vision

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The Hebrew, Aramaic, Latin and Greek that is translated as “vision” in English is translated in a variety in the following languages:

  • Chol: “as if in a dream” (source: Robert Bascom)
  • Obolo: ilaak ọkpọchieen̄ or “dreaming awake” (source: Enene Enene)
  • Eastern Highland Otomi: “a showing like dreams”
  • Desano: “see in a dream what God will send”
  • Rincón Zapotec: “see what God shows”
  • Mayo: “see things from God as in a dream”
  • Lalana Chinantec: “dream how it is going to be”
  • Chuj: “like dreaming they see”
  • San Mateo del Mar Huave: “understand what they see as if in a dream”
  • Ayutla Mixtec: “see that which will happen” (source for this and seven above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
  • Tagbanwa: “being caused to dream by God” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Chichewa: azidzaona zinthu m’masomphenya: “they will see things as if face-to-face” (interconfessional translation, publ. 1999) (Source: Wendland 1998, p. 69)
  • Mandarin Chinese: yì xiàng (异象 / 異象), lit. “different (or: strange) appearance.” (Source: Zetzsche)

The Greek in the books of Revelation and Acts is translated as obq-rmwible: “look-dream” in Natügu. Brenda Boerger (in Beerle-Moor / Voinov, p. 162ff.) tells the story of that translation: “In the book of Revelation, the author, John, talks about having visions. Mr. Simon [the native language translator] and I discussed what this meant and he invented the compound verb obq-rmwible ‘look-dream’ to express it. Interestingly, during village testing no one ever had to ask what this neologism meant.”

See also see a vision.

complete verse (Acts 9:12)

Following are a number of back-translations of Acts 9:12:

  • Uma: “and in a vision he saw you (sing.), Ananias. He saw you (sing.) go meet him and lay-hands-on him so that he could see again.'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “I have already shown to him what you are about to do to him. It is as though he saw you entering and laying your hands on him in order that he would see again.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And by means of my power he has seen you, Ananias, coming in to him and placing our hands on him so that his seeing might be opened.'” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “and God has shown him something like a dream in which a man named Ananias entered and laid-hands-on him so that he would be-able-to-see again,’ the Lord Jesus said.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “And he saw something like he dreamed it. What he saw was, there was a person who arrived who was named Ananias, who put his hand on him so that he could see again.'” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Acts 9:12

The words in a vision appear in different positions in various manuscripts and are omitted by some manuscripts, though all translations apparently include them. Regardless of whether this phrase is an original part of the Greek text, it may be included on translational grounds, since verse 10 makes it clear that what Ananias saw was in a vision.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .