways from Asia
to Europe, the geographical position of the country is considered to be very favourable for the development
of its relations with the other countries of Europe, as well as with the countries throughout the world.”

In interpreter’s notes this text should be written more economically, for example: “Ukraine lies on
crossroads (Asia & Europe) which is favourable for relations with other countries (of Europe & world).”

Here the main sense of the message is fixed, the rest details can be easily recalled by the interpreter
from his/her memory.

The following table gives some examples of word expressions noted in shortly in English at
interpreting from Ukrainian:

Full expression Shortened expression Shortened expression

in source language in source language in target language

законодавчий орган влади парламент parliament

приймати участь у виборах обирати президента to elect the president

президента

проводити військові операції воювати to fight

подати звіт звітувати to report

висловити подяку дякувати to thank

здійснювати інспекцію інспектувати to inspect

тримати під контролем контролювати to control

піддати критиці критикувати to criticize

застосувати право вето накладати вето to veto

надати допомогу допомогти to assist, to help

Table 2: Some examples of shortened expressions.

3.1.2. The Links

The second thing the interpreter should consider while taking notes is the links between ideas. Links
signal the way the speaker wants the listener to relate what is about to be said to what has been said before.
A speech is all about two things: the ideas and the links between them.
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Why are links important? Let's consider some very clear and plain examples, given by Andrew
Gillies in his book “Note-Taking for Consecutive Interpreting: A Short Course” (mentioned in the first
Chapter of this research):

e.g.: “The economy is struggling. The Central Bank has left interest rates unchanged.”

In this example we have two ideas, represented by two SVO [Subject Verb Object] groups but we
have no link between them. The ideas form a list of factual statements perhaps, but with no links between
they are tell us very little. But what happens if there are links between the ideas?

e.g.: ‘The economy is struggling. However, the Central Bank has left interest rates unchanged.’

We now have a very different message. See how much more these ideas say than Example 1. The
links bring the ideas into relation with one another and in doing so they give us more information about the
situation. In this example we are led to believe that the Central Bank had been expected to change interest
rates (and basic economics suggests downwards) but that it has not done so. But what if a different type of
link had been used?

e.g.: ‘The economy is struggling. Consequently, the Central Bank has left interest rates unchanged.’

In this example the situation is the opposite. The Bank, we infer, would normally have raised its rate,
for one reason or another, but because of the economic situation it did not (in order not to stifle growth, for
example). A speech without links is a meaningless list of ideas. [38:64]

According to R. Jones, the ways in which ideas may be linked together are the following:

1) the logical consequence which is expressed clearly with words such as consequently, as a result,
accordingly or therefore;

2) the logical cause which can be recognized with the words because, due to, as, or since;

3) opposition which often goes with but, yet, however or nevertheless [43:28-29].

V.K. Lanchikov, the Professor of Moscow State Linguistic University and practicing translator and
interpreter, gives the following recommendations on linking and ending the ideas in the message:

1) find appropriate links or a way of indicating a sequence of ideas or the connection between
successive ideas; find a quick formula to express “that is why”, “before that”, “but”, “because”, “in spite of
that”, etc.

2) use a clear sign to show the end of a sentence (not a period or full stop which is not visible
enough and should be used for other purposes), such as a short horizontal line on the left hand side of the
page. A short double horizontal line can show the end of a comment on one topic and the passage to a
different idea. A full horizontal line across the page can show the end of the entire statement.

Hardly does the interpreter get confused, if he or she notes links systematically. It is just similar
to the act of marking road for each turn. Thanks to logical connections, the interpreter can follow every
movement and direction change made by the speaker without any difficulty. The connections between
individual ideas determine the overall meaning of the speech. Thus it is necessary for the interpreter to
realize and render such links. Links create a relationship between 2 or more ideas in a speech and can be
conveyed by words, expressions or implicitly. The following table is a breakdown of 10 types of link, words
that fall under that category and possible symbols to represent that link.
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1. effect   ->  cause   

cos
because, the main reason for this, what is causing this, what’s behind this?

2. cause   ->  effect   

so
hence, this means that, the result of this is, the consequence of this is, so that

3. so we can conclude, therefore, this would suggest that, thus    

because, the main reason for this, what is causing this, what’s behind this?

4. purpose, objective   
to
(in order) to, in such a way as to, so that, with the aim of, the purpose being to,

5. following limit, contradiction   

but
however, nonetheless, on the other hand, in spite of this

6. preceding limit, contradiction   

tho
although, despite (the fact that), even though

7. condition and consequence   

if
if .....then... (or inversion of same), had I known, were this to happen

8. question   
wot, wen, y, wer, who, ?
9. in addition   
+
also, in addition, and, not only, on top of that there is,

10. NO LINK   
||
Table 3: Linking words (symbols) used for note-taking
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3.1.3. Noncontextualized Information

It is very important for the interpreter to note down all numbers, proper names, dates, names of days
and months, lists of things and terms. These elements belong to the group of so called “noncontextualized
information” because they cannot be recalled on the basis of analytical and logical thinking in a given
context. R.K. Min’yar-Beloruchev denominates these words as “precision words” (прецизионные слова)
[10: 51-53].

Precision words do not evoke any associations; they cannot be associated with any events important
for the interpreter, that’s why they tend to slip away from memory at perception of continuous text (speech).
There are also exceptions, namely those precision words reminding the interpreter of some well-known fact
related to his/her personal life or historical events. For example, one can hardly remember what he was
doing on 21st of May, 1998, but he (she) surely remembers his (her) birthday date. It is easy to remember
such dates as 9th of May or 24th of August, or such names as Einstein, Lincoln, Shevchenko, but one can
hardly keep in memory the unknown names like Kalanadze, Danyil’chenko or Vitauskas.

If the interpreter wants to remember these elements, he or she has no choice but to keep repeating
them over and over again. Clearly this is not a preferable manner because if the interpreter’s mind is too
preoccupied with rehearsing such “noncontextualized information”, he or she will be distracted from
listening comprehension and target language production. In addition, unlike “main ideas” which have
strongly impressed themselves on the interpreter’s mind in the form of either specific images or general
concepts and tightly linked with each other, most of these elements are not tagged with any kind of mental
images and they independently stand on their own. Therefore, it is no exaggeration to say that numbers,
proper names, lists of things and terminologies most deserve to be the priority of the interpreter’s note-
taking.

To illustrate the importance of “precision words” in the interpreter’s work, R.K. Min’yar-Beloruchev
mentioned a well-known fact from the times of World War II. The fascists were much concerned about the
possibility of the Allies to open the second front at any time. They closely observed all tactical movements
of the American forces, and dozens of interpreters were involved in radio interception searching for
information. All of a sudden, they picked up a message saying that a meeting of the Heads of Governments
and military command officers of USA and UK had been set for January 1943 in White House, with the
purpose of determining the date and place for landing of troops in Europe. Hitler’s military intelligence
service mobilized all their forces to spy into the White House. The most experienced agents were sent to
Washington. At the same time, Roosevelt, Churchill, and high ranking military officers were discussing all
details of landing of the troops in Sicily, having gathered in Moroccan city of Casablanca, which sounds as
“white house” if interpreted from Spanish. Thus an error in interpreting of the “precision word” prevented
Nazi from taking the necessary steps in southern Italy. [10:52]

From here, the first conclusion: while receiving some information, both from written and verbal
sources, it is necessary to pay special attention to “precision words” and, if possible, to analyze them. As a
rule, precision words bear key information and they therefore require particular accuracy at interpreting.

3.1.4. Verb Tenses

According to R. Jones, it is also important to note down tenses of verbs. That means “when noting
verbs, interpreters should thus take care to note the tense correctly, and if appropriate the mode, in particular
conditional” [43:42]. The modes and tenses of verbs have decisive influence on the meaning of a sentence.
 7
The tenses that are most important to note are the present, the past, the future and the conditional.

The most effective way to note them is to put a graphic sign near the verb form. For example, “ll”
sign will indicate the future, a “d” sign will show the past, a circumflexed stress ^ will show the conditional,
whereas no extra sign will be used for the present tense:

We say we || 0

We said we || d

We will say we || -ll

We would say we || ^

0
He likes to work : he ♥ wk

He is living in the States : He liv.

USA

As for modal verbs, it is advisable to note them in English, since they are rather short : may, must,
can, want, etc. or should = s h d ; could = c d ; would = ^ ; must = › ; may = m a y .

To sum up, in the notes of consecutive interpreter, at least main ideas and the links between them
must appear in order to help the interpreter visualize the structure of the speech. Besides, to relieve the
memory, the interpreter should also note down “noncontextualized” (precision) elements including numbers,
dates, proper names, lists of things and terminologies, etc. Other things like tenses of verbs and points of
view of the speaker may be or may not be noted down, depending on the decision made by each individual
interpreter under certain circumstances. Some interpreters prefer the notes with very little detail while others
prefer taking advantage of the notes with as much detail as possible. Both attitudes are justifiable provided
that notes are not allowed to be counterproductive, harming the interpreter’s listening comprehension and
target language production.

3.2. How to Note

In order to take notes effectively, the most important thing the interpreter must do is to decide what
to note. However, according to experienced interpreters, how to note is also very important. Obviously,
notes that are clearly separated and logically organized help the interpreter avoid all confusion when reading
back notes. And notes using abbreviations and symbols are very helpful in activating the most information
with the least effort.

Above all, notes should be as economical as possible in order to save the interpreter’s effort on
writing. In this respect, shortenings, abbreviations and symbols appear to be efficient tools.

3.2.1. Shortenings

Shortenings and abbreviations help the interpreter take notes quickly, saving time spent on other
activities in the process of interpreting.

At first, some general methods of shortening words well be considered here, i.e., those used any
persons both professional interpreters and laymen who are not engaged in interpreting. Then, we shall turn
to those techniques peculiar to the interpreter’s note-taking system.
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There are two basic methods of producing shortenings: 1) clipping and 2) graphical abbreviations:

C l i p p i n g ( s h o r t e n i n g p r o p e r ) means that the word is formed from the syllable of the

original word, which may loose its beginning, its ending, both beginning and ending, its central part, or the
whole form of the word may be transformed:

1) so called a p h a e r e s i s , the process when the word looses its beginning, e.g.: phone (telephone), bus
(omnibus, autobus), cycle (bicycle), copter (helicopter), car (motor-car), coon (raccoon), cola (coca-
cola), etc.;
2) so called a p o c o p e – the process when the word looses its ending, e.g.: exam (examination), prof
(professor), vac (vacation), lab (laboratory), alg (algebra), algo (algorithm), ad (advertisement), admin
(administrator, administration), cab (cabriolet), lib (liberty, liberation), gym (gymnasium, gymnastics),
cert (certificate, certainly), demo (demonstration), movie (moving-picture), Oct. (October), perm
(permanent wave), pop (from popular music, art, singer) etc.;
3) word looses both beginning and ending, e.g.: fridge (refrigerator), flu (influenza), tec (detective) etc.;
4) so called s y n c o p e – the process when the word looses its central part, e. g.: circs (circumstances),
conds (conditions), pants (pantaloons), combs (combination garments), specs (spectacles, specifications),
maths (from mathematics) Dr. (doctor), Mr. (mister), St (saint), etc.;
5) the whole form of the word may be transformed, e.g.: Mrs. (mistress, missis), Xmas (Christmas), bike
(bicycle), nightie (nightdress), hanky (handkerchief), mike (microphone), ammo (ammunition).
O.V. Rebriy, the Ukrainian author of the manual on interpreter’s note-taking, has set up the
following rules of “shortened literal note-taking”:

1) It is reasonable to take shortened literal notes in Ukrainian. English is less suitable for such
shortenings as the difference between spelling and pronunciation is more considerable.

2) Redundancy of language allows partial writing of the word letters. In Ukrainian, is it possible to
omit vowels inside the word longer than 4 letters (the vowel at the beginning of the word should be kept).

3) Adjectives if noted together with the defined nouns can be written even more shortened and
without inflexional ending.

4) Writing of double consonants is optional. [14:19-20]

S.Y. Maksimov, another Ukrainian scholar, the Associated Professor of Kyiv National Linguistic
University, also says about the “occasional individual interpreter’s shortenings”, like: K for Kyiv; Kmin for
Cabinet of Ministers; hgo for he did not go, E for employment; E for unemployment, dr for draft, bdg for
budget, прзд for президент, сгдн for сьогодні, крв for керівник, чит for читання, etc. [8:108]

3.2.2. Abbreviations

G r a p h i c a l a b b r e v i a t i o n s imply that the word is formed from the initial letter of a word
group, e.g.: bf (boyfriend).

1) L e t t e r a b b r e v i a t i o n s are pronounced letter by letter: e. g.: BBC

['bi:'bi:’si:] (the British Broadcasting Corporation), EBRD ['i:'bi:'a:'di:] (European Bank for
Reconstruction and Development), M.P. ['em'pi:] (Member of Parliament), M.S. ['em'es] (Master of
 9
Science), M.C. ['em'si:] (Master of Ceremonies, Member of Congress), DJ ['di:'d3ei] (Disc Jockey) CD
['si:'di:] (compact disc), CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), DVD ['di:'vi:’di:] (digital video
disk), TV ['ti:'vi:] (television), G.I. ['d3i:‘ai] (Government Issue), SOS ['es 'ou 'es] (Save Our Souls =
‘urgent call for help’), P.M. ['pi:'em] (Prime Minister) P.O.W. (prisoner of war), w.c. (water closet),
P.G. (paying guest), B.C. (before Christ), etc.;
2) A c r o n y m s are regular vocabulary units spoken as words. They are formed
in various ways:
a) Acronyms may be formed from the initial letters of a phrase, e.g.:
 Formal acronyms, e.g.: UNO [ju:nou] (the United Nations Organisation), NATO ['neitou] (North
Atlantic Treaty Organisation), UNESCO [ju:'neskou] (United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization); AIDS, Aids ['eidz] (Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome), maser ['meizə]
(microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation), laser ['leizə] (light amplification by
stimulated emission of radiation), radar ['reidə] (radio detection and ranging), etc.;
 Informal acronyms (SMS and chat abbreviations), e.g.: ASAP (As Soon As Possible), FAQ (frequently
asked questions), FYI (for your information), GIGO (garbage in, garbage out), etc.;
b) Acronyms may be formed from the initial syllables of each word of the phrase, e.g.: Interpol
(International police); Incoterms (International Commercial Terms), tacsatcom = Tactical Satellite
Communications, etc.;
c) Acronyms may be formed by a combination of the abbreviation of the first member of the phrase with
the last member undergoing no change at all, e.g.: V-day (Victory Day), V-sign (victory sign); A-bomb
(atomic bomb), H-bomb (hydrogen bomb); M-day (mobilization day), G-man (Government man), g-
force (gravity force), e-mail (electronic mail), e-modem (external modem), F keys (functional keys), Z-
hour (zero-hour), A Level (Advanced Level); O Level (Ordinary Level); m-commerce (mobile
commerce), M-media (multimedia) etc, TV-set (-program, -show, -canal, etc.), H-bag (handbag), T-shirt,
etc.
3) L a t i n a b b r e v i a t i o n s . Specific type of abbreviations is represented
by Latin abbreviations which sometimes are not read as Latin words but substituted by their English
equivalents. A few of the most important cases are listed below:
E.g.: A.D. (Lat anno Domini) – Common Era, after Christ, a.i. (Lat ad interim) – temporary, ad lib
(Lat ad libitum) – at pleasure, a.m. ['ei'em] (Lat ante meridiem) – before noon, in the morning, cf. (Lat
conferre) – compare, etc. (Lat et cetera) – and so on, cp. (Lat comparare) – compare, e.g. (Lat exempli
gratia) – for example ib. (Lat ibidem) – in the same place, id. (Lat idem) – the same, i.e. (Lat id est) – that
is, namely, loc.cit. (Lat locus citato) – in the passage cited, ob. (Lat obiit) – he (she) died, q.v. (Lat quod
vide) – which see; p.m. (Lat post meridiem) – in the afternoon, viz. (Lat videlicet) – namely.
Now, it should be noted that the abbreviations used in the notes for consecutive interpreting are not
wholly identical to those used in the student’s notes or secretary’s reminders. These abbreviations must be
explicit and unambiguous enough for the interpreter to understand immediately when reading back notes
because under time pressure the interpreter has no chance to reconsider the meaning of abbreviations. An
abbreviation may be meaningless to others, but must be meaningful to the interpreter using it.

There are many principles and rules for the use of abbreviations while taking notes at consecutive
interpreting. However, the most important one is that abbreviations must be consistent, if an interpreter has
chosen “pop” standing for “popular” then he should find another abbreviation for “population”, for
example, “popon”.

The following suggestions about creating abbreviations are based on the truth that the fewer strokes
are written; the more time can be saved.
 10
Write what is heard: the interpreter can write a word by recording its sound only. For example: high-
hi; know- no; free- fre; fee- fe; night- nite; etc.

Drop medial vowels, for example: build- bld; legal- lgl; bulletin- bltn; save- sv; budget- bjt; etc.

Write initial and final vowels, for example: office- ofs; easy- ez; follow- flo; value- vlu; open- opn;
etc.

For example, all of the following words are recognizable in the column on the left even though the
consonants are not doubled and even though some or all vowels are missing:

asmble assemble

arpln airplane

bmb bomb

cmtee committee

dgtl digital

difrnce difference

elfnt elephant

hstry history

ptrlum petroleum

phlsphy philosophy

zbr zebra

Table 4: Some examples of abbreviations

The rules of abbreviations set up by Rozan are classified into three categories: 1) abbreviation of
words, 2) abbreviation to indicate verb tenses, and 3) abbreviating the register.

1. According to the first rule, “unless a word is short (4-5 letters), the interpreter should note it in an
abbreviated form” and “write some of the first and last letters rather than trying to write as many letters as
possible from the start onwards” [59:16].

For example, Prod. could be read as “production”, “producer”, “product” or “productivity” while
Pr , Prer, Prct, Prvity are unambiguous.
on

2. The second rule reads that “to indicate tense we add –ll for the future and -d
for the past” [59:17].

3. The third one is applied to abbreviate expressions which are too long, for example, “In order to
arrive at some conclusion” can be noted “to end”; or “Taking into account the situation at the present time”
can be noted “as siton now”; “with the intention of/ with the purpose of” can be noted “to”. The rule here is
 11
“wherever possible we must abbreviate by using a word which conveys the same meaning but is much
shorter” [59:17].

The following table represents a list of some common abbreviations (to be used for note-taking at
consecutive interpreting) which have been collected through both personal experience and practical
observation.

1. kilometre km 22. labour lbr 43. especially esp.

2. kilowatt kw 23. people pp 44. approximately appr.

3. kilowatt hour kwh 24. society soc. 45. according acc.
4. centimetre cm 25. economy eco. 46. abbreviation abbr.
5. millimetre mm 26. monetary mon 47. example eg
6. number no 27. politics pol 48. television tv
7. figure fig. 28. popular pop 49. dictionary dic
8. maximum max 29. export exp 50. computer pc
9. minimum mini 30. import imp 51. technology tech
10. hundred h 31. professional pro 52. electricity elec
11. million mil 32. production prod 53. definition def.
12. thousand thou 33. department dep 54. laboratory lab
13. mathematic math 34. bureau bu. 55. recreation rec
14. literature lit. 35. agriculture agr 56. university uni.
15. chemistry chem 36. industry indus 57. individual indiv
16. physics phys 37. corporation corp. 58. calculation cal
17. hour hr 38. company com 59. problem prob
18. Tuesday Tue. 39. commerce comm 60. influenza flu
19. week wk 40. information info 61. system sys
20. year yr 41. telecommunication telecom 62. president pres
21. century cen 42. limited ltd 63. professor prof.
Table 5: List of common abbreviations used for note-taking

Abbreviation of common international organization should be remembered by the interpreter. The

working environment of the interpreter is varied, and he or she mostly often finds himself or herself at
conferences (meetings) on a wide range of topics with many representatives coming from different
international and/ or local organizations, agencies and corporations, etc. It is possible to say that the
interpreter must have some background knowledge about those groups. It is the duty of the interpreter to
 12
remember their names in abbreviation as part of the required knowledge. The next two tables contain some
common names in abbreviation.

Table 6: List of names of international organizations and agencies in abbreviation

Asian Development Bank ADB

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation APEC

Association of South-East Asia Nations ASEAN

Economic Cooperation Organization ECO

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development EBRD

European Union EU

Food and Agriculture Organization FAO

International Atomic Energy Agency IAEA

International Chamber of Commerce ICC

International Criminal Police Organization INTERPOL

International Federation of Consulting Engineers FIDIC

International Monetary Fund IMF

International Labour Organization ILO

International Organization for Standardization ISO

International Olympic Committee IOC

North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe OSCE

Organization of Petroleum-Exporting Countries OPEC

United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF

United Nations Development Programme UNDP

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR

World Bank WB
World Health Organization WHO
World Intellectual Property Organization WIPO
World Trade Organization WTO
 13
Table 7: List of names of Ukrainian and international organizations and agencies in abbreviation (to be used
for note-taking in Ukrainian)

Верховна Рада України ВРУ

Верховний Суд України ВСУ

Всесвітня організація охорони здоров’я ВОЗ

Генеральна Асамблея Організації Об’єднаних Націй ГА ООН

Державний дорожній науково-дослідний інститут ім. М.П. ДерждорНДІ

Шульгіна
Європейська Співдружність ЄС

Європейський банк реконструкції та розвитку ЄБРР

Засоби масової інформації ЗМІ

Кабінет Міністрів України КМУ

Конституційний суд України КСУ

Міжнародна організація журналістів МОЖ

Міжнародне агентство з атомної енергії МАГАТЕ

Міжнародний олімпійський комітет МОК

Міністерство внутрішніх справ МВС

Міністерство закордонних справ МЗС

Національна академія наук України НАНУ

Національний банк України НБУ

Організація Об’єднаних Націй ООН

Організація українських націоналістів ОУН

Парламентська асамблея Ради Європи ПАРЕ

Рада національної безпеки і оборони України РНБО

Служба автомобільних доріг України Укравтодор

Служба безпеки України СБУ

Співдружність незалежних держав СНД

Українська Автокефальна Православна Церква УАПЦ

Українська національна система сертифікації продукції УкрСЕПРО

 14
3.2.3. Symbols

Although shortenings and abbreviations are commonly used in notes, their most prominent drawback
is that they tend to entice the interpreter to stick to the word level instead of meaning level. In other words, it
easily leads the interpreter to think in terms of words rather than ideas, which could harm the interpretation.
Therefore symbols are more preferable for their capacity of representing ideas and eliminating source
language interference.

A "symbol" is anything, a mark, sign or letter used to represent a thing or a concept. Symbols are
quicker and easier to write than words. Firstly, symbols need to be prepared and mastered in advance
(similar to abbreviations). Any symbol improvised in the middle of interpretation could drive the interpreter
into a difficult and intense situation. In this respect, Daniel Gile says: “In consecutive interpretation, using
many symbols in note-taking helps reduce the time required to note ideas. However, until they are mastered,
retrieving them from memory and/or recognizing their meaning from memory and/or recognizing their
meaning from the notes in the reformulation phase may require more time and processing capacity than
would be the case when writing plain words.” [36:172].

The use of symbols and abbreviations should be automatic because any new one created in the
process of interpreting may require so much attention. It is unacceptable for the interpreter to be distracted
from his work for any reasons at all. Only by developing his own system of abbreviations and symbols
beforehand can the interpreter make them come to his pen automatically.

Based on the above, there is one basic rule for the interpreter: only use the symbols which are already
stuck in the mind. Secondly, symbols must be consistent. That means symbols are instantly associated for
the interpreter himself with the meaning he gives them. Attending to this point, the interpreter can avoid
mistakenly “deciphering” the meaning of the symbols he or she uses.

The interpreter is the only person who needs to read and understand the meaning of abbreviations
and symbols in his notes; he must be the creator of his own system, which then has a logical meaning.
Therefore, the interpreter should not compel himself to learn by heart an artificial complicated system of
abbreviations and symbols built by others in the same way as one may learn mathematical formula or
dramatic poems because such abbreviations and symbols require too much space in the memory.
Unavoidably, this would make it harder for the interpreter to focus on listening, understanding and analyzing
the original.

John A. Henderson in his article Note-Taking for Consecutive Interpreting published in Babel in
1976 [40:115] gives an example of the system of symbols, developed by a student of his, and comments on
them:
 15

“This particular student has evolved an unusually complex system of notes and symbols, which many
may consider too elaborate. Such opinions are of course irrelevant: the only significant criterion is that he is
able to follow them with ease and interpret from them (and memory) without hesitation. Fortunately, he has
also kindly provided a key, enabling most notes to be understood (additional comments below the transcript
- refer to numbers in the right-hand margin):

This example could of course be improved in some details and it is evident that its author relies fairly
heavily on memory. It is also obvious that he is a distinctly above average student who has worked hard at
developing his own system. He is however far from being the only graduate of the course to find
employment as a conference interpreter.” [40:115-116]

One could say that symbols clearly help the interpreter take notes more quickly and effectively, and
then it is wise to use as many symbols as possible. However, it does not seem reasonable to set up a rigidly
unchanged rule for a degree of symbolization, each interpreter through practice would find their own
balance. For some interpreters, symbolizing as much information as possible is good. For others, it is not
necessary to do so.

James Nolan in his book “Interpretation. Techniques and Exercises” gives some basic guidelines on
using symbols and abbreviations at note-taking that should be followed:

 Adopt and use symbols that are useful for the subjects you are dealing with.
 Always use a symbol to mean only one thing in a given context.
 Use pictorial or graphic devices like circles and squares or lines and arrows. You are not “writing out
the speech”; you are “drawing a picture for yourself” of the speech.
 Arrange your notes on the page in a meaningful way (for example, with the main points at the top
and minor points at the bottom). Use indentations logically and consistently.
 Learn and use conventional abbreviations and acronyms (for example, the telegraphic business
abbreviation “cak” meaning “contract”, or the morse-code acronym SOS to mean “help”.
 16
 Adopt a simple, one-stroke symbol which, whenever you write it, will mean “the main subject of the
speech”.
 Adopt a simple sign which will mean “three zeroes”, so that you can write down large numbers
quickly (for example, if – means “three zeroes”, then 89 – – means “89 million”). Adopt another
symbol to represent two zeroes.
 Adopt or coin abbreviations or acronyms for often-used phrases (examples: asap = as soon as
possible; iot = in order to; iaw = if and when.
 Invent symbols for common prefixes and suffixes, such as “pre-“, “anti-“ or “-tion”, “-ment”.
 When you write out words, do not double any consonants, and delete any vowels that are not
necessary to make the word recognizable or to distinguish it from another similar word. [54:295]
Once you have adopted a symbol and assigned it a specific meaning, you can then build other
symbols from it. For example, if the symbol x is used to mean “time”, the following variations on it are
possible:

x– timeless, eternal

xx many times, often

xx+ many times more

xx– many times less

xtx from time to time, occasionally

=x equal time

+x more time, longer time

–x less time, shorter time

2x twice

3x-/ three times less than

100x a hundred times

100x+ a hundred times more

Ltdx a limited time

oldx old-time, old fashioned

x! It’s time, the time has come

gdx a good time

x) time limit, deadline

x> future

<x past

ovrx overtime

xng timing

xtbl timetable, schedule

 17

prtx part-time

x,x time after time, repeatedly

wrx wartime

Table 8: Variations of the symbol x denoting concept of time

There are many sources of symbols. You will find them all around you, even on signs in the street. It
does not matter from what source you borrow your symbols, so long as you use them consistently in your
own note-taking system. Look for symbols that can be written quickly and easily, with few pencil-strokes.
The following are a few possible sources of symbols:

 proofreader’s marks (see, for example, back matter of dictionaries);

 symbols or abbreviations from dictionary entries, like ~ ;
 mathematical and algebraic symbols, like +, – , = , < , > ,  ,  ;
 books on semiotics;
 ancient writing systems, like Norse or Cuneiform;
 conventional business and commercial symbols and abbreviations, like @, £, CIF or ASAP;
 foreign-alphabet letters;
 pictographs borrowed from languages with pictographic script, like Chinese (for example,  to mean
“standing”);
 pictographs and pictographic devices borrowed from ancient hieroglyphic scripts (for example,
runes, or the ancient Egyptian device of enclosing the proper names of important people in a
“cartouche”);
 punctuation marks, like ! or ? or / (for example, you could use +/ to mean “and or”, and the
ampersand (&) to mean “and”);
 signs of the zodiac;
 pronunciation symbols, accents, diacritical marks;
 capital letters used for a specific meaning, like P to mean president, or F to mean France; or single
letters used for a specific meaning, like c to mean “country”;
 children’s “picture-writing” (e.g. ^ to mean “house” or “shelter”, or ☺ (to mean “happy” or
“pleased”, or ♥ to mean “love”)
 symbolic logic;
 scientific symbols, like ♂ for “man” and ♀ for “woman”;
 musical signs;
 legal symbols, like § to mean “section”;
 monograms (combinations of letters, such as Æ)
In appendixes to this research, there are some symbol examples retrieved from electronic source at
Interpreter Training Resource.

3.2.4. Layout of Notes

The layout of notes on the page is very important, as it can considerably facilitate the recall of the
information of the original. Ilg and Lambert argue that “students should … strive to develop a type of layout
that carries meaning. The location on the page of a given abbreviation or sign should in itself convey some
 18
additional meaning (parallelism, precedence, subordination, anteriority-posteriority, cause-effect relations,
origin-destination, active-passive). This is definitely more productive than an array of abstract symbols used
regardless of their relative positioning.” [44:82].

It is obvious that the right layout of notes helps the interpreter pick up the chain of reasoning of the
message to be reproduced in the target language.

Vertical (Diagonal) Layout

J.-F. Rozan was the first to introduce vertical and diagonal arrangement of notes, in his classic book
“La prise de notes en interprétation consécutive”. [59]

Vertical layout he called “superposition” (in French), which was translated in English version of his
book as “stacking”. Diagonal layout was denoted by Rozan as “decalage”, which means “shift” in English
translation.

According to Rozan, “verticality means taking notes from top to bottom rather than from left to right.
This method makes it possible to:

a) group ideas logically, allowing a complete and immediate synthesis when we come to read back
our notes,

b) to do away with many links which would otherwise be essential to the clarity of the text.” [59:20]

Now, let’s consider these notions together with practical examples, given by Rozan. According to
him, "stacking" consists of placing different elements of the text above or below one another. For example:

Rort
"the report on Western Europe"
W Eur.

Rort
"the report on Western Europe" is an interesting document int g
W Eur.

Fre
“Since the French, US, and UK delegations…” As US
UK

Fre
“Since the French, US, and UK delegations have suggested…” As US suggest d
UK

“The chapters of the report which deal Chrs give new info
 19
with economic situation in Europe offer additional Ec.Eur stat cs

information and new statistics”

If the sign j → is used to denote "offer" and the sign + to denote "additional" and "new" then our notes
will look like this:

Chrs info
→+
Ec.Eur stat cs

Rozan also notes that brackets are an important part of the verticality system. In every speech there
will be certain elements, which are mentioned to clarify an idea or to highlight a particular point, but which
are not integral to the speaker's train of thought.

These parts of a speech should be noted in brackets, below the main element to which they refer. For
example:

“...which leads to new investments, particularly in the → + invts

transport sector” (Tort)

Then Rozan recommends: “To encourage a natural use of the verticality technique it is recommended
that you use relatively large but narrow pieces of paper. This will allow you to note the maximum amount of
text on one page whilst automatically bringing your notes back to the left hand side of the page.” [59:21]

It seems that whenever the question of how to take notes arises, a technique named “diagonal
presentation” would come up.

Diagonal presentation was also introduced by Rozan in 1956. Also regarded as vertical arrangement,
diagonal has been widely used by professional interpreters. The creation of diagonal layout is based on the
fact that subject, verb and object are the most important elements of a sentence which contain nearly all
information or meaning of the sentence, therefore, they should be clearly represented in notes. Applying this
technique, the subject, verb and object are arranged diagonally, from left to right and from top to bottom of a
page. However it does not mean that the interpreter only notes the subject, verb and object elements. Based
on the structure, the interpreter can add other details in the notes if he or she wants.

Diagonal layout is highly recommended because of its clear presentation of notes. Notes in diagonal
arrangement are concise and succinct; focusing on ideas rather than words, unlike notes in horizontal form
which often tempt the interpreter to write as many words as possible. Diagonal layout is described as
follows:
 20

e.g.: “On the first day of the month, my grandparents liked to prepare traditional food made of raw fish,
vegetables and spices”.

Based on the diagonal layout, this could be noted:

On 1st day/mth,

my grp s

♥d cook

trad. food of” fish raw )

vegs

spices
Such a logical analysis will give you all the required information at a glance, while giving you the
flexibility of using your own words.

e.g.: During his years in jail, John was insulted, severely beaten and often deprived of food.

Dur.

yr s

jai l insultd

John beaten

no food (oft.)
 21
Diagonal layout is also called décalage (after Rozan) which is translated into English as “shifting”,
figuratively referring to “gap” or “discrepancy”. According to Rozan, “shift means writing notes in the place
on a lower line where they would have appeared had the text on the line above been repeated”. How shift
works is well explained by Rozan through many examples in his classical book on note-taking, mentioned
above.

The following example is one of them. [59:21-22]

e.g.: “Over the course of 1954, prices rose, although not to the same extent as income, thus the
population’s net income increased” is noted as follows.

Rozan’s notes are as follows (the symbol  denotes increase):

54, prices 

but –––––– no = income

so –––––– popon 

Word for word on the first line: Over the course of 1954, prices rose,

Word for word on the second line: although not to the same extent as income,

Word for word on the third line: thus the population’s net income increased.

Thus we can see that in diagonal form, the information is organized logically and clearly. The
interpreter seems to be able to immediately see the connections between the ideas. All those things together
show that diagonal layout can accelerate the interpreter’s review of notes.

Thus, the idea of the diagonal layout has originally been suggested by the French scholar J.-F. Rozan.
His English follower, Roderick Jones, explains in detail why the diagonal layout should be used because
Rozan only states that it helps producing an “accurate and full version of the text”.

Jones argues that noting the main ideas on the basis of subject-verb-object structure should be
reflected on the page clearly in the form of a diagonal axis moving from left to right and from top to bottom.
First, this forces the consecutive interpreter to separate the sentence components on the page in a way that
eliminates confusion, offering a natural movement of the eyes from left to right (or from right to left as in
Arabic) and from top to bottom, when he (she) produces the interpretation. Second, if two or more ideas are
noted on the same page, the beginning of each idea will be clearly shown by the back movement to the
left-/right-hand side of the page. Third, writing horizontally might tempt the interpreter to take too much
information in a way that may confuse ideas.

Andrew Gillies argues that the diagonal layout helps further in avoiding syntactic interference by
forcing the interpreter to use the target language word order and in providing space for additions of details if
needed. [38: 44]

In addition to diagonal layout, Roderick Jones discusses other principles for achieving an effective
layout of notes: left-hand margin and vertical lists. [43:49]

Left-Hand Margin
 22
The way in which ideas are connected to each other is as important as the ideas themselves. In terms
of meaning, idea is a single unit. It is only when they are linked together that a complete message is formed.
Thus the crucial role of the links between ideas is never denied. As mentioned above, one of the most major
elements that must be reflected in notes is the link. In other words, the interpreter when taking notes cannot
afford to ignore “link words”, for instance: therefore, consequently, nevertheless, as a result, on the other
hand, however, but, or, and, yet etc.

There is already diagonal layout for ideas to be put in logical order; then there should be some spaces
“dedicated to” the links only. It is best to leave a left-hand margin of one or two centimetres for links to
make sure that they are not confused with the other parts in notes. Obviously left-hand margin will make
links stand out and easy to identify. That is the reason why a left-hand margin is frequently found in the
notes of professional consecutive interpreters. Furthermore, a left-hand column is ideal for marking missing
ideas or denoting any change in the flow of speech. The following example extracted from Conference
Interpreting Explained written by R. Jones [43:47] shows how successfully left-hand margin works.

e.g.: “Hungary has complained that its steel exports to the European Union are not able to develop
because of excessively restrictive tariff quotas. But the Union representative pointed out that quotas are still
underused by Hungary by a large margin, so the tariff quotas themselves didn’t appear to be creating the
difficulties” could be noted:

HU steel export

cannot develop

to EU

because tariff quotas

too restrictive

but EU : HU

Underused a lot

quotas

so quotas

not problem

The example is purely given to show the function of left-hand margin; hence it has not been
abbreviated and symbolized. However, as a matter of fact, because of frequent appearance of link words in
 23
notes, it is prudent to have a system of symbols for them. Some symbols for link words are given in
subsection How to note of this investigation.

Thus, many of experienced interpreters use a margin on the left hand side of the page when taking
notes in consecutive. Be it real or virtual, a margin can be a very useful part of note-taking technique.

Why should we use a margin during taking notes?

There are at lest two answers to this question:

1) when reading, your eyes automatically come back to the left hand side of page to start next idea (a
la typewriter);

2) clarity – words in margin stand out and meet eye.

As Jean-Francois Rozan says, the first rule of consecutive interpreting is that the real work must
already have been done when you start reading back your notes: the text, its meaning and the links within it,
must have been perfectly understood.

Now, let us finalize, what do we note in the margin?

a) First of all, links, as was mentioned above. The table below represents a note-pad onto which we
have drawn a margin near the left-hand side of the page (and a horizontal line across the page after the
“idea”, with the purpose of splitting it from the other ideas). Links are noted on same level on the page as
the Subject, for example:

cos USA

decided

stop exports

b) Contrasting the actions of two subjects

....the EU is doing this, the US is doing that....

EU doing

………..

US doing

………..
 24

c) Structural markers:

 Paragraphs (§);
 list numbering (1 …… 2 ……);
 digressions({ …});
 question marks (? );

1. ………..

2. ………..

 dates;
 anything important;
By the way, the margin does not have to be real. Some interpreters actually draw a line (before the
meeting starts) on every page; others simply imagine it but note the elements above on the left. Some
interpreters circle these elements to highlight their importance.

According to Jones, the left-hand margin can be used for noting two important elements in a speech:
links between ideas and points of view. Logically speaking, a link will fall outside the subject-verb-object
presentation and should thus have a separate place on the page, but a place that makes them easy to find and
does not confuse them with the subject of the sentence. The most appropriate place is the left-hand margin
since following the diagonal layout by the interpreter will force him/her to go from left to right when starting
a new idea. Points of view can also be placed on the left-hand margin to stand out clearly and be picked up
easily by the interpreter. [43: 50-53]

It is worth mentioning here, however, that some of the suggestions in the two principles mentioned
above can only apply to some, not all languages as Jones himself acknowledges [43: 50] for in addition to
the fact that some languages, such as Arabic, use the right-to-left system of writing, there is the problem of
word order. For example, Arabic uses the verb-subject-object structure. The problem of word order is found
even in western languages which use the left-to-right system such as German with its verb-last structure.

3.3. When to Note

In the process of note-taking, the interpreter is burdened with making decisions all the time. When to
take notes is a very important and also tough decision that requires the interpreter to arrive at properly and
wisely.
 25
According to Jean Herbert, beginners should be taught to start taking notes as soon as the speaker
starts delivering his/her speech because in some situations what might look like a few words may
unexpectedly end up as a very long discourse. [41: 35]

When the interpreter can sense the meaning of a sentence which might has not been completed, he or
she should note it down. Here the interpreter has the ability to “forecast” or “feel” upcoming things. Besides
the interpreter is not required to take everything exactly the same way as the speaker, his or her notes are not
presented in exact order as they were said by the speaker, so there is no need for the interpreter to wait until
the speaker finishes an utterance to take note.

Therefore, interpreters should start the notes as soon as possible without having to wait for a
complete “unit of meaning”. If he or she waits too long, there is danger of not being able to jot down
sufficiently what has come earlier.

Almost 60 years on and this professional view has not changed because R.Jones argues that although
it is true that interpreters deal with ideas not words when taking notes, the consecutive interpreter should
start note-taking as soon as possible insofar as he/she can be sure where an element fits in the notes. For
example, if the interpreter hears “The Prime Minister attacked the leader of opposition for being
opportunistic over the issue of the war”, he/she should note down “The Prime Minister” only when he/she
hears the verb “attacked”, thus realizing that this noun phrase functions as a subject and not an object
because the sentence may well be a passive sentence: “The Prime Minister was attacked by the opposition
leader …”. In such a case, The Prime Minister will obviously be in the object position. [43: 67-70]

Jones states why it is important for the consecutive interpreter not to take the risk of lagging too long
behind the speaker by drawing a comparison between consecutive interpreter and simultaneous interpreter.
First, the simultaneous interpreter can always be in a better position than the consecutive interpreter if he/she
lags behind the speaker since the former can catch up with the speaker by accelerating delivery, but the
consecutive interpreter will be taking notes, and it is obvious that writing notes takes more time than
speaking. Second, the simultaneous interpreter’s choice about his/her final delivery is a decision that directly
determines what his/her audience will hear unlike the consecutive interpreter whose decision is only about
the notes which are only a means to an end [43: 67], and some of the words might not even be included in
the final rendition [65: 31].

It is also worth mentioning that as soon as speakers finish their utterance(s), the interpreter should
stop taking notes instantly and start reproducing ideas. If the interpreter is too preoccupied with notes, he or
she will delay the interpretation, which is not wanted. The interpreter cannot afford to take longer than the
speaker. He or she is expected to react immediately after the speaker has finished.

3.4. Which Language to Use in Note-Taking

The question of consecutive interpreters’ choice of language for their notes is still open for debate. A
large volume of literature and research papers have been written on the issue. There are diverse opinions
about which language should be used in notes by the interpreter: the source language or the target language.
The source language means the language in which a speech is made in the original, and from which an
interpretation is to be made. The target language is the language into which a speech spoken in another
language is to be interpreted.

Kurt Kohn and Michaela Albl-Mikasa conceived note-taking technique as a language-independent

instrument. [46:259]. An ideal “language-independent system” for note-taking was proposed by Matyssek.
 26
However, up to now, this suggestion has not come into reality for the reason that such “complicated system
of ciphers” would definitely place a big burden on the interpreter’s memory.

Most writers about note-taking in consecutive interpreting tend to adopt one of two contrasting
positions: some advocate the use of the target language, e.g. J.Herbert, J.-F. Rozan, D. Seleskovitch, while
others like G. Ilg, I. Alexyeva, D.Gile argue that the source language may be a better choice.

Those who recommend using the target language basically have two reasons: first, the target
language logically forces the interpreter to put aside the exterior form of the incoming speech, instead, to
concentrate on the meaning layer, that means the interpreter can avoid “intellectual laziness”, following the
speaker and noting their words passively; second, taking notes in the target language is thought to
effectively facilitate the re-expression phase.

For others who doubt the benefits of using the target language for taking notes defend their point of
view that writing notes in the target language, the interpreter has more activities to deal with during
listening, understanding and analyzing phase. The activity of language transformation from the source into
the target makes the interpreter’s concentration divided. Moreover, taking notes in the target language, the
interpreter cannot have “a full set of notes at then end of a speech” as he takes notes in the source language.”
[43:60].

However, some recent findings from a research conducted by Hellen V. Dam have shown that “the
choice of language in note-taking is governed by mainly the status of the language in the interpreters’
language combination, i.e. whether it is an A-language or B-language (A-language is also called mother
tongue and B-language is the language of which the interpreter has perfect mastery), and much less than by
its status in the interpreting task, i.e. whether it functions as the source language or the target language”.
[31:3]

This seems to be true because in an attempt to save processing capacity for other requirements
throughout the whole process of note-taking, the interpreter is likely to take notes in whichever language is
easier. Obviously, writing in the first language (A-language) is always faster and easier than writing in
another language (B-language) which is not mother tongue.

3.5. Reading Back Notes

It may seem strange to even mention how to read back notes. However, interpreter should be aware
of the risk of communicating less well because of looking too much at their notes and not enough at their
audience. This risk is particularly great if the interpreter takes relatively complete notes. Interpreters, like
public speakers, must learn the art of glancing down at their notes to remind them of what they are to say
next and then delivering that part of the text while looking at the audience. The clearer the notes, both in
content and lay-out, the easier this will be.. And the clearer the ideas in the interpreter's mind, the more
cursory the glances down at the notes can be.

There is a specific technique that interpreters can try to develop, and which can be compared to a
pianist reading music while playing but not sight-reading. The pianist who has practised a piece is in a
similar situation to the consecutive interpreter: essentially they know what they want to play but the sheet-
music is there to remind them. The pianist looks at the opening bars and then starts playing, and continues
reading ahead of the notes they are playing, their eyes on the music always being a little ahead of their
fingers on the keyboard. Similarly the interpreter should look at the first page of their notes then start
speaking while looking up at their audience. As the interpreter moves towards the end of the passage they
 27
have looked at, they glance down at their notes again to read the next passage. In other words they do not
wait until they finished one passage to look again at their notes, which would mean that the interpretation
would become jerky, reading then speaking, reading then speaking. Rather the interpreter, while still talking,
is already reading ahead, preparing the next passage, thus providing for a smooth, uninterrupted and efficient
interpretation.

3.6. Teaching and Practicing of Note-Taking.

Considering that effective note-taking is one of the major prerequisites for quality interpretation, the
nuance of note-taking skills should then be regarded as a separate skill to be trained and developed
throughout the interpretation curriculum (training course). [50:311].

3.6.1. Teaching Note-Taking to Students

Acquisition of a good note-taking technique is one of the main abilities a trainee-interpreter has to
develop. Although some authors argue that it is hardly possible to teach note-taking systematically and
others simply ignore the problem, most consider – rightly, in our opinion, that in the early stages of
interpreter training much time and effort must be dedicated to this aspect.

John Henderson in his article “Note-Taking for Consecutive Interpreting” pays special attention to
the problems of teaching interpreting, particularly consecutive interpreting and note-taking skills, to the
students of linguistic institutes and trainee-interpreters. In what follows, some of Henderson’s reflections on
the topic will be cited:

“More specifically on the question of note-taking, the tutor will first explore the nature of the
process: the place of short-term memory, the principles discussed above (here Henderson means the seven
principles of note-taking techniques, first described by Jean-Francois Rozan, and listed in this investigation
in the section related to the history of development of an interpreter’s note-taking); the note-pad itself and
the physical limitations of notation at speed. To discourage a common initial tendency to make excessively
detailed notes, remarks must from the start be delivered at 'normal' speed (though this is a somewhat elastic
term; a better phrase is perhaps 'natural delivery', avoiding any temptation to speak at dictation speed). In
this way the first principle to note ideas rather than words is in effect forced upon the student.” [40:112].

In terms of teaching method, Henderson is of opinion that “there seem to be two possible methods,
and the most effective system is one which combines both. Method (a) consists of working from smaller to
larger semantic groups: words, phrases, sentences and eventually paragraphs. This is useful preliminary
work and helps in mastering basics, but will not of itself bring the student to grasp and record the salient
ideas and the relationships between them in a more extended speech.

Method (b) amounts in effect to throwing the student at the deep end: having offered the principles
and a few examples, the tutor will from a very early stage require the student to note (and reproduce) quite
lengthy passages containing several ideas. In this way the student will go beyond the simple mechanics of
notation and experience for the first time the peculiarly lonely sensations of the interpreter, faced with the
evident difficulties of his craft and entirely dependent on his own resources. Method (a) is of severely
limited value and, except for an occasional refresher exercise, can be phased out at an early stage. Method
(b) is effective provided one starts with material which in more relaxed circumstances would be fully within
the student's comprehension.
 28
The level of criticism and tutorial advice should also be graded: initially students will produce only
the gist of a speech, but should immediately be encouraged to add detail, reconstructed from notes and
memory, and eventually to give due consideration to questions of style and the faithful recreation of the
spirit of the original. Method (b) evidently requires the student to go through a number of complex mental
processes in a short time…

As students progress, the tutor can intensify the difficulty in a number of ways – register, lexis,
accent, quality of the speaker, speed, etc. – but initially conditions must be the best possible in terms of
clarity, audibility and comprehensibility, precisely so that the students can achieve high standards of
interpretation from the start. In short, one must as quickly as possible move beyond the piecemeal approach,
not only by running through (a) and (b) concurrently but by stress importance of page layout in conveying
information ('verticalism' and 'décalage') just as much as symbols and abbreviations.

None of these processes is particularly easy to accomplish, though it helps if students are aware of
the advantages to be derived from practicing and mastering them. The issue is further complicated by the
evident differences between individuals as regards memory and the need for more or less detailed notes.
[40:113].

3.6.2. Exercises on Practicing Note-Taking

Andrew Gillies, the author of one of the best textbooks for students who study consecutive
interpreting, suggests quite practical exercises for note-taking in consecutive interpreting as follows:

Note-taking: What and how to note should be part of any interpreting course and may differ greatly
from one place to the next, however, the techniques for which I suggest practice exercises below are widely
used. Each of these elements of note-taking can be practiced in isolation and without the time pressure
associated with live note-taking. By practicing elements regularly and in isolation they become automatic
more quickly, thus when we interpret we can concentrate on the many issues that are more important than
note-taking. i.e. listening, comprehension, analysis and reformulation.

Noting less:

1. Listening to the news. Note one word per news item and then try to reproduce each item afterwards.
2. Reading newspaper articles. Note one word per paragraph and then try to recreate it afterwards.
3. One student prepares a short speech containing say 5 clear ideas – listeners agree to note only five words
while listening to the speech and interpret on the basis of those notes.
4. Students must listen and analyze in order to decide which 5 words best represent the core ideas of the
speech
5. Read newspaper articles. Take notes from an article using diagonal/vertical note-taking techniques –
read article back from notes.
6. While still unfamiliar with the technique, practice note-taking from slow, short speeches.
7. Read articles highlighting the link words.
8. Practice note-taking from articles, noting only the link words in the margin (or only link words plus one
word per paragraph). Reproduce as speech.
Other…

9. After a speech rewrite your notes in "fair copy". Concentrate on aspects of note-taking technique that
you have been taught but perhaps ignored under the pressure of the moment. Try to arrive at a set of
“ideal” notes (- ideal according to your own style of note-taking or that which you are using).
 29
10. Speeches prepared for lessons and practice sessions should be noted/written in consecutive note style.
These notes will not correspond exactly to what might have been noted from a spoken speech however
for the reasons explained below it can still be a very useful exercise. In preparation we practice note-
taking techniques (i.e. brevity and clarity of our notes, familiarizing ourselves with the use of symbols or
margins) without the time pressure associated with note-taking from live speeches. Also when giving the
speech to colleagues students practice note reading and delivery. By giving speeches for fellow students
you have not, therefore, sacrificed your own practice time but rather practiced different, but equally
important, skills.

11. Practice taking notes while sitting at a desk or table, with the pad on your lap while sitting and while
standing.
Depending on the market you end up working on or the meetings you attend you may have to be
proficient at note-taking in all three positions. Practicing taking notes whilst sitting back in your chair
with your legs crossed and the pad on your lap can also help you to relax while note-taking as the
posture is naturally less tense than being hunched over a desk or table. [37:76-78; 38:211-212].

To improve the author’s note-taking skills, some fragments of Barack Obama’s speech were chosen
(“State of the Union Address” given on January 27, 2010). The following fragment and its note would show
us the visualization of pointing out the main ideas, as well as the usage of symbols, shortenings, and left-
hand margin.

Fragment 1: “Our Constitution declares that from time to time, the President shall give to Congress
information about the state of our Union. For 220 years, our leaders have fulfilled this duty. They've done so
during periods of prosperity and tranquility, and they've done so in the midst of war and depression, at
moments of great strife and great struggle.”
The possible variant of note:

Reading back note:

Our Consin Наша Конституція

ǀǀ0 xtx проголошує, що час від часу

Pr shll giv0 Cngrs Президент повинен подавати до Конгресу

 30

інформацію щодо стану справ у державі

(досл. у об’єднанні штатів)

For 220 yrs Протягом 220 років

leaders duty лідери країни виконували цей обов’язок.

Leaders so Вони робили це

в часи розквіту та спокою, розбрату и

боротьби.

Some symbols used in this note:

ǀǀ0, giv0 Say, give (present tense)

xtx Time to time (x= time)

Done, fulfilled, carry out…

+ In addition, and, also…

During, on the period of, in a time…

Full stop

Some shortenings used in this note:

 31
Consin – Constitution
Pr – President
Shll – Shall
Cngrs – Congress
Inf – information
Yrs – years
Midwr – midst of war
Dprsn – depression
 32

The next fragment illustrate us the examples of links connected the ideas and also some
peculiarities of shortenings and symbols’ usage.
Fragment 2: “Now, the House has already passed financial reform with many of these
changes, and the lobbyists are trying to kill it. But we cannot let them win this fight. And if the
bill that ends up on my desk does not meet the test of real reform, I will send it back until we get
it right. We've got to get it right.”
The possible variant of note:

Reading back note:

На сьогодні, Палата представників розглянула

d
house pas

фінансову реформу з багатьма змінами,

+ lobists tryg ref та лобісти намагаються відхилити реформу.

But we Але ми

can let lob win не можемо їм цього дозволити.

+ if І якщо

законопроект, що опиниться на моєму столі

 33

isnt aprprte не буде змістовним,

So Pr sendll ← то я (президент) відішлю його назад

допоки ми
we

get rit не отримаємо його в належній редакції.

Variants of links used:

Now, at present, nowadays, today, currently,

presently…

+ In addition, also, and, not only…

But But, however, nonetheless, in spite of…

If Condition, consequence

So Cause, effect

Until, till the time, so long as, so far…

Some other peculiarities of the note below:

pasd Pass (past tense)

fin ref Financial reform

Wz – with

wz mn Δs Mn – many (mch - much)

Δ – change (Δs - changes)

Kill, reject, refuse, turn down

Pr – I (President)

Pr sendll ← sendll – send (future tense)

← - back

As was mentioned above, the interpreter should provide the faithful information. That’s
why he/she should pay special attention to the precision data and words, and pick up the correct
proper names (abbreviations, different committees etc.) in order
 34
Fragment 3: “That's why we extended or increased unemployment benefits for more
than 18 million Americans, made health insurance 65 percent cheaper for families who get their
coverage through COBRA, and passed 25 different tax cuts.”
The possible variant of note:

Reading back note:

Саме тому ми
We

↔ збільшили

emp bnfts for >18mln Ams матеріальну допомогу по безробіттю для

більше ніж 18 млн. американців,

зробили страхування дешевшим на

insrnce 65% for 65 відсотків для

родин, що утримуються COBRA

pasd прийняли

25 dif tx cts зниження 25 різних податків.

Noncontextualized information is represented:

18mln Ams – 18 million Americans

65% - 65 percent cheaper

COBRA – Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act

25 dif tx cts – 25 different tax cuts

As we already know, modals and tenses should be carefully noticed, conditions and
consequences must be saved. The next fragment gives us some variants of such noticing:
 35
Fragment 4: “But when I ran for President, I promised I wouldn't just do what was
popular; I would do what was necessary. And if we had allowed the meltdown of the financial
system, unemployment might be double what it is today. More businesses would certainly have
closed. More homes would have surely been lost.”
The possible variant of note:

Reading back note:

But wen I Pr Проте, коли я балотувався на пост Президента

I prmsd я обіцяв

- I wldnt j wat popar що буду робити не просто загальноприйняте,

- I wld wat ncsry я буду робити те, що необхідно.

+ if we hd alwd І якщо б ми допустили

of fin sys обвал фінансової системи,

So emp mght be 2x то на сьогодні безробіття зросло б у два рази.

> bsnss Більше підприємств
wld closd могло б закритися.
Більше домівок
>
 36
wld be losd було б втрачено.
Symbols used for note-taking at consecutive interpreting

You can get your symbols from anywhere that suits you... Here are a few ideas.

Remember that the symbols here represent not only the word written alongside them but rather
all synonymous ideas, the exact version of which will be clear to you in the context of the speech
you are interpreting. So "change" might be "reform" or "alter" depending on the context - you
will remember. You don't need a symbol for each word.

consequences development

relations agriculture

agreement environment

role energy

success trade

problem politics

repression democracy

impact work

country money

meeting inflation
 37

industry

deficit surplus

APPENDIX 1/2 (Continued)

Symbols used for note-taking at consecutive interpreting

look forward to change

want to need

know continue

decide join

propose listen/hear

lead to, cause say

promise attack

agree thanks
 38
APPENDIX 1/3 (Continued)

Symbols used for note-taking at consecutive interpreting

Always

on the one hand

(toujours in French)

...on the other hand until

on behalf of from that time on

as opposed to before

recently less than

all any

now

similar end

start

APPENDIX 1/4 (Continued)

Symbols used for note-taking at consecutive interpreting

 al national (adjective)
 39

 ally nationally

 ze to nationalize

 tn nationalisation

o national (noun), citizen

 return, come back, reverse, regress

 rise, increase, grow, climb etc.

 fall, decline, slide, slip, drop, shrink,

 exchange, relations,

 lead to, consequence of, therefore

N continue,

O …

 pleased.

 annoyed, unhappy, unimpressed, etc.

 very unhappy, disgusted, etc

Õ to think

Ō to know, (for me, the straight line denotes certainty, in

comparison to the squiggly line for “to think”.)
APPENDIX 1/5 (End)

Symbols used for note-taking at consecutive interpreting

Maths
= + > < % /
Science E  µ t  ºC (and more I can't do in Word!)

Music
# ♪ ♫ ♫

Text messages
L8R R U OK?   HRU? ASAP 2   etc.
Keyboard
% & @ ¶ ™
Punctuation marks
? ! ( ) " :
 40

D DA UK CH F
Vehicle registrations
(beware of mixing up China & Switzerland, or Poland and
Portugal)

Short words in other

languages So hi ta ok / bo ale juz / deja / ergo etc / pero /

Currencies
$ Y L € £

Periodic table
Fe Na Po Mg Ag CO2 CO NO2 H2SO4
 41
APPENDIX 2 Example from the interpreter’s notes