family / clan / house

The Hebrew terms that are translated as “family” or “clan” or “house” or similar in English are all translated in Kwere as ng’holo or “clan.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

In the English translation by Goldingay (2018) it is translated as “kin-group.”

See also tribe.

Issachar

The Hebrew and Greek that is transliterated as “Issachar” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with a sign that signifies “donkey” referring to Genesis 49:14. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)


“Issachar” in Spanish Sign Language, source: Sociedad Bíblica de España

For more information on translations of proper names with sign language see Sign Language Bible Translations Have Something to Say to Hearing Christians .

See also strong(-boned) donkey.

More information on Issachar and the Tribe of Issachar .

complete verse (Numbers 26:23)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Numbers 26:23:

  • Kupsabiny: “These are the houses of the clan of Issachar: House of Tolah, house of Puah,” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The descendants of Issachar’s clan were like this —
    The clan of the tolaites from Tola,
    the clan of the Puites from Puah,” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The descendants of Issachar were the families of Tola, Pua,” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “They counted 64,300 men from the tribe of Issachar. They were in clans descended from Tola, Puvah, Jashub, and Shimron.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

large numbers in Angguruk Yali

Many languages use a “body part tally system” where body parts function as numerals (see body part tally systems with a description). One such language is Angguruk Yali which uses a system that ends at the number 27. To circumvent this limitation, the Angguruk Yali translators adopted a strategy where a large number is first indicated with an approximation via the traditional system, followed by the exact number according to Arabic numerals. For example, where in 2 Samuel 6:1 it says “thirty thousand” in the English translation, the Angguruk Yali says teng-teng angge 30.000 or “so many rounds [following the body part tally system] 30,000,” likewise, in Acts 27:37 where the number “two hundred seventy-six” is used, the Angguruk Yali translation says teng-teng angge 276 or “so many rounds 276,” or in John 6:10 teng-teng angge 5.000 for “five thousand.”

This strategy is used in all the verses referenced here.

Source: Lourens de Vries in The Bible Translator 1998, p. 409ff.

See also numbers in Ngalum and numbers in Kombai.

Translation commentary on Numbers 26:23 - 26:25

This paragraph is about the census of the tribe of Issachar. It runs parallel to the previous paragraphs in this chapter dealing with the census of other tribes (see the comments on verses 5-7 and 12-14). The clans of Issachar descended from his sons Tola, Puvah, Jashub, and Shimron (see Gen 46.13; 1 Chr 7.1). Instead of Puvah (Puwah in Hebrew), Good News Translation, New International Version, and New Living Translation have “Puah,” which is the spelling used in the Septuagint, the Vulgate, the Peshitta and the Samaritan Pentateuch, and in 1 Chr 7.1 (see the comments on verses 15-18 for variant spellings of names in this census). Instead of Punites, New International Version, New Living Translation, and Revised English Bible have “Puite,” which follows the ancient translations also. However, like Revised Standard Version, we prefer to follow the spelling used in the Hebrew text here for these names (so also Hebrew Old Testament Text).

Quoted with permission from de Regt, Lénart J. and Wendland, Ernst R. A Handbook on Numbers. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .