Editing Universal translator (section)

{{Short description|Fictional technology that instantly translates any language}}
{{See also|Interlingual machine translation}}
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A '''universal translator''' is a device common to many [[science fiction]] works, especially on television. First described in [[Murray Leinster]]'s 1945 [[novella]] "[[First Contact (novelette)|First Contact]]",<ref>"Hic Rhodus, His Salta" by [[Robert Silverberg]], [[Asimov's Science Fiction]], January 2009, page 6.</ref> the translator's purpose is to offer an instant [[translation]] of any [[language]].

As a convention, it is used to remove the problem of translating between [[alien language]]s when it is not vital to the plot. Especially in science fiction television, translating a new language in every episode when a new species is encountered would consume time normally allotted for plot development and would potentially become repetitive to the point of annoyance. Occasionally, intelligent alien races are portrayed as being able to extrapolate the [[English grammar|rules of English]] from little speech and rapidly become fluent in it, making the translator unnecessary.

While a ''universal'' translator seems unlikely, scientists continue to work towards similar real-world technologies involving small numbers of known languages.<ref>{{cite news | title  = 'Tower of Babel' translator made | date = 2006-10-25 | work = [[BBC News]] | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6083994.stm | access-date = 2008-08-05 }}</ref>{{Update inline|date=February 2023|reason=Google Translate covers most of the world's population very well.}}