brother (older brother)

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “brother” in English is translated in Kwere as sekulu, in Elhomwe as mbalaawo´, and in Mandarin Chinese as gēgē (哥哥), all “older brother.”

Note that Kwere also uses lumbu — “older sibling” in some cases. (Source for Kwere and Elhomwe: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext; Chinese: Jost Zetzsche)

In Lama it is translated as “older or younger brother.” (Source: Neal Brinneman)

See also older brother (Japanese honorifics).

complete verse (2 Samuel 13:8)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Samuel 13:8:

  • Kupsabiny: “Tamar went up to the house of Amnon and found him lying in bed. Then she got wheat flour and mixed in water and kneaded/stirred it. Then, she baked cakes while Amnon was seeing.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Then when Tamar came to Amnon’s place [she] saw that he was lying down in bed. She kneaded a little wheat flour and baked it in his presence.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Tamar went to the house of her sibling Amnon, and she saw him lying-down. She took (some) flour, kneaded it, and baked the bread there near Amnon.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “So Tamar went to Amnon’s house, where he was lying in bed. She took some dough and kneaded it, and formed it into some scones/dumplings while he was watching her. Then she baked them.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 2 Samuel 13:8

So: as a result of the king’s command Tamar performs the actions described in this verse.

Her brother: in those languages that have only terms for “older sibling” and “younger sibling,” it will be appropriate to use “older sibling” to describe the relationship of Amnon to Tamar, since he was the “firstborn” of David (see 3.2).

Dough: this was a mixture of wheat flour and water (or possibly some other liquid) in a soft but thick kind of paste (compare Exo 12.34, 39; Jer 7.18; and Hos 7.4). This mixture had to be kneaded, or repeatedly pressed together by hand (compare Gen 18.6; 1 Sam 28.24). The verb will in many cases have to be translated using a habitual form showing that it was a repeated action.

In his sight: within the view of Amnon, but not necessarily in the same room with him at this point. Since in verse 10 the food was to be brought “into the chamber,” the idea is probably that of Amnon looking through an open door to witness the preparation of the food.

Baked (so also New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New International Version): both Anchor Bible and Anderson have “boiled,” in keeping with the notion that these were not cakes in the traditional Western understanding of the word. The same term is used in 1 Sam 2.13 and 1 Kgs 19.21 for the boiling of meat, and in most of the other places where the verb is used, it has the sense of boiling rather than baking. Others understand this verb to mean that she “fried” the cakes (so New American Bible, Nueva Biblia Española). The precise meaning here is not certain, but “boil” seems to be the most likely sense. Translators may wish to use a general term such as “cooked,” that is, “she put the dough in to cook.”

Cakes: see the comments on verse 6.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .