Simplified or traditional Chinese: which to choose for your documents

The simple rule: start from the reader, not the language

Written Chinese comes in two sets of characters. Simplified characters stem from the script reforms carried out in the People's Republic of China from the 1950s onwards. Traditional characters are the earlier form, still used elsewhere.

So the choice is driven first by destination:

• Mainland China: simplified Chinese.
• Singapore and Malaysia: simplified Chinese.
• Taiwan: traditional Chinese.
• Hong Kong and Macao: traditional Chinese.

Mandarin and Cantonese are spoken languages. A document written for Hong Kong, where Cantonese is mostly spoken, is generally drafted in standard written Chinese using traditional characters. It is the territory's written convention that decides, not the spoken language.

What actually differs between the two

The characters themselves

Many simplified characters have fewer strokes than their traditional counterparts: 国 / 國 (country), 学 / 學 (study), 门 / 門 (door). A reader in Beijing can often make out a traditional text with some effort, and vice versa, but a document in the "wrong" script immediately signals that it was not prepared for them.

Vocabulary

This is the most underestimated pitfall. The two scripts also go hand in hand with different regional vocabulary. A few common examples:

Hong Kong uses yet another word for taxi (的士). A text in traditional characters but with mainland vocabulary will read oddly in Taipei. That is why language codes often distinguish zh-CN, zh-TW and zh-HK: these are regional variants, not just fonts.

Punctuation

In Taiwan and Hong Kong, quotation marks are often written 「 」, whereas the mainland tends to use “ ”. A small detail, but one that shows on the very first page.

Why you don't simply "convert" simplified into traditional

It is tempting to run a simplified text through a converter. It is risky, for two reasons:

1. One simplified character can map to several traditional ones. 发 can be 發 (to emit) or 髮 (hair); 干 can become 乾 (dry), 幹 (to do) or stay 干. Automatic conversion therefore gets it wrong regularly.
2. Conversion leaves vocabulary untouched. 软件 becomes 軟件, which is understandable, but it is not the word used in Taiwan.

If you are targeting both audiences, the safest approach is to translate from French into each variant rather than deriving one from the other.

Practical cases: which script for which document

• Sales proposal for a distributor in Shanghai or Shenzhen: simplified. For a brochure or catalogue, register matters as much as script: see the marketing specialist.
• Industrial partner in Taiwan: traditional, with Taiwanese vocabulary.
• Subsidiary or client in Hong Kong: traditional; ask your contact whether an English version is also expected.
• Website or app for the whole Chinese-speaking world: two separate versions. The method is set out in translating a website.
• Unknown recipient: ask. One email saves a translation you would otherwise have to redo.

To weigh up markets more broadly, the guide which languages to choose for exporting offers a method.

Before you order: the checks

1. Confirm the territory of the end reader, not just your contact's nationality.
2. Check the variant is available in the list of 96 languages before uploading your file.
3. Pick the right specialist: a letter, presentation or everyday document goes to Atlas, the general documents specialist; a contract goes to Thémis.
4. Check how the delivered file displays on your recipient's computer: Chinese characters need suitable fonts. The original layout (tables, images, fonts) is preserved into Chinese, PDFs included; the guide translating a PDF without breaking the layout covers the precautions.
5. Official document? Diplomas, civil status records, court rulings or Kbis extracts intended for a Chinese or Taiwanese authority generally require a sworn translation. Manuce does not provide this: contact a court-approved translator ("traducteur expert près une cour d'appel"); see when sworn translation is mandatory.

Worked example

Take a 3,000-word company presentation (about 8 pages), from French into simplified Chinese. Chinese falls under the "non-Latin scripts, Asia and Middle East" coefficient (×1.6). These are the prices shown on the quote on the day of writing:

At Professional level, the sum is 3,000 words × 1.8 cents × 1.6 = €86.40, rounded up to €87. If the same presentation also goes into English and German, the gross €194.40 qualifies for the 30% three-language discount: €137 in total. VAT not applicable, article 293 B of the CGI. Level details are on the pricing page.

For simplified Chinese specifically, the French to simplified Chinese translation page describes the service in detail. Upload your file in the app: the quote appears before any payment, an excerpt is translated free of charge, and the translation arrives within minutes.