1987 artwork by Japanese artist Takako Horino (b. 1931). “Like many contemporary artists, Takako Horino of Japan is angered at the distorted sense of values in modern society. In her search for an explanation she has turned to the Old Testament and concentrated on the implications of three stories: the ark of Noah, the tower of Babel and the destruction of Sodom. Each of them is an expression of God’s wrath against human stupidity. The tower of Babel compares government fixation with scientific development and weapons of war with its neglect of the people’s welfare. The monolith of the tower and its missiles stands in stark contrast to the broken buildings, churches and institutions below. In the end, all is destroyed. No life exists. A solitary skeleton sitting in front of a television monitor marks the final symbol of humanity’s self-destruction.” (Source for this and the image: The Bible Through Asian Eyes by Masao Takenaka and Ron O’Grady 1991)
The following artwork is by Sister Marie Claire , SMMI (1937–2018) from Bengaluru, India:
For more information about images by Sister Marie Claire and ways to purchase them as lithographs, see here .
For other images of Sister Marie Claire paintings in TIPs, see here.
According to Anne Garber Kompaoré (in Le Sycomore 3/2009, p. 34ff. ), there are 4 ways to identify cardinal directions:
1. celestial bodies, especially the sun and certain stars
2. geographical landmarks, for example a mountain, sea, or river (depending on its position or the direction in which the water flows) etc.
3. climatic phenomena, such as the wind and the direction from which rain comes
4. bodily reference points, especially front, back, left, and right, in relation to celestial bodies or geographical landmarks
Following are examples of how these are practically implemented by various languages: (click or tap here to see the rest of this insight)
Celestial Bodies
East and west are often translated by the rising and the setting of the sun (note that the origin of English and other Indo-European languages is “dawn” for “east” and “evening” [i.e. sun-down] for “west”):
Maan: “where the sun comes up” and “where the sun goes down” (source: Don Slager)
Kankanaey: “from the coming-out of the sun “and “going-away of the sun” (source: Kankanaey back-translation)
Northern Emberá: “from where the sun comes up” and “from where the sun falls” (source: Charles Mortensen)
Ejamat “the side where the sun comes from” and “the side where it sets” (source: David Frank in this blog post )
Tzeltal: “where the sun pours-out” (west) (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
Northern Ngbandi: “the sun behind the chief’s house” (east — the chief lives traditionally at the eastern side of the village, therefore he does not get the sunlight into his eyes) and “under the sun” (west)
Northwestern Dinka: “earth behind” (east — the place behind the earth, i.e. the area where the sun rises)
Jula: “salt village” (north — because salt comes from the north, from the Sahara Desert) and “kola village” (south — since kola comes from the coastal region to the south) (source: Garber Kompaoré)
Matumbi: “toward the beach” (East) (the coast is in the eastern direction in Matumbi-speaking areas), “north” and “south” can be defined as above or below another place (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
Acoli: “right” (of the local White Nile) (north) and “left” (of the White Nile) (south)
Zande: “interior (dry) land” (east); “place-inside-country” (north / south) — Zande, like a number of other languages, including Matengo and Hehe, traditionally only has three cardinal directions.
Belanda Bor: “lower place” (north) and “higher place” (south)
Turkana: “(up)stream” (north) and (down)stream (south)
Mono (DRC): “water place” (south) (source for this and five above: Mietzner / Pasch)
Climatic Phenomena
Shilluk: “opening westwind” (north) and “opening eastwind” (south)
Swahili used to have six directions. In reducing them to four, kusini and kaskazini which used to refer to south-west and north east respectively (the directions from where the two monsoons blow) have become the terms for “south” and north.” (source for this and one above: Mietzner / Pasch)
Bodily Reference Points
Nuer / Burun: “face” and “sun face” respectively (both: east)
Kalenjin: “eye sun” (east) (this and the one above indicate that the sun is “facing” the spectator from its position in the east:
Shilluk: doesn’t use a fixed position of the speaker, instead it has “eye sun morning” for east and “eye sun evening” for west
Mono (DRC): “foot-sun” (east — the start of the sun’s journey)
Burun: “sun leg” (west — the end of the sun’s journey)
Bari: “back” (north — when people are facing south, north is at their back) (source for this and above: Mietzner / Pasch)
Northern Emberá “the looking [left] hand” (north) and “the real [right] hand” (south) (source: Charles Mortensen)
Morelos Nahuatl: “from above” (north) and “from below” (south) (source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)
When all four directions are mentioned, translators tend to avoid listing the four, sometimes verbose terms, and chose solutions like “all directions” (such as in Maan or Manya (source: Don Slager). Yakan has “from the four corners of the earth” (source: Yakan back-translation) and Western Bukidnon Manobo “from the four directions here on the earth” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo back-translation).
The Hebrew text that gives instructions where to place items in the tabernacle with the help of cardinal directions (north and south) had to be approached in the Bambam translation specific to spacial concepts of that culture. Phil Campbell explains: “There are no words in Bambam for north and south. In Exodus 26:35, God instructs that the table is to be placed on the north side and the lamp on the south side inside the tabernacle. The team wants to use right and left to tell where the lamp and table are located. In many languages we would say that the table is on the right and the lampstand is on the left based on the view of someone entering the tabernacle. However, that is not how Bambam people view it. They view the placement of things and rooms in a building according to the orientation of someone standing inside the building facing the front of the building. So that means the table is on the left side and the lampstand is on the right side.”
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 11:2:
Kankanaey: “When they journeyed then to go to the place of the coming-out of the sun, there-was a wide plain at Sinar which they arrived-at and they resided there.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Newari: “When they went, proceeding eastward, they arrived at a plain in the country of Assyria. And they settled there.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “While the people were-transferring for a place-to-live eastward, they were-able-to-reach a plain in the place of Shinar, and there they lived.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “As people moved further east, they arrived at a plain in Babylonia region and began to live there.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Verse 2 describes the transition of a nomadic people in three steps: departure from their old place of living, discovery of a new home, and settlement in it.
And as men migrated from the east: And translates the same form used as an opener in Gen 11.1. Here, however, it is a clause introducer followed by a verb and may often be rendered in English as “When,” “As,” or “And as.” In some languages, however, it is not possible to introduce new information in a subordinate clause. Men translates the masculine plural suffix “they”; the reference is to the people of verse 1 and should include women. Migrated translates a verb used in connection with pulling up tent pegs in Isa 33.20, part of the process of breaking camp or moving to another location. The picture is of a nomadic people moving from place to place to graze their herds. In some languages this has to be expressed as two actions: “they left where they were staying and went….”
From the east is rendered “in the east” by Good News Translation and New English Bible. New International Version has “moved eastward,” and the New Revised Standard Version footnote gives “migrated eastward” as another understanding of the Hebrew. Interpreters differ as to the direction of movement, and because the Hebrew is not precise, it is possible to understand “toward the east,” “from the east,” or “in the east.” East is often translated, like other directions, in terms of local geography, and in many languages in respect of the sun; that is, “from where the sun rises” or “in the land where the sun rises.”
Found a plain is the second stage in the migration of the people. The Revised Standard Version rendering suggests that they were searching for a place to settle; and if this interpretation is followed, it will affect the translation of the word found in some languages. But most versions have “came to” or “came upon,” which do not convey the idea of searching.
Plain translates a noun that refers to a wide valley or vast level ground, here lying between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which were first mentioned in 2.14; land of Shinar is an expression referring to Babylonia. See comments on 10.10. Bible en français courant translates “a large valley in lower Mesopotamia.” New Jerusalem Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, and New American Bible translate “valley.” In many tropical areas valleys between mountain ranges are common, whereas large areas of flat land may be less familiar. In some areas the equivalent will be the “grasslands,” since these are not covered by forests. The name “Babylonia” is identified as a “country” or “region” in many translations.
And settled there is the third and final stage of the migration. Settled translates a verb whose unmarked meaning is “sit down.” In this context the meaning is to live, dwell, and in relation to a people who are making an area their permanent dwelling (they are about to build a city), settled is appropriate in English. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch retains the picture of a nomadic people by saying “After they departed from the east, they came to the country of Shinar and pitched their tents on the plain.” In some languages the idea of settled requires saying “They built their houses and lived…” or “They put down all their loads and planted their crops.” One translation says “They made their place [village] there.”
Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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