Languages › Slovenian
Slovenian translation services deliver Slovenian ⇄ German for authorities in Germany, Austria and Slovenia, produced by sworn, court-authorised German translators who are Slovenian native speakers. The standard written language and the dual number are handled precisely, and translations are certified on request for registry offices and courts. Slovenian ⇄ English covers international business. Prices start from €0.99 per standard line.
Native Slovenian specialists · dual & standard language handled · certified translations recognised by German and Austrian authorities
Short & clear
Slovenian is written in the Latin alphabet with the special letters č, š and ž, has six cases and no article — and, as one of few living languages, a complete dual (dvojina) for exactly two people or things. Whether it is a birth and marriage certificate for a registry office, a supply contract with a supplier from Maribor, technical documentation for export or a tourism text for the Alpine-Adriatic region: the work is done by native Slovenian specialists with a proven field.
We work in both directions and both pairings. Slovenian ⇄ German is what authorities and courts in Germany, Austria and Slovenia need when documents are submitted certified. Slovenian ⇄ English covers international business, for addressees in Slovenia or partners who work in English.
Who it's for
Most people who search for this in English are fluent Slovenian speakers dealing with a German or Austrian system — or companies using English with partners in Slovenia. Both are covered.
Birth, marriage and family certificates, diplomas and police records for a registry office (Standesamt), the immigration office or recognition of qualifications in Germany or Austria — as a certified German translation.
Supply contracts, company papers and technical documentation exchanged with partners in Slovenia in English rather than German. Same specialists, same care with the terminology.
German or Austrian certificates, contracts and rulings for authorities, courts or partners in Slovenia — in the standard written language, with the dual handled correctly.
Companies trading with Slovenian suppliers, and tourism operators in the Alpine-Adriatic region, whose documentation and copy must be precise in standard Slovenian.
Language & script
Slovenian is written in the Latin alphabet, but with the special letters č, š and ž and no q, w, x, y. Grammatically it is exceptionally rich: six cases, no definite or indefinite article — and, as one of few living languages, a complete dual (dvojina) for exactly two people or things. Where German has only singular and plural, Slovenian requires its own dual forms for "two witnesses", "both parents" or "the two contracting parties". A literal rendering here is not a matter of style but of wrong grammar.
Slovenian is also unusually dialect-rich — over forty dialects in seven groups — so the standard written language (knjižni jezik) is binding for official and specialist texts, and the many colloquial Germanisms of everyday speech are avoided in it. For official use, an authorised translator issues a certified translation, recognised in Germany and Austria; where a document is to apply in Slovenia, the local body often requires a sodni tolmač — a court interpreter appointed by the Slovenian Ministry of Justice. Whether an apostille is additionally required, we check in advance — Slovenia is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, and it is issued by the competent authority, not by the translation agency.
Quality you only notice at the receiving end
German and Slovenian are close neighbours — and that is exactly what deceives. These pitfalls separate a native professional translation from a literal one; each is DE⇄SL-specific and demonstrable.
| Pitfall | Why it goes wrong | How the FÜD solves it |
|---|---|---|
| The dual (dvojina) collapsed into plural | Slovenian has a complete dual for exactly two; "two witnesses" or "both parties" take dual forms German lacks. Rendered as plural, the grammar is simply wrong. | We set the dual correctly wherever exactly two people or things are meant, as the standard requires. |
| Six cases rebuilt from German | Slovenian has six cases and no article; relations ride on endings. Reconstructed from German word order and articles, an official text goes grammatically wrong. | We write from Slovenian case grammar, with correct endings, not reconstructed from German. |
| Special letters č, š, ž dropped | č, š and ž are distinct letters; stripped to c, s, z a name or term becomes another. Slovenian also has no q, w, x, y. | The special letters are set correctly and checked against the source, so names and terms are preserved. |
| Colloquial Germanisms left in | Everyday Slovenian carries many German loanwords that the standard written language avoids. Left in, an official or specialist text reads as non-standard. | We write in the standard written language (knjižni jezik) and keep colloquial Germanisms out of official texts. |
| Dialect mistaken for the standard | With over forty dialects, non-standard forms can slip into a text. For official and specialist use only the standard language counts. | We keep to the binding standard written language for official and specialist texts. |
| Austrian vs. German administrative terms | Documents may be destined for Germany or Austria, whose administrative terms differ. The wrong convention misses the receiving body. | We set the terminology for the target country — Germany, Austria or Slovenia — deliberately. |
| Certification abroad ≠ German authorisation | A German court-authorised translator is not automatically admitted in Slovenia, where a sodni tolmač is often required. | We clarify where the document applies and set the right form — a certified translation for Germany/Austria, or the sodni tolmač route for Slovenia, with the apostille checked in advance. |
None of these is a simple spelling slip — most survive any spell-check. They arise where a Latin script with its own letters, a six-case grammar and a living dual meet German and Austrian administrative practice, and they only surface at the receiving end: the registry office, the Slovenian court, the recognition body. That is where native professional translation earns its place.
A living dual and six cases — literal is not a style choice, but wrong grammar.
So: native speakers with a field, the dual set right, and the standard written language.
Certification & recognition
For submission to German or Austrian authorities and courts, a court-authorised translator (in German, ermächtigter Übersetzer, publicly authorised under German state law) produces a certified translation with stamp, signature and certification note — recognised nationwide.
For use in Slovenia, the local body often requires a sodni tolmač appointed by the Slovenian Ministry of Justice. We clarify before the project which country the document is for and apply the valid route — following FÜD's documented quality process; where the service is delivered under DIN EN ISO 17100, the required second-person revision is included. Whether an apostille is additionally required (Slovenia is a party to the Hague Apostille Convention) we check in advance. The apostille itself is issued by the competent authority — the FÜD does not issue apostilles.
Use cases
The dual, target country and standard language decide the terminology and the form of certification. Three common jobs — from the starting point to the result.
Registry office & family
Industry
Slovenia
Quote & price
We review volume, field, language direction and target country and name a binding fixed price. Standard certificates are usually a flat fee per document; longer texts are priced per standard line — certification on request, advance PDF and postal delivery included.
| Native Slovenian professional translation | ✓included |
| Dual & standard written language handled · passport-matched names | ✓included |
| Certification by an authorised translator on request | ✓included |
| Advance PDF & postal delivery of the original | ✓included |
| Quality management & final check | ✓included |
Slovenian is priced in language Group 2, from € 0.99 per standard line (55 characters incl. spaces); we name the exact amount after a brief review. How the price is made up →
Slovenian documents & texts
We translate Slovenian – German and Slovenian – English – from certified records to specialist texts. Commonly requested from Slovenian: Rojstni list (birth certificate), Poročni list (marriage certificate), Potrdilo o nekaznovanosti (diploma), Spričevalo / Diploma (diploma), Sodba o razvezi (divorce decree).
FAQ
The contract had several "two-party" clauses — the translator used the Slovenian dual correctly, which the previous version had simply pluralised. Our partner in Ljubljana noticed the difference immediately.
T. Novak · supply contract, Wiesbaden
Next
Work with us
Our Slovenian translations are produced by native-speaker specialists — the reason German authorities, universities and courts accept them without queries. Beyond the language itself, that rests on German at C2 level, a specialist field the translator can defend, and — for certified work — court authorisation. If you bring that combination rather than bilingualism alone, we work with Slovenian translators employed and freelance, and the way in is also open through an internship.
The path
Native Slovenian is your starting capital; the market rewards what you build on top. German at C2 — the level at which you read a German ruling or medical report without hesitation — is the real gate, because certified work means rendering official German with precision. Add a field you can defend (law, medicine, technology, finance) and its terminology. That combination, not language alone, is what a registry office or a Slovenian court actually relies on.
Why it holds up
For certified translations you apply to the competent Regional Court (Landgericht) to be authorised under state law. And Slovenian is exacting, specialist work: a living dual and a six-case grammar that literal output regularly gets wrong. Careful human work here is what the receiving authority requires.
FÜD