The Greek that is translated in English as “mustard seed” is translated in Muna as “wonolita seed.” René van den Berg explains: “The mustard plant rarely exceeds 50 cm in height. A wonolita is a big forest tree growing from a tiny seed.”
In the Bislama and Uripiv translations it is translated as “banyan.” “The banyan tree is one of the biggest in the islands, and it grows from a tiny seed. We (Uripiv) added a footnote to explain to more advanced readers what we had done: ‘Here Matthew compares the kingdom of God to a mustard seed, but since mustard doesn’t grow here, we put banyan, so that Matthew’s meaning will be clear.’” (Source: Ross McKerras)
In Elhomwe it is translated as “tree seed.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
In Gbaya is is translated with the ideophone kɛ̧́ɛ̧́ which “denotes a very tiny and barely visible object. (…) The Gbaya team applied it to faith instead of referring to a mustard seed which is unknown to Gbaya readers.” Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. (Source: Philip Noss)
See also mustard.
The Greek in Luke 2:22 that is translated as “present” in English is translated in Elhomwe as “show.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “divination” or similar in English is translated in Elhomwe as edduwelle or “to know about the future” (source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext) and in Bariai as “magic” (source: Bariai Back Translation).
See also spirit of divination and practice divination.
The Hebrew in Psalm 2:12 that is translated as “kiss his feet” or similar in English is translated in Elhomwe with “bow down.” “‘To embrace’ (or ‘kiss’) when defeated would not be appropriate in Llomwe culture.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
In the Contemporary Chichewa translation (2002/2016) it is not translated with the term for the mouth-to-mouth kiss which is done in private for people in a romantic relationship. Rather, it is kissing of either the feet or hands by someone of lower status. This kind of kiss is for expression of respect, submission, and apology. Mostly, the people whose feet or hands are kissed are those with authority such as chiefs, elders, and religious leaders. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
See also kissed (his feet).
The Hebrew in Leviticus 6:28 that is translated as “bronze vessel” in English is translated in Elhomwe with “metal pot,” since bronze is not known. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
The Hebrew in Genesis 3:18 that is translated as “thistles” in English is translated in Elhomwe as epullathi or “bitter fruit” (which cannot be eaten). (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
See also thorns.
The Hebrew in 1 Kings 4:13 that is translated as “bronze bars” or similar in English is translated in Elhomwe with “doors locked with iron bars.” Bronze is not known in Malawi. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
The Hebrew that is translated as “firstborn” in English is translated in Elhomwe here as “first-born male children.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
See also firstborn.
