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May 17

Google translate

(Please correct me if this is not the right place to ask this.)

Is Google Translate a reliable enough source for translating common names from other languages to English? For example, if I were to write an article about a plant native to a non-English country, and it has a common name in that language (which is provided, without translation, in a reliable source)  – would it be fine to provide a translation, citing Google Translate as a source, or would I have to use something else (or not provide translation at all)? 🌳 Balsam Cottonwood (talk) ✝ 23:36, 17 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

At best, Google Translate would give a search term to try out. Fortunately, there are sources that list common names for many languages. For starters, there is our own Wikidata and Wikispecies, and there is EPPO. Take a look at all the common names for Quercus suber in its EPPO listing. Also, please drop by WP:WikiProject Plants, unlike many Wikiprojects it is quite active. Abductive (reasoning) 23:48, 17 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, I don't mean finding names in different languages  – I already found those at the website you mentioned. I'm just asking if it would be all right to take those names and translate them into English with Google Translate, so I can list names in other languages in the article, with the translations. 🌳 Balsam Cottonwood (talk) ✝ 23:54, 17 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Ah, the general consensus that I have observed is that foreign common names are not considered to be particularly encyclopedic. I rarely add them to articles that I create, here are two examples where I do; Celtis biondii and Acer diabolicum. Note that the names are only for the language spoken where the plant is native, and that they provide some useful context for the English readership. In other words, if the names are considered important enough to be analyzed by independent secondary sources, then they can be in the article. Just like everything else on Wikipedia. Abductive (reasoning) 00:13, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Okay, thanks. 🌳 Balsam Cottonwood (talk) ✝ 00:15, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

If a local vernacular name is considered encyclopedic, it is reasonable to provide it with a translation, if available. But one should not trust Google Translate to give a correct translation of such names. For example, Google Translate as it is today turns the Dutch vernacular name Groot akkerscherm for Ammi majus into "Large field screen". But the meaning of scherm in the compound noun akker + scherm is "umbel". For another example, Google Translate inexplicably turns Persian صنوبر کالیفرنیایی (Populus trichocarpa) into "Californian spruce", instead of "Californian poplar". See also Help:Translation § Machine translation and Help:Translation/Machine translation errors.  ​‑‑Lambiam 11:25, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Example: I once pasted a Spanish phrase into Google Translate to translate it into English. It translated "manzana" as "apple" even though in context it clearly meant "block". -- Avocado (talk) 16:25, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Google Translate is useful as a guideline, but falls short of being reliable. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 16:25, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Kind of like Wikipedia. Or anything else, for that matter. Matt Deres (talk) 17:25, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Okay, thank you, @Abductive, @Lambiam, @Avocado, @Baseball Bugs, and @Matt Deres for your answers. I understand; Google translate is somewhat like a Large Language Model, and is not very reliable. Could I provide a translation if I'm able to find it recorded in a reliable source? The specific article is Anthemis tomentosa, which I wrote yesterday (today in UTC time). Also, I should probably replace the translations in Anthemis brachycarpa, which was published as an article a few weeks ago, because I used Google Translate there. Thanks for all the help! 🌳 Balsam Cottonwood (talk) ✝ 18:09, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

In any case, they should not be in the article unless verified in a more reliable way.

All uses I see of קחוון קצר-פירות have קחוון with a double ו, so I'm not sure that the ktiv menuqad קַחְוָן קְצַר-פֵּרוֹת with a single ו is not a typo. Like brachycarpa, Hebrew קצר-פירות means "short-fruited" (the second component from פרי, "fruit").

BTW, Turkish sahil papatyası literally means "shore chamomile" (or "(river) bank chamomile"; the Turkish term sahil can refer to the edge of land adjacent to any body of water, so the best translation may dependent on where this flower grows).  ​‑‑Lambiam 20:08, 18 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Okay, thank you. 🌳 Balsam Cottonwood (talk) ✝ 02:04, 19 May 2025 (UTC)[reply]