cardinal directions

The cardinal directions “east” and “west” are easy to translate into Maan here since the language uses “where the sun comes up” and “where the sun goes down.” For “north” the translator had “facing toward the sun rising to the left,” and for “south” she had “facing toward the sun rising to the right.” So the listener had to think hard before knowing what direction was in view when translating “to the north and south, to the east and west.” So, in case all four directions are mentioned, it was shortened by saying simply “all directions.” (Source: Don Slager) Likewise, Yakan has “from the four corners of the earth” (source: Yakan back-translation) or Western Bukidnon Manobo “from the four directions here on the earth” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo back-translation).

Kankanaey is “from the coming-out and the going-away of the sun and the north and the south” (source: Kankanaey back-translation), Northern Emberá “from where the sun comes up, from where it falls, from the looking [left] hand, from the real [right] hand” (source: Charles Mortensen), Amele “from the direction of the sun going up, from the direction of the sun going down, from the north and from the south” (source: John Roberts), Ejamat “look up to see the side where the sun comes from, and the side where it sets, and look on your right side, and on your left” (source: David Frank in this blog post ).

In Lamba, only umutulesuŵa, “where the sun rises” and imbonsi, “where the sun sets” were available as cardinal directions that were not tied to the local area of language speakers (“north” is kumausi — “to the Aushi country” — and “south” kumalenje — “to the Lenje country”). So “north” and “south” were introduced as loanwords, nofu and saufu respectively. The whole phrase is kunofu nakusaufu nakumutulesuŵa nakumbonsi. (Source C. M. Doke in The Bible Translator 1958, p. 57ff. )

“West” is translated in Tzeltal as “where the sun pours-out” and in Kele as “down-river” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel).

In Morelos Nahuatl, “north” is translated as “from above” and “south” as “from below.” (Source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.)

In Matumbi cardinal directions are defined as in relation to another place. “East” for instance typically is “toward the beach” since the coast is in the eastern direction in Matumbi-speaking areas. “North” and “south” can be defined as above or below another place. (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)

The Hebrew text that gives instructions where to place items in the tabernacle with the help of cardinal directions (north and south) had to be approached in the Bambam translation specific to spacial concepts of that culture.

Phil Campbell explains: “There are no words in Bambam for north and south. In Exodus 26:35, God instructs that the table is to be placed on the north side and the lamp on the south side inside the tabernacle. The team wants to use right and left to tell where the lamp and table are located. In many languages we would say that the table is on the right and the lampstand is on the left based on the view of someone entering the tabernacle. However, that is not how Bambam people view it. They view the placement of things and rooms in a building according to the orientation of someone standing inside the building facing the front of the building. So that means the table is on the left side and the lampstand is on the right side.”

See also cardinal directions / left and right.

Levite

The Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic and Latin that is transliterated “Levites” in English (only the Contemporary English Version translates it as “temple helpers”) is translated in Ojitlán Chinantec as “temple caretakers,” Yatzachi Zapotec as “people born in the family line of Levi, people whose responsibility it was to do the work in the important church of the Israelites,” in Alekano as “servants in the sacrifice house from Jerusalem place,” and in Tenango Otomi as “helpers of priests.” (Source: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)

In American Sign Language with a sign that combines “temple” + “servant.” (Source: Ruth Anna Spooner, Ron Lawer)


“Levite” in American Sign Language, source: Deaf Harbor

For the sign in Spanish Sign Language, see Levi.

More information about Levites .

complete verse (1 Chronicles 26:17)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of 1 Chronicles 26:17:

  • Kupsabiny: “Six Levites were guarding each day the gate of the East, four were guarding the one of the North and the one at the South was also guarded by four guards. There were two Levites who guarded each storeroom.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “Each day six Levites stood guard toward the east, four toward the north, four toward the south and two at the treasury.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “At the east there were six guards who were-guarding each-day, at the north four, at the south four, and at each storehouse two-each.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Each day there were six descendants of Levi who guarded the East Gate, four who guarded the North Gate, four who guarded the South Gate, and two at a time who guarded the entrances to the storerooms.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on 1 Chronicles 26:17

On the east there were six each day is literally “On the east the Levites six.” The Septuagint reads “each day” instead of “the Levites.” The spelling of “each day” (layom) and “the Levites” (halewiyim) is similar in Hebrew, but probably the change in the Septuagint was deliberate to agree with the rest of the verse. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text (“the Levites”). But surely the words “each day” are implied here in the Masoretic Text and may be made explicit in translation as in Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, which says “on the east, six Levites each day” (similarly New Revised Standard Version, Bible en français courant, La Bible du Semeur, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). Revised Standard Version and New Jerusalem Bible follow the Septuagint by adding each day and by omitting “the Levites” (also Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). Good News Translation substitutes the word “guards” for “Levites.” The east gate was also known as “the king’s gate” (1 Chr 9.18), and it was the most important gate.

Two and two at the storehouse: The meaning of this phrase in Hebrew is not certain. It may be understood in the following ways:

• (1) Two guards were on each side of the storehouse.

• (2) There were two doors in the storehouse and two Levites guarded each door.

• (3) There were two storehouses, each guarded by two guards (so Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, Bible en français courant, Nouvelle Bible Segond, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente, Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje). Good News Translation has added the words “four guards were stationed,” which is implied in the Good News Translation interpretation that there were two storerooms guarded by two guards each day. Contemporary English Version says “Two guards were stationed at each of the two storerooms” (similarly Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente), and Bible en français courant has “at the storehouses, two teams of two.” The Nouvelle Bible Segond rendering, “and four at the storehouses in two different places,” seems to follow this interpretation also.

• (4) New International Version gives a fourth possible meaning: “two at a time at the storehouse.”

• (5) Biblia Dios Habla Hoy presents a fifth possible meaning: “and two for every one of the storehouses.”

Since the meaning of this phrase in Hebrew is so uncertain, translators should chose one of the possible meanings and perhaps indicate in a footnote a few of the other possible meanings.

For storehouse see the comments on verse 15. The Hebrew noun here is plural, referring to “storehouses,” but the exact number of such buildings is not stated.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Chronicles, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2014. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .