bear (animal)

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “bear” in English is translated in Mungaka and Berom as “leopard” since bears are not known in that culture (see also wolf) (source: Nama 1990 and Andy Warren-Rothlin).

In Vidunda and Kutu it is translated as “lion,” in Kwere as “cheetah” (in Proverbs 17:12) (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext) and in Idakho-Isukha-Tiriki as “jackal” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin).

Michel Kenmogne comments on this and comparable translations (in Noss 2007, p. 378 ff.): “Some exegetical solutions adopted by missionary translations may have been acceptable during that time frame, but weighed against today’s translation theory and procedures, they appear quite outdated and even questionable. For example, Atangana Nama approvingly mentions the translation into Mungaka of terms like ‘deer’ as ‘leopard’, ‘camel’ as ‘elephant’, and ‘wheat’ as ‘maize,’ where the target language has no direct equivalent to the source text. These pre-Nida translation options, now known as adaptations, would be declared unacceptable in modern practice, since they misrepresent the historico-zoological and agricultural realities in the Bible. Nowadays it is considered better to give a generalized term, like ‘grain,’ and where necessary specify ‘a grain called wheat,’ than to give an incorrect equivalence. Unknown animals such as bears, can be called ‘fierce animals,’ especially if the reference is a non-historical context.”

 

The bear that was known in biblical times was the Syrian Brown Bear ursus arctos syriacus. The same word in Hebrew refers to either male or female bears, and it is the gender of the associated words that will indicate the gender of the bear in a specific context.

The Syrian brown bear is very large, similar to the North American Grizzly Bear ursus horribilis, or the European Brown Bear ursus arctos. It has a rather doglike face. It has thick fur, and walks on all fours, but may stand up on its back legs to get a better view. When it stands up like this it may be 2 meters (6 feet) or more tall. It may also weigh over two hundred kilos (440 pounds). Like many other bears Syrian brown bears accumulate fat by gorging themselves in the summer and autumn, and then they sleep through the winter in caves or holes they have dug under logs.

Although its basic food is roots, berries, wild fruit, mice, and lizards, occasionally a rogue bear might kill small livestock. Bears are not able to see very well, and this means that often a person gets quite close to a bear before either one sees the other. The bear is then likely to attack, striking out with its strong digging claws and perhaps biting. Female bears are very protective of their young.

In the Bible, bears and lions are often mentioned together, both being symbols of fierce strength and danger. The female bear in particular was viewed as dangerous, especially if she had young.

In 2 Samuel 17:8, 2 Kings 2:24, Proverbs 17:12, and Hosea 13:8 the translation into languages which mark gender should indicate female bears, but elsewhere males can be assumed.

For translators in the Northern Hemisphere, finding a word for bear is not usually too difficult. The best choice is a generic word for “bear” rather than the specific word for a type of bear. If a specific word must be used, the word for the grizzly bear is suitable in North America, while in Europe and parts of Asia the European brown bear is the closest relative to the Syrian brown bear. In parts of mainland Asia where the brown bear is not known, the word for the Himalayan Black Bear selenarctos thibetanus is the best choice. The word for the sloth bear of India and Ceylon, or for the sun and moon bears of Malaysia, Indo-China, and Indonesia should be avoided, since these bears have small teeth and are not dangerous.

In the higher parts of South America the word for the Spectacled Bear tremarctos ornatus can be used if this animal is known to the readers. For translators elsewhere in the Southern Hemisphere, the problem is more difficult, especially in areas where bears are not known. The use of the name for a local animal is seldom successful, since the more dangerous local animals are usually too different from bears. The only alternative is to transliterate the name from the dominant major or trade language of the area, or from the original biblical language, with a glossary item saying something like: “A bear is a large dangerous animal with big claws and teeth.”

Syrian Brown Bear, Wikimedia Commons

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

addressing one's or someone else's father respectfully in Japanese (父上)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between. One important aspect of addressing someone else in one’s or someone else’s family is by selecting the correct word when referring to them. One way to do this is through the usage of an appropriate title within a conversation as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.

When the speaker humbly refers to his or her father in the presence of respected interlocutor(s), chichi (父) is often used (see addressing one’s father humbly / respectfully in Japanese (父)).

In some conversations, archaic honorific forms for “father” are chosen that also contain chichi (父) and typically indicate a greater level of respect. That includes chichi-ue (父上). An interesting contrast between the use of of chichi and chichi-ue can be found when there is a reference to “my father and your father.” The former is addressed with chichi and the latter with chichi-ue (for more see 1 Kings 15:19, 1 Kings 20:34, and 2 Chronicles 16:3 along with addressing one’s father humbly / respectfully in Japanese (父)). (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

complete verse (2 Samuel 17:8)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 2 Samuel 17:8:

  • Kupsabiny: “Don’t you know that your father and his people of war are couragious? They are fierce like a leopard whose cubs/children have been taken from her. But/And again, your father is a very shrewd warrior. So, he cannot sleep in one place with soldiers.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Please think, your father David and his soldiers are very strong. They are dangerous like a female bear whose children have been snatched from her. Your father is skilled and very strong soldiers. At night he will not be sleeping with his men.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “You know your father and his men; they are brave fighters and they are fierce as a bear who has-been-robbed of her cubs/[lit. children]. Besides that, your father is a skilled fighter, and he does- not -sleep together-with his men.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “You know that your father and the men who are with him are strong soldiers, and that now they are very angry, like a mother bear whose cubs have been stolen from her. Furthermore, your father knows how to fight because he has fought in many battles. He will not stay with his troops during the night.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

know (Japanese honorifics)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God or a person or persons to be greatly honored, the honorific prefix go- (御 or ご) can be used, as in go-zonji (ご存じ), a combination of “know” (zonji) and the honorific prefix go-.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on 2 Samuel 17:8

Hushai said moreover: literally “and Hushai said.” Revised Standard Version adds the word moreover to indicate that Hushai continues his answer. Compare also “Hushai continued” (New Revised Standard Version) and “ ‘You know,’ he went on, ‘that…’ ” (Revised English Bible). These words interrupt the discourse of Hushai and may be considered unnecessary or even distracting in certain languages. If this is the case they may be omitted, since they add nothing to the meaning of the text. In languages where this is done, Hushai’s speech will begin in the middle of verse 7 and continue to the end of verse 13.

The next two clauses are rarely translated literally. In Hebrew the third person masculine plural pronoun comes at the end of each clause: “mighty men, they; and bitter of soul, they.” The following translations attempt to capture the rhetorical character of the Hebrew: “They are warriors, yes they are; and they are enraged, yes they are,” or “They are warriors, they are; and they are enraged, they are.”

Mighty men: see the comments on this term at 10.7 and 16.6. In this context this is a description of the fighting ability of the men who were with David.

They are enraged: literally “bitter of soul” (compare Fox, “bitter of feelings”). This same idiom is used of Hannah in 1 Sam 1.10, where Revised Standard Version translates “she was deeply distressed.” It occurs again in 1 Sam 22.2, where Revised Standard Version translates it “discontented.” This idiom may indicate a wide range of emotions, including “sadness,” “hopelessness,” and “anger.” Because David had been deprived of what his fighting men considered his rightful place, they were “furious” (Anderson), “angry” (New Jerusalem Bible), “thoroughly aroused” (An American Translation), or “desperate” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Hushai goes on to compare these soldiers, saying that they are like a bear robbed of her cubs (literally “like a bear bereaved”). This comparison will be problematic in languages where bears are unknown. To use a borrowed term will unnecessarily distract the reader, and to substitute the name of another animal may present other problems. In many languages the best solution will be to use a more general expression such as “like a large, fierce animal whose children have been taken away.” Of course, in those languages that have problems with the passive form, a restructuring will also be necessary: “like a big mean animal when someone has taken away her young ones.” The adjective translated robbed means “bereaved,” and for this reason, presumably, Contemporary English Version indicates that the cubs “have just been killed.” It may be best, however, to say something more in line with Osty-Trinquet and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, “like a bear whose young ones someone has seized,” without stating that they have been killed.

In the field: this detail is really irrelevant to the main point and may be left implicit if it distracts from the argument given. One manuscript of the Septuagint has the additional words “and a wild boar of the plain,” and Anchor Bible includes these additional words, claiming that they were accidentally omitted from the Masoretic Text. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament, however, does not even consider this textual problem, and most modern translations do not include the additional element.

Besides: this is a translation of the common Hebrew conjunction, but here it introduces a second reason why the advice of Ahithophel was not sound. Some translate it “moreover” (New American Bible and Anderson), but in certain languages “also” will be quite adequate.

Expert in war: literally, “a man of war” (King James Version). David had a great deal of experience in fighting battles, and Hushai was trying to emphasize this fact in order to discourage Absalom from following the advice of Ahithophel. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “an experienced soldier,” while Knox has simply “a fighting man.”

Spend the night: the verb usually translated in this way in English may be rendered in other languages as “pass the night,” “lodge,” or simply “sleep.” New Century Version has “stay all night.”

With the people: that is, with the rest of the army. Some may prefer to translate “with the other soldiers.”

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 .