20The man gave names to all cattle and to the birds of the air and to every animal of the field, but for the man there was not found a helper as his partner.
The Greek and Hebrew phrases that are often translated as “birds of the air” in English “refer to the undomesticated song birds or wild birds, to be distinguished in a number of languages from domesticated fowl. In Tzeltal these former are ‘field birds’.” (source: Bratcher / Nida)
Q’anjob’al also uses an established term for non-domesticated birds. Newberry and Kittie Cox (in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 91ff. ) explain: “Qʼanjobʼal has two distinct terms, one to identify domesticated birds and the other non-domesticated birds. The additional descriptive phrase ‘of the air’ seemed entirely misleading, for Qʼanjobʼal speakers had never heard of such creatures. Actually, of course, all that was necessary was the term for non-domesticated birds, for that is precisely the meaning of the Biblical expression.”
In Elhomwe they are just translated as “birds” or “birds of the bush” (i.e., wild birds) to “not give the impression that these are special type of birds.” (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
The Hebrew that is translated in English as “livestock” (or “cattle”) is translated in Newari as “living beings brought up in a house” or “living beings cared for in a house” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
In Kwere it is “animals that are being kept.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 2:20:
Kankanaey: “And that is where- the names of all the domesticatable and wild animals and birds -came-from. But none were possible to-be-used-as-a-companion for Adan.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Newari: “In this way the man gave names to all the domesticated animals, to the birds in the heavens, and to the animals living in the jungle. Among them, however, there was not a single one that was suitable to help the man.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “So the man named the animals that live on the land including the animals that fly. But not even one of them was-fitting/suitable to become his companion who would help him.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “Then the man gave names to all the kinds of livestock and birds and wild animals, but none of these creatures was a partner that was suitable for the man.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field: man translates Hebrew ʾadam without the article, and so Hebrew Old Testament Text Project recommends “Adam”; however, most modern translations agree with Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation. See discussion in the section “Translating ʾadam” in “Translating Genesis,” page 11. The classification of land animals is now domestic, wild animals, and birds. Nothing is said about the group of small creeping animals. The order differs here from that in 1.20, 24.
But for the man there was not found a helper fit for him: in spite of having looked at and named each of the animals and birds, the man did not find what he was looking for. A helper fit for him is as in verse 18. The passive construction in this clause will have to be made active in many languages; for example, “the man did not find….” Alternatively the expression there was not found may be taken as an idiomatic way of saying “there wasn’t”; for example, one translation has “But in all that lot there wasn’t a real mate for him. No.”
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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