Wikipedia Translation Guidelines: Best Practices for English Editors
Expanding the reach of knowledge across different languages is a core mission of Wikipedia. However, translating content from one language to another—such as moving information from the Japanese Wikipedia to the English version—requires more than just a simple copy-paste. To maintain high editorial standards, contributors must follow specific protocols regarding accuracy, verification, and legal attribution.
![ไม่มีภาพประกอบ]
Key Facts
- Machine translation (such as DeepL or Google Translate) should only be used as a starting point, not a final product.
- Translators must follow LLM (Large Language Model) translation guidelines to ensure quality.
- All translations require copyright attribution via an interlanguage link in the edit summary.
- Unreliable or low-quality source text should not be translated.
- Verification of facts through provided references is highly recommended.
The Translation Process
When working on a translation, the goal is to produce a publication-quality article that reads naturally in English. While machine translation tools are incredibly useful for getting a general sense of the source material, they are prone to errors. A human editor must carefully revise these errors and confirm that the resulting text is accurate and contextually appropriate.
Simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into English Wikipedia is insufficient. Editors are expected to refine the prose to ensure it meets the platform's encyclopedic tone and clarity standards.
Verifying Source Quality
Not all content is suitable for translation. If the source text appears unreliable or is of low quality, it should be avoided. Whenever possible, editors should cross-reference the information with the citations and references provided in the original foreign-language article to ensure the facts are solid before bringing them into the English ecosystem.
Legal and Ethical Requirements
Properly attributing your work is a mandatory step in the translation process. This ensures that the original contributors are recognized and that the lineage of the information is clear. There are two primary ways to handle this:
- Edit Summary Attribution: When you save your changes, you must provide a copyright attribution in the edit summary. A standard format is: "Content in this edit is translated from the existing Japanese Wikipedia article at [[:ja:Article Name]]; see its history for attribution."
- Talk Page Templates: You may also add the
{{Translated|ja|Article Name}}template to the article's talk page to signal the nature of the content.
![ไม่มีภาพประกอบ]
Summary of Translation Workflow
| Step | Action | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Draft | Use Machine Translation (DeepL/Google) | Use only as a starting point |
| Refinement | Manual Revision | Follow LLM translation guidelines |
| Verification | Check References | Confirm accuracy of source facts |
| Finalization | Copyright Attribution | Include interlanguage link in summary |
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use Google Translate for Wikipedia articles?
Yes, but only as a starting point. You must manually revise the text to correct errors and ensure it follows the proper translation guidelines.
What should I do if the source text seems unreliable?
You should not translate text that appears to be of low quality or unreliable. It is best to verify the information using the references provided in the source article first.
How do I properly attribute a translation?
You must include an interlanguage link to the source article in your edit summary and, optionally, add a translation template to the article's talk page.
Why is manual revision necessary for machine translations?
Machine translations can produce errors in nuance, grammar, and factual accuracy. Manual revision ensures the content is high-quality and meets Wikipedia's standards.
What is an LLM translation guideline?
It is a set of rules that editors must follow when using Large Language Models to assist in the translation process to ensure accuracy and quality.