Museum audio guides in Traditional Chinese

How to provide an audio guide in Traditional Chinese

A Traditional Chinese guide is added to a guide that already exists rather than built from nothing. The English stops are translated, reviewed by someone who reads Traditional Chinese, and narrated, and the Traditional Chinese version then sits behind the same QR code the English version already uses. Nothing on the wall changes, and no second sign is printed.

In practice a venue works through it in this order, and the review step is the one most often skipped and most often regretted.

• Settle the regional variant and register before any translation starts
• Translate the English stops, keeping the source text locked while that happens
• Have a Traditional Chinese reader review it, ideally someone who knows the collection
• Narrate the reviewed text, checking proper nouns and place names first
• Publish it behind the QR codes already on the wall, with no reprinting

What Traditional Chinese needs from your layout

Traditional Chinese is compact like Simplified, though individual characters carry more strokes and need more room to stay legible.

Stroke density is the practical constraint. Traditional characters become illegible at smaller sizes than Simplified ones, which matters for exhibit labels and any small print on signage.

Taiwan, Hong Kong, and why conversion is not enough

Traditional Chinese is standard in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. Taiwanese and Hong Kong usage differ from each other in vocabulary, and both differ from mainland Simplified beyond the characters themselves.

Running Simplified text through a character converter produces something readable but visibly machine-made, because the vocabulary stays mainland. If Traditional Chinese visitors matter to you, translate for them rather than converting.

Getting the Traditional Chinese narration right

Narration in Traditional Chinese raises questions that do not exist in English, and they are far cheaper to answer before a voice records anything than after.

• Mandarin as spoken in Taiwan differs audibly from mainland Mandarin, and Hong Kong audiences may expect Cantonese instead.
• Cantonese is a separate recording rather than an accent choice.
• Tone accuracy on proper nouns needs individual checking.

Where Traditional Chinese fits in your language plan

Across the New Zealand museums using Journey Pal, between 50% and 60% of guide use is in English. That is our own usage data, and it is worth knowing before committing to a long list of languages: local-language listening is usually the largest share, and translations extend a guide rather than being the reason for one.

That makes Traditional Chinese an addition to a working guide rather than a prerequisite for launching. Get the source script right, publish it, then add Traditional Chinese where your visitor numbers justify the translation and, just as importantly, where you have someone who can review it.