Ixcatlán Mazatec: “with your best/biggest thinking” (source: Robert Bascom)
Noongar: dwangka-boola, lit. “ear much” (source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018 — see also remember)
Kwere “to know how to live well” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Dobel: “their ear holes are long-lasting” (in Acts 6:3) (source: Jock Hughes)
Gbaya: iŋa-mgbara-mɔ or “knowing-about-things” (note that in comparison to that, “knowledge” is translated as iŋa-mɔ or “knowing things”) (source: Philip Noss in The Bible Translator 2001, p. 114ff. )
Chichewa: nzeru, meaning both “knowledge” and “wisdom” (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
In Hungarian Sign Language it is translated with a hand gesture referring to God to indicate a human quality to communicate that wisdom does not originate from man but is linked to and connected with the fear of God (source: Jenjelvi Biblia and Andrea Bokros):
The Greek, Latin and Ge’ez that is translated as “all the gentiles” or “all nations” in English is translated as “all people” in Tzeltal, as “all mankind” in Highland Totonac, or “the peoples who are everywhere” in Chicahuaxtla Triqui. (Source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.)
The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is transliterated as “Solomon” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with the sign for “wise” referring to 1 Kings 3:12. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Kings 4:34:
Kupsabiny: “The kings/rulers from many nations would send people to come and listen to Solomon attentively because they had heard his knowledge/wisdom being talked about.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “People of all the nations were sent by their kings to listen to the wisdom of Solomon. They came to him to listen to his words of wisdom.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “All the kings in the world have-heard the wisdom of Solomon, so they sent men to listen to his wisdom.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “People came from all over the world to hear the wise things that Solomon said. Many kings sent men to listen to him and then return and tell them what Solomon said.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:
Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))
Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo (Dinė) was determined:
“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”
Men came: The word men in the Revised Standard Version rendering of this verse is not meant exclusively and, in fact, the Hebrew says simply “they came.” The translation of men should therefore read “People” as in New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, and other recent versions. The intended sense in this context may well be “ambassadors” (New Living Translation).
From all peoples … and from all the kings of the earth: In the Hebrew text the first preposition translated from indicates the origin of those who came; that is, they came from various nations. The second preposition translated from is slightly different in Hebrew and has the sense “sent by.” It has the same meaning in 2 Sam 15.3, where it is rendered “deputed by,” that is, “sent by.”
The two parts of this verse are basically parallel in meaning. The reference is not to one group of people who came and then also to other people sent by kings. For this reason Good News Translation omits the parallelism and says simply “Kings … sent people.” If the parallelism is kept, International Children’s Bible may provide a good model for preserving the sense that only one group of people is being mentioned:
• People from all nations came to listen to King Solomon’s wisdom. The kings of all nations sent them to listen to him. These kings had heard of Solomon’s wisdom.
Compare also New Revised Standard Version:
• People came from all the nations to hear the wisdom of Solomon; they came from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, and Osty-Trinquet follow some manuscripts of the Septuagint by adding “he received gifts” before the words from all the kings of the earth. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament, however, gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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