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Spanish to English translations [PRO] Tech/Engineering - Energy / Power Generation / pylons and power lines
Spanish term or phrase:quinques
The only thing I can find that makes any sense is Argand Lamp, but that doesn't check out very well in the context of conducting checks of electricity pylons and transmission cables.
Verificar si el cable de guarda presenta hebras cortadas o quinques...
Verificar ausencia de anormalidades tales como: hebras cortadas, quinques, abultamientos, corrosión, señales de arco...
Explanation: Apparently Latin American Spanish, unknown in Spain. Meaning: Broken threads of a cable.
Middle confidence level.
https://repositorioacademico.upc.edu.pe/bitstream/handle/107... UNIVERSIDAD PERUANA DE CIENCIAS APLICADAS FACULTAD DE INGENIERIA INGENIERIA INDUSTRIAL (…) 7. Durante el proceso de tendido del conductor debe evitarse tocar con las manos los quinques o cocas (rotura de hebras) que se formen en las cordinas, los quinques deberán ser eliminados con un listón de madera por tres personas. Cuando el conductor o la cordina.
Thanks Toni (and everyone else who helped). The agency checked this with the client for me and the answer is "cut strands". 4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer
Toni, that really was my only point, initially in response to Comunican's argument that the document is formal and well written, which I don't believe needs to be factored into the likelihood or otherwise of employing anglicisms.
For the rest, I certainly wouldn't begrudge you earning the points as you're a great contributor on here and you made a reasonable case for your suggestion as usual :-)
Comunican, you're right, initially my suggestion was a guess, but the more I looked into it, the more I became convinced that this was indeed the meaning. You're also correct in saying that a "kink" is not the same as a "broken thread", but that's precisely my point; the text isn't saying that "quinque o coca" = "broken thread", it mentions that aspect afterward, i.e., "rotura de hebra". In other words, I believe you have to interpret it as distinguishing "rotura de hebras" and "hebras cortadas" from "quinques", otherwise, how else would you translate both ideas in your original sentence "Verificar ausencia de anormalidades tales como: hebras cortadas, quinques, abultamientos, corrosión, señales de arco..."?
Hi Robert. I appreciate that your suggestion got more agrees, and I was very tempted to start with. But Toni's suggestion resonated better with the text. And because there was no clear answer and, bearing in mind that this was a maintenance standard (ie important technical document for safety etc), I thought best to refer it back to the agency. They in turn asked the client (a multinational headquartered in the UK) and their response was "broken threads". I didn't really have much option but to select Toni's answer. A "kink" is not the same as a "broken thread". And bearing in mind also that you and those who agreed with you were guessing rather than actually knowing, I stand by my choice. Of course it could also mean "kinks", and there is no reason why the glossary can't have two different entries. And again, thank you for your help with it. It is much appreciated as always.
Again: I believe your answer is closer to the truth than mine and "quinque" is most likely derived from "kink". BUT (big "but") do not ask me any further, not about the details about what is going on in the client´s mind, since we shall never know what the client really wants or rejects. This is beyond my understanding, I have experienced this issue many times before, much to my dismay. This text in particular is South American Spanish, and this is the only point I am really sure about. All the rest is subject to speculation to some extent, even though, I repeat, I believe your answer is closer to the probable meaning of the confusing source. Don´t get disappointed. And about the glossary, well, we both know how this looks like. Mis más cordiales saludos desde España.
But wouldn't you also agree that "cut strands" is a translation of "rotura de hebras" rather than "quinques"? Regardless of their client's instructions, I rather doubt that "quinques" means anything other than "kinks", and that they're simply conflating the meanings here (which isn't terribly helpful for the KudoZ glossary). In fact, given that they're using both "quinques" and "cocas" as synonyms, there's really no need to use more than one term in the English here, especially as the source text then goes on to explain the real issue, i.e., the hazardous broken strands.
I agree with you again. As I posted in my agree to your answer, this term, "quinque", is in all likelihood a loanword from the English counterpart "kink". I believe this is the origin of "quinque", a term unknown in Spain. This being said, you already know the client´s answer Comunican received after conducting an inquiry. And we both know, and Comunican too, that the client is always right, don´t we? Saludos.
It's actually quite common in Latin American Spanish to see loan words from English in technical material (which is why it occurred to me in the first place), even in what you'd consider as formal texts. Some of the most obvious examples are in computing, e.g., "computadora", "rúter" (which is even in the RAE, https://dle.rae.es/rúter ), "tablet", etc., but I can think of examples in the automotive industry, for example "rin"/"rines" (rim/rims), "bóster" (booster).
There's no reason to think that because of the level of formality of the document they wouldn't be using a loan word. Moreover, where else do you think this word (which is so close to the both the meaning and sound of the English word "kink") could have come from, i.e., what is its etymology?
Unfortunately the text doesn't indicate a country or location and the company is international, operating in most continents, but doesn't mention Puerto Rico...
I think Jane and Robert are right here. I've never heard that word before. Do you know where the source text comes from? If it's a Latin American country close to the United States, "kinks" would make a lot of sense. Is this text from Puerto Rico?
peer agreement (net): +5
