village

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “village” or “town” in English is translated in Noongar as karlamaya or “fire (used for “home“) + houses” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).

In Elhomwe it is typically translated as “place.” “Here in Malawi, villages very small, so changed to ‘places,’ since not sure whether biblical reference just to small villages or also to bigger towns. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

Great Sea

The Hebrew that is translated in English as “Great Sea” or similar is translated in Khoekhoe as “Mediterranean Sea.” (Source: project-specific notes in Paratext)

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 (Joshua 15:47)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Joshua 15:47:

  • Kupsabiny: “Ashdod, Gaza together with their villages, which were along the ocean until the Wadi of Egypt.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Asdod and the cities and villages all around it.
    Gaza and its cities and villages,
    up to the valley of Egypt and up to the Mediterranean Sea shore.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Ashdod and Gaza, including their cities/towns and villages up-to the place-where- water -flows of Egipto and to the seashore of the Mediteraneo Sea.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “The tribe of Judah was also allotted these towns close to the Mediterranean Sea with their surrounding villages: Ekron and the towns between Ekron and the coast, Ashdod, and Gaza. The area extended south to the dry riverbed on the border of Egypt.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Joshua 15:45 - 15:47

FIFTH DISTRICT: cities in the Philistine coastal area.

Ashdod was about 22 kilometers west of Ekron; Gaza was about 68 kilometers southwest of Ashdod. The other two Philistine cities, Ashkelon and Gath, are not included.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Newman, Barclay M. A Handbook on Joshua. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Joshua 15:47

15:47a

Ashdod, with its towns and villages; Gaza, with its towns and villages: The town of Gaza was another one of the five most important towns of the Philistines.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

The town of Ashdod together with its towns and villages, and the town of Gaza together with its towns and villages also belonged to the people of Judah
-or-
They also received Ashdod and Gaza, and the towns and villages that were near them

15:47b

as far as the Brook of Egypt and the coastline of the Great Sea: The phrase Brook of Egypt occurred in Joshua 15:4, and you translate it the same way in both places.

the Great Sea: The phrase Great Sea refers to the Mediterranean Sea. This indicates that all the towns and villages near Ashdod and Gaza, and along the shore of the Mediterranean south to the Brook of Egypt, belonged to the people of Judah.

Here are some other ways to translate this part of the verse:

and all the places southward along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea to the Brook of Egypt
-or-
This area reached all the way south along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea, to the stream at the border of Egypt

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