• Were you born in 1991?
• Do you want to be a translator?

If so, you might like to take part in an EU-wide translation competition in November.

The competition is being organised by the European Commission and is specifically geared towards 17-year-old students who are interested in a career in translation. The competition is now in its second year. Last year's Irish winner was Micheál Mag Fhionntaigh from Tory Island in Donegal.

Participants will be asked to translate a set text but can choose any language combination from the EU's 23 official languages (for example, from Irish into English or from Maltese into Finnish).

"The first contest was successful in demonstrating the value of language learning as well as in raising interest in the crucial but often invisible profession of translator", said Leonard Orban, EU Commissioner for Multilingualism.

"Comments we received from schools and participants showed that the experience was rewarding. Therefore, we decided to organise it again."

Schools will be able to register up to four students each between 1 September and 20 October and the competition will take place across the EU on 27 November.

Up to 14 Irish schools will be able to participate in the competition. In total, 690 schools and 2,760 students will participate.

The competition will be held at the same time in all EU Member States under the supervision of the schools. Translated texts will be marked by a panel of professional translators from the European Commission's translation division and the jury will then choose the best translation from each Member State.

In March 2009, the winners will be invited to a ceremony in Brussels to receive their prizes from the Commissioner for Multilingualism.

For more information see the competition website http://ec.europa.eu/translatores