Vlach Interpreter

Prism Language Solutions supplies Vlach interpreters for USCIS interviews, court hearings and depositions, and hospital appointments anywhere in the United States, most often by phone or video and in person where a linguist is near. The word Vlach covers more than one language, so before assigning anyone we establish whether the speaker is Aromanian, from Greece, Albania or North Macedonia, or a Vlach from eastern Serbia, whose speech is a variety of Romanian. The two need different interpreters.

Aromanian, the language most people mean by Vlach, had about 210,000 native speakers at a 2018 estimate, spread across Albania, Greece, Romania, Serbia, North Macedonia and Bulgaria. UNESCO classes it as definitely endangered. It is recognized as a minority language in North Macedonia, where speakers have the right to use it in court, and Aromanians are a recognized national minority in Albania.

The Vlachs of Serbia are a different community. At the 2022 Serbian census 21,013 people declared themselves Vlachs, most of them in the Timok valley in the far east of the country, and they speak an archaic variety of Romanian rather than Aromanian. An Aromanian interpreter sent to a Timok Vlach is the wrong booking, and so is the reverse.

• Certified translations prepared to meet USCIS requirements
• Human linguists only, matched to the subject
• Fixed written quote within 60 minutes in business hours
• One office in New York, linguists in every state

Vlach Interpreter: Aromanian or Timok Romanian?

Then ask which language the person would choose for a difficult conversation. Some will say Greek, Albanian, Macedonian, Serbian or Romanian, and if that is their choice we book a linguist in that language, which is quicker to arrange and costs less. The Vlach booking is for the person who wants, or needs, Vlach itself.

Vlach Interpreters for Older Relatives at USCIS Interviews

The Vlach USCIS request is usually for a parent rather than the petitioner: an elderly Aromanian speaker at a green card interview, or a long-term resident taking the naturalization civics test in their own language under the 50/20 or 55/15 exemption. Either way the applicant brings the interpreter, who must be fluent in English as well as Vlach.

We supply a neutral interpreter, generally by phone or video, who renders each question and answer in full and does not help with an answer the applicant is struggling to give. A grandchild who speaks some Aromanian is not the right person for that job, however willing. More on USCIS interview interpreting.

Vlach Court Interpreter When a Roster Runs Out

Courts come to us for Vlach once their own list has come up empty, which is almost always. No state certifies interpreters in Aromanian, and the federal courts certify in Spanish only, so the judge qualifies a Vlach interpreter on the record from their training and experience. The clerk gets that background from us in advance, in writing.

The matters tend to be probate, guardianship for an elderly relative, or a deposition in which a witness recalls events in the language of a Balkan village. Sometimes the need only surfaces mid-hearing, when a Greek or Albanian interpreter realizes the elder is answering in something else. We can usually put a Vlach interpreter on video within days. See court interpreting.

Vlach Medical Interpreting by Phone and Video

Hospitals receiving federal funds owe a Vlach-speaking patient an interpreter at no cost, and handing an elderly Aromanian speaker a Greek or Romanian interpreter she only half follows does not meet that duty. The case that slips through is the one where a bilingual grandchild explains the diagnosis and rounds it into something gentler.

Because Aromanian speakers are scattered thinly across the country, a Vlach interpreter on video is usually the fastest way to reach one, and for most consultations it works well. A mental health assessment or a hard discharge conversation is the exception, and there we look for a Vlach interpreter who can attend in person. See medical interpreting.

Vlach Interpreting Cost and How to Book

Vlach interpreting by phone or video is billed by time and costs less than a site visit. Where an interpreter does attend, on-site rates follow the typical US market range of $45 to $95 an hour with a two-hour minimum. Allow a few days for a remote booking and longer for anything in person.

Send the setting, the date, the country and town the family comes from and the language the person prefers, through the quote form or on +1 (833) 282 8883. A written fixed price follows within 60 minutes in business hours. The certificates in a Vlach file are Greek, Albanian, Macedonian or Serbian, and our Vlach translation page explains how we quote them.

Questions we get asked