boat, ship

The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated “boat” or “ship” in English is translated in Chichimeca-Jonaz as “that with which we can walk on water” (source: Ronald D. Olson in Notes on Translation January, 1968, p. 15ff.), in Chitonga as a term in combination with bwato or “dugout canoe” (source: Wendland 1987, p. 72), and in Tangale as inj am or “canoe-of water” (inj — “canoe” — on its own typically refers to a traditional type of carved-out log for sleeping) (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin).

In Kouya it is translated as ‘glʋ ‘kadʋ — “big canoe.”

Philip Saunders (p. 231) explains how the Kouya team arrived at that conclusion:

“Acts chapter 27 was a challenge! It describes Paul’s sea voyage to Italy, and finally Rome. There is a storm at sea and a shipwreck on Malta, and the chapter includes much detailed nautical vocabulary. How do you translate this for a landlocked people group, most of whom have never seen the ocean? All they know are small rivers and dugout canoes.

“We knew that we could later insert some illustrations during the final paging process which would help the Kouya readers to picture what was happening, but meanwhile we struggled to find or invent meaningful terms. The ‘ship’ was a ‘big canoe’ and the ‘passengers’ were ‘the people in the big canoe’; the ‘crew’ were the ‘workers in the big canoe’; the ‘pilot’ was the ‘driver of the big canoe’; the ‘big canoe stopping place’ was the ‘harbour’, and the ‘big canoe stopping metal’ was the ‘anchor’!”

In Lokạạ it is translated as ukalangkwaa, lit. “English canoe.” “The term was not coined for the Bible translation, but rather originated in colonial times when the English arrived in Nigeria on ships. The indigenous term for a canoe was modified to represent the large, ocean-going ship of the English.” (Source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )

See also ships of Tarshish, harbor, anchor, and sailor.

complete verse (Matthew 15:39)

Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 15:39:

  • Uma: “After that, he ordered them to return going to their homes, and he rode a boat going to the land of Magadan.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “So-then the people were sent home by Isa and he got in a boat and went to the place Magadan.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And then Jesus sent the people home, and he got into a boat, and he went to the town of Megatan.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then Jesus sent-the people -home and he rode-with his disciples in the boat to go to the region of Magadan.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Only then did Jesus send those people on their way, and then he and his disciples sailed, going to the land/place of Magadan.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Afterwards Jesus sent away the people. Then he went, traveling by boat and went to the land called Magadan.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Honorary "are" construct denoting God ("go")

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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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme are (され) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, ik-are-ru (行かれる) or “go” is used.

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

Translation commentary on Matthew 15:39

And sending away the crowds: Good News Translation identifies the subject of the participle sending and simultaneously shifts to a finite verb: “Then Jesus sent the people away.” For Good News Bible this is important, since it makes verse 39 into a separate paragraph. In place of Good News Translation‘s “sent … away,” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “sent home,” which is certainly the contextual meaning. In many languages it will not only be helpful but necessary to translate as Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has done, for the sake of avoiding a rendering which sounds harsh; for example, translators can say “Then Jesus told the crowds to go home (or, return to their homes).” It can also be in direct speech: “Then Jesus said to the crowds, ‘You should go home.’ ”

Got into the boat can begin a new sentence, as in “Then he got into the boat.” However, in many languages it can just as naturally be connected to the previous phrase: “After Jesus told the crowds to return to their homes, he got into the boat.”

He got into the boat and went: in other contexts this may mean that Jesus and his disciples got into the boat and left, since Matthew occasionally will use such a construction in this manner. However, as 16.5 attests, Jesus gets into the boat this time without his disciples.

Neither Revised Standard Version nor Good News Translation indicate the textual problem regarding the name Magadan. Although TC-GNT favors this name, it acknowledges that “not only the site, but even the existence of such a place-name is uncertain.” The parallel in Mark (8.10) has “the district of Dalmanutha,” which TC-GNT further points out is “an equally unknown site and name.” Some Greek manuscripts have substituted the well-known “Magdala,” a Semitic word meaning “tower,” for Magadan; most translations prefer Magadan.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Matthew 15:39



15:39a

After Jesus had dismissed the crowds: In this context, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as dismissed refers to telling the crowd go home. After the people ate as much as they wanted, Jesus told them to return to their homes. Your translation should not imply that Jesus was being rude or hostile toward the people.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

After he dismissed the crowd
-or-
Then Jesus sent the people ⌊home⌋
-or-
Then Jesus told the crowd of people to go home

This same word occurs in 15:32d.

15:39b

He got into the boat: The disciples probably got into the boat with Jesus. But they are not mentioned because Jesus is in focus here. In some languages, it may be necessary to make the disciples explicit. For example:

he got into the boat ⌊together with the disciples⌋
-or-
he ⌊and his disciples⌋ entered into a boat

the boat: The phrase the boat would normally refer to a boat that had previously been mentioned. This boat may be the same boat as in 14:33a. Or, it is possible that the boat belonged to one of the disciples.

Since no boat is mentioned in the immediate context, it is possible to simply say:

a boat (Good News Translation)

and went to the region of Magadan: The word Magadan probably refers to a small village. This clause indicates that Jesus entered the area that belonged to the people of Magadan.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

went to the area of Magadan (New Century Version)
-or-
came to shore near the town of Magadan (Contemporary English Version)

-or-

arrived at the land of ⌊the people of⌋ ⌊the town of⌋ Magadan