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1. Abbreviations
Mr / Mr. - κύριος / κος / κ. (the use of κος in nominative is preferred to the use of κ.)
Mrs / Mrs. - κυρία / κα (the use of κ. is to be avoided)
Miss - δεσποινίς / δις (the use of μις is to be avoided)
Dr / Dr. - δρ / Δρ (without a full-stop) (ο δρ, του δρα, τον δρα, δρ)
etc. - κλπ.
i.e. - δηλαδή
e.g. - π.χ.
a.m. - π.μ. / το πρωί
p.m. - μ.μ. / το απόγευμα / το βράδυ
BC - π.Χ.
AD - μ.Χ.
& - και (the symbol can be used only if it is part of a foreign brand name: J&B, Smith &
Wesson)
Abbreviations should only be used when there are space or time limitations.
When an abbreviated word – ending in a period – happens to be the very last word of the subtitle,
only one period should be used. Commas, question marks and exclamation marks can succeed the
full stop.
2. Acronyms
Acronyms should be written without periods between letters: ΗΠΑ, BBC, CIA.
3. Character Limitation
4. Character Names
Proper names should be transliterated. Do not translate unless approved translations are provided
by Netflix.
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Nicknames should be transliterated. Only translate if the nickname conveys a specific meaning
relevant to viewers.
Use phonological rather than the graphological transliteration:
Johnny - Τζόνι and NOT Τζώννυ, Patty - Πάτι and NOT Πάττυ
Some exceptions: Anna/Anne - Άννα/Ανν, Mary - Μαίρη, Stella - Στέλλα, Eva - Εύα (but Eve would
be Ιβ)
Whichever option is chosen, it must be applied consistently throughout the translation.
For Japanese or Korean names, in particular, the capitalization and the order of the source
should be followed. For example, the name “Bong Joon-ho” should be transliterated as Μπονγκ
Τζουν-χο and NOT Μπονγκ Τζουν-Χο.
For names that include the terms “Mac” or “Mc”, the capitalization should follow the source as
per the common convention. For example:
Stella McCartney - Στέλλα ΜακΚάρτνεϊ
Andie MacDowell - Άντι ΜακΝτάουελ
5. Continuity
When including ellipses in subtitles, please use the single smart character (U+2026) as opposed to
three dots/periods in a row.
Do not use ellipsis when a sentence is split between two continuous subtitles.
If a sentence continues from one subtitle to the next, place the appropriate punctuation, or no
punctuation, at the end of the first subtitle.
-Τι κάνεις…
-Μη μιλάς!
In the case of a pause (2 seconds or more), if the sentence continues in the next subtitle, DO NOT
use an ellipsis at the beginning of the second subtitle.
Subtitle 1 Αν το ήξερα…
Subtitle 2 δεν θα σου τηλεφωνούσα.
6. Documentary/Unscripted
Only translate a speaker’s title once, the first time the speaker appears.
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When ongoing dialogue is interrupted by a speaker’s title, use ellipses at the end of the sentence
in the subtitle that precedes it and an ellipsis at the beginning of the sentence in the subtitle that
follows it.
Dialogue in TV/movie clips should only be subtitled if plot-pertinent and if the rights have been
granted.
News tickers/banners from archive clips do not require subtitles unless plot-pertinent.
Avoid going back and forth between italicized and non-italicized subtitles when the speaker is on
and off screen. If the speaker is on-camera for at least part of the scene, do not italicize. Leave
italics for off-screen narrators.
7. Dual Speakers
Use a hyphen without a space to indicate two speakers in one subtitle, with a maximum of one
character speaking per line.
Text in each line in a dual speaker subtitle must be a contained sentence and should not carry into
the preceding or subsequent subtitle. Creating shorter sentences and timing appropriately helps
to accommodate this.
8. Font Information
9. On-screen Text
Forced narrative titles for on-screen text should only be included if plot-pertinent.
When on-screen text and dialogue overlap, precedence should be given to the most plot-pertinent
message. Avoid over truncating or severely reducing reading speed in order to include both
dialogue and on-screen text.
The duration of the FN subtitle should as much as possible mimic the duration of the on-screen
text, except for cases where reading speed and/or surrounding dialogue takes precedence.
Forced narratives that are redundant (e.g. identical to onscreen text or covered in the dialogue)
must be deleted.
Forced narratives for on-screen text should be in ALL CAPS, except for long passages of on
screen text (e.g. prologue or epilogue), which should use sentence case to improve readability.
When ordinal numbers are included in an FN, lowercase should be used to indicate that the
number is ordinal. For example: 20ός ΑΓΩΝΑΣ, 10ο ΛΕΠΤΟ.
Hashtags should be localized as per on-screen text; all caps should be used with spaces between
the words.
Never combine a forced narrative with dialogue in the same subtitle.
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When a forced narrative interrupts dialogue, use an ellipsis at the end of the sentence in the
subtitle that precedes it and no ellipsis at the beginning of the sentence in the subtitle that follows
it.
Foreign dialogue should only be translated if the viewer was meant to understand it (i.e. if it was
subtitled in the original version).
Unfamiliar foreign words and phrases should be either transliterated or italicized or left in the
original language, depending on creative intent.
Foreign words such as “soundtrack” (σάουντρακ), “cool” (κουλ) or “bullying” (μπούλινγκ) that are
regularly used in Greek do not need to be italicized.
For international entities known by their original names, please do not transliterate (e.g. Google,
Facebook, Rolling Stones etc.)
11. Italics
13. Numbers
For abbreviated ordinal numbers, they should be used, with no space between the number and the
abbreviation: 1ος – 1η – 1ο. The accents are retained in the abbreviation, if present in the full form
(e.g. 20ός αιώνας, 30ού βαθμού, 60ής επετείου, etc.)
To express decades, use the word "decade", followed by the apostrophe and the number: 20s -
δεκαετία του '20
For decimals, use the comma: 6,8
For large numbers, use periods: 100.000
Date must be expressed in the Greek format: 23 Απριλίου 2016
For clock time, use the colon: 8:30
If the style of the text and the referent itself allows you (e.g. it does not refer to a flight
departure or a military schedule), you may use the 12-hour system, as the Greek audience is
better acquainted with it: 8:30 π.μ. (or μ.μ.)
If time is referenced in the dialogue, use the word rather than the number. For example: “Θα πάμε
στις τρεις”.
For currency, use the word instead of a symbol. Full form of the word is preferred, but for time or
space reasons, an abbreviation might be used: 10 δολάρια or 10 δολ.
To express the percentage, both the symbol and the word are acceptable, but the full form is
preferred: % or τοις εκατό
Convert units to the metric system: kilometers (χλμ.), centimeters (εκ.), meters (μ.), kilograms (κιλά),
unless explicit visual information, vital for the development of the plot, is constantly present. Ιn
such rare cases, the measurement unit is retained: miles – μίλια
Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit should be changed to Celsius unless otherwise instructed.
For phone numbers, parentheses must be deleted while dashes may be used: 2124357724, 212-
4357724
14. Punctuation
15. Quotes
Use quotation marks at the start of the quotation and after the last line of the quotation, marking
the beginning and end of the quotation (rather than the beginning and end of every subtitle within
the quotation), e.g.
Subtitle 1: “Is this a dagger I see before me?
Subtitle 2: The handle towards my hand.
Subtitle 3: Come, let me clutch thee.”
Use double quotation marks (" ") without spaces for regular quotations.
Use single quotation marks (' ') for quotes within quotes.
Direct speech can be introduced with or without a colon, but consistency in application is
required. Commas should be avoided.
The closing quotation mark is placed before all other punctuation, regardless of whether the quote
spans two or more subtitles or includes more than one sentence.
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If the whole sentence including the quote is a question or an exclamation, then the question mark
or exclamation point is placed after the closing quotation mark. However, if that question or
exclamation belongs to the quote (i.e. if the person whose words are quoted asked the question or
made the exclamation), the question mark or exclamation point is placed before the closing
quotation mark.
17. Repetitions
Do not translate words or phrases repeated more than once by the same speaker.
If the repeated word or phrase is said twice in a row, time subtitle to the audio but translate only
once.
18. Songs
19. Titles
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Titles of published works, existing movies and TV shows: use official or well-known translations or
transliterations. If none are available, please leave in the original language.
The following sources may be used to find Greek movie titles:
Ensure that any typos, wrong accents or capitalization are not reproduced. These are external
sources.
Title case should be used for titles (upper case for all meaningful terms in a title).
Examples:
Το Γκαμπί της Βασίλισσας
Πίσω από τα Μάτια της
Προς Όλα τα Αγόρια που Αγάπησα
Τhose words keep the final “ν”, when the following word starts with a vowel or a brief
consonant: κ, π, τ, μπ, ντ, γκ, or a double consonant: ξ, ψ.
For example: την είδα, την κοπέλα, την ντουλάπα, μην πας, αυτήν την ώρα.
However, in the above cases the final ν is dropped when the following word starts with the
consonants: β, γ, δ, ζ, θ, λ, μ, ν, ρ, σ, φ, χ. For example, “τη διεύθυνση”, “τη λίστα”, “τη θεραπεία”, “μη
μιλάς”.
The final “ν” is always maintained, in written word, in the following words:
In the indeclinable “δεν” and “σαν”.
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When brand names or trademarks appear, you may either; use the same name if it is known in the
territory you are translating for; adapt to the name that the brand or product is known by that the
territory you are translating for; or use a generic name for that product or item. Avoid swapping
out names of brands, companies or famous people for other names.
21. Subtitles for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (SDH) Guidelines
Truncating the original dialogue should be limited to instances where reading speed and
synchronicity to the audio are an issue.
For TV/movie clips, all audible lines should be transcribed, if possible. If the audio interferes with
dialogue, please give precedence to most plot-pertinent content.
All same-language audible songs that do not interfere with dialogue should be titled, if the rights
have been granted.
Use song title identifiers when applicable - song titles should be in quotes: [παίζει το "Forever Your
Girl"]
Song lyrics should be enclosed with a music note (♪) at the beginning and the end of each subtitle.
Add a space between the music note and the preceding or subsequent text.
When a dual speaker subtitle appears in a song, e.g. when there is a duet, each line of sung text
should have a music note at the beginning and end to clearly indicate that both characters are
singing.
Use brackets [ ] to enclose speaker IDs or sound effects.
Identifiers/sound effects should be all lowercase, except for proper nouns.
Only use speaker IDs or sound effects when they cannot be visually identified.
When a speaker ID is required for a character who has yet to be identified by name, use [ανδρική
φωνή], female voice [γυναικεία φωνή], male [άνδρας], female [γυναίκα] so as not to provide information
that is not yet present in the narrative.
Use a generic ID to indicate and describe ambient music, e.g. [ροκ μουσική], [χαλαρή τζαζ μουσική στο
ραδιόφωνο]
Plot-pertinent sound effects should always be included unless inferred by the visuals.
Subtitle silence if plot-pertinent. For example, when plot-pertinent music ends abruptly.
Be detailed and descriptive, use adverbs where appropriate when describing sounds and music,
describe voices, speed of speech, volume of sounds.
Describe the sounds and audio as opposed to visual elements or actions.
Sound effects that interrupt dialogue should be treated as follows:
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