Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)
The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).
For this verse, the Jarai and the Adamawa Fulfulde translation both use the exclusive pronoun, excluding Joseph.
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 43:20:
Kankanaey: “‘Sir, there-is please that which we (excl.) would say. We (excl.) came here one-time to go buy food.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Newari: “‘Having bought grain here before, when we came back” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “They said, ‘Sir, just a minute, we (excl.) have something-to-say to you (sing.). We (excl.) came here before to-buy food.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “one of them said to him, ‘Please, sir, listen to me. We came down here previously and bought some grain.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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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 to do this is through the usage of appropriate suffix title referred to as keishō (敬称) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017 by using the formal title –sama. This is distinct from nominal titles such as “master.” This is evident from the forms such as go-shujin-sama (ご主人様) “master” or “lord” which is the combination of the nominal title shujin “master” with the honorific prefix go- and the suffix title –sama.
In some cases, it can also be used as go-shujin (ご主人), i.e. with the honorific prefix go- but without the suffix title –sama. You can find that in Genesis 23:6, 23:11, 23:15, 24:51, 39:8, 39:9, 44:8, 44:9; 1 Samuel 25:17; and 2 Kings 2:16 and 4:26.
Oh, my lord, we came down the first time to buy food: Oh translates the Hebrew particle of entreaty, which is often used when an inferior speaks to a person of superior rank. In English, for example, the equivalent may be “I beg you to excuse me, sir,” or “Please excuse me, sir.” Other languages have particular expressions in this kind of social context; for example, “I speak with my mouth covered, my chief,” or “I hide my face to say to you, sir.” We came down may be rendered “we came to Egypt” or “we came to this country.” In a number of translations the first time is rendered as “once before.”
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 .
Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.
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 to do this is through the usage of lexical honorific forms, i.e., completely different words, as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, mairu (参る), a humble form of kuru (来る) or “come” is used.
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