years (age)

In Aekyom, years are counted as “turtles” (ambum).

Norm Mundhenk tells this story:

“Recently I was checking some New Testament material in the Aekyom language of western Papua New Guinea. It seemed relatively clear until suddenly we came to a passage that started, ‘When Jesus had 12 turtles, …’ Surely I had misunderstood what they said.
“‘Did you say that Jesus had 12 turtles?’
“‘Let us explain! Around here there is a certain time every year when river turtles come up on the banks and lay their eggs. Because this is so regular, it can be used as a way of counting years. Someone’s age is said to be how many turtles that person has. So when we say that Jesus had 12 turtles, we mean that Jesus was 12 years old.’
“It was of course the familiar story of Jesus’ trip with his parents to Jerusalem. And certainly, as we all know, Jesus did indeed have 12 turtles at that time!”

In Tok Pisin, krismas (derived from “christmas”) is taken as the fixed annual marker, so Jesus had 12 “christmases” (Jisas i gat 12-pela krismas pinis) or Abram (in Gen. 12:4) had 75 (Abram i gat 75 krismas) (source: Norm Mundhenk). In Noongar it is biroka kadak or “summers had” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).

See also advanced in years.

complete verse (Daniel 5:31)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Daniel 5:31:

  • Kupsabiny: “and Darius of Media took over the kingship, when he had sixty two years.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “And the 62-year-old Darius, the Mede, succeeded in conquering that country.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The one who-succeeded him as king was Darius the Medianhon, who was 62 years that time.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Darius, the King of Media, became the King of Babylonia when he was 62 years old.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Daniel 5:31

Darius the Mede: this person is not mentioned anywhere else in ancient history. Three different men bearing the name Darius ruled over the Persian Empire, but at later dates. Furthermore, secular history tells us that the city of Babylon was captured by Cyrus, King of the Persians. Nevertheless the translator must respect the text as we have it today. It should not be “corrected” on the basis of modern knowledge. See also the comments on the father of Belshazzar in 5.1. But note the remarks on the relationship between Darius and Cyrus in 6.28.

Received the kingdom: translators may prefer to say simply “became king,” or “started to rule,” but Good News Translation has “seized royal power.” Some languages, however, will require some kind of object for the verb “rule” or “become king.” In those cases translators may use a rather vague object such as “the country” or the actual name “Babylonia.”

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René & Ellington, John. A Handbook on Daniel. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .