The Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that is typically translated in English as “joy” or “happiness” is translated in the HausaCommon Language Bible idiomatically as farin ciki or “white stomach.” In some cases, such as in Genesis 29:11, it is also added for emphatic purposes.
Other languages that use the same expression include Southern Birifor (pʋpɛl), Dera (popolok awo), Reshe (ɾipo ɾipuhã). (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
The Greek and Hebrew that is usually translated with “with all (one’s) heart” in English is translated in Newari as “from (one’s) inmost heart” (source: Newari Back Translation)
“Navajo (Dinė) distinguishes between a man’s son or daughter and a woman’s son or daughter by the use of different terms for each. So the gender of Zion had to be determined. The problem was settled when a friend called to our attention a number of verses in the Old Testament where Zion is referred to as “she” or “her”, e.g. Ps. 87:5, 48:12, Is. 4:5, 66:8. The term for a woman’s daughter is biché’é, so the “daughter of Zion” became Záiyon biché’é ‘Zion her-daughter’.” (Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. .)
In the English translation by Goldingay (2018) it is translated as Miss Tsiyyon (or: Zion).
The name that is transliterated as “Jerusalem” in English is signed in French Sign Language with a sign that depicts worshiping at the Western Wall in Jerusalem:
While a similar sign is also used in British Sign Language, another, more neutral sign that combines the sign “J” and the signs for “place” is used as well. (Source: Anna Smith)
“Jerusalem” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)
Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Zephaniah 3:14:
Kupsabiny: “Sing, oh, daughter of Zion. Sing loudly oh, Israel. Rejoice and be happy with all your stomach, oh, daughter of Jerusalem.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “O my daughter Zion, sing! O Israel, shout aloud! Rejoice, O my daughter Jerusalem, Be glad and rejoice with all your heart!” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “Zefanias said, ‘You (plur.) residents of Israel, you (plur.) rejoice! You (plur.) rejoice residents of Zion, the city of Jerusalem, you (plur.) sing and rejoice with all your (plur.) heart!” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
English: “You people who live in Jerusalem and other places in Israel, sing and shout loudly! Be glad, and rejoice greatly,” (Source: Translation for Translators)
In Hebrew this verse consists of two lines parallel with each other in thought but not in structure. The first line in Hebrew is translated as the first two lines of Revised Standard Version; it is itself composed of two parts parallel with each other in both thought and structure. Each part contains an imperative verb and a vocative, as shown in Revised Standard Version‘s literal translation: Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel!
The expression daughter of Zion refers to the community of people faithful to the LORD and is quite common in the Old Testament. It means the same here as Israel, and so Good News Translation combines the two parts of this line into one and says “Sing and shout for joy, people of Israel!” This sentence may also be rendered as “Sing and shout to show that you are joyful…” or “You people of Israel, sing and shout to show your joy.”
The second line of the Hebrew is translated as the last two lines of Revised Standard Version; it expresses the same thought but uses two verbal phrases with only one vocative, Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!Good News Translation combines the two verbs Rejoice and exult and simply says “Rejoice with all your heart.” The heart is here the source of the emotions, the very center of one’s personality, and in situations where some other organ is regarded as having this function, the translator should be free to use some other term, such as liver or throat.
The vocative daughter of Jerusalem refers to the small group of faithful Israelites who live in Jerusalem. Good News Translation translates as “Jerusalem,” since in this context it is already clear that the city stands for its inhabitants. However, in certain languages where one does not normally speak or talk to a city, it will be helpful to say “people of Jerusalem.”
Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on the Book of Zephaniah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1989. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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