A good translation requires both an accurate understanding of the translated language and a skill at composition in the target language. My skills at both comprehension and composition can be seen from my background of over twenty-eight years in the field of Thai and Lao language translation and my publication record in the English language. I have what I believe to be a rather unique set of qualifications.

Introduction:

I first worked in Thailand as a Peace Corps volunteer in 1984. Following the Peace Corps, I completed my Ph.D. at the School of Oriental and African Studies, with a degree in Southeast Asian Languages and Literatures. I specialized in the Thai and Lao languages, and the topic for my dissertation was ancient Lao literature. I first lived in Laos in 1990, conducting research and photographing palm leaf manuscripts. From the late 1980s through the present, I have worked as a translator, teacher, and researcher.

Thai Language Background:

1. I have worked as the Thai language instructor at Arizona State University for five years, teaching the language at all levels. In addition, I have taught Thai literature to Thai students at an international school in Thailand for three years with Thai as the medium of instruction.
2. I have worked as a visiting Assistant Professor at the University of California, Berkeley for one year, teaching courses on Buddhism, history and politics in Southeast Asia, making extensive use of my own translations of Thai/Lao source material.
3. I have a wide variety of publications, including a) articles I have written in the Thai language, b) translations from Thai into English and English into Thai, and c) translations from Thai into English and English into Thai that I have edited. Examples of relevant publications include:

a. A Thai-language Academic article, ความคิดร่วมสมัยไทย-ลาวในการตีความวรรณกรรมลาว เรื่องลึปสูรย์ (Contemporary Thai and Lao Interpretations of the Traditional Lao Poem, Leup Phasun) in the book, การศึกษาประวัติศาสตร์และวรรณกรรมของกลุ่มชาติพันธุ์ไท (Studies of History and Literature of Tai Ethnic Groups), edited by Sarasawadee Ongsakun and Yoshiyuki Masuhara (pp. 356-381).

b. A biography of an early twentieth century political and religious reformer, Narin Phasit, The Man Who Accused The King Of Killing A Fish: The Biography of Narin Phasit of Siam (1874-1950), of which over thirty percent consists of English translations of Thai text.

c. English translation of the Thai academic article ความสัมพันธ์ระหว่างวรรณคดี ลานนากับวรรณคดีอีสาน (The Relationship Between The Literature Of North And Northeast Thailand) by Thawat Punnothok in Thai Literary Traditions, edited by Manas Chitakasem (pp. 248-264).

d. English translation of the story ดอกบัวใต้น้ำ (Lotus Blossom Submerged in Water) in คนแก่แก้ผ้าวิ่งรอบสนามหลวง, a collection of short stories by Bantit Aniya.

e. The editing of the Lao and Thai translations of A Short History of Laos by Grant Evans as a freelance consultant for Silkworm Press.

In addition, I have worked for over twenty-five years translating Thai into English and vice versa. My experience includes translation work in the fields of health, development, and the prevention of animal trafficking, the translation of business, political, and tourism-related documents, certificates, instruction manuals, etc.


Lao Language Background:

My research specialization is the translation and analysis of Lao literature, ancient and modern. I am literate in a variety of Lao-related scripts. I have received several large grants for projects in Lao-English translation. Recent projects include:

1. Translation of the Lao historical text, ພື້ນຄຳທອງຫລວງ (The History of Kham Thong Luang), roughly one thousand pages in English translation. The project lasted for three years, and was funded by the National Endowment for Humanities. The translation is to be published in two volumes in late 2014/early 2015.

2. Translation of a collection of Lao Buddhist prophetic texts, approximately two hundred pages in English translation. The project lasted for two years, and was funded by the Toyota Foundation.

I have published approximately fifteen chapters in academic books that either include or are based upon my own Lao translations. Examples include a) a chapter on Lao literature and translations of selected sections from ancient and modern works, in The Traveller’s Literary Companion: Southeast Asia, edited by Alastair Dingwall, b) a translation of the Lao short story 'A Bar At The Edge of A Cemetery' in Virtual Lotus: Modern Fiction of Southeast Asia, edited by Teri Shaffer Yamada, c) ‘Past, Present, and Future in the Prophetic Literature of Northeast Thailand and Laos in the 19th and 20th Centuries,’ in Buddhism, Power, and Political Order in South and Southeast Asia, edited by Ian Harris, and d) an article on Lao literature in the Encyclopedia Britannica.
I have translated the Lao language professionally since 1989. Examples of my work include:

a. I have worked freelance as the Lao language International Baccalaureate (IB) examiner for the past five years. I write, grade, and evaluate exams in the Lao language.
b. I have conducted Lao language phone interviews, collecting data on industrial parks in Laos.
c. I have worked as a translator at a conference in which an American company and the Lao government negotiated over a business dispute.
d. I have translated and evaluated Lao language broadcasts, and conducted interviews both inside of Laos and in Lao communities in the United States.

Please contact me if you are interested in my services. I am available for all types of translation work.