Blog
History and professional guide to translation
Notes on the history of writing and translation, signed by R.M.M. Jordán, historian. Plus practical articles by the Textualia team.
- Professional guide
Best online sworn translation for Spain 2026: how to choose
Honest comparison of online sworn translation services for Spain in 2026: criteria for choosing wisely, main market alternatives (Translayte, lingoking, Tomedes, Beglaubigung24, individual MAEC translators) and red flags to avoid.
- Professional guide
Alicante, a cyclist's paradise to live in
Why the world's best cyclists train in Calp, Altea and Dénia every winter, and why the same reasons make Alicante one of the best places in Europe to settle. Mountain passes, sea ports, daily life, residence procedures and the sworn translations you will need.
- Professional guide
The Hague Apostille: what it is and how it affects your sworn translation
What the Hague Apostille is, when it is required and how it combines with the sworn translation for foreign documents in Spain.
- Professional guide
How long does a sworn translation take: standard, urgent and express turnaround
Real turnaround times for a sworn translation in Spain: standard, 24-hour urgent and same-day express, what slows it down, and how to choose.
- Professional guide
How to validate a foreign university degree in Spain
Practical guide to validating your foreign university degree in Spain: process with the Ministry of Universities, documents and sworn translation.
- Professional guide
How to apply for Spanish citizenship: documents to translate
Documents you need to apply for Spanish citizenship by residence: which ones require a sworn translation and which ones already arrive in Spanish.
- Professional guide
Sworn translation of a foreign birth certificate
How to translate a foreign birth certificate to file it in Spain: civil registry, citizenship, marriage or academic procedure.
- Professional guide
Sworn translation of a criminal record certificate: requirements and timelines
How to translate your foreign criminal record certificate to file it in Spain: apostille, validity period and common mistakes.
- Professional guide
Sworn translation for Spanish immigration: which documents you need
Which documents Spanish immigration offices require with a sworn translation into Spanish, by procedure: residence, NIE, family reunification and citizenship.
- Professional guide
Sworn translation PDF vs paper: which one each Spanish authority accepts
Electronically signed PDF or stamped paper copy: which one each Spanish administration prefers, and when each format is the right choice.
- Professional guide
Sworn translation vs certified translation: what's the difference
Clearing up the confusion between Spanish 'traducción jurada' and a generic certified translation: what each one is, when to use them, and why they are not interchangeable.
- Professional guide
How to verify an official sworn translator in Spain (MAEC)
How to check whether a translator is officially accredited by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAEC), and what signs to look for before hiring.
- History of translation
Alfonso X and the Toledo School of Translators
The Toledo School of Translators, King Alfonso X and the role of translation in transmitting medieval knowledge.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - History of translation
The Library of Pergamon and the birth of parchment
The rivalry between Alexandria and Pergamon and the rise of parchment: a shift that transformed the transmission of the written word.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - History of translation
The challenges of translating the Iberian script
Translating what has yet to be deciphered: the Iberian script and the puzzles it sets the translator.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - Professional guide
Why specialisation matters in translation
Subject-matter specialisation as a quality guarantee: technical domains, precise terminology and sector knowledge.
- History of translation
An introduction to epigraphy
What epigraphy is, how ancient inscriptions are studied and why they matter for history and for translation.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - Professional guide
Translation memory: what it is and how it works
What a translation memory (TM) is, how segmentation works, repetitions, 100% and fuzzy matches, file analysis and the benefits of using TM in professional translation.
- History of translation
Origins of writing: cuneiform and cylinder glyptic (I)
The birth of cuneiform writing in Mesopotamia and the earliest notation systems: a four-thousand-year history.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - History of translation
Origins of writing: cuneiform and cylinder glyptic (II)
From pictographic writing to the cuneiform system: the evolution of a code that defined Mesopotamian civilisation.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - History of translation
Origins of writing: cuneiform and cylinder glyptic (III)
Cylinder glyptic as a precursor to writing: seals, symbols and the administration of the first empires.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - History of translation
Origins of writing: cuneiform and cylinder glyptic (IV)
The legacy of cuneiform and its decipherment in the nineteenth century: how thousands of years of lost history were recovered.
R.M.M. Jordán, Historian · - Professional guide
How to prepare a translation project
How to plan a translation project: file formats, deadlines, glossaries and communication with the translator for a strong result.
- Professional guide
Why it pays to invest in professional translation
Why entrust translation to a qualified professional: accuracy, legal accountability and guaranteed validity.
- Professional guide
Italian translation: the pitfalls of closely related languages
Why translating between two close languages like Italian and Spanish can be harder than between distant ones. False friends, linguistic interference and a quote from Edmondo De Amicis.
- Professional guide
Italian-Spanish legal translation: difficulties and considerations
The real challenges of legal translation between Italian and Spanish: shared Roman-law roots, linguistic interference and the lack of equivalence between institutions.