complete verse (Psalm 135:11)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Psalm 135:11:

  • Chichewa Contempary Chichewa translation, 2002/2016:
    “Sihon the king of the Amorites,
    Og the king of Bashan,
    and all the kingdoms of Canaan;” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
  • Newari:
    “He killed Sihon king of the Amorites,
    Og king of Bashan,
    and all the kings of Canaan.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon:
    “like Sihon the king of the Amornon, Og the king of Bashan, and all the kings of Canaan.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Laarim:
    “Sihon king of people of Amor,
    Og king of Bashan
    and all kings of Canaan,” (Source: Laarim Back Translation)
  • Nyakyusa-Ngonde (back-translation into Swahili):
    “Sihoni mfalme wa Waamori,
    na Ogu mfalme wa Bashani,
    na ufalme wote wa katika Kanani.” (Source: Nyakyusa Back Translation)
  • English:
    “Sihon, the king of the Amor people-group, and Og, the king of Bashan region, and all the other kings in Canaan land.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

king

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Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:

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  • Piro: “a great one”
  • Highland Totonac: “the big boss”
  • Huichol: “the one who commanded” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Ekari: “the one who holds the country” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Una: weik sienyi: “big headman” (source: Kroneman 2004, p. 407)
  • Pass Valley Yali: “Big Man” (source: Daud Soesilo)
  • Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
  • Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))

Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo (Dinė) was determined:

“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”

(Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )

See also king (Japanese honorifics).

Translation commentary on Psalm 135:10 - 135:12

These verses are paralleled in 136.17-20. For the defeat of Sihon see Numbers 21.21-24; Deuteronomy 2.30-33; and for the defeat of Og see Numbers 21.33-35; Deuteronomy 3.1-6. Amorites is a general term for the original inhabitants of the land of Canaan; Sihon’s kingdom was north of Moab, on the east side of the Dead Sea; Bashan was a territory further north, east of Lake Galilee. These two kings, on the east side of the Jordan River, were the first two rulers defeated by the Israelites in their conquest of Canaan. The psalmist adds (verse 11c) and all the kingdoms of Canaan, thinking probably of those whose lands were on the west side of the Jordan River. In some languages it may be necessary to begin verse 11 by saying “those kings’ names were:….”

For heritage in verse 12, see 16.6. The Hebrew text repeats heritage in both lines, which Good News Translation maintains as “he gave.” It is not always necessary to preserve the parallelism, and in such cases one may translate “He gave their lands to his people” or “… to his people called Israel.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .