king

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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:

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  • Piro: “a great one”
  • Highland Totonac: “the big boss”
  • Huichol: “the one who commanded” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Ekari: “the one who holds the country” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Una: weik sienyi: “big headman” (source: Kroneman 2004, p. 407)
  • Pass Valley Yali: “Big Man” (source: Daud Soesilo)
  • 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 If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior.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.”

(Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )

See also king (Japanese honorifics).

Translation commentary on 2 Chronicles 32:3 - 32:4

Verses 3 and 4 are combined in Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version, presumably because the final clause of verse 3, and they helped him, comes logically after the first part of verse 4. But most other versions do not restructure these two verses.

He planned with his officers and his mighty men to stop the water of the springs that were outside the city: The pronouns He and his refer to Hezekiah. They may be replaced by the proper name in those languages where necessary to make the meaning of the text clear. As Revised Standard Version shows, the Hebrew refers to two groups here: officers and mighty men. The Hebrew word for officers is the same as the one rendered “princes” in 2 Chr 31.8 (see the comments there), and it is so translated by An American Translation here, but the meaning is adequately expressed by the rendering of Revised Standard Version. For mighty men, see the comments on 1 Chr 11.10. Good News Translation includes both groups together in one group, saying “officials.” But in most languages there should be no problem in finding distinct terms for civilian officials and military officers; for example, Dillard says “officials” and “military staff.”

And they helped him: The civilian and military officials helped Hezekiah to cut off the water supply outside the city.

A great many people were gathered: The officials organized a huge crew to do the work.

And they stopped all the springs and the brook that flowed through the land: Some scholars believe the brook refers to what is known as “Hezekiah’s Tunnel.” According to 2 Kgs 20.20, Hezekiah had made a pool and tunnel to bring water into Jerusalem. Today there is a tunnel nearly 600 meters (1,970 feet) long, hewn out of solid rock, to the east of the city. Some scholars believe that this is what the Chronicler is talking about here; for example, Bible en français courant renders and the brook that flowed through the land as “as well as that which flowed through an underground canal.” Parole de Vie similarly says “in particular that which flows in a canal located underground.” However, other scholars take this phrase to be an allusion to “the running stream in the valley nearby” (New American Bible). In this context the land does not refer to the whole country of Judah but rather to a smaller region of the country, that is, the area of Jerusalem.

Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?: The Masoretic Text has kings in the plural, but both the Septuagint and the Syriac have the singular, referring to Sennacherib. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has the singular, but the plural should be retained in translation since the textual evidence for the singular is weak. The question here is rhetorical, meaning “The kings of Assyria will not find much water when they come here.” But the direct quotation may have to be made into indirect discourse in some languages. This may be done by saying “They were telling each other that they certainly did not want the kings of Assyria to find an abundance of water if they arrived near Jerusalem.”

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .