Interpreting -- Guidelines for community interpreting

This International Standard establishes criteria and recommendations for community interpreting
during oral and signed communication that enables access to services for people who have limited
proficiency in the language of such services. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety of private
and public settings and supports equal access to community and/or public services.
This International Standard addresses community interpreting as a profession, not as an informal
practice such as interpreting performed by friends, family members, children, or other persons who
do not have the competences and qualifications specified in this International Standard or who do not
follow a relevant Code of Ethics.
This International Standard is a guidance document. It establishes and provides the basic principles and
practices necessary to ensure quality community interpreting services for all language communities, for
end users, as well as for requesters, and service providers. Furthermore, it provides general guidelines
that are common to all forms of community interpreting. This International Standard is applicable to
settings wherever speakers of non-societal languages need to communicate to access services. The
settings vary and can include, among others, the following:
— public institutions (schools, universities, community centres, etc.);
— human and social services (refugee boards, self-help centres, etc.);
— healthcare institutions (hospitals, nursing homes, etc.);
— business and industry (real estate, insurance, etc.);
— faith-based organizations (rituals, ceremonies, etc.);
— emergency situations (natural disasters, epidemics, etc.).
Interpreting that enables access to services may include services provided in legal settings (police
stations, courts, prisons, etc.) that facilitate equal access to justice. In some countries, legal interpreting,
a broad field that includes court interpreting, is not considered part of community interpreting. This
International Standard does not supersede national standards or legislation which addresses any sector
of interpreting, including court or legal interpreting (See Annex A for further details).
This International Standard also provides guidance for the provision of community interpreting services.
As a result, this International Standard addresses and refers to all parties involved in facilitating
any communicative event that enables access to community services, such as members of linguistic
minorities, community interpreters, community-interpreting service providers, public institutions, and
other stakeholders who provide services to diverse linguistic communities.

Interprétation -- Lignes directrices pour l'interprétation en milieu social

L'ISO 13611:2014 propose des crit�res et des recommandations pour l'interpr�tation en milieu social lors de la communication orale et sign�e permettant � des personnes qui n'ont qu'une ma�trise limit�e de la langue des services d'acc�der � ces services. L'interpr�tation en milieu social se fait dans une grande vari�t� de contextes priv�s et publics, et favorise l'�galit� de l'acc�s aux services locaux et/ou publics.
L'ISO 13611:2014 concerne l'interpr�tation en milieu social en tant que profession et non en tant que pratique informelle comme l'interpr�tation effectu�e par des amis, des membres de la famille, des enfants ou d'autres personnes ne poss�dant pas les comp�tences et les qualifications sp�cifi�es dans l'ISO 13611:2014 ou ne suivant pas le code de d�ontologie appropri�.
L'ISO 13611:2014 est un document guide. Elle �tablit les principes de base et les pratiques n�cessaires pour garantir des services d'interpr�tation en milieu social de qualit� � toutes les communaut�s linguistiques, aux utilisateurs finaux comme aux demandeurs et prestataires de services. Elle fournit, en outre, des lignes directrices g�n�rales qui sont communes � toutes les formes d'interpr�tation en milieu social. L'ISO 13611:2014 est applicable aux contextes dans lesquels des locuteurs de langues minoritaires ont besoin de communiquer pour acc�der � des services. Les contextes varient et peuvent inclure entre autres: les �tablissements publics (�coles, universit�s, centres sociaux, etc.); les services sociaux ou d'aide � la personne (demandes d'asile, centres d'aide juridique, etc.); les �tablissements de sant� (h�pitaux, maisons de retraite m�dicalis�es, etc.); les organismes commerciaux et industriels (immobilier, assurance, etc.); les organisations confessionnelles (rites, c�r�monies, etc.); les situations d'urgence (catastrophes naturelles, �pid�mies, etc.).
L'interpr�tation qui permet d'acc�der � des services peut inclure des services fournis dans un contexte l�gal (commissariats, tribunaux, prisons, etc.) favorisant l'�galit� de l'acc�s � la justice. Dans certains pays, l'interpr�tation juridique, vaste domaine qui inclut l'interpr�tation judiciaire, n'est pas consid�r�e comme faisant partie de l'interpr�tation en milieu social. L'ISO 13611:2014 ne remplace pas les normes nationales ou la l�gislation se rapportant � un secteur quelconque de l'interpr�tation, y compris l'interpr�tation judicaire ou juridique (voir l'Annexe A pour plus d'informations).
L'ISO 13611:2014 fournit �galement des lignes directrices pour la prestation de services d'interpr�tation en milieu social. Par cons�quent, l'ISO 13611:2014 s'adresse � toutes les parties impliqu�es dans la facilitation de tout �v�nement de communication permettant d'acc�der � des services locaux, que sont les membres des minorit�s linguistiques, les interpr�tes en milieu social, les prestataires de services d'interpr�tation en milieu social, les �tablissements publics et autres parties int�ress�es fournissant des services aux diverses communaut�s linguistiques.

Tolmačenje - Smernice za tolmačenje za potrebe skupnosti

Ta mednarodni standard določa merila in priporočila za tolmačenje za potrebe skupnosti
med ustno ali pisno komunikacijo, ki omogoča dostop do storitev osebam z omejenim
poznavanjem jezika teh storitev. Tolmačenje za potrebe skupnosti se pojavlja v različnih zasebnih in javnih prostorih ter podpira enakovreden dostop do skupnostih in/ali javnih storitev.
Ta mednarodni standard obravnava tolmačenje za potrebe skupnosti kot poklic in ne kot neuradno
tolmačenje, ki ga na primer izvajajo prijatelji, družinski člani, otroci ali druge osebe, ki niso usposobljene ali kvalificirane v skladu s tem mednarodnim standardom oziroma ne ravnajo v skladu z zadevnim etičnim kodeksom.
Ta mednarodni standard se uporablja kot vodilo. Določa in podaja osnovna načela in prakse, potrebne za zagotavljanje kakovosti storitev tolmačenja za potrebe vseh jezikovnih skupnosti, končnih uporabnikov ter tudi prosilcev in ponudnikov storitev. Podaja tudi splošne smernice, skupne vsem oblikam tolmačenja za potrebe skupnosti. Ta mednarodni standard se uporablja v okoljih, kadar morajo govorci nedružbenih jezikov komunicirati za dostop do storitev. Okolja se razlikujejo in lahko med drugim vključujejo naslednje:
– javne ustanove (šole, univerze, kulturna središča itd.);
– človekoljubne in socialne storitve (odbori za begunce, centri za samopomoč itd.);
– zdravstvene ustanove (bolnišnice, domovi za starejše itd.);
– poslovni svet in industrija (nepremičnine, zavarovalništvo itd.);
– verske organizacije (rituali, obredi itd.);
– primeri v sili (naravne katastrofe, epidemije itd.).
Tolmačenje, ki omogoča dostop do storitev, lahko vključuje storitve v pravnem okolju (policijske postaje, sodišča, zapori itd.), ki omogočajo enakovreden dostop do pravice. V nekaterih državah se pravno tolmačenje, široko področje, ki vključuje sodno tolmačenje, ne obravnava kot del tolmačenja za potrebe skupnosti. Ta mednarodni standard ne nadomešča nacionalnih standardov ali zakonodaje, ki obravnava eno od področij tolmačenja, vključno s sodnim ali pravnim tolmačenjem (za dodatne podrobnosti glej dodatek A).
Ta mednarodni standard podaja tudi smernice za zagotavljanje storitev tolmačenja za potrebe skupnosti.
Ta mednarodni standard posledično obravnava in se nanaša na vse strani, vključene v komunikacijske dogodke, ki omogočajo dostop do storitev skupnosti, kot so člani jezikovnih
manjšin, tolmači za potrebe skupnosti, ponudniki storitev tolmačenja za potrebe skupnosti, javne ustanove in drugi deležniki, ki ponujajo storitve različnim jezikovnim skupnostim.

General Information

Status
Published
Public Enquiry End Date
30-Dec-2016
Publication Date
07-Aug-2017
Current Stage
6060 - National Implementation/Publication (Adopted Project)
Start Date
26-May-2017
Due Date
31-Jul-2017
Completion Date
08-Aug-2017

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Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
SIST ISO 13611:2017
01-september-2017
Tolmačenje - Smernice za tolmačenje za potrebe skupnosti
Interpreting -- Guidelines for community interpreting
Interprétation -- Lignes directrices pour l'interprétation en milieu social
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: ISO 13611:2014
ICS:
01.020 Terminologija (načela in Terminology (principles and
koordinacija) coordination)
03.080.99 Druge storitve Other services
SIST ISO 13611:2017 en
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

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SIST ISO 13611:2017

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 13611
First edition
2014-12-01
Interpreting — Guidelines for
community interpreting
Interprétation — Lignes directrices pour l’interprétation en milieu social
Reference number
ISO 13611:2014(E)
©
ISO 2014

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2014
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on the internet or an intranet, without prior
written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below or ISO’s member body in the country of
the requester.
ISO copyright office
Case postale 56 • CH-1211 Geneva 20
Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
E-mail copyright@iso.org
Web www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Terms and definitions . 1
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities . 1
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events . 3
2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting . 4
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences . 4
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting . 5
3 Basic principles of community interpreting . 5
3.1 Nature of community interpreting . 5
3.2 The work of community interpreters . 6
3.3 End users of community interpreting services . 6
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs) . 6
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice . 6
4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications . 7
4.1 General . 7
4.2 Competences . 7
4.3 Research skills . 8
4.4 Interpersonal skills . 8
4.5 Evidence of qualifications . 8
5 Recommendations for clients and end users . 9
6 Responsibilities of interpreting service providers (ISPs) .10
6.1 Role of ISPs .10
6.2 ISPs’ responsibilities to the client .10
6.3 ISPs’ responsibilities to community interpreters .10
7 Role and responsibilities of community interpreters .11
7.1 Role of the community interpreter .11
7.2 Responsibilities of the community interpreter to the ISP .12
Annex A (informative) Community interpreting: Issues, classification, and
terminological challenges .13
Annex B (informative) Alphabetical index of vocabulary in Clause 2 .14
Bibliography .15
© ISO 2014 – All rights reserved iii

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of any
patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or on
the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions related to conformity
assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to the WTO principles in the Technical Barriers
to Trade (TBT) see the following URL: Foreword - Supplementary information.
The committee responsible for this document is ISO/TC 37, Terminology and other language and content
resources, Subcommittee SC 5, Translation, interpreting and related technology.
iv © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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Introduction
This International Standard was developed in response to a worldwide need to accommodate linguistic,
cultural, and ethnic diversity of people who interact via oral and signed communication. In every nation
of the world, there are groups of people who do not speak the language of the majority, regardless of
whether they live in their country of citizenship or birth. These linguistic minorities access services
through community interpreters, also called public service interpreters (See Annex A for further
details). Community interpreting is essential for members of linguistic minorities who wish to exercise
their right to communicate and access services. Community interpreting puts the minority language
speaker, who seeks access to a community service, on the same footing as a native speaker of the
societal language. The growing cultural and ethnic diversity adds specific challenges to the requirement
of delivering services to consumers who do not share the societal language(s). In both urban and rural
areas, speakers of the societal language and linguistic minorities communicate effectively, deliver, and
access services through community interpreters.
Given the diversity of our world, encounters in which participants do not share a language are becoming
more and more common. Community interpreting is a means by which service providers can ensure
that the same access to quality of services is offered to all linguistic communities, regardless of their
culture or language.
Community interpreting has become established as a professional type of interpreting. There are
various codes and standards for specific settings (e.g. healthcare interpreting), but there are currently
no universally agreed rules or standards for community interpreters, who are called to work in many
different types of community settings.
It is important to stress that interpreting differs from translation as it deals mainly with oral or signed
communication rather than written communication. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety
of dissimilar settings and should not be confused with other types of interpreting.
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SIST ISO 13611:2017
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 13611:2014(E)
Interpreting — Guidelines for community interpreting
1 Scope
This International Standard establishes criteria and recommendations for community interpreting
during oral and signed communication that enables access to services for people who have limited
proficiency in the language of such services. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety of private
and public settings and supports equal access to community and/or public services.
This International Standard addresses community interpreting as a profession, not as an informal
practice such as interpreting performed by friends, family members, children, or other persons who
do not have the competences and qualifications specified in this International Standard or who do not
follow a relevant Code of Ethics.
This International Standard is a guidance document. It establishes and provides the basic principles and
practices necessary to ensure quality community interpreting services for all language communities, for
end users, as well as for requesters, and service providers. Furthermore, it provides general guidelines
that are common to all forms of community interpreting. This International Standard is applicable to
settings wherever speakers of non-societal languages need to communicate to access services. The
settings vary and can include, among others, the following:
— public institutions (schools, universities, community centres, etc.);
— human and social services (refugee boards, self-help centres, etc.);
— healthcare institutions (hospitals, nursing homes, etc.);
— business and industry (real estate, insurance, etc.);
— faith-based organizations (rituals, ceremonies, etc.);
— emergency situations (natural disasters, epidemics, etc.).
Interpreting that enables access to services may include services provided in legal settings (police
stations, courts, prisons, etc.) that facilitate equal access to justice. In some countries, legal interpreting,
a broad field that includes court interpreting, is not considered part of community interpreting. This
International Standard does not supersede national standards or legislation which addresses any sector
of interpreting, including court or legal interpreting (See Annex A for further details).
This International Standard also provides guidance for the provision of community interpreting services.
As a result, this International Standard addresses and refers to all parties involved in facilitating
any communicative event that enables access to community services, such as members of linguistic
minorities, community interpreters, community-interpreting service providers, public institutions, and
other stakeholders who provide services to diverse linguistic communities.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities
2.1.1
interpreting, verb
rendering a spoken or signed source language (2.4.5) message into a spoken or signed target language
(2.4.6) in real time
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2.1.2
community interpreting
public service interpreting
bidirectional interpreting that takes place in communicative settings (2.2.3) among speakers of different
languages for the purpose of accessing community services
Note 1 to entry: Community interpreting may involve both private and public services provided by private or
public interpreting service providers (2.3.1). Community interpreting is not limited to accessing social services and
includes, for example, services to tourists and disaster victims.
2.1.3
consecutive interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of speech is performed into the other language at appropriate pauses
or intervals during the interaction
Note 1 to entry: Consecutive interpreting mode is best suited to community interpreting and it is considered the
default or most common mode.
Note 2 to entry: The intervals can be arranged beforehand between speakers and the community interpreter (2.3.3).
Note 3 to entry: The ability for note-taking (2.1.7) is recommended for consecutive interpreting mode.
Note 4 to entry: More time is recommended for interpreted communicative events (2.2.2) using consecutive
interpreting mode.
Note 5 to entry: Community interpreters are allowed and sometimes even encouraged to request clarification when
it is apparent that an end user has difficulty understanding a particular concept during the interpreted session.
2.1.4
simultaneous interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of a speech into another language is done at the same time as the
speaker/signer is delivering the speech
2.1.5
chuchotage
simultaneous interpreting mode (2.1.4) where the rendering is whispered
Note 1 to entry: Chuchotage is sometimes used when sound equipment is not available or when the audience is too
small to justify the use of sound equipment.
2.1.6
healthcare interpreting
medical interpreting
community interpreting (2.1.2) that occurs when individuals are accessing services that deal with
medicine and/or healthcare and where community interpreters (2.3.3) facilitate communication between
patients and their families, healthcare providers, and healthcare administrators
Note 1 to entry: The communicative setting (2.2.3) can be a doctor’s office, a house call, a hospital, a health clinic,
or other medical or healthcare institution.
2.1.7
note-taking
interpreting (2.1.1) technique used to aid the community interpreter’s (2.3.3) memory and attention by
noting important terms, links, and data
Note 1 to entry: The important information for noting can include items such as dates and figures.
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2.1.8
sight translation
process of rendering written content in the source language (2.4.5) into the target language (2.4.6) in
oral or signed form in real time
Note 1 to entry: Sight translation occurs frequently in community interpreting (2.1.2) (e.g. sight translating of
medical test results, administrative forms in government institutions, etc.).
2.1.9
remote interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) using specialized equipment to communicate between the parties
2.1.10
telephone interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized telephone systems
2.1.11
video interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized television screens/monitors
2.1.12
relay interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) that occurs when an interpreter’s source input comes from another interpreter’s
rendition rather than directly from the speaker
Note 1 to entry: When there are several target languages in a meeting and the interpreters of those languages
do not all understand the language of the speaker (e.g. Urdu), a source language interpreter renders the text to
a language common to all interpreters in the meeting (e.g. from Urdu to English) who then interpret into their
respective target language (e.g. from English to French, German, Italian, Nahuatl, Spanish, Welsh, etc.).
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events
2.2.1
communicative event
event during which information is transmitted between two or more parties
Note 1 to entry: Intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, and tone used in a communicative event can affect
the transmitted information
2.2.2
interpreted communicative event
communicative event (2.2.1) where interpreting (2.1.1) facilitates communication of at least three participants
EXAMPLE 1 A doctor-patient interview in which the doctor speaks the societal language and the patient is a
speaker of a minority language.
EXAMPLE 2 A parent-teacher meeting where the teacher and the parents do not share the same language.
Note 1 to entry: The language used in an interpreted communicative event can be signed or spoken.
Note 2 to entry: For details on the three parties, see 3.1
2.2.3
communicative setting
physical or virtual area where an interpreted communicative event (2.2.2) takes place
Note 1 to entry: Sometimes community interpreters (2.3.3) work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using
technology such as video or teleconferencing
EXAMPLE A village meeting or school teacher-parent conference.
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ISO 13611:2014(E)

2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting
2.3.1
interpreting service provider
ISP
person or organization supplying interpreting (2.1.1) services
Note 1 to entry: An ISP may be a single independent community interpreter (2.3.3), an agency, a private or
public company, an institution, or a department within an institution such as an interpreting (2.1.1) department
within a hospital.
2.3.2
interpreter
language professional who conveys a message produced in a source language (2.4.5), be it spoken or
signed, into a target language (2.4.6), spoken or signed, in real time, and whose task is to convey every
element of the message
Note 1 to entry: Elements of a message can include content, intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, tone, etc.
Note 2 to entry: A professional interpreter will always observe the relevant code of ethics of the profession as well
as the standards of practice.
2.3.3
community interpreter
interpreter (2.3.2) who facilitates communication, in any communicative setting (2.2.3), be it private or
public, between two or more speakers who do not share a common language, for the sole purpose of
accessing community or public services
Note 1 to entry: A community interpreter should hold a degree in interpreting or in a field related to his/her work,
or should have specific qualifications and exhibit interpreting (2.1.1) skills, demonstrating experience, observing
the relevant code of ethics of the profession and earning income from interpreting (2.1.1).
2.3.4
client
person or organization requesting a language service from a language service provider
Note 1 to entry: The client is usually the person or organization that asks for community interpreting (2.1.2) or
translation (2.5.3) on behalf of the end users (2.3.5). The client and end user (2.3.5) can be the same person or
organization in some situations.
Note 2 to entry: Whether a contract is entered into between the client and an ISP (2.3.1), or the end user (2.3.5)
and an ISP (2.3.1), will depend on the circumstances of each communicative event (2.2.1).
EXAMPLE A community interpreting service.
2.3.5
end user
person or group of persons who ultimately need and use the language service requested
Note 1 to entry: The end user is often not the same as the client (2.3.4).
2.3.6
linguistic minority
group of people who might not read, write, speak, or understand the language(s) of the society where
they reside well enough to obtain meaningful access to community or public services
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences
2.4.1
societal language
language that is spoken or signed by the majority of the people in the society in which they live
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2.4.2
non-societal language
language that is not spoken or signed by society at large, or is not the language of a territory or region
Note 1 to entry: Non-societal language can have less status than the societal language (2.4.1).
2.4.3
A language
working language that the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) has declared as the strongest or most
dominant/active language in his/her language combination
2.4.4
B language
working language in which the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) is highly fluent and which s/he
has declared as the second strongest active language in his/her language combination
2.4.5
source language
language of the source from which content is rendered into the target language (2.4.6)
2.4.6
target language
language into which source language content (2.4.7) is rendered
2.4.7
source language content
anything representing information or knowledge in the source language (2.4.5)
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting
2.5.1
translate, verb
render written source language content into target language content in written form
2.5.2
translator
language professional who translates (2.5.1)
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.4.3, modified]
2.5.3
translation
process of rendering source language content into target language content in written form
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.1.2]
3 Basic principles of community interpreting
3.1 Nature of community interpreting
Community interpreting facilitates communication between users and providers of public, private,
and other community services who do not share the same language (either spoken or signed) for the
purpose of accessing services offered in the community. It occurs mainly in institutional (governmental
and non-governmental) settings such as hospitals, doctors’ and solicitors’ offices, community agencies,
social welfare, faith-based organizations, housing or employment agencies, schools, and police stations.
Community interpreting involves the transfer of signed, verbal, and non-verbal messages in real time.
The language of one user group (the provider) is usually the societal language(s) of the country. The
1) To be published.
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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

language of the end user, (i.e. the person/s seeking access to services is the non-societal language) is
the language of a specific language and/or ethnic group. Community interpreting serves the latter user
group to ensure their ability to communicate in order to access services. In some settings or countries,
it is often the case that users of a non-societal language are vulnerable groups, and in some cases, it is
not. In all cases, community interpreting ensures every person a right to communicate using his/her
own language.
An interpreted communicative event takes place in an encounter of at least three participants:
a) one or more speakers of a non-societal language. For example, a refugee or a patient (whether a local
or a tourist) seeking healthcare, or a parent who needs to communicate with school authorities;
b) one or more speakers of the societal language, generally the service provider. For example, a
government agent, an office employee, a physician, a marriage counsellor, a social worker, or a teacher;
c) a community interpreter who facilitates the communication in either consecutive interpreting
mode or simultaneous interpreting mode.
These three parties should interact for the encounter to be considered an interpreted communicative event.
3.2 The work of community interpreters
Community interpreters engage in interactive types of bidirectional communication. Such individuals
are proficient in two or more languages (spoken or signed) and so are able to facilitate interpreted
communicative events in those languages. In these events, community interpreters usually work in
a consecutive interpreting mode (except for those using sign language) but they can also interpret
in simultaneous interpreting mode, with sound equipment or doing chuchotage (2.1.5) (for smaller
groups). Sometimes they work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using technology such as video or
teleconferencing. They operate in an asymmetrical relationship between professionals and users who
are in a position of need.
3.3 End users of community interpreting services
End users of community interpreting services belong to two distinct groups. One group is formed by
speakers of the societal language who are offering services (e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). In
addition to the knowledge of the societal language, this group has knowledge of the subject matter
(e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). The other group is generally formed by linguistic minorities,
people who are not sufficiently proficient in the societal language, and who need to communicate with
speakers of the societal language in order to access services.
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs)
ISPs can be
— natural persons, i.e. community interpreters themselves providing the service, or
— legal entities, i.e. organizations, interpreting agencies.
Whether ISPs are natural persons or entities, they should only assign professionally qualified community
interpreters. In all cases, ISPs should demand proof of competences required for the job at hand, as well
as references. Proof of qualifications should be verified.
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice
Community interpreters should be trained by the relevant authority using their services (or the examiner
body) to adhere to the Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice relevant to their sector and geographical
area. Community interpreters should make every possible effort to become informed about the code of
ethics and standards applicable, and of the entity to which ethical violations can be reported.
6 © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications
4.1 General
Community interpreters should have the competence to understand and convey a message from the
source to the target language (spoken or signed) in a manner that puts the non-native speaker who
seeks access to a community service on the same footing as a native speaker of the soci
...

INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 13611
First edition
2014-12-01
Interpreting — Guidelines for
community interpreting
Interprétation — Lignes directrices pour l’interprétation en milieu social
Reference number
ISO 13611:2014(E)
©
ISO 2014

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2014
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on the internet or an intranet, without prior
written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below or ISO’s member body in the country of
the requester.
ISO copyright office
Case postale 56 • CH-1211 Geneva 20
Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
E-mail copyright@iso.org
Web www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Terms and definitions . 1
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities . 1
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events . 3
2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting . 4
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences . 4
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting . 5
3 Basic principles of community interpreting . 5
3.1 Nature of community interpreting . 5
3.2 The work of community interpreters . 6
3.3 End users of community interpreting services . 6
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs) . 6
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice . 6
4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications . 7
4.1 General . 7
4.2 Competences . 7
4.3 Research skills . 8
4.4 Interpersonal skills . 8
4.5 Evidence of qualifications . 8
5 Recommendations for clients and end users . 9
6 Responsibilities of interpreting service providers (ISPs) .10
6.1 Role of ISPs .10
6.2 ISPs’ responsibilities to the client .10
6.3 ISPs’ responsibilities to community interpreters .10
7 Role and responsibilities of community interpreters .11
7.1 Role of the community interpreter .11
7.2 Responsibilities of the community interpreter to the ISP .12
Annex A (informative) Community interpreting: Issues, classification, and
terminological challenges .13
Annex B (informative) Alphabetical index of vocabulary in Clause 2 .14
Bibliography .15
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ISO 13611:2014(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of any
patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or on
the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions related to conformity
assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to the WTO principles in the Technical Barriers
to Trade (TBT) see the following URL: Foreword - Supplementary information.
The committee responsible for this document is ISO/TC 37, Terminology and other language and content
resources, Subcommittee SC 5, Translation, interpreting and related technology.
iv © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

Introduction
This International Standard was developed in response to a worldwide need to accommodate linguistic,
cultural, and ethnic diversity of people who interact via oral and signed communication. In every nation
of the world, there are groups of people who do not speak the language of the majority, regardless of
whether they live in their country of citizenship or birth. These linguistic minorities access services
through community interpreters, also called public service interpreters (See Annex A for further
details). Community interpreting is essential for members of linguistic minorities who wish to exercise
their right to communicate and access services. Community interpreting puts the minority language
speaker, who seeks access to a community service, on the same footing as a native speaker of the
societal language. The growing cultural and ethnic diversity adds specific challenges to the requirement
of delivering services to consumers who do not share the societal language(s). In both urban and rural
areas, speakers of the societal language and linguistic minorities communicate effectively, deliver, and
access services through community interpreters.
Given the diversity of our world, encounters in which participants do not share a language are becoming
more and more common. Community interpreting is a means by which service providers can ensure
that the same access to quality of services is offered to all linguistic communities, regardless of their
culture or language.
Community interpreting has become established as a professional type of interpreting. There are
various codes and standards for specific settings (e.g. healthcare interpreting), but there are currently
no universally agreed rules or standards for community interpreters, who are called to work in many
different types of community settings.
It is important to stress that interpreting differs from translation as it deals mainly with oral or signed
communication rather than written communication. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety
of dissimilar settings and should not be confused with other types of interpreting.
© ISO 2014 – All rights reserved v

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INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 13611:2014(E)
Interpreting — Guidelines for community interpreting
1 Scope
This International Standard establishes criteria and recommendations for community interpreting
during oral and signed communication that enables access to services for people who have limited
proficiency in the language of such services. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety of private
and public settings and supports equal access to community and/or public services.
This International Standard addresses community interpreting as a profession, not as an informal
practice such as interpreting performed by friends, family members, children, or other persons who
do not have the competences and qualifications specified in this International Standard or who do not
follow a relevant Code of Ethics.
This International Standard is a guidance document. It establishes and provides the basic principles and
practices necessary to ensure quality community interpreting services for all language communities, for
end users, as well as for requesters, and service providers. Furthermore, it provides general guidelines
that are common to all forms of community interpreting. This International Standard is applicable to
settings wherever speakers of non-societal languages need to communicate to access services. The
settings vary and can include, among others, the following:
— public institutions (schools, universities, community centres, etc.);
— human and social services (refugee boards, self-help centres, etc.);
— healthcare institutions (hospitals, nursing homes, etc.);
— business and industry (real estate, insurance, etc.);
— faith-based organizations (rituals, ceremonies, etc.);
— emergency situations (natural disasters, epidemics, etc.).
Interpreting that enables access to services may include services provided in legal settings (police
stations, courts, prisons, etc.) that facilitate equal access to justice. In some countries, legal interpreting,
a broad field that includes court interpreting, is not considered part of community interpreting. This
International Standard does not supersede national standards or legislation which addresses any sector
of interpreting, including court or legal interpreting (See Annex A for further details).
This International Standard also provides guidance for the provision of community interpreting services.
As a result, this International Standard addresses and refers to all parties involved in facilitating
any communicative event that enables access to community services, such as members of linguistic
minorities, community interpreters, community-interpreting service providers, public institutions, and
other stakeholders who provide services to diverse linguistic communities.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities
2.1.1
interpreting, verb
rendering a spoken or signed source language (2.4.5) message into a spoken or signed target language
(2.4.6) in real time
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ISO 13611:2014(E)

2.1.2
community interpreting
public service interpreting
bidirectional interpreting that takes place in communicative settings (2.2.3) among speakers of different
languages for the purpose of accessing community services
Note 1 to entry: Community interpreting may involve both private and public services provided by private or
public interpreting service providers (2.3.1). Community interpreting is not limited to accessing social services and
includes, for example, services to tourists and disaster victims.
2.1.3
consecutive interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of speech is performed into the other language at appropriate pauses
or intervals during the interaction
Note 1 to entry: Consecutive interpreting mode is best suited to community interpreting and it is considered the
default or most common mode.
Note 2 to entry: The intervals can be arranged beforehand between speakers and the community interpreter (2.3.3).
Note 3 to entry: The ability for note-taking (2.1.7) is recommended for consecutive interpreting mode.
Note 4 to entry: More time is recommended for interpreted communicative events (2.2.2) using consecutive
interpreting mode.
Note 5 to entry: Community interpreters are allowed and sometimes even encouraged to request clarification when
it is apparent that an end user has difficulty understanding a particular concept during the interpreted session.
2.1.4
simultaneous interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of a speech into another language is done at the same time as the
speaker/signer is delivering the speech
2.1.5
chuchotage
simultaneous interpreting mode (2.1.4) where the rendering is whispered
Note 1 to entry: Chuchotage is sometimes used when sound equipment is not available or when the audience is too
small to justify the use of sound equipment.
2.1.6
healthcare interpreting
medical interpreting
community interpreting (2.1.2) that occurs when individuals are accessing services that deal with
medicine and/or healthcare and where community interpreters (2.3.3) facilitate communication between
patients and their families, healthcare providers, and healthcare administrators
Note 1 to entry: The communicative setting (2.2.3) can be a doctor’s office, a house call, a hospital, a health clinic,
or other medical or healthcare institution.
2.1.7
note-taking
interpreting (2.1.1) technique used to aid the community interpreter’s (2.3.3) memory and attention by
noting important terms, links, and data
Note 1 to entry: The important information for noting can include items such as dates and figures.
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ISO 13611:2014(E)

2.1.8
sight translation
process of rendering written content in the source language (2.4.5) into the target language (2.4.6) in
oral or signed form in real time
Note 1 to entry: Sight translation occurs frequently in community interpreting (2.1.2) (e.g. sight translating of
medical test results, administrative forms in government institutions, etc.).
2.1.9
remote interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) using specialized equipment to communicate between the parties
2.1.10
telephone interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized telephone systems
2.1.11
video interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized television screens/monitors
2.1.12
relay interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) that occurs when an interpreter’s source input comes from another interpreter’s
rendition rather than directly from the speaker
Note 1 to entry: When there are several target languages in a meeting and the interpreters of those languages
do not all understand the language of the speaker (e.g. Urdu), a source language interpreter renders the text to
a language common to all interpreters in the meeting (e.g. from Urdu to English) who then interpret into their
respective target language (e.g. from English to French, German, Italian, Nahuatl, Spanish, Welsh, etc.).
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events
2.2.1
communicative event
event during which information is transmitted between two or more parties
Note 1 to entry: Intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, and tone used in a communicative event can affect
the transmitted information
2.2.2
interpreted communicative event
communicative event (2.2.1) where interpreting (2.1.1) facilitates communication of at least three participants
EXAMPLE 1 A doctor-patient interview in which the doctor speaks the societal language and the patient is a
speaker of a minority language.
EXAMPLE 2 A parent-teacher meeting where the teacher and the parents do not share the same language.
Note 1 to entry: The language used in an interpreted communicative event can be signed or spoken.
Note 2 to entry: For details on the three parties, see 3.1
2.2.3
communicative setting
physical or virtual area where an interpreted communicative event (2.2.2) takes place
Note 1 to entry: Sometimes community interpreters (2.3.3) work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using
technology such as video or teleconferencing
EXAMPLE A village meeting or school teacher-parent conference.
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ISO 13611:2014(E)

2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting
2.3.1
interpreting service provider
ISP
person or organization supplying interpreting (2.1.1) services
Note 1 to entry: An ISP may be a single independent community interpreter (2.3.3), an agency, a private or
public company, an institution, or a department within an institution such as an interpreting (2.1.1) department
within a hospital.
2.3.2
interpreter
language professional who conveys a message produced in a source language (2.4.5), be it spoken or
signed, into a target language (2.4.6), spoken or signed, in real time, and whose task is to convey every
element of the message
Note 1 to entry: Elements of a message can include content, intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, tone, etc.
Note 2 to entry: A professional interpreter will always observe the relevant code of ethics of the profession as well
as the standards of practice.
2.3.3
community interpreter
interpreter (2.3.2) who facilitates communication, in any communicative setting (2.2.3), be it private or
public, between two or more speakers who do not share a common language, for the sole purpose of
accessing community or public services
Note 1 to entry: A community interpreter should hold a degree in interpreting or in a field related to his/her work,
or should have specific qualifications and exhibit interpreting (2.1.1) skills, demonstrating experience, observing
the relevant code of ethics of the profession and earning income from interpreting (2.1.1).
2.3.4
client
person or organization requesting a language service from a language service provider
Note 1 to entry: The client is usually the person or organization that asks for community interpreting (2.1.2) or
translation (2.5.3) on behalf of the end users (2.3.5). The client and end user (2.3.5) can be the same person or
organization in some situations.
Note 2 to entry: Whether a contract is entered into between the client and an ISP (2.3.1), or the end user (2.3.5)
and an ISP (2.3.1), will depend on the circumstances of each communicative event (2.2.1).
EXAMPLE A community interpreting service.
2.3.5
end user
person or group of persons who ultimately need and use the language service requested
Note 1 to entry: The end user is often not the same as the client (2.3.4).
2.3.6
linguistic minority
group of people who might not read, write, speak, or understand the language(s) of the society where
they reside well enough to obtain meaningful access to community or public services
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences
2.4.1
societal language
language that is spoken or signed by the majority of the people in the society in which they live
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ISO 13611:2014(E)

2.4.2
non-societal language
language that is not spoken or signed by society at large, or is not the language of a territory or region
Note 1 to entry: Non-societal language can have less status than the societal language (2.4.1).
2.4.3
A language
working language that the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) has declared as the strongest or most
dominant/active language in his/her language combination
2.4.4
B language
working language in which the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) is highly fluent and which s/he
has declared as the second strongest active language in his/her language combination
2.4.5
source language
language of the source from which content is rendered into the target language (2.4.6)
2.4.6
target language
language into which source language content (2.4.7) is rendered
2.4.7
source language content
anything representing information or knowledge in the source language (2.4.5)
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting
2.5.1
translate, verb
render written source language content into target language content in written form
2.5.2
translator
language professional who translates (2.5.1)
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.4.3, modified]
2.5.3
translation
process of rendering source language content into target language content in written form
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.1.2]
3 Basic principles of community interpreting
3.1 Nature of community interpreting
Community interpreting facilitates communication between users and providers of public, private,
and other community services who do not share the same language (either spoken or signed) for the
purpose of accessing services offered in the community. It occurs mainly in institutional (governmental
and non-governmental) settings such as hospitals, doctors’ and solicitors’ offices, community agencies,
social welfare, faith-based organizations, housing or employment agencies, schools, and police stations.
Community interpreting involves the transfer of signed, verbal, and non-verbal messages in real time.
The language of one user group (the provider) is usually the societal language(s) of the country. The
1) To be published.
© ISO 2014 – All rights reserved 5

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

language of the end user, (i.e. the person/s seeking access to services is the non-societal language) is
the language of a specific language and/or ethnic group. Community interpreting serves the latter user
group to ensure their ability to communicate in order to access services. In some settings or countries,
it is often the case that users of a non-societal language are vulnerable groups, and in some cases, it is
not. In all cases, community interpreting ensures every person a right to communicate using his/her
own language.
An interpreted communicative event takes place in an encounter of at least three participants:
a) one or more speakers of a non-societal language. For example, a refugee or a patient (whether a local
or a tourist) seeking healthcare, or a parent who needs to communicate with school authorities;
b) one or more speakers of the societal language, generally the service provider. For example, a
government agent, an office employee, a physician, a marriage counsellor, a social worker, or a teacher;
c) a community interpreter who facilitates the communication in either consecutive interpreting
mode or simultaneous interpreting mode.
These three parties should interact for the encounter to be considered an interpreted communicative event.
3.2 The work of community interpreters
Community interpreters engage in interactive types of bidirectional communication. Such individuals
are proficient in two or more languages (spoken or signed) and so are able to facilitate interpreted
communicative events in those languages. In these events, community interpreters usually work in
a consecutive interpreting mode (except for those using sign language) but they can also interpret
in simultaneous interpreting mode, with sound equipment or doing chuchotage (2.1.5) (for smaller
groups). Sometimes they work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using technology such as video or
teleconferencing. They operate in an asymmetrical relationship between professionals and users who
are in a position of need.
3.3 End users of community interpreting services
End users of community interpreting services belong to two distinct groups. One group is formed by
speakers of the societal language who are offering services (e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). In
addition to the knowledge of the societal language, this group has knowledge of the subject matter
(e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). The other group is generally formed by linguistic minorities,
people who are not sufficiently proficient in the societal language, and who need to communicate with
speakers of the societal language in order to access services.
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs)
ISPs can be
— natural persons, i.e. community interpreters themselves providing the service, or
— legal entities, i.e. organizations, interpreting agencies.
Whether ISPs are natural persons or entities, they should only assign professionally qualified community
interpreters. In all cases, ISPs should demand proof of competences required for the job at hand, as well
as references. Proof of qualifications should be verified.
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice
Community interpreters should be trained by the relevant authority using their services (or the examiner
body) to adhere to the Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice relevant to their sector and geographical
area. Community interpreters should make every possible effort to become informed about the code of
ethics and standards applicable, and of the entity to which ethical violations can be reported.
6 © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications
4.1 General
Community interpreters should have the competence to understand and convey a message from the
source to the target language (spoken or signed) in a manner that puts the non-native speaker who
seeks access to a community service on the same footing as a native speaker of the societal language.
4.2 Competences
4.2.1 Competences related to interpreting
Community interpreters should have the ability to convey a message from the source to the target
language (be it spoken or signed) in the appropriate interpreting mode. Accurate interpreting requires
the ability to assess and comprehend the original message and render it in the target language in a way
that preserves the meaning and supports the same communicative function as the original message.
Community interpreting ability also requires the knowledge, awareness, and understanding of the
community interpreter’s own role in the interpreted communicative event, including the ability to
limit that role as required, to intervene when necessary, and to support direct communication between
people who do not share a common language.
A professional community interpreter should be able to do the following:
— interpret in consecutive interpreting mode and simultaneous interpreting mode, as appropriate;
— sight-translate materials wr
...

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
SIST ISO 13611:2017
01-september-2017
Tolmačenje - Smernice za tolmačenje za potrebe skupnosti
Interpreting -- Guidelines for community interpreting
Interprétation -- Lignes directrices pour l'interprétation en milieu social
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: ISO 13611:2014
ICS:
03.080.99 Druge storitve Other services
SIST ISO 13611:2017 en
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

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SIST ISO 13611:2017

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 13611
First edition
2014-12-01
Interpreting — Guidelines for
community interpreting
Interprétation — Lignes directrices pour l’interprétation en milieu social
Reference number
ISO 13611:2014(E)
©
ISO 2014

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2014
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on the internet or an intranet, without prior
written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below or ISO’s member body in the country of
the requester.
ISO copyright office
Case postale 56 • CH-1211 Geneva 20
Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
E-mail copyright@iso.org
Web www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Terms and definitions . 1
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities . 1
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events . 3
2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting . 4
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences . 4
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting . 5
3 Basic principles of community interpreting . 5
3.1 Nature of community interpreting . 5
3.2 The work of community interpreters . 6
3.3 End users of community interpreting services . 6
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs) . 6
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice . 6
4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications . 7
4.1 General . 7
4.2 Competences . 7
4.3 Research skills . 8
4.4 Interpersonal skills . 8
4.5 Evidence of qualifications . 8
5 Recommendations for clients and end users . 9
6 Responsibilities of interpreting service providers (ISPs) .10
6.1 Role of ISPs .10
6.2 ISPs’ responsibilities to the client .10
6.3 ISPs’ responsibilities to community interpreters .10
7 Role and responsibilities of community interpreters .11
7.1 Role of the community interpreter .11
7.2 Responsibilities of the community interpreter to the ISP .12
Annex A (informative) Community interpreting: Issues, classification, and
terminological challenges .13
Annex B (informative) Alphabetical index of vocabulary in Clause 2 .14
Bibliography .15
© ISO 2014 – All rights reserved iii

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
ISO 13611:2014(E)

Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of any
patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or on
the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions related to conformity
assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to the WTO principles in the Technical Barriers
to Trade (TBT) see the following URL: Foreword - Supplementary information.
The committee responsible for this document is ISO/TC 37, Terminology and other language and content
resources, Subcommittee SC 5, Translation, interpreting and related technology.
iv © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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Introduction
This International Standard was developed in response to a worldwide need to accommodate linguistic,
cultural, and ethnic diversity of people who interact via oral and signed communication. In every nation
of the world, there are groups of people who do not speak the language of the majority, regardless of
whether they live in their country of citizenship or birth. These linguistic minorities access services
through community interpreters, also called public service interpreters (See Annex A for further
details). Community interpreting is essential for members of linguistic minorities who wish to exercise
their right to communicate and access services. Community interpreting puts the minority language
speaker, who seeks access to a community service, on the same footing as a native speaker of the
societal language. The growing cultural and ethnic diversity adds specific challenges to the requirement
of delivering services to consumers who do not share the societal language(s). In both urban and rural
areas, speakers of the societal language and linguistic minorities communicate effectively, deliver, and
access services through community interpreters.
Given the diversity of our world, encounters in which participants do not share a language are becoming
more and more common. Community interpreting is a means by which service providers can ensure
that the same access to quality of services is offered to all linguistic communities, regardless of their
culture or language.
Community interpreting has become established as a professional type of interpreting. There are
various codes and standards for specific settings (e.g. healthcare interpreting), but there are currently
no universally agreed rules or standards for community interpreters, who are called to work in many
different types of community settings.
It is important to stress that interpreting differs from translation as it deals mainly with oral or signed
communication rather than written communication. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety
of dissimilar settings and should not be confused with other types of interpreting.
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SIST ISO 13611:2017
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 13611:2014(E)
Interpreting — Guidelines for community interpreting
1 Scope
This International Standard establishes criteria and recommendations for community interpreting
during oral and signed communication that enables access to services for people who have limited
proficiency in the language of such services. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety of private
and public settings and supports equal access to community and/or public services.
This International Standard addresses community interpreting as a profession, not as an informal
practice such as interpreting performed by friends, family members, children, or other persons who
do not have the competences and qualifications specified in this International Standard or who do not
follow a relevant Code of Ethics.
This International Standard is a guidance document. It establishes and provides the basic principles and
practices necessary to ensure quality community interpreting services for all language communities, for
end users, as well as for requesters, and service providers. Furthermore, it provides general guidelines
that are common to all forms of community interpreting. This International Standard is applicable to
settings wherever speakers of non-societal languages need to communicate to access services. The
settings vary and can include, among others, the following:
— public institutions (schools, universities, community centres, etc.);
— human and social services (refugee boards, self-help centres, etc.);
— healthcare institutions (hospitals, nursing homes, etc.);
— business and industry (real estate, insurance, etc.);
— faith-based organizations (rituals, ceremonies, etc.);
— emergency situations (natural disasters, epidemics, etc.).
Interpreting that enables access to services may include services provided in legal settings (police
stations, courts, prisons, etc.) that facilitate equal access to justice. In some countries, legal interpreting,
a broad field that includes court interpreting, is not considered part of community interpreting. This
International Standard does not supersede national standards or legislation which addresses any sector
of interpreting, including court or legal interpreting (See Annex A for further details).
This International Standard also provides guidance for the provision of community interpreting services.
As a result, this International Standard addresses and refers to all parties involved in facilitating
any communicative event that enables access to community services, such as members of linguistic
minorities, community interpreters, community-interpreting service providers, public institutions, and
other stakeholders who provide services to diverse linguistic communities.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities
2.1.1
interpreting, verb
rendering a spoken or signed source language (2.4.5) message into a spoken or signed target language
(2.4.6) in real time
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2.1.2
community interpreting
public service interpreting
bidirectional interpreting that takes place in communicative settings (2.2.3) among speakers of different
languages for the purpose of accessing community services
Note 1 to entry: Community interpreting may involve both private and public services provided by private or
public interpreting service providers (2.3.1). Community interpreting is not limited to accessing social services and
includes, for example, services to tourists and disaster victims.
2.1.3
consecutive interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of speech is performed into the other language at appropriate pauses
or intervals during the interaction
Note 1 to entry: Consecutive interpreting mode is best suited to community interpreting and it is considered the
default or most common mode.
Note 2 to entry: The intervals can be arranged beforehand between speakers and the community interpreter (2.3.3).
Note 3 to entry: The ability for note-taking (2.1.7) is recommended for consecutive interpreting mode.
Note 4 to entry: More time is recommended for interpreted communicative events (2.2.2) using consecutive
interpreting mode.
Note 5 to entry: Community interpreters are allowed and sometimes even encouraged to request clarification when
it is apparent that an end user has difficulty understanding a particular concept during the interpreted session.
2.1.4
simultaneous interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of a speech into another language is done at the same time as the
speaker/signer is delivering the speech
2.1.5
chuchotage
simultaneous interpreting mode (2.1.4) where the rendering is whispered
Note 1 to entry: Chuchotage is sometimes used when sound equipment is not available or when the audience is too
small to justify the use of sound equipment.
2.1.6
healthcare interpreting
medical interpreting
community interpreting (2.1.2) that occurs when individuals are accessing services that deal with
medicine and/or healthcare and where community interpreters (2.3.3) facilitate communication between
patients and their families, healthcare providers, and healthcare administrators
Note 1 to entry: The communicative setting (2.2.3) can be a doctor’s office, a house call, a hospital, a health clinic,
or other medical or healthcare institution.
2.1.7
note-taking
interpreting (2.1.1) technique used to aid the community interpreter’s (2.3.3) memory and attention by
noting important terms, links, and data
Note 1 to entry: The important information for noting can include items such as dates and figures.
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2.1.8
sight translation
process of rendering written content in the source language (2.4.5) into the target language (2.4.6) in
oral or signed form in real time
Note 1 to entry: Sight translation occurs frequently in community interpreting (2.1.2) (e.g. sight translating of
medical test results, administrative forms in government institutions, etc.).
2.1.9
remote interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) using specialized equipment to communicate between the parties
2.1.10
telephone interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized telephone systems
2.1.11
video interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized television screens/monitors
2.1.12
relay interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) that occurs when an interpreter’s source input comes from another interpreter’s
rendition rather than directly from the speaker
Note 1 to entry: When there are several target languages in a meeting and the interpreters of those languages
do not all understand the language of the speaker (e.g. Urdu), a source language interpreter renders the text to
a language common to all interpreters in the meeting (e.g. from Urdu to English) who then interpret into their
respective target language (e.g. from English to French, German, Italian, Nahuatl, Spanish, Welsh, etc.).
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events
2.2.1
communicative event
event during which information is transmitted between two or more parties
Note 1 to entry: Intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, and tone used in a communicative event can affect
the transmitted information
2.2.2
interpreted communicative event
communicative event (2.2.1) where interpreting (2.1.1) facilitates communication of at least three participants
EXAMPLE 1 A doctor-patient interview in which the doctor speaks the societal language and the patient is a
speaker of a minority language.
EXAMPLE 2 A parent-teacher meeting where the teacher and the parents do not share the same language.
Note 1 to entry: The language used in an interpreted communicative event can be signed or spoken.
Note 2 to entry: For details on the three parties, see 3.1
2.2.3
communicative setting
physical or virtual area where an interpreted communicative event (2.2.2) takes place
Note 1 to entry: Sometimes community interpreters (2.3.3) work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using
technology such as video or teleconferencing
EXAMPLE A village meeting or school teacher-parent conference.
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2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting
2.3.1
interpreting service provider
ISP
person or organization supplying interpreting (2.1.1) services
Note 1 to entry: An ISP may be a single independent community interpreter (2.3.3), an agency, a private or
public company, an institution, or a department within an institution such as an interpreting (2.1.1) department
within a hospital.
2.3.2
interpreter
language professional who conveys a message produced in a source language (2.4.5), be it spoken or
signed, into a target language (2.4.6), spoken or signed, in real time, and whose task is to convey every
element of the message
Note 1 to entry: Elements of a message can include content, intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, tone, etc.
Note 2 to entry: A professional interpreter will always observe the relevant code of ethics of the profession as well
as the standards of practice.
2.3.3
community interpreter
interpreter (2.3.2) who facilitates communication, in any communicative setting (2.2.3), be it private or
public, between two or more speakers who do not share a common language, for the sole purpose of
accessing community or public services
Note 1 to entry: A community interpreter should hold a degree in interpreting or in a field related to his/her work,
or should have specific qualifications and exhibit interpreting (2.1.1) skills, demonstrating experience, observing
the relevant code of ethics of the profession and earning income from interpreting (2.1.1).
2.3.4
client
person or organization requesting a language service from a language service provider
Note 1 to entry: The client is usually the person or organization that asks for community interpreting (2.1.2) or
translation (2.5.3) on behalf of the end users (2.3.5). The client and end user (2.3.5) can be the same person or
organization in some situations.
Note 2 to entry: Whether a contract is entered into between the client and an ISP (2.3.1), or the end user (2.3.5)
and an ISP (2.3.1), will depend on the circumstances of each communicative event (2.2.1).
EXAMPLE A community interpreting service.
2.3.5
end user
person or group of persons who ultimately need and use the language service requested
Note 1 to entry: The end user is often not the same as the client (2.3.4).
2.3.6
linguistic minority
group of people who might not read, write, speak, or understand the language(s) of the society where
they reside well enough to obtain meaningful access to community or public services
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences
2.4.1
societal language
language that is spoken or signed by the majority of the people in the society in which they live
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2.4.2
non-societal language
language that is not spoken or signed by society at large, or is not the language of a territory or region
Note 1 to entry: Non-societal language can have less status than the societal language (2.4.1).
2.4.3
A language
working language that the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) has declared as the strongest or most
dominant/active language in his/her language combination
2.4.4
B language
working language in which the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) is highly fluent and which s/he
has declared as the second strongest active language in his/her language combination
2.4.5
source language
language of the source from which content is rendered into the target language (2.4.6)
2.4.6
target language
language into which source language content (2.4.7) is rendered
2.4.7
source language content
anything representing information or knowledge in the source language (2.4.5)
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting
2.5.1
translate, verb
render written source language content into target language content in written form
2.5.2
translator
language professional who translates (2.5.1)
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.4.3, modified]
2.5.3
translation
process of rendering source language content into target language content in written form
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.1.2]
3 Basic principles of community interpreting
3.1 Nature of community interpreting
Community interpreting facilitates communication between users and providers of public, private,
and other community services who do not share the same language (either spoken or signed) for the
purpose of accessing services offered in the community. It occurs mainly in institutional (governmental
and non-governmental) settings such as hospitals, doctors’ and solicitors’ offices, community agencies,
social welfare, faith-based organizations, housing or employment agencies, schools, and police stations.
Community interpreting involves the transfer of signed, verbal, and non-verbal messages in real time.
The language of one user group (the provider) is usually the societal language(s) of the country. The
1) To be published.
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language of the end user, (i.e. the person/s seeking access to services is the non-societal language) is
the language of a specific language and/or ethnic group. Community interpreting serves the latter user
group to ensure their ability to communicate in order to access services. In some settings or countries,
it is often the case that users of a non-societal language are vulnerable groups, and in some cases, it is
not. In all cases, community interpreting ensures every person a right to communicate using his/her
own language.
An interpreted communicative event takes place in an encounter of at least three participants:
a) one or more speakers of a non-societal language. For example, a refugee or a patient (whether a local
or a tourist) seeking healthcare, or a parent who needs to communicate with school authorities;
b) one or more speakers of the societal language, generally the service provider. For example, a
government agent, an office employee, a physician, a marriage counsellor, a social worker, or a teacher;
c) a community interpreter who facilitates the communication in either consecutive interpreting
mode or simultaneous interpreting mode.
These three parties should interact for the encounter to be considered an interpreted communicative event.
3.2 The work of community interpreters
Community interpreters engage in interactive types of bidirectional communication. Such individuals
are proficient in two or more languages (spoken or signed) and so are able to facilitate interpreted
communicative events in those languages. In these events, community interpreters usually work in
a consecutive interpreting mode (except for those using sign language) but they can also interpret
in simultaneous interpreting mode, with sound equipment or doing chuchotage (2.1.5) (for smaller
groups). Sometimes they work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using technology such as video or
teleconferencing. They operate in an asymmetrical relationship between professionals and users who
are in a position of need.
3.3 End users of community interpreting services
End users of community interpreting services belong to two distinct groups. One group is formed by
speakers of the societal language who are offering services (e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). In
addition to the knowledge of the societal language, this group has knowledge of the subject matter
(e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). The other group is generally formed by linguistic minorities,
people who are not sufficiently proficient in the societal language, and who need to communicate with
speakers of the societal language in order to access services.
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs)
ISPs can be
— natural persons, i.e. community interpreters themselves providing the service, or
— legal entities, i.e. organizations, interpreting agencies.
Whether ISPs are natural persons or entities, they should only assign professionally qualified community
interpreters. In all cases, ISPs should demand proof of competences required for the job at hand, as well
as references. Proof of qualifications should be verified.
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice
Community interpreters should be trained by the relevant authority using their services (or the examiner
body) to adhere to the Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice relevant to their sector and geographical
area. Community interpreters should make every possible effort to become informed about the code of
ethics and standards applicable, and of the entity to which ethical violations can be reported.
6 © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications
4.1 General
Community interpreters should have the competence to understand and convey a message from the
source to the target language (spoken or signed) in a manner that puts the non-native speaker who
seeks access to a community service on the same footing as a native speaker of the societal language.
4.2 Competences
4.2.1 Competences related to interpreting
Community interp
...

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
SIST ISO 13611:2017
01-september-2017
7ROPDþHQMH6PHUQLFH]DWROPDþHQMH]DSRWUHEHVNXSQRVWL
Interpreting -- Guidelines for community interpreting
Interprétation -- Lignes directrices pour l'interprétation en milieu social
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: ISO 13611:2014
ICS:
01.020 7HUPLQRORJLMD QDþHODLQ Terminology (principles and
NRRUGLQDFLMD coordination)
03.080.01 Storitve na splošno Services in general
SIST ISO 13611:2017 en
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

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SIST ISO 13611:2017

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 13611
First edition
2014-12-01
Interpreting — Guidelines for
community interpreting
Interprétation — Lignes directrices pour l’interprétation en milieu social
Reference number
ISO 13611:2014(E)
©
ISO 2014

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

COPYRIGHT PROTECTED DOCUMENT
© ISO 2014
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting on the internet or an intranet, without prior
written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address below or ISO’s member body in the country of
the requester.
ISO copyright office
Case postale 56 • CH-1211 Geneva 20
Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
E-mail copyright@iso.org
Web www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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ISO 13611:2014(E)

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Terms and definitions . 1
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities . 1
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events . 3
2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting . 4
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences . 4
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting . 5
3 Basic principles of community interpreting . 5
3.1 Nature of community interpreting . 5
3.2 The work of community interpreters . 6
3.3 End users of community interpreting services . 6
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs) . 6
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice . 6
4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications . 7
4.1 General . 7
4.2 Competences . 7
4.3 Research skills . 8
4.4 Interpersonal skills . 8
4.5 Evidence of qualifications . 8
5 Recommendations for clients and end users . 9
6 Responsibilities of interpreting service providers (ISPs) .10
6.1 Role of ISPs .10
6.2 ISPs’ responsibilities to the client .10
6.3 ISPs’ responsibilities to community interpreters .10
7 Role and responsibilities of community interpreters .11
7.1 Role of the community interpreter .11
7.2 Responsibilities of the community interpreter to the ISP .12
Annex A (informative) Community interpreting: Issues, classification, and
terminological challenges .13
Annex B (informative) Alphabetical index of vocabulary in Clause 2 .14
Bibliography .15
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Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of any
patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or on
the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the meaning of ISO specific terms and expressions related to conformity
assessment, as well as information about ISO’s adherence to the WTO principles in the Technical Barriers
to Trade (TBT) see the following URL: Foreword - Supplementary information.
The committee responsible for this document is ISO/TC 37, Terminology and other language and content
resources, Subcommittee SC 5, Translation, interpreting and related technology.
iv © ISO 2014 – All rights reserved

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Introduction
This International Standard was developed in response to a worldwide need to accommodate linguistic,
cultural, and ethnic diversity of people who interact via oral and signed communication. In every nation
of the world, there are groups of people who do not speak the language of the majority, regardless of
whether they live in their country of citizenship or birth. These linguistic minorities access services
through community interpreters, also called public service interpreters (See Annex A for further
details). Community interpreting is essential for members of linguistic minorities who wish to exercise
their right to communicate and access services. Community interpreting puts the minority language
speaker, who seeks access to a community service, on the same footing as a native speaker of the
societal language. The growing cultural and ethnic diversity adds specific challenges to the requirement
of delivering services to consumers who do not share the societal language(s). In both urban and rural
areas, speakers of the societal language and linguistic minorities communicate effectively, deliver, and
access services through community interpreters.
Given the diversity of our world, encounters in which participants do not share a language are becoming
more and more common. Community interpreting is a means by which service providers can ensure
that the same access to quality of services is offered to all linguistic communities, regardless of their
culture or language.
Community interpreting has become established as a professional type of interpreting. There are
various codes and standards for specific settings (e.g. healthcare interpreting), but there are currently
no universally agreed rules or standards for community interpreters, who are called to work in many
different types of community settings.
It is important to stress that interpreting differs from translation as it deals mainly with oral or signed
communication rather than written communication. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety
of dissimilar settings and should not be confused with other types of interpreting.
© ISO 2014 – All rights reserved v

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SIST ISO 13611:2017

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SIST ISO 13611:2017
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 13611:2014(E)
Interpreting — Guidelines for community interpreting
1 Scope
This International Standard establishes criteria and recommendations for community interpreting
during oral and signed communication that enables access to services for people who have limited
proficiency in the language of such services. Community interpreting occurs in a wide variety of private
and public settings and supports equal access to community and/or public services.
This International Standard addresses community interpreting as a profession, not as an informal
practice such as interpreting performed by friends, family members, children, or other persons who
do not have the competences and qualifications specified in this International Standard or who do not
follow a relevant Code of Ethics.
This International Standard is a guidance document. It establishes and provides the basic principles and
practices necessary to ensure quality community interpreting services for all language communities, for
end users, as well as for requesters, and service providers. Furthermore, it provides general guidelines
that are common to all forms of community interpreting. This International Standard is applicable to
settings wherever speakers of non-societal languages need to communicate to access services. The
settings vary and can include, among others, the following:
— public institutions (schools, universities, community centres, etc.);
— human and social services (refugee boards, self-help centres, etc.);
— healthcare institutions (hospitals, nursing homes, etc.);
— business and industry (real estate, insurance, etc.);
— faith-based organizations (rituals, ceremonies, etc.);
— emergency situations (natural disasters, epidemics, etc.).
Interpreting that enables access to services may include services provided in legal settings (police
stations, courts, prisons, etc.) that facilitate equal access to justice. In some countries, legal interpreting,
a broad field that includes court interpreting, is not considered part of community interpreting. This
International Standard does not supersede national standards or legislation which addresses any sector
of interpreting, including court or legal interpreting (See Annex A for further details).
This International Standard also provides guidance for the provision of community interpreting services.
As a result, this International Standard addresses and refers to all parties involved in facilitating
any communicative event that enables access to community services, such as members of linguistic
minorities, community interpreters, community-interpreting service providers, public institutions, and
other stakeholders who provide services to diverse linguistic communities.
2 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
2.1 Concepts related to interpreting activities
2.1.1
interpreting, verb
rendering a spoken or signed source language (2.4.5) message into a spoken or signed target language
(2.4.6) in real time
© ISO 2014 – All rights reserved 1

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2.1.2
community interpreting
public service interpreting
bidirectional interpreting that takes place in communicative settings (2.2.3) among speakers of different
languages for the purpose of accessing community services
Note 1 to entry: Community interpreting may involve both private and public services provided by private or
public interpreting service providers (2.3.1). Community interpreting is not limited to accessing social services and
includes, for example, services to tourists and disaster victims.
2.1.3
consecutive interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of speech is performed into the other language at appropriate pauses
or intervals during the interaction
Note 1 to entry: Consecutive interpreting mode is best suited to community interpreting and it is considered the
default or most common mode.
Note 2 to entry: The intervals can be arranged beforehand between speakers and the community interpreter (2.3.3).
Note 3 to entry: The ability for note-taking (2.1.7) is recommended for consecutive interpreting mode.
Note 4 to entry: More time is recommended for interpreted communicative events (2.2.2) using consecutive
interpreting mode.
Note 5 to entry: Community interpreters are allowed and sometimes even encouraged to request clarification when
it is apparent that an end user has difficulty understanding a particular concept during the interpreted session.
2.1.4
simultaneous interpreting mode
interpreting where the rendering of a speech into another language is done at the same time as the
speaker/signer is delivering the speech
2.1.5
chuchotage
simultaneous interpreting mode (2.1.4) where the rendering is whispered
Note 1 to entry: Chuchotage is sometimes used when sound equipment is not available or when the audience is too
small to justify the use of sound equipment.
2.1.6
healthcare interpreting
medical interpreting
community interpreting (2.1.2) that occurs when individuals are accessing services that deal with
medicine and/or healthcare and where community interpreters (2.3.3) facilitate communication between
patients and their families, healthcare providers, and healthcare administrators
Note 1 to entry: The communicative setting (2.2.3) can be a doctor’s office, a house call, a hospital, a health clinic,
or other medical or healthcare institution.
2.1.7
note-taking
interpreting (2.1.1) technique used to aid the community interpreter’s (2.3.3) memory and attention by
noting important terms, links, and data
Note 1 to entry: The important information for noting can include items such as dates and figures.
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2.1.8
sight translation
process of rendering written content in the source language (2.4.5) into the target language (2.4.6) in
oral or signed form in real time
Note 1 to entry: Sight translation occurs frequently in community interpreting (2.1.2) (e.g. sight translating of
medical test results, administrative forms in government institutions, etc.).
2.1.9
remote interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) using specialized equipment to communicate between the parties
2.1.10
telephone interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized telephone systems
2.1.11
video interpreting
remote interpreting (2.1.9) using specialized television screens/monitors
2.1.12
relay interpreting
interpreting (2.1.1) that occurs when an interpreter’s source input comes from another interpreter’s
rendition rather than directly from the speaker
Note 1 to entry: When there are several target languages in a meeting and the interpreters of those languages
do not all understand the language of the speaker (e.g. Urdu), a source language interpreter renders the text to
a language common to all interpreters in the meeting (e.g. from Urdu to English) who then interpret into their
respective target language (e.g. from English to French, German, Italian, Nahuatl, Spanish, Welsh, etc.).
2.2 Concepts related to interpreted communicative events
2.2.1
communicative event
event during which information is transmitted between two or more parties
Note 1 to entry: Intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, and tone used in a communicative event can affect
the transmitted information
2.2.2
interpreted communicative event
communicative event (2.2.1) where interpreting (2.1.1) facilitates communication of at least three participants
EXAMPLE 1 A doctor-patient interview in which the doctor speaks the societal language and the patient is a
speaker of a minority language.
EXAMPLE 2 A parent-teacher meeting where the teacher and the parents do not share the same language.
Note 1 to entry: The language used in an interpreted communicative event can be signed or spoken.
Note 2 to entry: For details on the three parties, see 3.1
2.2.3
communicative setting
physical or virtual area where an interpreted communicative event (2.2.2) takes place
Note 1 to entry: Sometimes community interpreters (2.3.3) work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using
technology such as video or teleconferencing
EXAMPLE A village meeting or school teacher-parent conference.
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2.3 Concepts related to people or organizations involved in interpreting
2.3.1
interpreting service provider
ISP
person or organization supplying interpreting (2.1.1) services
Note 1 to entry: An ISP may be a single independent community interpreter (2.3.3), an agency, a private or
public company, an institution, or a department within an institution such as an interpreting (2.1.1) department
within a hospital.
2.3.2
interpreter
language professional who conveys a message produced in a source language (2.4.5), be it spoken or
signed, into a target language (2.4.6), spoken or signed, in real time, and whose task is to convey every
element of the message
Note 1 to entry: Elements of a message can include content, intention, form, gist, gesture, pauses, silences, tone, etc.
Note 2 to entry: A professional interpreter will always observe the relevant code of ethics of the profession as well
as the standards of practice.
2.3.3
community interpreter
interpreter (2.3.2) who facilitates communication, in any communicative setting (2.2.3), be it private or
public, between two or more speakers who do not share a common language, for the sole purpose of
accessing community or public services
Note 1 to entry: A community interpreter should hold a degree in interpreting or in a field related to his/her work,
or should have specific qualifications and exhibit interpreting (2.1.1) skills, demonstrating experience, observing
the relevant code of ethics of the profession and earning income from interpreting (2.1.1).
2.3.4
client
person or organization requesting a language service from a language service provider
Note 1 to entry: The client is usually the person or organization that asks for community interpreting (2.1.2) or
translation (2.5.3) on behalf of the end users (2.3.5). The client and end user (2.3.5) can be the same person or
organization in some situations.
Note 2 to entry: Whether a contract is entered into between the client and an ISP (2.3.1), or the end user (2.3.5)
and an ISP (2.3.1), will depend on the circumstances of each communicative event (2.2.1).
EXAMPLE A community interpreting service.
2.3.5
end user
person or group of persons who ultimately need and use the language service requested
Note 1 to entry: The end user is often not the same as the client (2.3.4).
2.3.6
linguistic minority
group of people who might not read, write, speak, or understand the language(s) of the society where
they reside well enough to obtain meaningful access to community or public services
2.4 Concepts related to language, language content, and language competences
2.4.1
societal language
language that is spoken or signed by the majority of the people in the society in which they live
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2.4.2
non-societal language
language that is not spoken or signed by society at large, or is not the language of a territory or region
Note 1 to entry: Non-societal language can have less status than the societal language (2.4.1).
2.4.3
A language
working language that the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) has declared as the strongest or most
dominant/active language in his/her language combination
2.4.4
B language
working language in which the interpreter (2.3.3) or translator (2.5.2) is highly fluent and which s/he
has declared as the second strongest active language in his/her language combination
2.4.5
source language
language of the source from which content is rendered into the target language (2.4.6)
2.4.6
target language
language into which source language content (2.4.7) is rendered
2.4.7
source language content
anything representing information or knowledge in the source language (2.4.5)
2.5 Concepts related to translation as differentiated from interpreting
2.5.1
translate, verb
render written source language content into target language content in written form
2.5.2
translator
language professional who translates (2.5.1)
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.4.3, modified]
2.5.3
translation
process of rendering source language content into target language content in written form
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.1.2]
3 Basic principles of community interpreting
3.1 Nature of community interpreting
Community interpreting facilitates communication between users and providers of public, private,
and other community services who do not share the same language (either spoken or signed) for the
purpose of accessing services offered in the community. It occurs mainly in institutional (governmental
and non-governmental) settings such as hospitals, doctors’ and solicitors’ offices, community agencies,
social welfare, faith-based organizations, housing or employment agencies, schools, and police stations.
Community interpreting involves the transfer of signed, verbal, and non-verbal messages in real time.
The language of one user group (the provider) is usually the societal language(s) of the country. The
1) To be published.
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language of the end user, (i.e. the person/s seeking access to services is the non-societal language) is
the language of a specific language and/or ethnic group. Community interpreting serves the latter user
group to ensure their ability to communicate in order to access services. In some settings or countries,
it is often the case that users of a non-societal language are vulnerable groups, and in some cases, it is
not. In all cases, community interpreting ensures every person a right to communicate using his/her
own language.
An interpreted communicative event takes place in an encounter of at least three participants:
a) one or more speakers of a non-societal language. For example, a refugee or a patient (whether a local
or a tourist) seeking healthcare, or a parent who needs to communicate with school authorities;
b) one or more speakers of the societal language, generally the service provider. For example, a
government agent, an office employee, a physician, a marriage counsellor, a social worker, or a teacher;
c) a community interpreter who facilitates the communication in either consecutive interpreting
mode or simultaneous interpreting mode.
These three parties should interact for the encounter to be considered an interpreted communicative event.
3.2 The work of community interpreters
Community interpreters engage in interactive types of bidirectional communication. Such individuals
are proficient in two or more languages (spoken or signed) and so are able to facilitate interpreted
communicative events in those languages. In these events, community interpreters usually work in
a consecutive interpreting mode (except for those using sign language) but they can also interpret
in simultaneous interpreting mode, with sound equipment or doing chuchotage (2.1.5) (for smaller
groups). Sometimes they work face-to-face and sometimes remotely using technology such as video or
teleconferencing. They operate in an asymmetrical relationship between professionals and users who
are in a position of need.
3.3 End users of community interpreting services
End users of community interpreting services belong to two distinct groups. One group is formed by
speakers of the societal language who are offering services (e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). In
addition to the knowledge of the societal language, this group has knowledge of the subject matter
(e.g. education, healthcare, insurance). The other group is generally formed by linguistic minorities,
people who are not sufficiently proficient in the societal language, and who need to communicate with
speakers of the societal language in order to access services.
3.4 Interpreting service providers (ISPs)
ISPs can be
— natural persons, i.e. community interpreters themselves providing the service, or
— legal entities, i.e. organizations, interpreting agencies.
Whether ISPs are natural persons or entities, they should only assign professionally qualified community
interpreters. In all cases, ISPs should demand proof of competences required for the job at hand, as well
as references. Proof of qualifications should be verified.
3.5 Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice
Community interpreters should be trained by the relevant authority using their services (or the examiner
body) to adhere to the Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice relevant to their sector and geographical
area. Community interpreters should make every possible effort to become informed about the code of
ethics and standards applicable, and of the entity to which ethical violations can be reported.
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4 Community interpreter’s competences and qualifications
4.1 General
Community interpreters should have the competence to understand and convey a message from the
source to the target language (spoken or signed) in a manner that puts the non-native speaker who
seeks access to a community service on the same fo
...

NORME ISO
INTERNATIONALE 13611
Première édition
2014-12-01
Interprétation — Lignes directrices
pour l’interprétation en milieu social
Interpreting — Guidelines for community interpreting
Numéro de référence
ISO 13611:2014(F)
©
ISO 2014

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ISO 13611:2014(F)

DOCUMENT PROTÉGÉ PAR COPYRIGHT
© ISO 2014
Droits de reproduction réservés. Sauf indication contraire, aucune partie de cette publication ne peut être reproduite ni utilisée
sous quelque forme que ce soit et par aucun procédé, électronique ou mécanique, y compris la photocopie, l’affichage sur
l’internet ou sur un Intranet, sans autorisation écrite préalable. Les demandes d’autorisation peuvent être adressées à l’ISO à
l’adresse ci-après ou au comité membre de l’ISO dans le pays du demandeur.
ISO copyright office
Case postale 56 • CH-1211 Geneva 20
Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
E-mail copyright@iso.org
Web www.iso.org
Publié en Suisse
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ISO 13611:2014(F)

Sommaire Page
Avant-propos .iv
Introduction .v
1 Domaine d’application . 1
2 Termes et définitions . 1
2.1 Concepts liés aux activités d’interprétation. 2
2.2 Concepts liés aux événements de communication interprétés . 3
2.3 Concepts liés aux personnes ou organismes impliqués dans l’interprétation . 4
2.4 Concepts liés à la langue, au contenu de la langue et aux compétences linguistiques . 5
2.5 Concepts liés à la traduction par opposition à l’interprétation . 5
3 Principes de l’interprétation en milieu social . 6
3.1 Nature de l’interprétation en milieu social . . 6
3.2 Travail des interprètes en milieu social . 6
3.3 Utilisateurs finaux des services d’interprétation en milieu social . 6
3.4 Prestataires de services d’interprétation (PSI). 7
3.5 Code de déontologie et bonnes pratiques . 7
4 Compétences et qualifications des interprètes en milieu social . 7
4.1 Généralités . 7
4.2 Compétences . 7
4.3 Aptitude à la recherche documentaire . 8
4.4 Compétences interpersonnelles . 9
4.5 Preuves de qualifications . 9
5 Recommandations aux clients et aux utilisateurs finaux . 9
6 Responsabilités des prestataires de services d’interprétation (PSI) .11
6.1 Rôle des PSI .11
6.2 Responsabilités des PSI envers le client.11
6.3 Responsabilités des PSI envers les interprètes en milieu social .11
7 Rôle et responsabilités des interprètes en milieu social .12
7.1 Rôle de l’interprète en milieu social .12
7.2 Responsabilités de l’interprète en milieu social envers le PSI .13
Annexe A (informative) Interprétation en milieu social: problèmes, classification et
obstacles terminologiques .14
Annexe B (informative) Index alphabétique du vocabulaire de l’Article 2 .16
Bibliographie .17
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ISO 13611:2014(F)

Avant-propos
L’ISO (Organisation internationale de normalisation) est une fédération mondiale d’organismes
nationaux de normalisation (comités membres de l’ISO). L’élaboration des Normes internationales est
en général confiée aux comités techniques de l’ISO. Chaque comité membre intéressé par une étude
a le droit de faire partie du comité technique créé à cet effet. Les organisations internationales,
gouvernementales et non gouvernementales, en liaison avec l’ISO participent également aux travaux.
L’ISO collabore étroitement avec la Commission électrotechnique internationale (IEC) en ce qui concerne
la normalisation électrotechnique.
Les procédures utilisées pour élaborer le présent document et celles destinées à sa mise à jour sont
décrites dans les Directives ISO/IEC, Partie 1. Il convient, en particulier de prendre note des différents
critères d’approbation requis pour les différents types de documents ISO. Le présent document a été
rédigé conformément aux règles de rédaction données dans les Directives ISO/IEC, Partie 2 (voir www.
iso.org/directives).
L’attention est appelée sur le fait que certains des éléments du présent document peuvent faire l’objet de
droits de propriété intellectuelle ou de droits analogues. L’ISO ne saurait être tenue pour responsable
de ne pas avoir identifié de tels droits de propriété et averti de leur existence. Les détails concernant les
références aux droits de propriété intellectuelle ou autres droits analogues identifiés lors de l’élaboration
du document sont indiqués dans l’Introduction et/ou dans la liste des déclarations de brevets reçues par
l’ISO (voir www.iso.org/brevets).
Les appellations commerciales éventuellement mentionnées dans le présent document sont données
pour information, par souci de commodité, à l’intention des utilisateurs et ne sauraient constituer un
engagement.
Pour une explication de la signification des termes et expressions spécifiques de l’ISO liés à l’évaluation de
la conformité, ou pour toute information au sujet de l’adhésion de l’ISO aux principes de l’OMC concernant
les obstacles techniques au commerce (OTC), voir le lien suivant: Avant-propos — Informations
supplémentaires.
Le comité chargé de l’élaboration du présent document est l’ISO/TC 37, Terminologie et autres ressources
langagières et ressources de contenu, sous-comité SC 5, Traduction, interprétation et technologies
apparentées.
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Introduction
La présente Norme internationale a été élaborée afin de répondre à un besoin universel d’intégration
de la diversité linguistique, culturelle et ethnique des personnes qui interagissent par communication
orale ou signée. Dans tous les pays du monde, il existe des groupes de personnes qui ne parlent pas la
langue majoritaire du pays, qu’elles vivent ou non dans leur pays de citoyenneté ou de naissance. Ces
minorités linguistiques accèdent à des services par le biais des interprètes en milieu social, également
appelés interprètes de service public (voir l’Annexe A pour plus d’informations). L’interprétation en
milieu social est cruciale pour les membres des minorités linguistiques qui souhaitent faire valoir leur
droit de communiquer et d’accéder à des services. L’interprétation en milieu social place le locuteur d’une
langue minoritaire qui souhaite accéder à un service local sur un pied d’égalité avec un locuteur de la
langue majoritaire. La diversité culturelle et ethnique s’accroît et cela ajoute des obstacles spécifiques à
l’obligation de fournir des services à des consommateurs qui ne parlent pas la ou les langues majoritaires.
Que ce soit dans les zones urbaines ou rurales, c’est par le biais d’interprètes en milieu social que les
locuteurs de la langue majoritaire et les minorités linguistiques communiquent efficacement, offrent
des services ou accèdent à des services.
Étant donné la diversité du monde dans lequel nous vivons, les rencontres entre des personnes qui n’ont
aucune langue en commun sont de plus en plus courantes. Grâce à l’interprétation en milieu social, les
prestataires de services peuvent faire en sorte que l’accès à des services de qualité soit offert de la même
manière à toutes les communautés linguistiques, quelle que soit leur culture ou leur langue.
L’interprétation en milieu social est reconnue comme un des types d’interprétation professionnelle. Il
existe différents codes et normes applicables à des contextes spécifiques (par exemple interprétation
dans le domaine de la santé), mais il n’existe actuellement aucune règle ou norme universellement admise
pour les interprètes en milieu social qui sont amenés à travailler dans de nombreux contextes différents.
Il est important de noter que l’interprétation diffère de la traduction du fait qu’elle a lieu principalement
par communication orale ou signée plutôt que par communication écrite. L’interprétation en milieu
social intervient dans de nombreux contextes différents et il convient de ne pas la confondre avec
d’autres types d’interprétation.
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NORME INTERNATIONALE ISO 13611:2014(F)
Interprétation — Lignes directrices pour l’interprétation
en milieu social
1 Domaine d’application
La présente Norme internationale propose des critères et des recommandations pour l’interprétation
en milieu social lors de la communication orale et signée permettant à des personnes qui n’ont qu’une
maîtrise limitée de la langue des services d’accéder à ces services. L’interprétation en milieu social se
fait dans une grande variété de contextes privés et publics, et favorise l’égalité de l’accès aux services
locaux et/ou publics.
La présente Norme internationale concerne l’interprétation en milieu social en tant que profession et
non en tant que pratique informelle comme l’interprétation effectuée par des amis, des membres de
la famille, des enfants ou d’autres personnes ne possédant pas les compétences et les qualifications
spécifiées dans la présente Norme internationale ou ne suivant pas le code de déontologie approprié.
La présente Norme internationale est un document guide. Elle établit les principes de base et les
pratiques nécessaires pour garantir des services d’interprétation en milieu social de qualité à toutes
les communautés linguistiques, aux utilisateurs finaux comme aux demandeurs et prestataires de
services. Elle fournit, en outre, des lignes directrices générales qui sont communes à toutes les formes
d’interprétation en milieu social. La présente Norme internationale est applicable aux contextes dans
lesquels des locuteurs de langues minoritaires ont besoin de communiquer pour accéder à des services.
Les contextes varient et peuvent inclure entre autres:
— les établissements publics (écoles, universités, centres sociaux, etc.);
— les services sociaux ou d’aide à la personne (demandes d’asile, centres d’aide juridique, etc.);
— les établissements de santé (hôpitaux, maisons de retraite médicalisées, etc.);
— les organismes commerciaux et industriels (immobilier, assurance, etc.);
— les organisations confessionnelles (rites, cérémonies, etc.);
— les situations d’urgence (catastrophes naturelles, épidémies, etc.).
L’interprétation qui permet d’accéder à des services peut inclure des services fournis dans un contexte
légal (commissariats, tribunaux, prisons, etc.) favorisant l’égalité de l’accès à la justice. Dans certains
pays, l’interprétation juridique, vaste domaine qui inclut l’interprétation judiciaire, n’est pas considérée
comme faisant partie de l’interprétation en milieu social. La présente Norme internationale ne remplace
pas les normes nationales ou la législation se rapportant à un secteur quelconque de l’interprétation, y
compris l’interprétation judicaire ou juridique (voir l’Annexe A pour plus d’informations).
La présente Norme internationale fournit également des lignes directrices pour la prestation de services
d’interprétation en milieu social. Par conséquent, la présente Norme internationale s’adresse à toutes
les parties impliquées dans la facilitation de tout événement de communication permettant d’accéder à
des services locaux, que sont les membres des minorités linguistiques, les interprètes en milieu social,
les prestataires de services d’interprétation en milieu social, les établissements publics et autres parties
intéressées fournissant des services aux diverses communautés linguistiques.
2 Termes et définitions
Pour les besoins du présent document, les termes et définitions suivants s’appliquent.
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2.1 Concepts liés aux activités d’interprétation
2.1.1
interpréter
restituer en temps réel un message d’une langue source (2.4.5) parlée ou signée dans une langue cible
(2.4.6) parlée ou signée
2.1.2
interprétation en milieu social
interprétation de service public
interprétation bidirectionnelle ayant lieu dans un contexte de communication (2.2.3) entre des
interlocuteurs parlant des langues différentes, pour leur permettre d’accéder à des services
Note 1 à l’article: L’interprétation en milieu social peut impliquer à la fois des services privés et publics fournis par
des prestataires de services d’interprétation (2.3.1). L’interprétation en milieu social ne se limite pas à l’accès à des
services sociaux et inclut, par exemple, des services pour les touristes et les victimes de catastrophes.
2.1.3
interprétation consécutive
interprétation lors de laquelle la restitution d’un discours dans une autre langue est réalisée en
respectant des temps de pause ou des intervalles appropriés pendant l’interaction
Note 1 à l’article: L’interprétation consécutive est le mode le plus adapté à l’interprétation en milieu social et il est
considéré comme le plus courant par défaut.
Note 2 à l’article: Les intervalles peuvent être convenus au préalable entre les interlocuteurs et l’interprète en
milieu social (2.3.3).
Note 3 à l’article: L’aptitude à la prise de notes (2.1.7) est recommandée pour l’interprétation consécutive.
Note 4 à l’article: Il est recommandé de prévoir plus de temps pour les événements de communication interprétés
(2.2.2) par interprétation consécutive.
Note 5 à l’article: Les interprètes en milieu social sont autorisés, et sont même parfois encouragés, à demander
des éclaircissements lorsqu’il est évident que l’utilisateur final a du mal à comprendre un concept particulier au
cours de la session d’interprétation.
2.1.4
interprétation simultanée
interprétation lors de laquelle la restitution d’un discours dans une autre langue est réalisée en même
temps que l’interlocuteur/le signeur délivre son discours
2.1.5
chuchotage
interprétation simultanée (2.1.4) lors de laquelle la traduction est chuchotée à l’oreille du destinataire
Note 1 à l’article: Le chuchotage est parfois utilisé en l’absence d’équipement audiovisuel ou lorsque l’auditoire est
trop petit pour justifier son emploi.
2.1.6
interprétation dans le domaine de la santé
interprétation médicale
interprétation en milieu social (2.1.2) qui a lieu lorsque des individus accèdent à des services en rapport
avec la médecine ou la santé et lorsque des interprètes en milieu social (2.3.3) facilitent la communication
entre les patients et leurs familles, les prestataires de soins de santé et les administrateurs de services
de santé
Note 1 à l’article: Le contexte de communication (2.2.3) peut être le cabinet d’un médecin, une visite à domicile, un
hôpital, une clinique ou tout autre établissement médical ou de santé.
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ISO 13611:2014(F)

2.1.7
prise de notes
technique d’interprétation (2.1.1) qui aide l’interprète en milieu social (2.3.3) à mémoriser les informations
et à rester concentré en notant des termes, des liens et des informations importants
Note 1 à l’article: Les informations importantes pour la prise de notes peuvent inclure des éléments comme des
dates et des chiffres.
2.1.8
traduction à vue
processus de restitution en temps réel d’un contenu écrit de la langue source (2.4.5) dans la langue cible
(2.4.6) sous forme orale ou signée
Note 1 à l’article: La traduction à vue intervient fréquemment dans l’interprétation en milieu social (2.1.2) (par
exemple, traduction à vue de résultats d’examens médicaux, de formulaires administratifs dans des institutions
gouvernementales, etc.).
2.1.9
interprétation à distance
interprétation (2.1.1) nécessitant un équipement spécialisé pour communiquer entre les parties
2.1.10
interprétation par téléphone
interprétation à distance (2.1.9) nécessitant des réseaux de téléphonie spécialisés
2.1.11
visio-interprétation
interprétation à distance (2.1.9) nécessitant des écrans de télévision/moniteurs spécialisés
2.1.12
interprétation relais
interprétation (2.1.1) lors de laquelle les informations transmises à l’interprète proviennent d’un autre
interprète plutôt que directement du locuteur
Note 1 à l’article: Lorsqu’il y a plusieurs langues cible lors d’une réunion et qu’elles ne sont pas toutes comprises
par les interprètes (par exemple, l’ourdou), un interprète de la langue source restitue le texte dans une langue
commune à l’ensemble des interprètes assistant à la réunion (par exemple de l’ourdou vers l’anglais), qui
interprètent alors vers leur langue cible respective (par exemple d’anglais en français, allemand, italien, nahuatl,
espagnol, gallois, etc.).
2.2 Concepts liés aux événements de communication interprétés
2.2.1
événement de communication
événement au cours duquel des informations sont transmises entre au moins deux parties
Note 1 à l’article: L’intention, la forme, le fond, les gestes, les pauses, les silences et le ton employés au cours d’un
événement de communication peuvent influer sur les informations transmises.
2.2.2
événement de communication interprété
événement de communication (2.2.1) au cours duquel l’interprétation (2.1.1) permet la communication
entre au moins trois participants
EXEMPLE 1 Un entretien médecin-patient au cours duquel le médecin parle la langue majoritaire et le patient
la langue d’une minorité.
EXEMPLE 2 Une réunion parents-professeurs au cours de laquelle le professeur et les parents ne parlent pas la
même langue.
Note 1 à l’article: La langue utilisée au cours d’un événement de communication interprété peut être signée ou
parlée.
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ISO 13611:2014(F)

Note 2 à l’article: Pour plus d’informations sur ces trois parties, voir 3.1.
2.2.3
contexte de communication
lieu physique ou virtuel où se déroule un événement de communication interprété (2.2.2)
Note 1 à l’article: Les interprètes en milieu social (2.3.3) travaillent parfois en face à face et parfois à distance en
utilisant par exemple la vidéo ou la téléconférence.
EXEMPLE Une réunion locale ou une rencontre parents-professeurs.
2.3 Concepts liés aux personnes ou organismes impliqués dans l’interprétation
2.3.1
prestataire de services d’interprétation
PSI
personne ou organisme proposant des services d’interprétation (2.1.1)
Note 1 à l’article: Un PSI peut être un interprète en milieu social (2.3.3) indépendant, une agence, une société
privée ou publique, un établissement ou un département au sein d’un établissement, par exemple un service
d’interprétation (2.1.1) au sein d’un hôpital.
2.3.2
interprète
professionnel de la langue qui transfère un message d’une langue source (2.4.5), qu’elle soit parlée ou
signée, dans une langue cible (2.4.6) parlée ou signée, en temps réel, et dont la tâche est de transmettre
tous les éléments du message
Note 1 à l’article: Les éléments d’un message peuvent inclure le contenu, l’intention, la forme, le fond, les gestes,
les pauses, les silences, le ton, etc.
Note 2 à l’article: Un interprète professionnel respecte toujours le code de déontologie applicable à sa profession
ainsi que les bonnes pratiques.
2.3.3
interprète en milieu social
interprète (2.3.2) qui facilite la communication dans un contexte de communication (2.2.3), privé ou
public, entre au moins deux interlocuteurs qui n’ont aucune langue en commun, afin de permettre l’accès
à des services locaux ou publics
Note 1 à l’article: Il convient qu’un interprète en milieu social soit titulaire d’un diplôme en interprétation ou dans
un domaine en rapport avec son travail, ou qu’il ait des qualifications spécifiques et possède des compétences
et de l’expérience en matière d’interprétation (2.1.1), et qu’il respecte le code de déontologie de la profession et
perçoive un revenu pour la prestation d’interprétation (2.1.1).
2.3.4
client
personne ou organisme demandant un service linguistique auprès d’un prestataire de services
linguistiques
Note 1 à l’article: Le client est généralement la personne ou l’organisme qui demande l’interprétation en milieu
social (2.1.2) ou la traduction (2.5.3) pour le compte des utilisateurs finaux (2.3.5). Le client et l’utilisateur final
(2.3.5) peuvent être la même personne ou le même organisme dans certaines situations.
Note 2 à l’article: La signature d’un contrat entre le client et un PSI (2.3.1) ou entre l’utilisateur final (2.3.5) et un
PSI (2.3.1) dépendra des circonstances dans lesquelles se déroule l’événement de communication (2.2.1).
EXEMPLE Un service d’interprétation en milieu social.
4 © ISO 2014 – Tous droits réservés

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ISO 13611:2014(F)

2.3.5
utilisateur final
personne ou groupe de personnes qui au final a besoin du service linguistique demandé et en bénéficie
Note 1 à l’article: Il arrive souvent que l’utilisateur final ne soit pas le client (2.3.4).
2.3.6
minorité linguistique
groupe de personnes qui ne lisent, n’écrivent, ne parlent ou ne comprennent pas suffisamment la ou les
langues de la société dans laquelle elles vivent pour obtenir un accès satisfaisant aux services locaux ou
publics
2.4 Concepts liés à la langue, au contenu de la langue et aux compétences linguistiques
2.4.1
langue majoritaire
langue qui est parlée ou signée par la majorité des personnes de la société dans laquelle elles vivent
2.4.2
langue minoritaire
langue parlée ou signée par une minorité d’individus
Note 1 à l’article: La langue minoritaire peut avoir un statut moindre que la langue majoritaire (2.4.1).
2.4.3
langue A
langue de travail qu’un interprète (2.3.3) ou un traducteur (2.5.2) a déclarée comme étant sa première
langue active dans sa combinaison linguistique
2.4.4
langue B
langue de travail qu’un interprète (2.3.3) ou un traducteur (2.5.2) parle couramment et a déclarée comme
étant sa deuxième langue active dans sa combinaison linguistique
2.4.5
langue source
langue à partir de laquelle le contenu est restitué dans la langue cible (2.4.6)
2.4.6
langue cible
langue dans laquelle le contenu en langue source (2.4.7) est restitué
2.4.7
contenu en langue source
tout ce qui relève de l’information explicite ou implicite de la langue source (2.4.5)
2.5 Concepts liés à la traduction par opposition à l’interprétation
2.5.1
traduire
restituer un contenu écrit de la langue source dans la langue cible sous forme écrite
2.5.2
traducteur
professionnel de la langue qui traduit (2.5.1)
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.4.3, modifiée]
1) À paraître
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ISO 13611:2014(F)

2.5.3
traduction
processus de transposition d’un contenu dans la langue source en un contenu dans la langue cible sous
forme écrite
1)
[SOURCE: ISO 17100:— , 2.1.2]
3 Principes de l’interprétation en milieu social
3.1 Nature de l’interprétation en milieu social
L’interprétation en milieu social facilite la communication entre des utilisateurs et des prestataires de
services publics, privés et autres services locaux qui ne parlent pas la même langue (écrite ou signée) en
vue d’accéder à des services offerts par la communauté locale. Elle intervient principalement dans des
contextes institutionnels (gouvernementaux et non gouvernementaux), tels que les hôpitaux, les cabinets
de médecins et d’avocats, des structures locales, l’aide sociale, les organisations confessionnelles, l’aide
au logement ou l’aide à l’emploi, les écoles et les commissariats.
L’interprétation en milieu social implique le transfert en temps réel de messages signés, verbaux ou
non verbaux. La langue d’un groupe d’utilisateurs (le fournisseur) est en général la ou les langues
majoritaires du pays. La langue de l’utilisateur final (c’est-à-dire la ou les personnes qui souhaitent
accéder à des services dans la langue minoritaire) est la langue d’un groupe spécifique ou d’un groupe
ethnique. L’interprétation en milieu social aide ce dernier groupe d’utilisateurs en lui permettant de
communiquer pour accéder à des services. Dans certains contextes ou pays, il arrive souvent que les
utilisateurs d’une langue minoritaire soient un groupe vulnérable, mais cela peut ne pas être le cas. Dans
tous les cas, l’interprétation en milieu social permet à chaque personne le droit de communiquer dans
sa propre langue.
Un événement de communication interprété est la rencontre d’au moins trois participants:
a) un ou plusieurs locuteurs d’une langue minoritaire. Par exemple un réfugié ou un patient (qu’il
s’agisse d’un touriste ou d’un résident) ayant besoin de soins, ou un parent qui doit communiquer
avec l’administration scolaire;
b) un ou plusieurs locuteurs de la langue majoritaire, généralement le prestataire de services. Par
exemple un fonctionnaire, un employé de bureau, un médecin, un conseiller matrimonial, un
travailleur social ou un professeur;
c) un interprète en milieu social qui facilite la communication en mode consécutif ou simultané.
Pour que leur rencontre soit considérée comme un événement de communication interprété, il convient
que ces trois parties interagissent.
3.2 Travail des interprètes en milieu social
Les interprètes en milieu social s’engagent dans des types de communication bidirectionnelle interactive.
Ces personnes maîtrisent au moins deux langues (parlées ou signées) et sont donc en mesure de faciliter
les événements de communication interprétés entre ces langues. Au cours de ces événements, les
interprètes en milieu social travaillent généralement en mode consécutif (sauf ceux qui utilisent le langue
des signes), mais ils peuvent également interpréter en mode simultané, avec un équipement audiovisuel
ou par chuchotage (2.1.5) (pour les plus petits groupes). Ils travaillent parfois en face à face et parfois à
distance en utilisant par exemple la vidéo ou la téléconférence. Il s’agit d’une relation asymétrique entre
les professionnels et les utilisateurs qui sont en position de demandeur.
3.3 Utilisateurs finaux des services d’interprétation en milieu social
Les utilisateurs finaux des services d’interprétation en milieu social se répartissent en deux groupes
distincts. L’un des deux groupes est constitué de
...

PROJET DE NORME INTERNATIONALE ISO/DIS 13611
ISO/TC 37/SC 5 Secrétariat: ASI
Début de vote Vote clos le

2012-10-31 2013-03-31
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR STANDARDIZATION  •  МЕЖДУНАРОДНАЯ ОРГАНИЗАЦИЯ ПО СТАНДАРТИЗАЦИИ  •  ORGANISATION INTERNATIONALE DE NORMALISATION


Interprétation — Lignes directrices pour l'interprétation
communautaire
Interpreting — Guidelines for community interpreting

ICS 01.020







Pour accélérer la distribution, le présent document est distribué tel qu'il est parvenu du
secrétariat du comité. Le travail de rédaction et de composition de texte sera effectué au
Secrétariat central de l'ISO au stade de publication.
To expedite distribution, this document is circulated as received from the committee
secretariat. ISO Central Secretariat work of editing and text composition will be undertaken at
publication stage.


CE DOCUMENT EST UN PROJET DIFFUSÉ POUR OBSERVATIONS ET APPROBATION. IL EST DONC SUSCEPTIBLE DE MODIFICATION ET NE PEUT
ÊTRE CITÉ COMME NORME INTERNATIONALE AVANT SA PUBLICATION EN TANT QUE TELLE.
OUTRE LE FAIT D'ÊTRE EXAMINÉS POUR ÉTABLIR S'ILS SONT ACCEPTABLES À DES FINS INDUSTRIELLES, TECHNOLOGIQUES ET
COMMERCIALES, AINSI QUE DU POINT DE VUE DES UTILISATEURS, LES PROJETS DE NORMES INTERNATIONALES DOIVENT PARFOIS ÊTRE
CONSIDÉRÉS DU POINT DE VUE DE LEUR POSSIBILITÉ DE DEVENIR DES NORMES POUVANT SERVIR DE RÉFÉRENCE DANS LA
RÉGLEMENTATION NATIONALE.
LES DESTINATAIRES DU PRÉSENT PROJET SONT INVITÉS À PRÉSENTER, AVEC LEURS OBSERVATIONS, NOTIFICATION DES DROITS DE PRO-
PRIÉTÉ DONT ILS AURAIENT ÉVENTUELLEMENT CONNAISSANCE ET À FOURNIR UNE DOCUMENTATION EXPLICATIVE.
©  Organisation Internationale de Normalisation, 2012

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ISO/DIS 13611


Notice de droit d'auteur
Ce document de l'ISO est un projet de Norme internationale qui est protégé par les droits d'auteur de l'ISO.
Sauf autorisé par les lois en matière de droits d'auteur du pays utilisateur, aucune partie de ce projet ISO ne
peut être reproduite, enregistrée dans un système d'extraction ou transmise sous quelque forme que ce soit
et par aucun procédé électronique ou mécanique, y compris la photocopie, les enregistrements ou autres,
sans autorisation écrite préalable.
Les demandes d'autorisation de reproduction doivent être envoyées à l'ISO à l'adresse ci-après ou au
comité membre de l'ISO dans le pays du demandeur.
ISO copyright office
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Tel. + 41 22 749 01 11
Fax + 41 22 749 09 47
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Toute reproduction est soumise au paiement de droits ou à un contrat de licence.
Les contrevenants pourront être poursuivis.

ii © ISO 2012 – Tous droits réservés

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ISO/DIS 13611
Sommaire Page
Avant-propos . iv
Introduction . v
1 Domaine d’application . 1
2 Termes et définitions . 1
3 Principes de base de l’interprétation-médiation . 6
3.1 Nature de l’interprétation-médiation . 6
3.2 Travail des interprètes-médiateurs . 6
3.3 Utilisateurs finaux des services d’interprétation-médiation . 7
3.4 Prestataires de services d’interprétation (PSI) . 7
4 Compétences et qualifications des interprètes-médiateurs . 8
4.1 Aptitudes et compétences . 8
4.2 Compétences de recherche . 9
4.3 Compétences interpersonnelles . 9
4.4 Preuves de qualifications . 10
5 Recommandations pour les demandeurs et les utilisateurs finaux . 10
6 Responsabilités des prestataires de services d’interprétation (PSI) . 11
6.1 Rôle des PSI . 11
6.2 Responsabilités des PSI envers le client . 12
6.3 Responsabilités pour l’engagement d’un interprète-médiateur . 12
7 Rôle et responsabilités des interprètes-médiateurs . 13
7.1 Rôle de l’interprète-médiateur . 13
7.2 Responsabilités de l’interprète-médiateur envers le PSI . 14
8 Contextes et événements de communication . 14
Annexe A (informative) Types d’événements de communication . 15
Bibliographie . 16

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ISO/DIS 13611
Avant-propos
L’ISO (Organisation internationale de normalisation) est une fédération mondiale d’organismes nationaux de
normalisation (comités membres de l’ISO). L’élaboration des Normes internationales est en général confiée
aux comités techniques de l’ISO. Chaque comité membre intéressé par une étude a le droit de faire partie du
comité technique créé à cet effet. Les organisations internationales, gouvernementales et non
gouvernementales, en liaison avec l’ISO participent également aux travaux. L’ISO collabore étroitement avec
la Commission électrotechnique internationale (CEI) en ce qui concerne la normalisation électrotechnique.
Les Normes internationales sont rédigées conformément aux règles données dans les Directives ISO/CEI,
Partie 2.
La tâche principale des comités techniques est d’élaborer les Normes internationales. Les projets de Normes
internationales adoptés par les comités techniques sont soumis aux comités membres pour vote. Leur
publication comme Normes internationales requiert l’approbation de 75 % au moins des comités membres
votants.
L’attention est appelée sur le fait que certains des éléments du présent document peuvent faire l’objet de
droits de propriété intellectuelle ou de droits analogues. L’ISO ne saurait être tenue pour responsable de ne
pas avoir identifié de tels droits de propriété et averti de leur existence.
L’ISO 13611 a été élaborée par le comité technique ISO/TC 37, Terminologie et autres ressources
langagières et ressources de contenu, sous-comité SC 5, Traduction, interprétation et technologies
apparentées.
iv © ISO 2012 – Tous droits réservés

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ISO/DIS 13611
Introduction
L’ISO 13611 a été élaborée afin de répondre à un besoin universel d’intégration de la diversité linguistique,
culturelle et ethnique des personnes qui interagissent par communication orale ou signée. Dans tous les pays
du monde, il existe des groupes de personnes qui ne parlent pas la langue majoritaire du pays, qu’elles vivent
dans leur pays d’origine ou dans un autre pays. Ces minorités linguistiques – qu’elles utilisent des langues
d’immigration, des langues autochtones, des langues de réfugiés ou des langues des signes, ou qu’elles
fassent du tourisme ou aient besoin d’un traitement médical dans un pays autre que le leur – accèdent à des
services par le biais des interprètes-médiateurs. L’interprétation-médiation est cruciale pour garantir aux
minorités linguistiques le droit de communiquer et d’accéder à des services. La diversité culturelle et ethnique
s’accroît et cela ajoute des obstacles spécifiques à l’obligation de fournir des services à des consommateurs
qui ne parlent pas la langue majoritaire. Que ce soit dans les zones urbaines ou rurales, c’est par le biais
d’interprètes-médiateurs que les locuteurs de la langue majoritaire et les minorités linguistiques
communiquent efficacement, offrent des services ou accèdent à des services.
Étant donné la diversité du monde dans lequel nous vivons, la rencontre entre des personnes qui n’ont
aucune langue en commun est la norme plutôt que l’exception. Grâce à l’interprétation-médiation, les
prestataires de services peuvent faire en sorte que l’accès à des services de qualité soit offert de la même
manière à toutes les communautés linguistiques, quelle que soit leur culture ou leur langue.
L’interprétation-médiation est un type d’interprétation professionnelle. Il existe différents codes et normes
applicables à des contextes spécifiques (par exemple interprétation juridique ou interprétation dans le
domaine de la santé), mais aucune série unique de normes applicable à tous les contextes. Il existe différents
codes et normes applicables à des contextes spécifiques (par exemple interprétation juridique ou
interprétation dans le domaine de la santé), mais il n’existe actuellement aucune règle ou norme
universellement admise pour les interprètes-médiateurs qui travaillent dans des contextes différents.
Il est important de noter que l’interprétation diffère de la traduction du fait qu’elle a lieu principalement par
communication orale ou signée plutôt que par communication écrite, bien qu’il puisse être nécessaire de
rédiger ou d’interpréter des documents écrits. De plus, l’interprétation-médiation intervient dans de nombreux
contextes différents et il convient de ne pas la confondre avec l’interprétation de conférence. En outre, les
différences entre les locuteurs des langues majoritaires et minoritaires sont plus marquées en interprétation-
médiation qu’en interprétation de conférence. Il convient donc de procéder avec la plus grande prudence afin
d’éviter de transposer aveuglément au domaine de l’interprétation-médiation les normes élaborées pour
l’interprétation de conférence, et inversement.
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PROJET DE NORME INTERNATIONALE ISO/DIS 13611

Interprétation — Guide pour l’interprétation-médiation
1 Domaine d’application
La présente Norme internationale propose des critères et des recommandations pour la communication orale
et signée permettant à des personnes qui n’ont qu’une maîtrise limitée de la langue des services locaux
d’accéder à ces services. L’interprétation-médiation se fait dans une grande variété de contextes privés et
publics, et favorise l’égalité de l’accès aux services.
L’ISO 13611 est un document guide. Elle établit les principes de base et les pratiques nécessaires pour
garantir des services d’interprétation-médiation de qualité à toutes les communautés linguistiques, aux
utilisateurs finaux comme aux demandeurs et prestataires de services. Elle fournit, en outre, des lignes
directrices générales qui sont communes à toutes les formes d’interprétation-médiation et des lignes
directrices détaillées pour des contextes institutionnels spécifiques, notamment l’interprétation médicale/dans
le domaine de la santé et l’interprétation juridique. La présente norme est applicable aux contextes dans
lesquels des locuteurs de langues minoritaires ont besoin de communiquer pour accéder à des services. Les
contextes varient et peuvent inclure entre autres les établissements publics (écoles, centres sociaux, etc.), les
services sociaux ou d’aide à la personne (demandes d’asile, centres d’aide juridique, etc.), les établissements
de santé (hôpitaux, maisons de repos, etc.), les institutions veillant à l’application du droit (commissariats,
prisons, etc.), les organismes commerciaux et industriels (immobilier, assurance, etc.), les organisations
confessionnelles (rites, cérémonies, etc.) et les situations d’urgence (catastrophes naturelles, épidémies,
etc.).
Elle fournit également des lignes directrices pour la prestation de services d’interprétation-médiation. Par
conséquent, la présente norme s’adresse à toutes les parties impliquées dans la facilitation de cet événement
de communication, par exemple les membres des minorités linguistiques, les interprètes-médiateurs, les
prestataires de services d’interprétation-médiation, les demandeurs, les établissements publics et autres
parties intéressées fournissant des services aux diverses communautés linguistiques.
2 Termes et définitions
Pour les besoins du présent document, les termes et définitions suivants s’appliquent.
2.1
événement de communication
événement au cours duquel des informations sont transmises entre au moins deux parties
Note à l’article : L’intention, la forme, le fond, les gestes, les pauses, les silences et le ton employés au cours d’un
événement de communication peuvent influer sur les informations transmises.
2.2
événement de communication interprété
événement de communication (2.1) au cours duquel l’interprétation-médiation (2.11) facilite la communication
entre au moins deux parties qui n’ont aucune langue en commun
Note à l’article : La langue utilisée au cours d’un événement de communication interprété peut être signée ou parlée.
EXEMPLE 1 : Un entretien médecin-patient au cours duquel le médecin parle la langue majoritaire et le patient la
langue d’une minorité.
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ISO/DIS 13611
EXEMPLE 2 : Une réunion parents-professeurs au cours de laquelle le professeur et les parents ne parlent pas la
même langue.
2.3
contexte de communication
lieu physique dans lequel se déroule un événement de communication interprété (2.1) entre des parties
EXEMPLES Une réunion de village, une clinique, une banque, une instance administrative, une école.
2.4
interprète
professionnel de la langue qui transfère un message d’une langue source (2.28), qu’elle soit parlée, signée ou
écrite, dans une langue cible (2.29) parlée ou signée, en temps réel, et dont la tâche est de transmettre tous
les éléments sémantiques du message, tout en observant le code de déontologie de la profession et les
bonnes pratiques
Note à l’article : Les éléments sémantiques peuvent inclure le contenu, l’intention, la forme, le fond, les gestes, les
pauses, les silences, le ton, etc.
2.5
interprète-médiateur
interprète (2.4) qui facilite la communication, parlée ou signée, dans un contexte de communication (2.3),
privé ou public, entre au moins deux interlocuteurs qui n’ont aucune langue en commun, pour leur permettre
d’accéder à des services
2.6
interprète professionnel
interprète (2.4) titulaire d’un diplôme en interprétation ou dans un domaine en rapport avec son travail, ou
ayant des qualifications spécifiques et possédant des compétences et de l’expérience en matière
d’interprétation, et qui observe le code de déontologie de la profession et perçoit un revenu de l’interprétation
2.7
interprète non professionnel
personne pouvant présenter l’aptitude à parler à la fois la langue source (2.28) et la langue cible (2.29) et
pouvant avoir une certaine expérience en tant qu’interprète (2.4), ou à qui il a pu déjà être demandé, par une
instance officielle, d’interpréter, mais qui n’est ni titulaire d’un diplôme en interprétation ni d’autres
qualifications ou preuves de compétences, et qui ne suit pas le code de déontologie de la profession
EXEMPLES Un technicien de laboratoire à qui l’on demande d’aider un patient qui ne comprend pas la langue
majoritaire, un assistant pédagogique à qui l’on demande de servir d’interprète entre un parent et le professeur, ou un
membre de la famille ou un ami qui se porte volontaire pour aider car il n’y a pas d’interprète sur place.
2.8
prestataire de services d’interprétation
PSI
personne ou organisme proposant des services d’interprétation
Note à l’article : Un PSI peut être un interprète indépendant, une agence, une société privée ou publique, un
établissement ou un département au sein d’un établissement, par exemple un service d’interprétation au sein d’un hôpital.
2.9
demandeur
personne ou organisme demandant un service linguistique auprès d’un prestataire de services de traduction,
d’interprétation ou de services linguistiques
Note 1 à l’article : Le demandeur est généralement la personne ou l’organisme qui demande l’interprétation-médiation
(2.11) ou la traduction (2.27) pour le compte des utilisateurs finaux (2.10).
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Note 2 à l’article : Dans le secteur commercial, le demandeur est parfois appelé client. Ce terme, en particulier dans le
domaine de l’interprétation, est ambigu et pourrait faire référence à l’utilisateur final (2.10). C’est pourquoi le terme
demandeur est recommandé.
2.10
utilisateur final
personne ou groupe de personnes qui au final bénéficie du service linguistique demandé
Note à l’article : Il arrive souvent que l’utilisateur final ne soit pas la même entité que le demandeur (2.9).
2.11
interprétation-médiation
interprétation bidirectionnelle ayant lieu dans un contexte de communication (2.3) entre des interlocuteurs
parlant des langues différentes, pour leur permettre d’accéder à des services
Note à l’article : L’interprétation-médiation peut impliquer à la fois des services privés et publics fournis par des
prestataires de services d’interprétation (2.8). L’interprétation-médiation ne se limite pas à l’accès à des services sociaux
et inclut, par exemple, des services pour les touristes et les victimes de catastrophes.
2.12
interprétation pour les services sociaux
interprétation-médiation (2.11) ayant lieu dans tout contexte de communication (2.3), privé ou public, dans
lequel un interprète-médiateur facilite la communication entre au moins deux interlocuteurs pour leur
permettre d’accéder à des services sociaux, exception faite des conférences et des rassemblements
politiques
Note à l’article : L’interprétation pour les services sociaux peut avoir lieu, par exemple, dans des instances
administratives, des écoles et des centres sociaux. Elle peut se faire pendant une situation d’urgence, une intervention
militaire, une réunion communautaire ou dans une classe lorsqu’un étudiant sourd ou malentendant a besoin d’un
interprète. Elle comprend l’interprétation dans le domaine de la santé (2.14) et l’interprétation juridique (2.13).
2.13
interprétation juridique
interprétation-médiation (2.11) qui a lieu lorsque des individus accèdent à des services fournis dans des
bureaux judiciaires et dans un contexte légal, lorsque des interprètes-médiateurs (2.5) peuvent être appelés
pour servir d’interprètes entre les fonctionnaires de la cour, les avocats, les clients, les prévenus, les témoins
ou les représentants de la loi
2.14
interprétation dans le domaine de la santé
interprétation médicale
interprétation-médiation (2.11) qui a lieu lorsque des individus accèdent à des services fournis dans un
contexte de communication (2.3) en rapport avec la médecine ou le paramédical et lorsque des interprètes-
médiateurs (2.5) facilitent la communication entre les patients et leurs familles, les prestataires de soins de
santé et les administrateurs de services de santé
Note à l’article : Le contexte de communication (2.3) peut être le cabinet d’un médecin, un hôpital, une clinique ou tout
autre établissement médical ou de santé.
2.15
minorité linguistique
groupe de personnes qui ne lisent, n’écrivent, ne parlent ou ne comprennent pas suffisamment la ou les
langues de la société dans laquelle elles vivent pour obtenir un accès satisfaisant aux services
Note à l’article : Pour différentes raisons, leur langue leur confère généralement moins de pouvoir et de prestige que la
langue majoritaire (2.16).
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ISO/DIS 13611
2.16
langue majoritaire
langue qui est parlée par la majorité des personnes de la société dans laquelle elles vivent
Note 1 à l’article : La langue majoritaire est généralement associée à davantage de pouvoir et de prestige social que les
autres langues co-existantes.
Note 2 à l’article : La langue majoritaire est généralement la langue officielle ou nationale d’un territoire ou d’une région.
2.17
langue minoritaire
langue qui n’est pas parlée ou signée par la société en général, qui n’est pas la langue d’un territoire ou d’une
région et qui confère moins de pouvoir que la langue majoritaire (2.16)
2.18
chuchotage
interprétation simultanée (2.21) exécutée par des interprètes (2.4) qui murmurent leur traduction
Note à l’article : Le chuchotage est parfois utilisé en l’absence d’équipement technique ou lorsque l’auditoire est trop
petit pour justifier son emploi.
2.19
interprétation de conférence
interprétation qui a lieu dans une réunion entre des hommes politiques, des hommes d’affaires, des experts
techniques ou des universitaires, dont le but est de transmettre des informations ou des connaissances, et
non d’accéder à des services
Note à l’article : L’interprétation de conférence implique généralement de suivre un seul interlocuteur à la fois au cours
de monologues ou de présentations, et elle nécessite généralement l’emploi d’un équipement.
EXEMPLE L’interprétation pratiquée aux Nations-Unies, au Parlement Européen ou dans des réunions d’affaires.
2.20
interprétation consécutive
interprétation dans laquelle la restitution d’un discours dans une autre langue est réalisée par intervalles
pendant que l’interlocuteur fait une pause au cours d’un événement de communication interprété (2.2)
Note 1 à l’article : Les intervalles peuvent être convenus au préalable entre les interlocuteurs et l’interprète (2.4).
Note 2 à l’article : L’interprétation consécutive nécessite généralement une aptitude à la prise de notes (2.25).
2.21
interprétation simultanée
interprétation dans laquelle la restitution d’un discours dans une autre langue est réalisée en même temps
que l’interlocuteur/le signeur délivre son discours
2.22
langue A
langue de travail qu’un interprète (2.4) ou un traducteur a déclaré comme étant sa première langue active
dans sa combinaison linguistique
Note 1 à l’article : Cette définition est basée sur le système de classification des langues établi par l’Association
Internationale des Interprètes de Conférence (AIIC).
Note 2 à l’article : La langue A est souvent la langue maternelle de l’interprète ou du traducteur, la langue qu’il parle le
mieux et dans laquelle il peut exprimer facilement des concepts abstraits et complexes.
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ISO/DIS 13611
2.23
langue B
langue de travail qu’un interprète (2.4) ou un traducteur parle couramment et a déclarée comme étant sa
deuxième langue active dans sa combinaison linguistique
Note 1 à l’article : Cette définition est basée sur le système de classification des langues établi par l’Association
Internationale des Interprètes de Conférence (AIIC).
2.24
langue C
langue de travail qu’un interprète (2.4) ou un traducteur a déclarée comme étant une langue passive et dans
laquelle il ne travaille pas, bien qu’il la comprenne parfaitement
Note 1 à l’article : Cette définition est basée sur le système de classification des langues établi par l’Association
Internationale des Interprètes de Conférence (AIIC).
Note 2 à l’article : Un interprète (2.4) ou un traducteur peut déclarer plusieurs langues C.
2.25
prise de notes
manière de conceptualiser et de coucher par écrit des informations en utilisant des symboles,
des flèches et parfois des mots
Note 1 à l’article : La prise de notes est une technique d’interprétation qui aide l’interprète à mémoriser les informations
et à rester concentré en notant des concepts, des liens et des informations importantes, comme les dates et les chiffres.
Note 2 à l’article : La prise de notes ne correspond ni à la sténographie, ni à l’écriture classique. Elle nécessite une
formation, des compétences et de l’expérience. Elle n’est généralement pas maîtrisée par les interprètes non
professionnels (2.7).
2.26
traduction à vue
processus de restitution d’un contenu écrit de la langue source (2.28) dans la langue cible (2.29) sous forme
orale ou signée
2.27
traduction
processus de restitution d’un contenu de la langue source dans la langue cible par écrit, quel que soit le
support du résultat final
2.28
langue source
langue à partir de laquelle le contenu est restitué dans la langue cible (2.29)
2.29
langue cible
langue dans laquelle le contenu en langue source est restitué
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ISO/DIS 13611
3 Principes de base de l’interprétation-médiation
3.1 Nature de l’interprétation-médiation
L’interprétation-médiation peut être définie comme un type particulier d’interprétation qui facilite la
communication entre des utilisateurs et des prestataires de services publics ou privés qui ne parlent pas la
même langue – écrite ou signée – en vue d’accéder à des services offerts par la communauté locale. Elle
intervient principalement dans des contextes institutionnels (gouvernementaux et non gouvernementaux), tels
que les hôpitaux, les cabinets de médecins et d’avocats, des structures locales, l’aide sociale, les
organisations confessionnelles, l’aide au logement ou l’aide à l’emploi, les écoles et les commissariats.
L’interprétation-médiation implique le transfert en temps réel de messages signés, verbaux ou non verbaux.
La langue d’un groupe d’utilisateurs (le fournisseur) est en général la ou les langues majoritaires du pays. La
langue de l’utilisateur final est la langue minoritaire, c’est-à-dire la langue du groupe spécifique.
L’interprétation-médiation aide ce dernier groupe d’utilisateurs à accéder à des services. Dans certains
contextes ou pays, il arrive souvent que les utilisateurs de la langue minoritaire soient un groupe vulnérable,
mais cela n’est pas toujours le cas. Dans tous les cas, l’interprétation-médiation assure à chaque personne le
droit de communiquer dans sa propre langue.
Il convient de ne pas confondre interprétation-médiation et traduction. Tandis que la traduction implique la
communication de contenu écrit/vidéo/électronique dans une autre langue sous forme
écrite/vidéo/électronique, en allouant une certaine durée pour l’exécution de la tâche, l’interprétation implique
la communication de messages oraux ou signés en temps réel. En plus de cette différence de forme
écrite/orale et des contraintes de temps, l’interprétation considère la communication comme le résultat d’une
interaction humaine. Suite à cette interaction, le sens est formé non seulement par des mots ou des signes
mais aussi par le langage corporel, les expressions faciales et les gestes utilisés au cours d’un événement de
communication interprété. L’interprétation-médiation peut concerner un large éventail de facteurs sociaux
(sexe, origine ethnique, classe socio-économique, éducation, âge et nationalité).
Un événement de communication interprété fait intervenir au moins trois participants :
1) un locuteur d’une langue minoritaire (par exemple un réfugié politique qui cherche asile ou un patient
– qu’il s’agisse d’un touriste ou d’un résident – qui a besoin de soins, ou un parent qui doit
communiquer avec l’administration scolaire) ;
2) un locuteur de la langue majoritaire (généralement le prestataire de services – par exemple un
fonctionnaire, un employé de bureau, un avocat, un médecin, une infirmière ou un professeur) ; et
3) un interprète-médiateur qui facilite la communication en mode consécutif ou simultané. Pour que leur
rencontre soit considérée comme un événement de communication interprété, il convient que ces
trois parties interagissent.
3.2 Travail des interprètes-médiateurs
Les interprètes-médiateurs s’engagent dans des types de communication interactive qui suivent généralement
un schéma bidirectionnel et dialogique. Ces personnes maîtrisent au moins deux langues (parlées ou
signées) et sont donc en mesure de faciliter les événements de communication interprétés entre deux
langues (par exemple langues A et B) ou plus (par exemple A, B et C). Au cours de ces événements, les
interprètes-médiateurs travaillent généralement en mode consécutif, mais ils peuvent également interpréter
en mode simultané avec équipement (chuchotage) ou sans équipement lorsqu’ils travaille
...

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