years (age)

In Aekyom, years are counted as “turtles” (ambum).

Norm Mundhenk tells this story:

“Recently I was checking some New Testament material in the Aekyom language of western Papua New Guinea. It seemed relatively clear until suddenly we came to a passage that started, ‘When Jesus had 12 turtles, …’ Surely I had misunderstood what they said.
“‘Did you say that Jesus had 12 turtles?’
“‘Let us explain! Around here there is a certain time every year when river turtles come up on the banks and lay their eggs. Because this is so regular, it can be used as a way of counting years. Someone’s age is said to be how many turtles that person has. So when we say that Jesus had 12 turtles, we mean that Jesus was 12 years old.’
“It was of course the familiar story of Jesus’ trip with his parents to Jerusalem. And certainly, as we all know, Jesus did indeed have 12 turtles at that time!”

In Tok Pisin, krismas (derived from “christmas”) is taken as the fixed annual marker, so Jesus had 12 “christmases” (Jisas i gat 12-pela krismas pinis) or Abram (in Gen. 12:4) had 75 (Abram i gat 75 krismas) (source: Norm Mundhenk). In Noongar it is biroka kadak or “summers had” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).

See also advanced in years.

Methuselah

The following is a stained glass window depicting Methuselah, ca. 12th century in the Canterbury Cathedral in Kent, England:

Photo by Robert Scarth, hosted by Wikimedia Commons under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license

Stained glass is not just highly decorative, it’s a medium which has been used to express important religious messages for centuries. Literacy was not widespread in the medieval and Renaissance periods and the Church used stained glass and other artworks to teach the central beliefs of Christianity. In Gothic churches, the windows were filled with extensive narrative scenes in stained glass — like huge and colorful picture storybooks — in which worshipers could ‘read’ the stories of Christ and the saints and learn what was required for their religious salvation. (Source: Victoria and Albert Museum )

complete verse (Genesis 5:25)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 5:25:

  • Kankanaey: “Then Metusela then yeared 187, Lamek was-born.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “When Methuselah was 187 years old, his son called Lamech was born.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “When Metusela was already 187 years of age, his male child Lamec was-born.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “When Methuselah was 187 years old, he became the father of Lamech.” (Source: Translation for Translators)