wild animal / wild beast

The Hebrew, Latin, Ge’ez, and Greek that is translated in English as “wild animal” or “wild beast” is translated in Newari as “animal that lives in the jungle.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)

and God said (image)

Image taken from the Wiedmann Bible. For more information about the images and ways to adopt them, see here .

For other images of Willy Wiedmann paintings in TIPs, see here.

translations with a Hebraic voice (Genesis 1:26)

Some translations specifically reproduce the voice of the Hebrew text of the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible.

English:
God said: Let us make humankind, in our image, according to our likeness!
Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the fowl of the heavens, animals, all the earth, and all crawling things that crawl about upon the earth!

Source: Everett Fox 1995

German:
Gott sprach: Machen wir den Menschen in unserem Bild nach unserem Gleichnis!
Sie sollen schalten über das Fischvolk des Meeres, den Vogel des Himmels, das Getier, die Erde all, und alles Gerege, das auf Erden sich regt.

Source: Buber / Rosenzweig 1976

French:
Elohîms dit: « Nous ferons Adâm le Glébeux
à notre réplique, selon notre ressemblance.
Ils assujettiront le poisson de la mer, le volatile des ciels,
la bête, toute la terre, tout reptile qui rampe sur la terre. »

Source: Chouraqui 1985

For other verses or sections translated with a Hebraic voice, see here.

Creation Story Overview in Israeli Sign Language

The following is an overview of the creation story in Israeli Sign Language and its back-translation into English.

Genesis chapter 1 tells us how God created the world in the beginning.

In the beginning of all things there was deep water without boundaries. Darkness was everywhere. The Spirit of God moved over the waters.

On the first day God made light. God saw the light: it was good! God divided the light from the darkness.

The second day.

On the second day there was endless water everywhere. What did God do? He divided the waters up and down and put a strong arch in the middle. What did God call this arch? The sky. The waters are deep below, under the arch, and the waters are deep above, above the arch.

The third day.

What was the world like on the third day? Here is the firmament. Below it is the great expanse of water. What did God do? He gathered the waters together in one place. The place without water was dry land. God called the dry land ‘earth’. In sign language we make the gesture ‘EARTH’. God called the collection of water ‘seas’. In sign language we make the gesture ‘sea’.

And God made different plants grow from the dry land — herbs, flowers, fruit trees.

The fourth day.

On the fourth day, God made the sun, the moon and the stars. God put the sun and the moon on the firmament. And he put the stars all around the firmament. What are the sun, moon and stars for? They shine down on the earth. Because of the sun, moon and stars, we know when the days and nights are; the months and seasons change.

The fifth day.

On the fifth day, in the depths of the water, God made various sea creatures, large and small, and various fish. And on the earth God made all kinds of birds. The birds fly between the earth and the sky. God blessed the birds and the sea creatures and told them, “Be fruitful and multiply”.

The sixth day.

On the sixth day, God made various land animals on the earth — large animals, small animals, domestic animals, wild animals, reptiles and insects.

And on the sixth day God made man — male and female. God gave them His face. God blessed man and woman equally. God gave all animals to man. Man is God’s last and most important creation.

Video by Whole Word Institute , originally posted here . Back-translation by Luke Manevich.

sea / lake

The various Greek, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin and Hebrew terms that are translated as “sea,” “ocean,” or “lake” in English are all translated in Chichewa with one term: nyanja. Malawi, where Chichewa is spoken, has a lot of lakes but does not share a border with the ocean (source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation). Likewise, in Toposa all the different bodies of water are all called by one term as well: nya-name̥ (source: Schröder 2026, p. 101).

In Malagasy culture, the sea is perceived as sacred because it was a path taken by the ancestors. That is why the Malagasy word for the “sea” is ranomasina, which literally means “the sacred water.” The word masina actually has two different meanings: “salted” and “sacred/holy.” Salt is used for the conservation of some foods, such as meat or fish, that are to be set aside for later use. In this sense, the Malagasy phrase for “Holy Spirit” has the literal meaning of “Salted Spirit.” (Source: Brigitte Rabarijaona in The Bible Translator 2022, p. 103ff.)

“Sea” (or: “ocean”) is translated in Tepeuxila Cuicatec as “water land” and in Xicotepec De Juárez Totonac as “very big lake.” (Source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)

complete verse (Genesis 1:26)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 1:26:

  • Kankanaey: “Then he said, ‘Let us create people like us so that they will-be-in-charge-of this world and all the creatures that are here.'” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Then God said — ‘We will make man to be like us and to resemble us closely. Then give them power over the fish that live in the ocean, the birds that live in the heavens, the domesticated animals [lit.: the living beings cared for in a house], over all the earth and the living beings that go on creeping in the earth.'” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Then God said, ‘Let- us -make man that is-like us (incl.). They will-rule-over all different kinds of animals: the (ones-that) swim, the (ones-that) fly, the (ones-that) walk, and the (ones-that) crawl.'” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Then God said, ‘Now we will make human beings that will be like us in many ways. I want them to rule over the fish in the sea, over the birds, over all the livestock/domestic animals, and over all the other creatures that scurry across the ground.'” (Source: Translation for Translators)