boat, ship

The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated “boat” or “ship” in English is translated in Chichimeca-Jonaz as “that with which we can walk on water” (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.), in Chitonga as a term in combination with bwato or “dugout canoe” (source: Wendland 1987, p. 72), and in Tangale as inj am or “canoe-of water” (inj — “canoe” — on its own typically refers to a traditional type of carved-out log for sleeping) (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin).

In Kouya it is translated as ‘glʋ ‘kadʋ — “big canoe.”

Philip Saunders (p. 231) explains how the Kouya team arrived at that conclusion:

“Acts chapter 27 was a challenge! It describes Paul’s sea voyage to Italy, and finally Rome. There is a storm at sea and a shipwreck on Malta, and the chapter includes much detailed nautical vocabulary. How do you translate this for a landlocked people group, most of whom have never seen the ocean? All they know are small rivers and dugout canoes.

“We knew that we could later insert some illustrations during the final paging process which would help the Kouya readers to picture what was happening, but meanwhile we struggled to find or invent meaningful terms. The ‘ship’ was a ‘big canoe’ and the ‘passengers’ were ‘the people in the big canoe’; the ‘crew’ were the ‘workers in the big canoe’; the ‘pilot’ was the ‘driver of the big canoe’; the ‘big canoe stopping place’ was the ‘harbour’, and the ‘big canoe stopping metal’ was the ‘anchor’!”

In Lokạạ it is translated as ukalangkwaa, lit. “English canoe.” “The term was not coined for the Bible translation, but rather originated in colonial times when the English arrived in Nigeria on ships. The indigenous term for a canoe was modified to represent the large, ocean-going ship of the English.” (Source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )

See also ships of Tarshish, harbor, anchor, and sailor.

sea / lake

The various Greek, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin and Hebrew terms that are translated as “sea,” “ocean,” or “lake” in English are all translated in Chichewa with one term: nyanja. Malawi, where Chichewa is spoken, has a lot of lakes but does not share a border with the ocean. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

Translation commentary on 1 Maccabees 13:29

And for the pyramids he devised an elaborate setting, erecting about them great columns, and upon the columns he put suits of armor for a permanent memorial, and beside the suits of armor carved ships, so that they could be seen by all who sail the sea: This verse and the previous one are unclear in Greek (so Good News Bible footnote). It is not clear how the memorial, the pyramids, and the columns were connected to each other. According to one guess, the pyramids were erected on top of the memorial, and the base of the memorial was carved with vertical columns, some depicting suits of armor and some depicting ships. According to another guess, the columns were free-standing and surrounded the pyramids; the suits of armor and carvings of ships were placed on top of the columns, or carved onto the columns (so Good News Bible). Even the meaning of so that they could be seen by all who sail the sea is unclear. The monument could conceivably have been large enough and high enough to be seen from the Mediterranean Sea, but certainly no carvings of ships could be discerned at that distance. Good News Bible understands this clause to refer to overseas travelers. Why ships should be pictured is odd in itself; the Maccabees had no navy. Maybe Simon was anticipating being master of the seas as well as of Judea. Maybe it was simply a traditional ornamentation; suits of armor were customary decorations for monuments. For suits of armor, see the comments on the synonymous expression “coats of mail” in 1Macc 6.35.

There is no need for translators to spend large amounts of time on verses 28 and 29, since there is simply no way we can know what the author was trying to describe. In the interest of making the task of translators easier, we offer the following tentative model for these verses:

• 28~He constructed [or, had them construct] two parallel rows of three pyramids for his father, his mother, and his four brothers. They also made a seventh pyramid that stood alone. 29~He surrounded these pyramids with tall columns. On top of each column they placed suits of armor and carvings of ships. Simon intended this memorial to remain for all time, and wanted people to see it from the sea.*
* Verses 28-29 in Greek are unclear.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Maccabees. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.