I know that Company name should not be translated, but LTD or Ltd. should be translated? Just for example, Apple Ltd.
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1"Ltd.", "Inc", "LLC", "S.A." etc. are part of a company's official business name, and therefore should not be translated.– user3169Apr 28, 2018 at 2:39
1 Answer
This seems like an odd question for ELL. "Ltd." is already English ("Limited"), so it doesn't need translation.
However, in a more general case, if the company is incorporated in a particular country, then you should use the incorporation designation from that country, untranslated. For example, there is a large international bank headquartered in Spain that is referred to as Banco Santander, S.A. in English-language articles, even though "S.A." stands for the Spanish phrase "Sociedad Anónima."
This is, however, confused by the fact that multinational companies often have wholly-owned subsidiaries that are locally incorporated. There is an entity headquartered in Boston that is called Santander Bank, N.A. (where "N.A." stands for "National Association"). It is the wholly-owned subsidiary of Banco Santander, S.A. that conducts the parent company's business within the United States.
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Agreed. I've dealt with a lot of international business, and in legal and formal documents, you always retain the original company type. A "limited" company in Europe will not be accountable to the same laws and regulations as a "limited liability company" in the US, even though they might have a very similar structure and be treated similarly in their respective countries. Apr 27, 2018 at 15:43