Language-specific Insights

mandrake

The Hebrew that is translated in English typically as “mandrake” is translated in various French translations (Traduction Œcuménique de la Bible, Nouvelle Français courant, Parole de Vie) as pommes d’amour or “love apples” which indicates the function as an aphrodisiac (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin). Likewise, in a number of German translations (Luther, Gute Nachricht Bibel), Liebesäpfel with the same meaning is used. Incidentally, in both German and French the respective terms also refer to candy apples .

In Elhomwe it is translated as woohura, a traditional medicine that “turns infertility to fertility” (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext) and in Nyamwezi as ntalantu’, a plant that “is known to have many medicinal purposes for womanhood, one of those is fertility” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext).

 

Commentators do not agree on the identity of the Hebrew word duda’im. While many assert that the word must refer to Mandragora or Mandrake Mandragora autumnalis, Zohary (Plants of the Bible. Cambridge University Press, 1982) says it cannot be so since mandragora has never grown in Mesopotamia, where the story of Genesis 30:14ff. takes place. In Song of Songs 7:13 duda’im refers to some sort of “choice fruit” associated with apples, and cultivated on river banks (not dug up in the fields, as was the case with duda’im in Genesis). Whatever the original plant was (in Mesopotamia), when the story was told in Israel they used a word that was known to the hearers, namely duda’im. In Genesis the context implies, though not directly, that duda’im has something to do with fertility. And the most popular conception-inducing plant in Bible times, according to scholars, was the mandragora (mandrake). The translators of the Septuagint and the Targum, with their own ideas about love and fertility, took duda’im in its Holy Land setting rather than trying to establish the identity of the plant in the Mesopotamian context. The English versions have copied the Septuagint, using “mandrake.”

The mandrake is a stemless herb related to the potato and tomato but grows lower to the ground. Its leaves are dark green, reaching 30 centimeters (1 foot) long and 10 centimeters (4 inches) wide, spreading out rose-like from the center. Purple or blue flowers appear on stalks out of the center and develop into yellow fruits that, when ripe, look like eggs in a bird’s nest. They have a distinct smell that some find sweet and others unpleasant. The mandrake’s large root is often forked, giving the appearance of a human body, which is perhaps the basis for its widespread reputation as a love potion throughout the Middle East and Europe, and for its name, the “love apple.”

The supposed magical properties of mandrakes are many and bizarre. It is said to scream when pulled out of the earth. The leaves are said to shine in the dark. In the Middle Ages Germans dressed them up and made sacrifices to them, lest the spirits be offended. French people believed little elves lived inside them and required daily offerings. As recently as 1630, three women in Hamburg were executed for witchcraft on the grounds that they had mandrake roots in their homes. Arabs call mandrakes the Devil’s candles.

The options to translate “mandrake” are:
1. Translate using a similar plant, such as the wild garden egg (so Berom of Nigeria) plus a footnote. In Hausa of Nigeria gautan daji (or yalo) would be a possible model in some places.
2. Translate using a functional equivalent, that is, some local plant known as an aid to conception, as Tiv of Nigeria has done (mkehem).
3. Create a descriptive expression such as “love flower” (Contemporary English Version) or “love fruit.”
4. Transliterate from Hebrew duda’im or a major language and write a footnote saying that this plant may have been considered an aid to conception. When transliterating, it may be useful to add “root of” as a tag, showing that it was the root of the plant that was effective.

Source: Each According to its Kind: Plants and Trees in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

summer vs. winter

The Hebrew, Ge’ez and Latin that is translated as “summer” and “winter” in English is translated in Chichewa as “dry season” and “wet season.” In Chewa culture, seasons are often defined by the availability of water, which is crucial for agriculture, livestock, and human consumption. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

In Mwera (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext) and in Elhomwe it is translated with a single word — enthawi — that relates to both seasons. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

In Newari it is translated as “hot time” (summer) and “cold time” (winter) (source: Newari Back Translation).

See also winter.

naked

The Greek, Latin and Hebrew that is translated as “naked” in English is translated in Enlhet with a figure of speech: “(one’s) smoothness.” (Source: Jacob Loewen in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 24ff. )

In Elhomwe the word for “naked” is “shameful to use, and would never be used by a preacher in church.” Therefore “without clothes” is used. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

In Cherokee it is translated as “being in a bodily state.” (source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 30)

In the Catholic Mandarin Chinese Sigao version and the Protestant Union Version, historical Chinese idioms are used: chìshēn lòutǐ (赤身露體 / 赤身露体) or chìshēn luǒtǐ (赤身裸體 / 赤身裸体): “bare and uncovered body.” (Source: Toshikazu S. Foley in Hong Kong Journal of Catholic Studies, 2011, p. 45ff.)

key of knowledge

The Greek in Luke 11:52 that is translated as “key of knowledge” in English is translated in Elhomwe as “key to the house of knowledge” to make the metaphor more explicit. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

horn of salvation, mighty savior

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated literally as “horn of salvation” and less metaphorically as “mighty savior” in some English versions is translated along those lines in many languages as well:

  • Uma: “a powerful War chief who brings salvation”
  • Una “a very powerful Person to us who will rescue people” (source for this ans above: Dick Kroneman)
  • Elhomwe “powerful savior” (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Mairasi: “the strong One Who will save us” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • Bariai: “this man came to retrieve us back” (source: Bariai Back Translation)

In Uab Meto, however the term for “horn” is also used metaphorically for “hero” and in Balinese the term for “tusk,” which suggests “champion/hero” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel).

In Chichewa (interconfessional translation, 1999) it is translated as “our mighty Saviour.” Ernst Wendland (1998, p. 155f.) explains: “A literal rendering of the Greek ‘horn of salvation’ causes real problems in Chichewa due to the strong association that an animal ‘horn’ has with the local practice of sorcery (e.g. a ‘sorcerer’ is referred to as wanyanga ‘person of a horn’). Since the horn was a symbol of strength in biblical times, [we] translated this metonym as ‘our mighty Saviour.'”

opening

The Hebrew in Song of Songs 5:4 that is translated as “opening” or similar in English is translated in Elhomwe as “window” because of naturalness. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

The translation in Kalanga with tjigwele was able to maintain “the ambiguity between a hole in the (bedroom) door that enables him to open the door and a more explicit reference to sexual activities.” (Source: project-specific notes in Paratext)

In Dari it is translated as sorakh darvazeh (سوراخ دروازه) or “the hole of the door” (a hole used to open the door) to allow for sexual allusion as well (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin).

sexual immorality / impurity / debauchery

The Greek in Galatians 5:19 that is translated as “sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery” or similar in English is translated in Elhomwe as “different types of sexual sins,” since there were no other specific terms. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

plaster

The Hebrew in Deuteronomy 27:4 that is translated as “plaster” or similar in English is translated in Elhomwe with “plastered stones,” because “plaster did not make much sense.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)