The Hebrew, Greek and Latin that is translated as “idol(s)” in English is translated in Central Subanen as ledawan or “images.” (Source: Robert Brichoux in OPTAT 1988/2, p. 80ff. )
In German, typically the term Götze is used. Originally this was used as a term of endearment for Gott (“God” — see here ), later for “icon” and “image, likeness.” Luther started to use it in the 16th century in the meaning of “false god, idol.”
Other terms that are used in German include Götzenbild(er) (“image[s] of idols”) or Bildnis (“image” — Protestant) / Kultbild (“cultish image” — Catholic) (used for instance in Exodus 20:4 and Deuteronomy 5:8). The latest revision of the Catholic Einheitsübersetzung (publ. 2016) also uses the neologism Nichtse (“nothings”) in 1 Chron. 16:26 and Psalm 96:5. (Source: Zetzsche)
The Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek, and Latin that is often translated as “gentiles” (or “nations”) in English is often translated as a “local equivalent of ‘foreigners,'” such as “the people of other lands” (Guerrero Amuzgo), “people of other towns” (Tzeltal), “people of other languages” (San Miguel El Grande Mixtec), “strange peoples” (Navajo (Dinė)) (this and above, see Bratcher / Nida), “outsiders” (Ekari), “people of foreign lands” (Kannada), “non-Jews” (North Alaskan Inupiatun), “people being-in-darkness” (a figurative expression for people lacking cultural or religious insight) (Toraja-Sa’dan) (source for this and three above Reiling / Swellengrebel), “from different places all people” (Martu Wangka) (source: Carl Gross).
Tzeltal translates it as “people in all different towns,” Chicahuaxtla Triqui as “the people who live all over the world,” Highland Totonac as “all the outsider people,” Sayula Popoluca as “(people) in every land” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), Chichimeca-Jonaz as “foreign people who are not Jews,” Sierra de Juárez Zapotec as “people of other nations” (source of this and one above: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.), Highland Totonac as “outsider people” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), Uma as “people who are not the descendants of Israel” (source: Uma Back Translation), “other ethnic groups” (source: Newari Back Translation), and Yakan as “the other tribes” (source: Yakan Back Translation).
In Chichewa, it is translated with mitundu or “races.” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Jeremiah 50:2:
Kupsabiny: “‘It is announced to all nations and flags raised it is spoken out so that nothing at all will be hidden that, ‘This city of Babylon has been captured, the idol called Bel has been humiliated he is Marduk whom they bow to. Everything that those people pray to has been shamed and its idols have been destroyed.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “‘Announce to the nations the news without holding-(anything)-back! And lift-up a banner as a sign that Babilonia will-be-taken-by-force! Her gods including Bel and Marduk will- surely -be-smashed and put-to-shame.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “This is what Yahweh says: ‘Proclaim a message among the nations; do not withhold any of it; raise up a signal flag to announce that Babylon will be captured. Its chief god Marduk, whose other name is Bel, will be completely disgraced, and all the other statues and idols will be shattered.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
Declare … proclaim … set up a banner … proclaim … conceal it not … say: A series of imperatives for making a message known is used in the first part of this verse which all have essentially the same effect. Rather than repeating essentially the same information six times, in many languages it will be preferable to use a lesser number of imperative forms. In any case, say is essentially the equivalent of quotation marks, and coming last in the series it is something of an anticlimax if translated literally. The news to be declared is that Babylon is defeated, but this information comes after say. In many languages words such as Declare and proclaim will require an object. For DeclareGood News Translation has “Tell the news.” This is helpful, and translators can also say “Tell the news about Babylon,” which is a helpful model.
All of the commands are to proclaim the message orally, except for the one rendered set up a banner. The meaning of this command is to give some sort of signal that can be seen by the persons addressed. Good News Translation renders “Give the signal” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “Pin it up everywhere.” It is also possible to say “Put up a sign which tells the word.”
Babylon is taken: In this context Babylon is perhaps the city, as opposed to the nation (Babylonia). For English speakers “has fallen” (Good News Translation) is a more natural idiom than is taken. If the language requires an active construction, then “The enemy has captured Babylon” is acceptable. The army of Cyrus the Persian king conquered Babylon in 539 B.C.
Bel and Merodach are two names for “Marduk” (Good News Translation), the chief god of Babylon. Good News Translation uses only the one name, and an identifier to indicate that this is a god: “Her god Marduk.”
Put to shame … is dismayed: For put to shame, see 2.26; for dismayed see 1.17. These two verbs are parallel, as in 8.9. Here translators can retain the parallelism as follows: “Her god is humiliated; yes, Merodach’s [or, Marduk’s] power is broken.”
Images … idols: Both terms refer to the same objects. The second is a somewhat indelicate word, meaning literally “a ball of excrement,” a term frequently applied to foreign gods (in Ezekiel almost 40 times). This is the basis for New Jerusalem Bible “her Obscenities” and Good News Translation “her disgusting images.”
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Jeremiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2003. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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