localise - locate

Okay, first of all, apologies if you were expecting part two of  You and Your Proofreader. I totally can not remember what I was saying on that topic; I knew when I stopped writing the other day that this might happen, but time forced me to stay my hand at that particular point and now the thread has been lost down the dark abyss of my mid- to long-term memory.

However! Today I am going to present to you the case of localise VS locate – this is one of the TOP TEN MOST COMMON MISTAKES in English translations! So pay ye attention my friends, if you nail this one down you will instantly gain +100 exp and a free, life-time supply of cheese on toast (whenever you’re ‘round my place ;).    

           

Common Usage        

1a) The localization of the new sports arena is by the river.   

2a) New housing developments are to be localised close to the city centre.   

3a) Our branch offices are localised throughout the whole world.

4a) We built the barracks and the armoury, then we decided where to localise the power generators.           

Better Usage

1b) The location of the new sports arena is by the river.

2b) New housing developments are to be located close to the  city centre.

3b) Our branch offices are located throughout the whole world.

4a) We built the barracks and the armoury, then we decided where to locate the power generators.

OED Definition

1- (n) Localisation (as a derivative of (v) localise): restrict (something) to a particular place

2- (n) Localisation (as a derivative of (v) localise): make (something) local in character           

3- (v) Localise: assign (something) to a particular place. (e.g. Bats localise other creatures by sound)          

1- (n) Location: a particular place or position  

           

What’s The Problem?

This is simply a case of entirely the wrong word being used. Locate, location, located are the correct choices here. Think of it like this: Locate is a synonym for find, so if you’re very specifically doing a text on multimedia, computer games and so on, then you can use localise, localisation etc. This is the process that describes translation of the words in a piece of computer software or a game before it’s released in other countries (it’s also my freelance specialty, hihi). 

Have a nice weekend people; here's hoping it won't be too too full of work! :)