mule

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated with “mule” in English is translated in Swahili with nyumbu which also is a homonym for “wildebeest,” potentially causing confusion.

In Kutu it is translated with “big donkey” because there is no other adequate term in Kutu. (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

In the Hausa Common Language Bible it is translated jakin-doki or “donkey-horse,” since mules are also not known in Nigeria. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)

 

The word pirdah refers to the female mule while pered can refer to either the male or the female. In biblical times mules were used for riding and as pack animals while horses were mainly used to pull military chariots. They appear to have been introduced into Canaan much later than horses. Mules are not mentioned in the Bible until the time of David while horses are mentioned in the Joseph story and in Deuteronomy 17:16 where the king is forbidden to acquire them. Technically the owning of mules was not prohibited although the breeding of them would have fallen under the prohibition of Leviticus 19:19, which forbade the cross-breeding of animals. The Israelites thus seem to have relied on mules imported from neighboring countries.

The mule is not an animal found naturally anywhere, but is the result of people breeding male donkeys with female horses. It is also possible to breed male horses with female donkeys, but the offspring, technically called “hinnies”, not “mules”, are usually smaller than mules. Mules are bigger and stronger than donkeys and are much more resistant to disease than either horses or donkeys. They are usually dark brown with bigger ears than the parent horse.

Although there are male and female mules they are infertile and not able to breed. This makes the stronger males much easier to handle than stallions.

Although the mule in English is associated with stubbornness this is not usually the case in other cultures since mules are very easy to handle if treated properly. In Psalms 32:9 the mule is linked to the horse as both being animals that lack sufficient understanding and need to be guided in the right direction.

Even in languages of societies that know mules, they are often referred to as “horse-donkeys”, or “donkey-horses”. This seems to be a good translation solution even in languages that have no word for mule.

Translation commentary on Judith 15:11

All the people plundered the camp for thirty days: This information follows on verse 7. Good News Translation is to be commended for saying “It took the Israelites thirty days to finish looting the camp of the Assyrians.” For plundered see 1.14.

They gave Judith the tent of Holofernes and all his silver dishes and his beds and his bowls and all his furniture: For silver dishes see 12.1. Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version interpret his beds as “his couches.” It means not just his bed, but also the other furniture that he used for reclining or sitting on. The bowls are not described, as to size or material. The word translated furniture refers to any household objects that were in the tent. Judith gets it all. Good News Translation has reversed the order of beds and bowls, probably because beds go naturally with furniture and bowls go naturally with silverware.

Loaded her mule: Good News Translation has “loaded as much as she could on her mule.” “As much as she could” does not appear in the Greek text, but it is the clear reason for her bringing the wagons to be loaded as well. For mule see 2.17.

Contemporary English Version has a helpful alternative model for this verse:

• For thirty days, the Israelites carried off the wealth of the Assyrian camp. They gave Judith the tent of Holofernes and everything in it, including his silver dinnerware, his bowls, his couches, and the rest of his furniture. She loaded down her mule, and filled her carts with these things.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.