complete verse (Leviticus 11:43)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Leviticus 11:43:

  • Kupsabiny: “Do not spoil yourselves by eating (them) or even touch such animals so that it does not cause you to become unclean.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Don’t even touch these [animals], otherwise you will be unclean.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “[You (plur.)] do- not -let- yourself -get-dirty/become-unclean by eating any one of these animals, for I, the LORD, am your (plur.) God. So [you (plur.)] separate your (plur.) own self/(yourself) for me and [you (plur.)] live holy because I (am) holy.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Do not defile yourselves/cause you to become unacceptable to me by eating any of those creatures.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

formal 2nd person plural pronoun (Japanese)

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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on Leviticus 11:43

The parallel structure of this verse is common in Hebrew. The words make yourselves abominable are parallel to defile yourselves. And the pronoun them in the second part corresponds to any swarming thing that swarms in the first. If the repetition of the same idea using two different sets of words is unnatural in the receptor language, then it will be acceptable to translate the meaning once. Good News Translation makes explicit that the uncleanness comes to a person as a result of eating these unclean animals.

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René and Ellington, John. A Handbook on Leviticus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1990. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .