The Greek and Hebrew that is translated in English as “anoint” is translated in Lakota with azilyA: “to smudge.”
Steve Berneking (in Beerle-Moor / Voinov, p. 121) tells the story of that translation:
“During one visit with the Lakota team, we were reading texts and discussing key biblical terms and how they are best rendered into Lakota. Reference was made to the ritual we label ‘anointing.’ When the Lakota word that had been glossed as ‘anoint’ was read aloud, I heard giggling among the reviewers. Knowing that this reaction called for some explanation, I asked.
“The people there told me that the Lakota verb that was used to translate ‘anoint’ was funny in that context. It is not that the verb is an uncommon one; quite the contrary. Lakota uses that verb frequently, but almost exclusively as a verb of food preparation; the verb belongs to the culinary domain. In other words, the Lakota verb used for ‘anoint’ actually referred to rubbing oil on something that was to be cooked or grilled, in this case, the apostles. The Lakota verb ipáṫaŋṫtaŋ ‘to apply oil on something’ was used quite innocently by the missionaries. The linguistic transfer was understandable: the missionaries needed a verb to translate ‘putting oil on something’; Lakota has a verb; they used that verb. The result was comical. So, during that conversation with the Lakota community, I encouraged the translators to come up with a Lakota verb that is used not simply in ‘the application of oil,’ but more pointedly in the consecration of something or somebody for a special task, or in the appointment of someone for a special purpose. Their response was almost immediate: azilyA or wazílyA ‘to smudge.’ That is how, they told me, warriors and messengers and tribal leaders have always been consecrated (or blessed) before being sent out on a special mission. Sage grass was burned, and the smoke was waved over the person or object. The trans-cultural process of using the traditional Lakota verb azilyA for the biblical notion of ‘anoint’ became, at that moment, part of the Lakota Bible.”
In Bashkir, it is translated as masekhlay (мәсехләү), when used in a ritual context. Masekhlay has the same root than masikh (мәсих), which is used both for “anointed one” in the Old Testament and in its capitalized form (Мәсих) for Μεσσίας (engl. “Messiah”) and Χριστός (engl. “Christ”) in the New Testament. For more information about this, see anointed one.
In Vidunda it is translated as “smear oil.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Click or tap here to see a short video clip showing how anointing was done in biblical times (source: Bible Lands 2012)
“Usually, Thai men spend their free time with other men. Women only enter to serve them food, but here a woman has entered into the male social space in a counter-cultural way Not only is she female, she is a lowly prostitute. Although a Thai woman may sometimes wash her husband’s feet, she will never use her hair to dry them The men observing her are shocked at it all.”
The different Hebrew and Greek terms that are translated as “(olive) oil” and “(animal) fat” in English are translated in Kwere with only one term: mavuta. (Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 7:46:
Noongar: “You did not give me olive oil for my head, but she rubs my feet with perfume.” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uma: “You (sing.), you (sing.) did not oil my head according to our custom for visitors. But this woman watered/poured my feet with fragrant oil that is very expensive its price.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “You did not put oil on my head to honor me but this woman has covered my feet with expensive fragrant oil.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “You also did not pour oil on my head; however, this woman, very expensive perfume she has poured out on my feet.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Neither did you (sing.) oil my hair, but as for her, she has anointed (poured with focus on feet) my feet with perfume.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “You also didn’t give me even everyday oil to spread-by-hand on my head. But as for her, perfume is what she has spread-by-hand on my feet.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a first person singular and plural pronoun (“I” and “we” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. The most commonly used watashi/watakushi (私) is typically used when the speaker is humble and asking for help. In these verses, where God / Jesus is referring to himself, watashi is also used but instead of the kanji writing system (私) the syllabary hiragana (わたし) is used to distinguish God from others.
elaiō tēn kephalēn mou ouk ēleipsas ‘with olive oil you did not anoint my head.’ elaiō is emphatic. The anointing of the head was a gesture of hospitality. Cf. also on v. 38. There is a twofold correspondence between this clause and the next, i.e. elaiō and murō, a cheap and a very expensive unguent, and kephalēn and podas, the usual spot of anointing and a rather unusual one.
Translation:
You did not anoint my head with oil, or, better to bring out the pejorative connotation, “you did not anoint my head, even with oil” (The Four Gospels – a New Translation); or, again making explicit the function, ‘you didn’t show me hospitality (or, give me a reception) by anointing my head.’ The host usually did the anointing himself.
Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.
anoint…anointed…with: The Greek verbs that the Berean Standard Bible translates as anoint and anointed…with are translations of the same verb that was translated as “anointed” in 7:38d. If it is natural in your language, you may use the same verb in these places. However, you may need to vary the form, as the Greek text does. For example:
38dand anointing them with the myrrh…. 46You did not anoint my head with oil; but she has anointed my feet with myrrh. (Revised English Bible)
If your languages prefers to use different words, that is also fine. However, be sure to make the contrast between the woman and Simon clear.
7:46a
You did not anoint My head with oil: When a Jew wanted to honor a special guest, he anointed the guest’s head with oil. This showed extra courtesy to him. In some cultures people may not understand the meaning of putting oil on a person’s head. It may even seem like an unpleasant thing to do. If that is true in your culture, here are options to consider.
• Make the meaning of the action explicit. For example:
You did not honor/welcome me by putting oil on my head
• Use a more general expression. This may be a good option in places where oil is considered to be an unpleasant substance to put on the head. For example:
You did not ⌊honor me by⌋ anointing me
In some translations it may be good to explain this custom in a footnote. For example:
A host was not required to anoint his guest’s head with oil, but it was a special way to honor that person and show him kindness (Psalms 23:5, 141:5). (Translator’s Reference Translation)
oil: The oil that people used for anointing was olive oil. Olive oil cost very little compared with scented oil.
7:46b
but: Again Jesus contrasted the woman’s actions with Simon’s.
she has anointed My feet with perfume: Here Jesus spoke about the woman’s action in 7:38d. She anointed his feet with sweet-smelling oil. This oil was expensive compared to the oil that was normally used to anoint the head of a guest. The woman performed a more humble action in anointing Jesus’ feet instead of his head. Another way to translate this is:
this woman has ⌊welcomed/honored me by⌋ anointing/rubbing my feet with perfumed oil
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
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