The Happy Salmon | Translation and localization

Norway, as big of a coastal country as it is, has many words and expressions connected to the ocean. “Gladlaks,” or “Happy Salmon,” is one of my favorite ones. It’s used to describe a cheerful and positive person.

I've always been fond of languages. I started learning English shortly after my native Norwegian, and have since dabbled in several languages, to varying extents, including Spanish, German, Japanese and Icelandic. Learning languages has broadened my horizon in many ways, and I always strive to reflect this in my translations.

I believe that it's much easier to enjoy playing games, browsing webpages and using apps if the tone is adapted to the target group. For many apps and games, a more playful language makes it easier for the user to have an immersive experience. This is where the Happy Salmon enters the picture.

Most species of salmon are anadromous. This means that they are born in freshwater but migrate to the vast oceans to spend the majority of their lifetime, only returning to their lake of origin to reproduce. In many ways I’m doing the same; exploring the richness of the English language made it possible to play video games from an early age, understanding new concepts of thinking and being, while opening up new worlds that I would never get to enjoy without understanding the language. This is one of the main reasons why I decided to become a translator.

I want to make the tremendous oceans of games, apps and webpages accessible to as many freshwater Norwegians as possible.

While it’s true that most Norwegians have a decent understanding of English, it will never be the same as exploring a fantasy world in their native tongue, or navigating effortlessly through a picture-sharing app without having to stop for a moment to ponder over the meaning of a word. This is my motivation for providing texts that users can read and understand – I want the users to be able to effortlessly immerse themselves in the product.

I offer translation from English, Spanish, German, Swedish and Danish to Norwegian, as well as proofreading and editing of already translated Norwegian texts.

I specialize in the localization of games, apps and webpages.

This is a bit different than simply translating the text, as they need to be adapted to the Norwegian market. Some terms don’t have a proper Norwegian equivalent, making it especially important to be able to convey the meaning in a concise and understandable matter. This holds especially true for UI text, where more often than not there are character limitations that need to be adhered to.

Whether you need a playful translation of your next social media game, or want to ensure your console game follows the respective first-party glossaries, I am more than happy to help!

I can work with most file formats and will always deliver the translated work in the exact same format as the source text. If you have any special formatting needs, just get in touch and we’ll work it out.

If desired, I am also happy to work with you to create a glossary for your project. This ensures that ongoing projects use consistent terminology. Often a single word has different meanings in other languages, and while there might be several correct translations, it’s important for the user that the same translation is used throughout the product.

Over the course of my 9 years of translating, I have translated and proofread over 7 million words, divided in thousands of projects—from small fish of a few hundred words, to sharks of hundreds of thousands—always delivered on time.

"David’s professional, reliable and truly an expert in his field. He provides quality translations in a timely manner and has been a pleasure to work with over the last 4+ years. Looking forward to continuing a strong business relationship."

Nasooha Junaidean, Project Manager at GameScribes

"David has been providing us with great quality translations from English to Norwegian for quite some time now. He is very professional, reliable and I highly recommend his services."

Leandro Feldmann, Project Manager at Words in Style Translation Services

"David has collaborated with us for many years localizing video-games from English into Norwegian. It is always a pleasure working with him and we have never been disappointed. David is reliable and assures on time deliveries and high quality standards. We are happy to have him as a collaborator and we hope this cooperation lasts."

Rodrigo Souza Ramos, Senior Localization Manager at Localize Direct

"We've been working with David for many years, and have always been happy with his fast turnaround and high quality."

Felicitas Kermarrec, Head of Translation & Localization at Spreadshirt

My rates are competitive and flexible, depending on the scope and deadline of the project. Get in touch for a free, non-binding quote. Confidentiality is an important part of the business, and one that I always respect. You can rest assured, knowing that I will treat your material with the utmost care and discretion.