complete verse (Deuteronomy 1:9)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Deuteronomy 1:9:

  • Kupsabiny: “Moses continued to say to the people, ‘At that time I said to the people, ‘I am unable to lead you on my own.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “At that time I told you, "I am not able to carry you alone.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Moises as-well said, ‘At that time, I said to you (plur.) (plur.): ‘I am- not -able to-lead you (plur.) alone/[lit. I just one].” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Moses/I also said to the people, ‘When we were still at Sinai Mountain, I told your ancestors ‘It is a very big burden/responsibility for me to govern all of you. So I cannot do it by myself.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)

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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

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