About mE
The Translation Salon is a boutique provider of Dutch to English translations, editing & proofreading of English language texts written by non-native speakers, and Dutch language research assistance services for academics, researchers, and other global thinkers across a diverse array of fields and institutions.
Mission:
Bringing Dutch Ideas to Global Thinkers
The Translation Salon’s core mission is to provide academics, researchers, and other global thinkers with thoughtful, elegantly written, and well-researched Dutch to English translations, editing and proofreading of English language texts written by non-native speakers, and Dutch language research assistance services.
We strive to produce impeccable texts that remain meticulously faithful to the meaning of their source, yet are ultimately indistinguishable from those written by the most articulate and eloquent of native English speakers. In the process, we aim to help our clients make important contributions to their respective disciplines and fields.
Vision:
Linguistic Excellence & Community of Knowledge
The Translation Salon was conceived to be more than just another conventional translation agency. Rather, it strives to also serve as a partner in the production and dissemination of knowledge and information originating in Dutch language sources, as well as a virtual, global salon, or, a gathering or institutional space for discourse and the creation and exchange of knowledge and ideas (see Concept: The Salon).
Its bestaansreden is not only to promote cultural and linguistic excellence in translation, but to also help facilitate the global dissemination of Dutch ideas, language, and scholarship while building a broader community of knowledge!
“TRANSLATION IS ABOUT SO MUCH MORE THAN DICTIONARY DEFINITIONS AND GRAMMAR; IT’S THE POINT WHERE CULTURE, HISTORY AND EXPRESSION COME TOGETHER.”
– TESS WHITTY
JAMES ARMEL SMITH
Dutch to English Translator, Editor/Proofreader and Founder
I am a freelance Dutch to English translator based in Chicago, IL, specializing in academic translations in the social sciences and humanities. My enduring love affair with Dutch society, language, and culture began while studying abroad in Amsterdam for the first time during my senior year of undergraduate studies.
Since then, I have devoted myself to more than 15 years of close cultural, linguistic, and intellectual engagement with the Netherlands, including over 3 years living and studying in Amsterdam. In addition to my advanced Dutch language studies at prestigious institutions such as the University of Amsterdam, Columbia University, and University College London, I have earned dual master’s degrees in Sociology from the University of Amsterdam and Binghamton University – SUNY, thus acquiring formal postgraduate training in both continental and American sociological traditions.
Moreover, my approach is highly transdisciplinary in nature, and I hold formal degrees/certifications in many of the fields and disciplines comprising my areas of specialization, including Anthropology, History/Historical Sociology, History and Philosophy of Science/Science and Technology Studies, International Relations, and Posthumanist Studies. I have also engaged substantively with the fields of Dutch Studies/Netherlandic Studies/Golden Age Studies and Art History. I am a current translator for Watching America, and the founder of the Translation Salon.
