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) and in Yakut as “larch seed,” a small seed which does indeed grow into a large tree” (source: David Clark in The Bible Translator 2015, p. 117ff. ),
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)
The Greek that is translated as “wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather” or similar in English is translated in Mairasi a lot more specific as “if you see the mother of flocks of corpse-eating birds, Long-tailed Buzzard, Grey-faced Buzzard, White-breasted sea Eagle, or Brahminy Kite, then there is something dead and rotting, a dead person’s body, or a dead wilderness animal is over there.” (Aij ner nenem naa, tuao, iamba, sende fut namba in netomwan andani, orom umburu joet tan, nere neavo, sas warenar joetnyaa fovar atat.)
In Tangoa, a cultural substitute is used: “When you see the flying foxes flying to one location, you know that there is a ripe mango tree there” (Vara ko hite na karai la lo avu vano hin te jara, o pa levosahia vara te pahai mo mena atu.). A footnote explains in that translation that “when the last days come close, and people see all these things happening, they can be sure that it won’t be long before the Son of Man appears on the earth.” (Source: Ross McKerras)
In the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) it is translated as “wherever there is carrion, the vultures will gather in the blink of an eye (blitzschnell).”
For Yakut neither eagles nor vultures are known, so the translation became “ravens,” which are known. In Chechen, the term chosen was “crows.” (Source: David Clark in The Bible Translator 2015, p. 117ff. )
The Greek in Luke 12:37 that is translated as “fasten his belt” or similar in English is translated in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) with Kellnerschürze umbinden or “tie on the waiter’s apron.”
The Greek in Luke 12:35 that is translated as “be dressed for action” or literally as “gird your loins” in English is translated idiomatically in the FrenchNouvelle Français Courant as “roll up your sleeves” and in Yakut as “have your belts done up tight,” both of which are idioms in their respective languages. (Source: Katie Badie [French] and David Clark in The Bible Translator 2015, p. 117ff. ) [Yakut])
The Greek in Luke 19:22 that is translated as “wicked slave” in English is translated idiomatically in Yakut as “you fellow with black thoughts.” (Source: David Clark in The Bible Translator 2015, p. 117ff. )
The Greek in Luke 13:12 that is sometimes translated as “Woman” in English is translated in Yakut as “older sister.” Since a direct translation of “Woman” would have been rude, “the translators assumed that because the woman Jesus healed had been crippled for eighteen years, she was probably older than Jesus, so they had him address her with the polite form, ‘older sister.'”
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “scorpion” in English is translated in North Tanna as “centipedes” (e.g. Luke 10:19) or “millipede” (e.g. Luke 11:12) (source: Ross McKerras).
The translation in Noongar is nirnt-daalang or “tail-tongue” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang), in Uma it is translated as “stinging-caterpillar” (source: Uma Back Translation) and in Yakut and Chechen as “poisonous spiders” (source: David Clark in The Bible Translator 2015, p. 117ff. ).
There is complete agreement that these words refer to the scorpion. Many scholars accept that ‘aqrav was also a nickname for a type of whip used for punishing criminals.
The scorpion is an eight-legged creature. In the land of Israel it grows to about 13 centimeters (5 inches) long, but in some tropical countries scorpions can be up to 18 centimeters (7 inches) long. The front pair of legs has claws similar to those on a crab, and the tail, which it can arch over its head, carries a fierce sting. It feeds on other insects and on small reptiles, such as baby lizards. It grasps its prey in its claws and stings it with its tail, either killing it or paralyzing it.
In the Hebrew Bible the scorpion epitomizes harsh, inhospitable living conditions.
Scorpions are found almost worldwide, except in the Arctic tundra and on some islands. In most places, therefore, a local word will be available.
