The Hebrew that is translated as “rock” in English is translated in the Chichewa as thanthwe. “Thanthwe” normally is a big stone that spreads over a large area either visible or lying underneath and cannot be lifted or moved. In Chewa religious context, “thanthwe” was a sacred rock which people believed to be the place of worship. This place was safe because it was associated with the presence of the Supreme Being. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)
forget
The Hebrew, Latin, Ge’ez, and Greek that is translated as “forget” in English is translated in Noongar as dwangka-anbangbat, lit. “ear-lose.” (Source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018).
See also remember and forget (Japanese honorifics).
mourn
The Hebrew, Latin, and Greek that is translated as “mourn” or similar in English is translated in Newari as “have one’s heart broken” or “have a bursting heart” (source: Newari Back Translation).
complete verse (Psalm 42:9)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Psalm 42:9:
- Chichewa Contempary Chichewa translation, 2002/2016:
“I am saying that to God my Rock,
‘Why have you forgotten me?
Why should I walk while crying,
oppressed by an enemy?’” (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation) - Newari:
“I say to God my rock,,
‘Why have you forgotten me?
Why should I have to keep on morning
because my enemies oppress me?"” (Source: Newari Back Translation) - Hiligaynon:
“O God my protecting/place-to-hide/place-of-refuge rock/stone, I am-saying to you (sing.),
‘Why have- you (sing.) -forgotten me?
Why must I mourn because of the oppression of me by the enemies?’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation) - Eastern Bru:
“I ask from God, the one who protects me like this: "Why have you forgotten me? Why must I suffer adversity from people who hate me?"” (Source: Bru Back Translation) - Laarim:
“I say to my God who is my mountain who keeps me,
‘Why have you forgotten me?
why do I cry,
because my enemies disturbed me?” (Source: Laarim Back Translation) - Nyakyusa-Ngonde (back-translation into Swahili):
“Namwambia Mungu, ambaye ni mwamba wangu,
nasema, ‘Kwa nini umenisahau?
Kwa nini nihuzunike na kuonewa na maadui?’” (Source: Nyakyusa Back Translation) - English:
“I say to God, who is like an overhanging rock under which I can hide,
‘It seems that you have forgotten me.
I <mourn/ cry> constantly because my enemies act cruelly toward me’.” (Source: Translation for Translators)
pray / prayer
The Hebrew, Aramaic, Latin, and Greek that is translated as “pray” (or “prayer”) in English is often translated as “talking with God” (Central Pame, Tzeltal, Chol, Chimborazo Highland Quichua, Shipibo-Conibo, Kaqchikel, Tepeuxila Cuicatec, Copainalá Zoque, Central Tarahumara).
Other solutions include:
- “beg” or “ask,” (full expression: “ask with one’s heart coming out,” which leaves out selfish praying, for asking with the heart out leaves no place for self to hide) (Tzotzil)
- “cause God to know” (Huichol)
- “raise up one’s words to God” (implying an element of worship, as well as communication) (Miskito, Lacandon) (source of this and all above: Bratcher / Nida)
- “speak to God” (Shilluk) (source: Nida 1964, p. 237)
- “talk together with Great Above One (=God)” (Mairasi) (source: Enggavoter, 2004)
- “call to one’s Father” (San Blas Kuna) (source: Claudio and Marvel Iglesias in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 85ff. )
-
“beg” (waan) (Ik). Terrill Schrock (in Wycliffe Bible Translators 2016, p. 93) explains (click or tap here to read more):
What do begging and praying have to do with each other? Do you beg when you pray? Do I?
“The Ik word for ‘visitor’ is waanam, which means ‘begging person.’ Do you beg when you go visiting? The Ik do. Maybe you don’t beg, but maybe when you visit someone, you are looking for something. Maybe it’s just a listening ear.
When the Ik hear that [my wife] Amber and I are planning trip to this or that place for a certain amount of time, the letters and lists start coming. As the days dwindle before our departure, the little stack of guests grows. ‘Please, sir, remember me for the allowing: shoes, jacket (rainproof), watch, box, trousers, pens, and money for the children. Thank you, sir, for your assistance.’
“A few people come by just to greet us or spend bit of time with us. Another precious few will occasionally confide in us about their problems without asking for anything more than a listening ear. I love that.
“The other day I was in our spare bedroom praying my list of requests to God — a nice list covering most areas of my life, certainly all the points of anxiety. Then it hit me: Does God want my list, or does he want my relationship?
“I decided to try something. Instead of reading off my list of requests to God, I just talk to him about my issues without any expectation of how he should respond. I make it more about our relationship than my list, because if our personhood is like God’s personhood, then maybe God prefers our confidence and time to our lists, letters, and enumerations.”
In Luang it is translated with different shades of meaning (click or tap here to read more):
- For Acts 1:14, 20:36, 21:5: kola ttieru-yawur nehla — “hold the waist and hug the neck.” (“This is the more general term for prayer and often refers to worship in prayer as opposed to petition. The Luang people spend the majority of their prayers worshiping rather than petitioning, which explains why this term often is used generically for prayer.”)
- For Acts 28:9: sumbiani — “pray.” (“This term is also used generically for ‘prayer’. When praying is referred to several times in close proximity, it serves as a variation for kola ttieru-yawur nehla, in keeping with Luang discourse style. It is also used when a prayer is made up of many requests.”)
- For Acts 8:15, 12:5: polu-waka — “call-ask.” (“This is a term for petition that is used especially when the need is very intense.”)
Source: Kathy Taber in Notes on Translation 1/1999, p. 9-16.
See also Nehemiah’s prayer (image).
forget (Japanese honorifics)
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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.
The Hebrew that is translated as “forget” in English is translated in the Shinkaiyaku Bible as o-wasure (お忘れ), combining “forget” (wasure) with the respectful prefix o-. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
See also forget.
enemy / foe
The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, Ge’ez, and Latin that is translated as “enemy” or “foe” in English is translated in the Hausa Common Language Bible as “friends of front,” i.e., the person standing opposite you in a battle. (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
In North Alaskan Inupiatun it is translated with a term that implies that it’s not just someone who hates you, but one who wants to do you harm (Source: Robert Bascom), in Tarok as ukpa ìkum or “companion in war/fighting,” and in Ikwere as nye irno m or “person who hates me” (source for this and one above: Chuck and Karen Tessaro in this newsletter ).
respectful form of "say/speak" (mōshiageru)
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 to do this is through the usage of lexical honorific forms, i.e., completely different words, as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, mōshiageru (申し上げる), the respectful form of iu (言う) or “say / speak” is used.
(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
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