forgive (Japanese honorifics)

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between. One way to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “forgive” in English is translated in the Shinkaiyaku Bible as o-yurushi (お赦し), combining “forgive” (yurushi) with the respectful prefix o-.

Note that in Luke 11:4, Matthew 6:12, and Matthew 6:15, only the “forgive” that refers to God’s forgiveness is translated as o-yurushi. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

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