cormorant

Although the translation of shalak as “cormorant” has a tradition going back to the seventeenth century, there has always been considerable doubt about this translation. For one thing, the root of the word shalak means “to throw or hurl”, which would indicate that the bird with this name “throws” itself down onto its prey, something cormorants do not do. They swim low in the water and dive underwater to hunt their prey. This led the late G. R. Driver to suggest the translation “fisher owl”. However, there are problems with this suggestion too. The fisher owl, or more correctly, the Brown Fish Owl Scotopelia ceylonensis, is not likely to have been a bird that was well known, and its fishing habits would only have been seen by fishermen on moonlit nights, and that very rarely. The Israelites were not yet a fishing people in the period of the Exodus.

In modern Hebrew shalak is the name given to the Osprey Pandion haliaetus, which is a type of fishing eagle that plunges into the water from a height and catches fish in its claws. Some Israeli scholars have suggested that it may have been the ancient name for the Smyrna Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis, or the Gannet Sula bassana, both of which drop down from a height onto their prey, which they catch underwater in their beaks.

Since there is so much doubt about the identification of this bird, the translation “osprey” seems to have as much, if not more, justification than “cormorant”.

The White-necked Cormorant Phala-crocorax carbo, which is the most common type of cormorant in the Middle East, is a large bird with a long slim body and a long beak that is hooked at the tip. The adults are black all over with a small yellow pouch where the throat meets the beak. They also have yellow skin on their faces. This type of cormorant is found along the sea and lake coasts, along the larger rivers, and in swampy areas. It has webbed feet like a duck and swims in the water, but with most of the body under the water. It dives and can swim quite a long way underwater hunting fish.

Like all cormorants its feathers are not waterproof, and this enables it to swim underwater easily. However, it also means that after diving or swimming for a while, a cormorant has to come out of the water to dry out its wings. Thus cormorants can often be seen perched on logs or rocks, with their wings spread out to dry.

During the daytime they can usually be found in small groups of four or five, but in the evening when they roost in trees they come together in large numbers and are very noisy. In seasons when large shoals of small fish swim near the surface, large numbers of black cormorants can often be seen flying fast and low above the water in long lines one behind the other, searching for such a shoal. When they find it, they all land on the water together and feed in great excitement.

Apart from the fact that the shalak is found in the lists of unclean birds, it has no other significance in the Bible.

If the translator chooses to identify shalak as “cormorant”, it should not be difficult to find some species of cormorant locally, since cormorants are found all over the world near large bodies of water. The white-necked cormorant is in fact found not only in Israel but also near the coasts, lake shores, large rivers, and swamps throughout Europe, Asia, Australasia, Africa, and the eastern half of North America. In southern Africa a slightly different form of the white-necked cormorant is found, called the white-breasted cormorant. It has a white breast and throat and a smaller throat pouch, but has the same scientific name. Elsewhere there will be local species of cormorant, which can be identified by the habit of perching with wings spread out to dry.

White-breasted cormorant, Wikimedia Commons

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

tinshemeth / barn owl

Owls are found worldwide except in the Antarctic and on some islands. They are active at night and are characterized by flat faces and short hooked beaks that they can open very wide. They swallow their prey whole and later regurgitate the undigested parts as small balls. They also have the ability to turn their heads more than 180 degrees.

There are two basic owl families, both of which are found in the land of Israel. One family is the Tytonidae, which are the Barn and Grass Owls. They have heart-shaped whitish faces, usually outlined by a dark line, and small dark eyes. The other family is the Strigidae, the typical owls. This family contains a large variety of species, all of which have large eyes that may vary in color from light brown through orange to yellow. This family includes the eared or horned owls, the fairly rare fishing owls, and owls that vary in size from the midget scops owl (less than 20 centimeters [8 inches]) through to the giant eagle owl (over 70 centimeters [28 inches]).

Eight species of owl are fairly common in the land of Israel. Most are very seldom seen by humans, but they are quite well known by their different and distinct calls. In biblical times the nights would have been much quieter than in most modern places, and the strange night sounds probably would have interested people, causing some speculation about what was making the sound. The different owls would thus probably have had different names even if people had never seen them. In fact it is unlikely that they would have been able to associate most of the calls with the owls that were seen.

The terms “barn owl,” “screech owl,” and “white owl” are alternative names for the same owl. There is a long tradition among both Jewish and Christian scholars of translating tinshemeth as “barn owl”. New English Bible and Revised English Bible follow Driver’s suggestion “little owl”, but this does not have as wide support among scholars as “barn owl,” which is also the modern Hebrew meaning of tinshemeth. The New Revised Standard Version, updated edition rendering of “water hen” can be disregarded since it’s too vague a term to be useful.

The word tinshemeth actually occurs three times in the Bible. Twice the word probably refers to the barn owl, but the third occurrence is a reference to a type of lizard or chameleon.

The Barn Owl Tyto alba is one of the most widely distributed owls in the world, being common virtually everywhere but the Arctic and Antarctic regions and remote islands. It is a very pale color, light fawn or gray on the wings and back, and almost white on the chest and under the wings. It has small eyes, a large head for its size, and a very striking heart-shaped white facial disk outlined in brown. This facial disk consists of short bristle-like feathers that help the owl to sense very small sounds. Barn owls often roost in barns, deserted houses, caves, and tombs. They utter a variety of strange sounds, varying from the well-known drawn-out trembling screech, to various hissing, chirruping, and snoring sounds. The females are larger and more vocal than the males. These owls live mainly on rats, mice, and other small nocturnal creatures.

It is listed as an unclean bird and was associated with tombs and death.

This is one owl for which finding a local equivalent should not present any major problem. Failing all else, the phrase “white-faced owl” can be used, although strictly speaking, there is another smaller owl, not closely related to the barn owl, that has this English name.

Barn owl, Wikimedia Commons

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

ibex / wild goat / mountain goat

The wild goat found in the land of Israel is the Nubian Ibex Capra ibex nubiana. It has existed in the mountains of this region from time immemorial and until fairly recently it was a very common animal. It was and to some degree still is found in the mountainous parts of Israel the Sinai Peninsula Arabia and Egypt. A closely related species Capra walie is found in Ethiopia and Eritrea.

However the ibex is the only type of wild goat now found in Israel. One other type once lived there but disappeared in the Stone Age long before the time of Abraham. Both ya‘el and ’aqo are the Hebrew names for this animal. Thus versions which include two types of wild goat in the list of clean animals in Deuteronomy 14:5 are probably not correct.

The Nubian ibex is a fairly large wild goat, with adults being about ninety centimeters (3 feet) high at the shoulder. It is a grayish color for most of the year but turns browner in winter. Males have thick long horns over 130 centimeters (4 feet) in length which curve backwards in a semicircle. The horns of the females are much slimmer and shorter, reaching a length of only about 40 centimeters (15 inches). Only the last few centimeters of the horns are smooth, the rest being ringed with ridges. These ibexes live in small herds in the mountains and prefer cliffs and crags, where they live off the bushes that grow on the ledges. Ibex meat is moister and more tender than that of gazelle or deer, and they have been a favorite game animal for many centuries.

The “Wild Goat Rocks” mentioned in 1 Samuel 24:2 is probably the rocky area around the pools and streams of Nahal Arugot near En Gedi. The area has been declared a nature reserve, and the ibexes and other indigenous animals are protected there. The name En Gedi itself, which means “Oasis of the Kid” or “Spring of the Kid”, probably refers to a young ibex.

The ibex is closely associated with remote high mountains and in both Hebrew and Arabic culture it became viewed as the most remote of all animals (compare Job 39:1). This is probably the reason why so many English translations render ya‘el as “mountain goat”. Although not referred to in the Bible ibexes are also known for their surefootedness on rocky ledges.

However to both of the above-mentioned cultures the female ibex was a symbol of grace and beauty grace being associated with the perfect balance with which ibexes stand walk and jump on the cliff faces and beauty probably being associated with their large human-like eyes. In English and many other cultures this poses a problem in Proverbs 5:19, because in these cultures goats are not positive symbols of beauty. In some Tibeto-Burman cultures the wild serow goat is viewed as the ugliest of all animals. In these languages to refer to a woman as a “wild goat” would be an insult. This is the reason why the English versions have “doe” rather than “wild goat”.

In sub-Saharan Africa there are no true wild goats. The closest equivalent animal is a small cliff-dwelling antelope, the Klipspringer Oreotragus oreotragus. The local name of this common, well-known animal has been used to translate ya‘el and ’aqo in many African translations.

In the remaining countries where no indigenous wild goats are found, or where specific words for such do not exist, a phrase equivalent to wild goat or wild mountain goat is usually used. The latter expression is probably the better choice, because in West Africa particularly bush goat is the word for the duiker, a small antelope not associated with mountains.

Proverbs 5:19: This verse occurs in the middle of a series of proverbs dealing with the value of sexual restraint and faithfulness within marriage. The writer/editor exhorts his readers to find sexual fulfillment with their wives alone. A wife is then referred to as “a lovable [or attractive] deer, a graceful ibex.”
As mentioned above in the Discussion: subsection of this section, there are many cultures in which to call a woman a “wild goat” would be an insult rather than a compliment. Where this is the case, a more suitable animal metaphor should be found which denotes gracefulness and can function as the parallel expression for “deer”.
Deuteronomy 14:4,5: The use of two words for wild goat in this list of clean animals should be avoided. However, it is advisable to translate ’aqo (that is, the seventh name in the list) as “ibex” or “wild goat.”

Nubian Ibex, Wikimedia Commons

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

hornet / wasp

There is little doubt among scholars that the Hebrew and Greek words refer to both hornets and wasps.

Hornets and wasps are closely related species, with the hornets being larger than the wasps. Like bees they both belong to the zoological order Hymenoptera, which means that they have stiff, transparent, membrane-like wings. The hornets are usually black or brown; some species have yellow bands. Wasps are often greenish and may also have yellow or light green bands. The larger hornets can be 30-40 millimeters (1-1.5 inches) long.
Both hornets and wasps are characterized by having a long narrow waist between the thorax (chest) and the abdomen (stomach). All have a sting that, because of their large size, can be very painful, even dangerous. Unlike bees, hornets and wasps do not have a detachable sting and can sting repeatedly. They feed on insects, caterpillars, and spiders, and many types sting their prey and then deposit the paralyzed but still living insect or spider near the hornet’s eggs, as a readily available source of food for the larvae when they hatch from the eggs. Some species actually lay their eggs on the paralyzed victim.

One of the most dangerous varieties is the Oriental Black Ground Hornet Vespa orientalis, which establishes large underground nests. They are large shiny black hornets, and when their nest is disturbed they emerge in numbers and attack any animal or person nearby. They are very sensitive to vibration, and a single animal or person walking nearby is enough to arouse them. Once they begin to sting, the smell of the sting arouses them even further, and they may remain in this angry state for hours, with each fresh sting stimulating their ferocity afresh. Some of their victims may end up paralyzed or may even die.

Black ground hornets are found across tropical Africa, through the Middle East, and across Asia to eastern China. In many of these countries known black ground hornet nest sites are marked in some way, such as with a sharpened stick pointing to the nest, as a warning to passersby.

It is little wonder that hornets are a symbol in the Bible for a dangerous enemy or an attacking army.

Although hornets or wasps are found in most warm countries, some large dangerous-looking hornets are relatively harmless. For instance, the black house hornet found all over Africa does not live in swarms but on its own. It makes mud nests on walls or under a roof. It is large and has a sting, but it is not aggressive and very seldom stings any person or animal. Thus care should be taken by translators to choose the name of a hornet that both lives in swarms and is dangerous. In cases where all local hornets or wasps are relatively harmless, a descriptive phrase meaning “warrior hornet”, “war hornet”, “army hornet”, “death hornet” or something similar can be used.

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

crane

The occurrence of this word in Isaiah 38:14 is problematic, where it appears in the phrase sus ‘agur, which looks like a head noun followed by a qualifying noun, so it is the name of a single bird (a type of swift) rather than of two. The phrase is thus translated as “swallow” by some English versions, but as two birds by others. In Jeremiah 8:7, however, all versions treat the word as a common noun, although interpreting it differently.

The interpretation in Jeremiah of ‘agur as “crane” has quite good support. For one thing the crane is one of the most obvious of the migrating birds passing over Israel, and thousands can be seen passing noisily overhead each year as they move from Europe and Asia to Africa for the summer and return again in March. They stay in Israel only for a few days and then move on. Second, the translation “crane” neatly preserves the structure and the images of the Hebrew poem. The structure here is what is referred to as a chiasmus. In this chiasmus four items are mentioned, with the first and last forming one pair and the middle two forming another: stork, dove, swift, crane. This is a common feature of Hebrew poetry. Here “stork” and “crane” are paired, and since both are passing migrants and both have long necks and legs and are about the same size, the pairing is well motivated. Third, but perhaps less important, ‘agur is the modern Hebrew word for crane. Some Hebrew scholars relate the word to the verb ga‘ar, “to cry”, a reference to the noisy call of the crane.

Cranes are large long-legged, long-necked birds, which are best known for their dancing displays. At breeding time especially, but at other times too, a small group of cranes will start “dancing” together, bobbing up and down, jumping into the air, and turning around. The crane mentioned in Jeremiah 8:7 is most likely the Eurasian or Common Crane Grus grus. This is a large gray bird with a trace of red on the top of its head, and whitish cheeks. It has a wingspan of over two meters (6 feet), a long neck, and long bare legs. It behaves very much like a stork, spending most of its time walking on the ground in search of frogs, lizards, grasshoppers, and other insects.

It is one of the birds noted in the Bible for its migrating habits.

It is better to translate sus ‘agur in Isaiah 38:14 as one bird only, namely the swift.

Cranes are found worldwide except in South America, New Zealand, and small island localities. In most parts of the world then, it will not be difficult to find a word for one of the local cranes. However, in most parts of the world the local cranes are not migrating birds, but permanently resident. In these cases it may be good to have a footnote indicating that in Israel cranes migrate in large numbers over the land in spring and autumn, moving from Europe and Asia to Africa and back again. Alternatively, in places where two types of migrating stork are known, as in many parts of central, eastern, and southern Africa, the name of one type can be used to translate ‘agur in Jeremiah 8:7.

African cranes include the Blue Crane Anthropoides paradisea, the Wattled Crane Grus carunculata, and the Crested Crane (also called the Crowned Crane) Balearica regulorum. Australian cranes include the Brolga Grus rubicunda and the Sarus Crane Grus antigone.

Among the Asian cranes is the red-headed Siberian crane, which nests in Siberia and migrates to Iran, Pakistan, India, and China.

In Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, and southeastern Europe, it should be possible to find a local word for the Common Crane Grus grus.

Elsewhere the best solution is a word for crane borrowed from English, Spanish, or Portuguese, or a transliteration of the scientific name Grus.

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

ostrich

The Hebrew that is translated as “ostrich” in English was translated in the 1900 Kalaallisut (Greenlandic) translation (a newer version was published in 2000) as ĸatigagtûssatdlo or “back-like ones.” “The Greenlandic translation of the term for ‘ostriches’ is a descriptive term based on the noun ĸatigak (modern qatigak) ‘back,’ followed by the participial suffix –toĸ (modern –toq), and then the suffix –usaĸ (modern –usaq) ‘something resembling,’ the entire word meaning ‘some- thing resembling something that has a back.’” (Source: Lily Kahn & Riitta-Liisa Valijärvi in The Bible Translator 2019, p. 125ff.)

 

Both of the Hebrew words refer to the ostrich, and some scholars believe that they are really the singular and plural forms of the same word, written slightly differently as the result of a spelling mistake by a scribe. In ancient Hebrew writing they are very similar.

The word renanim may be related to a verb root that means “to call loudly”, a reference to the booming call of the male ostrich.

The Ostrich Struthio camelus is the largest living bird on earth. It cannot fly, because it has underdeveloped wings. It has a long neck and long legs and is about 2 meters (6 feet) tall. The head and neck are almost bald, being covered in short bristles. The male’s body is black with long white feathers on its wings. Its tail is white, gray, or light brown. The females are a uniform grayish brown.

Ostriches feed mainly on seeds, fallen fruit, and shoots and may occasionally eat a lizard or a frog. They also pick up and swallow small pebbles to aid their digestion. They live in small flocks of about twenty, of which four or five are males. They have very unusual nesting habits. The nest is nothing more than a large shallow hollow scraped in the sand. As many as ten females may lay their eggs in the one nest. Only one female and one male will incubate the eggs, however, with the female on the nest in the daytime, and the male taking over later in the afternoon. This is probably because the black male has better camouflage at night. Since ostriches breed at any time of the year, there are often three or four nests occupied by a flock.

During the day a female that is sitting on the eggs will leave the nest to feed. If any danger threatens, she will also leave the eggs and try to lure the threatening animal or human away from the nest. Since the eggs will keep warm in the hot sand the female may be away from the nest for a long time. Once the chickens are hatched, they follow the female that incubated them for a while, but females with chicks will fight among themselves until all the chicks of the flock are taken over by one dominant female. At any sign of danger, the chicks lie motionless under a bush, while the “mother” will try to lure the danger away.

Male ostriches make a series of deep booming hoots that can be heard great distances and which are often mistaken for the roar of a lion. (Fauna and Flora of the Bible is misleading in the statement that ostriches make a “hoarse complaining cry” at night.)

Even though there are only two certain references to ostriches in the Bible, both mention the heartless cruelty of this bird. This is probably a reference to the fact that a) most females lay eggs and then show no further interest in them, leaving them to another to incubate, b) the incubating female may leave the nest for long periods, and c) the hatched chicks are left to one female to care for, regardless of which other females laid the eggs or incubated them. Taken as a whole this seems to be contrary to all “natural motherly instincts.”

In savannah Africa where ostriches are well known there will be local words for ostrich. In Australasia the emu and cassowary are close equivalents, but a footnote may be needed, especially in the case of the cassowary, to indicate that the nesting habits of the ostrich are different, and since it lives in open savannah it can run much faster than the cassowary. Elsewhere a borrowing from the dominant language of the area may be necessary.

Job 39:13: This verse is difficult to make sense of in Hebrew. The general consensus among commentators is that it means something like “The wings of the ostrich beat rapidly [or, joyfully], but they certainly are not comparable to the wings of a stork.” The reference in Job 39:13 to the ostrich laughing at the horse and rider is a reference to the fact that ostriches can outrun horses. In some cultures this may need an explanatory footnote.

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

partridge

Partridges have been hunted and trapped for millennia. In the land of Israel there are three common types of partridge which are still found today: the Rock Partridge Alectoris graeca (also known in the Middle East as the Chukar Alectoris chukar), the Black Francolin Francolinus francolinus, and the Sand Partridge Ammoperdix heyi. In modern Hebrew the sand partridge is still called qore’, but in biblical times all three types of partridge were probably referred to by this name. The name means “the caller”, a reference to the ringing crowing of the males, typically while standing on top of a rock.

Partridges were hunted with stones, slings, and throwing sticks, and were also caught in snares. In 1 Samuel 26:20 David likens himself to a partridge being hunted. This is a very apt simile, since he had been moving from one refuge to another, just as a partridge flies short distances from cover to cover when being chased. He had also been hiding in the same rocky hills that partridges inhabit near En Gedi.

In Sirach 11:30 there is reference to “a decoy partridge in a cage”. This refers to a practice still common in many parts of the world. A male partridge is captured and the caged bird is left in an area where it is known there are partridges, or it is taken from the cage and tethered to a bush by its leg. Grain is scattered around and slip noose snares are set. Toward sundown the captive partridge begins to call, and this attracts other partridges, which begin to feed on the grain and are snared. [See also decoy partridge.]

Partridge eggs were also an important part of the ancient diet, and many Bedouin tribes still collect these eggs regularly. Up until the twentieth century partridges of all three types were abundant throughout Palestine. Today they still exist but in much smaller numbers.

The three partridges mentioned above live in slightly different habitats. The rock partridge, as its name suggests, frequents rocky hill terrain. It is found all over Israel, where it makes good use of the broken terrain to remain hidden. The black francolin prefers denser vegetation in wadis or river valleys. The presence of both these partridges is usually known from their calls rather than from actual sightings of the birds. The sand partridge frequents the Judean Desert and can still be seen coming to drink at pools in wadis along the Dead Sea.

All three types of partridge, in spite of their different markings and the fact that the sand partridge is smaller than the other two, are typical of the partridge family. They live in small flocks called coveys, lay a great many eggs, and prefer to run when in danger, flying only when necessary. Even when they take flight they fly for only a short distance before dropping back to the ground. They also have the ability to squat absolutely still, almost in a trance. With their natural camouflage this ability usually means that the birds will not be seen even by someone passing very near them.

The rock partridge is about 35 centimeters (14 inches) in length and has striking white cheeks with a black band running from its brow, through its eyes, down its neck, and curving around its breast. It also has striking black and chestnut stripes on its flanks. Its back and wings are gray. The beak and legs are red. Both sexes look alike.
The black francolin is about the same size but has a slightly shorter tail. The male has a black breast and flanks. The female is a speckled brown.
The sand partridge is the color of the local sand and is about half the size of the other two types.

Partridges or their close relatives the button quails and pheasants are found all over the world, and finding a local equivalent should not prove difficult. In Asia the Bamboo Partridge Alectoris orientalis is found from Pakistan to China and down through Southeast Asia. In Australia the Brown Quail Coturnix australis and the Stubble Quail Coturnix pectoralis are probably the closest equivalents, rather than the mallee fowl or the scrub fowl, which are mound builders, a very specialized type of bird.
In Africa any of the francolins are a good equivalent. They are found all over Africa.

Rock partridge, Wikimedia Commons

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)

In Newari it is translated as “pheasant” (source: Newari Back Translation).

creeping things / reptiles

The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated in English as “reptiles” or “creeping things” or similar is translated as “those which crawl along upon their stomach” in San Mateo del Mar Huave, “those that crawl the way they travel” in Chichimeca-Jonaz, and “animals that crawl on the ground” in Lalana Chinantec. (Source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)

In Nyamwezi it is translated as as vitundwa vya ku’yu’mba or “creatures that move.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

See also every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature and four-footed creatures and reptiles.

 

The Hebrew words zachal and remes literally mean “creeping [things]” or “crawling [things]”, which is the Hebrew way of referring to small unclean creatures, reptiles in particular. The Greek word herpeton is also a general word for reptile; it includes snakes and lizards. All of the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin words usually exclude fish.

The Hebrew words carry the connotation of uncleanness.

In languages which have a word meaning “reptile”, this will fit most contexts. In languages which do not, phrases such as “snakes and lizards”, “wriggling things”, and so forth could be used.

Source: All Creatures Great and Small: Living things in the Bible (UBS Helps for Translators)