Translation Services and City Profile of Charleston, South Carolina
Founded in 1670, Charleston is the biggest city in Charleston County, South Carolina, USA. It is also the county seat of the county. Charleston has several nicknames as “Chucktown”, “The Palmetto City”, and “Carolopolis” in Latin. Charleston’s cityscape features a great number of churches; for this reason it is also called “The Holy City”. Charleston’s population consists of approximately 127,000 people – it is the second most populous city in the state. Most of the residents are White (around 65%); Black people are also numerous as they are about 32%.
Charleston’s economy is varied. Indeed, many industrial sectors are represented, including automotive, chemical (Union Carbide Corporation is, for example, one of the several companies located there), healthcare, manufacturing, mining, retail trade, telecommunications, and tourism. Government is also an important sector as around 24,800 people work in this sector among the Charleston metropolitan area workforce. The State Government is the largest employer with around 12,400 workers. This combination of public sector and private sector manufacturing gives rise to a significant need for translation services in Charleston.
In order to encourage business development, the government has some incentive programs (local, state and job training programs). For example, one of the local programs is the Business and Industrial Development Corporation (BIDCO). This organization provides assistance such as training and education to local workers.
Regarding transportation, the bus service is provided by the Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA) throughout the Charleston area. There is also a port called Port of Charleston. With its five terminals, the port plays an important role in the economy of the city. As for air service, it is operated by the Charleston International Airport. This airport accommodates the greatest number of passengers in the state of South Carolina. Since 2005, the largest cable-stayed bridge on the American Continent, the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge (or Cooper River Bridge) connects Mount Pleasant to downtown Charleston.
The city is home to many institutions of higher education. Indeed, there are different public institutions in various areas such as the American College of the Building Arts, Charleston School of Law, Charleston Southern University, College of Charleston, Medical University of South Carolina, Springfield College, and The Citadel (the state’s military college).
Charleston’s culture is a combination of various traditional English, French, southern American, and West African cultures, making it extraordinary. There are a lot of museums and historical attractions in the city such as the Charleston Museum (the first museum on the American Continent), Customs House, Fireproof Building, Gibbes Museum of Art, the Old Exchange, etc. Every year, the city hosts many artists performing in various disciplines at the Spoleto Festival USA during seventeen days. The MOJA Arts Festival is another annual multi-disciplinary festival. Charleston also owns different sport teams. In fact, it has a team for baseball, ice hockey, soccer, among others.
