In Gbaya, the notion of wet hair (“my head is wet with dew”) in Song of Songs 5:2 is emphasized with ɗùkùyùkù, an ideophone used to describe the color and texture of his moist hair, also implying her anticipation.
Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words expressing human sensation that are used as literary devices in many African languages. Since the subject matter of Songs of Songs is particularly conducive to the use of ideophones, there are a total of 30 ideophones in the Gbaya Bible in that short biblical book alone. (Source: Philip Noss)
The Hebrew, Latin and Greek that is translated as “dove” or “pigeon” in English is translated in Pijin with the onomatopoeia kurrukurru. (Source: Bob Carter)
In Matumbi is is translated as ngunda, a kind of dove that has the reputation to be monogamous. (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
In the fifteenth century the English word “pigeon” meant a young dove, the word “dove” being reserved for the adult birds. In modern English the words are used almost interchangeably. As a general rule, “pigeon” is used for domesticated forms of these birds, and for the larger variety of wild forms, while “dove” is used mainly for wild varieties. However, there are many exceptions to this general rule.
Pigeons and doves are both included in a bird family known scientifically as the Colombidae, consisting of well over two hundred species. In Israel and the Middle East are found the true Colombidae, which are easily distinguished from the genus Stretopelia, that is, the turtle doves.
The most common of the true Colombidae in the Middle East is most certainly the Asiatic Rock Dove Columba livia. This bird was first domesticated around 4500 B.C. in Mesopotamia. By 2500 B.C. it was kept as a domestic bird in Egypt, and by 1200 B.C. there is evidence that its homing abilities were already well known. It is this bird that is the ancestor of the domestic homing pigeons that people keep, some of which have escaped, returned to the wild, and now populate city streets all over the world. The ledges of modern buildings are a good substitute for the rock ledges that were its original nesting sites. It is likely that the Canaanites and the Israelites also kept these birds for both food and sacrifice. It is this bird that is called yonah in the Hebrew Bible and peristera in the Greek New Testament.
There are also three types of turtledove found in the land of Israel, two of which are resident species; the third is a migrant that arrives in spring and spends the summer in Israel. This migrant, the true Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur, and one of the species now resident, the Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto, are what the Bible writers called tor in Hebrew and trugōn in Greek. (Both the Hebrew and Greek names are based on the sound the turtledove makes.)
In biblical Hebrew the word gozal generally refers to a nestling of any bird species. In Genesis 15:9 it obviously refers specifically to a young pigeon. Nestling rock pigeons were collected from the rock ledges. Pigeons and doves were kept in cages and dovecotes, and wild ones were trapped in nets. This enabled the Jews to have a handy stock of birds for sacrificial purposes.
The rock pigeon is a blue-gray color with a pinkish sheen to the neck feathers. It has a black tip on its tail. Its call is a repeated moaning oom (the Hebrew name yonah is related to a verb meaning “to moan”) or a rapid cooing coo-ROO-coo-coo, usually repeated two or three times. The call is uttered with the beak closed, into the chest. The male’s sexual display starts with flying wing claps, and then when it lands next to the female, it begins bowing and turning with chest puffed and tail spread.
This type of pigeon lives in large colonies, and when a group is in flight, they maneuver as a single unit, often gliding short distances together with their wings held in a V shape.
The turtledove is a smaller blue-gray bird with a pinkish chest. It arrives in Israel in April, and its rhythmic call yoo-ROO-coo, yoo-ROO-coo, yoo-ROO-coo, repeated for two or three minutes at a time on sunny days, can be heard all over.
Doves are seed eaters, and this fact may be significant in the Flood narrative. The raven, a carrion eater, does not return to the ark, since food is available. The dove returns at first, and when it finally stays away, this is an indication that seeds of some sort are once again available to it, and the earth is again dry.
As seed-eaters, doves and pigeons are ritually clean birds for Jews. Their swift flight means that they are symbolic of speed in some biblical contexts, especially in Psalms. The fact that these birds court, mate, and nest repeatedly throughout the year resulted in their being a symbol of affection, sexuality, and fertility in the ancient Egyptian, Canaanite, and Hebrew cultures. This symbolism is important in the Song of Solomon.
A very ancient belief that the dove has no bile and is therefore devoid of anger led to its becoming a symbol of peace and gentleness. (In actual fact doves and pigeons are aggressive, often attacking other birds, especially at food sources.)
The name yonah for the pigeon and dove is associated with moaning and groaning in pain or sorrow. This is often the symbolism in prophetic poetry.
Pigeons and doves are found worldwide, except in some snow-bound regions and on some remote islands. Almost everywhere they live there is more than one species, and in almost all locations the domestic pigeon is one of these species. As a general rule, the word for the smaller wild dove should be used wherever possible, but in those contexts where both pigeons and doves are mentioned in connection with sacrifices, the word for the domestic pigeon can be used as well as the one for the wild dove.
In 2 Kings 6:25 there is a Hebrew expression that literally means “dove’s dung”. This seems to be a reference to some kind of food that is eaten only in emergencies. Suggestions about what this may refer to have varied from “chickpeas” (which do look somewhat like a dove’s droppings) to “locust-beans”, “wild onions”, and the roots of certain wild flowers. In view of the lack of certainty, it is probably best to translate it literally as “dove’s dung” and include the footnote, “This is probably some kind of wild food eaten only in emergencies.”
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Song of Solomon 5:2:
Kupsabiny: “I have slept with one eye open. Look! My man is at the door knocking/waking (me). He says, ‘Please open the door for me, my maiden, oh, my beloved! Oh, my dove, my loved one! The dew has made my hair wet and the hoar frost of the night has made me soft/wet’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “I slept but my heart was awake. Look, my beloved is knocking at the door. ‘My darling, open the door. My blameless dove, my head is wet with dew. My hair with the dampness of the night."” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “While I was-sleeping I had-a-dream. I heard that my beloved was-knocking. He said, ‘Open-up-for me, O my beloved who (is) so beautiful. For my head (is) now wet with dew.’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “I was partially asleep, but my mind was still awake. Then I heard the one who loves me knocking at the door. He said, ‘My darling, you who are dearer to me than my sister, my dear friend, my perfect one, my dove , open the door for me! My hair is wet from the dew, from the mist that has fallen during the night.’” (Source: Translation for Translators)
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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 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 concept of “please” is translated in the Shinkaiyaku Bible as o-kure (おくれ) with the respectful prefix o-. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )
I slept, but my heart was awake: the verbs here are participles in the Hebrew and serve to describe her present dream-like state. Although she is sleeping, her heart is awake. The heart is where human emotions stir. It is surprising that the word heart is not mentioned more often in these poems (but see 4.9); the term used more frequently is one generally rendered as “being.” As the Hebrew term for heart can also indicate a person’s mind, the young woman here seems to be saying that her mind was awake or alert. Some see this as a state of half-sleep, where she is keeping her ears open for the arrival of her lover. We can translate rather literally, or we can say “I was half asleep, but my mind was working,” “I was asleep but my mind was alert,” or perhaps “Though I was asleep, I was waiting, listening.”
Hark! my beloved is knocking: the opening words in Hebrew, Hark! my beloved, are identical to those used in 2.8, “The voice of my beloved.” Refer there for further comments. Here, however, the context seems to suggest more of a descriptive usage, namely “the sound of my lover.” In some languages this abrupt introduction to the woman’s speech will be acceptable, in which case we can say “Listen! it’s my lover.” In others we may have to add an introductory clause, “I heard the sound of my lover.” Again when Good News Translation says “I dreamed my lover knocked at the door,” it goes beyond what the text says.
The Hebrew word translated knocking has a basic meaning “push.” Here we have a noun clause, so an appropriate verb needs to be supplied; for example, “I heard my lover knocking” (New American Bible), or “… signaling to me,” or “… entreating me.” Good News Translation follows the Septuagint, which adds “at the door” to the Hebrew text. Although this is an addition to the original text, in some languages “door” or something similar will have to be included as the object of the verb “knock.”
Suggested translations are “I heard my lover knocking” or “I heard my lover pleading.”
Open to me: the impression given by the text is that the young woman, half asleep, hears her lover trying to attract her attention. While not wanting to wake the entire family, he calls for her to let him into her room. Open is one of the keywords in this first part of the section (see also verses 5 and 6). Although it is a request that she open the door, there is probably a double meaning in which sexual activity is meant. “Open up” or “Let me come in” are possible translations.
This phrase represents a quote within a quote; the young woman is speaking and quoting the young man’s words. This can be presented as in Hebrew, where a direct quote can occur with no introduction whatsoever. In many languages, however, an introductory formula will have to be supplied. We can say “He said, …” or “I heard him say, ….” Good News Translation takes a different approach by changing the marginal note to “The Man.” This is one possible way of handling the text, though it does not show that the young woman is actually repeating the man’s words. The translator will have to decide what is the best way to indicate that this is reported speech.
My sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one is a series of four endearment terms. For my sister see comments on 4.9. For my love refer to 1.9 notes. My dove is a term from 2.14. Another previous reference in 1.15 was to the dove-like quality of her eyes. My perfect one describes her as a person of complete integrity; it is not necessarily a reference to her physical beauty, though that may also be included. It may be difficult for the translator to find four equivalent terms to convey the thought here. However, these should be preserved if possible. This string of endearment terms emphasizes the young man’s longing to see his loved one. Since these are vocatives they can be placed before the request to open, if this represents a more natural order.
For my head is wet with dew suggests that the young man has spent a long time outside, either because he has traveled a long way to see her, or because he has been forced to wait outside a long time in hopes of seeing her. Is wet with renders the Hebrew idiom “is full of.”
My locks with the drops of the night: a rare Hebrew term is translated locks. It occurs only here and in verse 11. The root from which it comes is difficult to define. Because it is parallel with head, it seems logical to assume it means “hair.” This is the meaning of the form used in the Jewish Mishnah as well. Equally unusual is the phrase translated drops of the night, as its root form is rarely used in biblical Hebrew. It applies to something getting wet, while related languages have similar roots used to mean “rain lightly,” “sprinkle.” The noun form here must describe something like dew. “Mist” is the Good News Translation suggestion, but since mist is not confined to nighttime, we should at least say “night mist.” The verb wet with in the previous clause serves also as the verb for the noun “hair” in this clause. This allows us to translate the phrase as “my hair [is wet] with the night mist.”
Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Zogbo, Lynell. A Handbook on the Book of Song of Songs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1998. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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