horn

The musical instrument that is most often translated as “(ram’s) horn” or “trumpet” in English is translated in the following ways:

  • Yakan: tabuli’ (big sea shell used to give signals) (source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Mairasi / Bariai: “Triton shell trumpet” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
  • German Luther translation: Posaune, today: “trombone,” originally with the meaning of a wind instrument made from cow horn (from Latin bucina [bovi- / “cow” + the root of cano / “sing”]. Incidentally, bucina is also used in the Latin Vulgate translation). By the time of Luther’s translation it referred to the natural trumpet or a fanfare trumpet (see also trumpet). Once the meaning morphed to “trombone” in the 19th century, trombone ensembles started to play a central role in Protestant German churches and do so to the present day. In 2016, “Posaunenchöre” became added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list . (Note that Exodus 19:13 is the only exception in the Luther Bible. From the 1956 revision on, Widderhorn or “ram’s horn” is used here) (source: Zetzsche)

In the UBS Helps for Translators‘ Human-made Things in the Bible (original title: The Works of Their Hands: Man-made Things in the Bible) it says the following:

Description: The horn was a wind instrument made from the horn of an animal, usually a male sheep.

Usage: The animal horn was softened so that it could be shaped. The point of the horn was cut off to leave a small opening through which the user blew. The vibration of the lips produced the sound.

The ram’s horn served two general purposes:

1. It was blown in certain religious contexts, not as musical accompaniment to worship but as a signal for important events. Some of these events were the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai, the Day of Atonement, the bringing of the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem, and the coronation of kings.

2. It also served as a signal or alarm when war was approaching. Such references are particularly common in the prophetic books, when the prophets are calling the people to repent (Hosea 5:8; 8:1; Joel 2:1; 2:15; Amos 3:6).

Translation: In many passages the purpose of the ram’s horn called shofar in Hebrew was to sound an alarm. This will be easy to express in those cultures where the horns of animals are used as musical instruments to give signals to large groups of people. In other cultures it may be possible to find another instrument that is used for an equivalent purpose. In some languages, for example, instruments such as bells or drums are the warnings for war. Some translations have transliterated the word shofar. Unless the instrument is well known, such a borrowing should normally be accompanied by a footnote or a glossary entry.

In some passages it will be necessary to expand the translation in order to indicate that the blowing of the ram’s horn was not just for music; for example, in Ezekiel 7:14 Contemporary English Version has “A signal has been blown on the trumpet,” and the German Contemporary English Version says “An alarm is sounded” [elsewhere, the same German version refers to the horns as Kriegshörner or “war horns.”]

Man blowing ram’s horn (source: Knowles, revised by Bass (c) British and Foreign Bible Society 1994)

Quoted with permission.

complete verse (Hebrews 12:19)

Following are a number of back-translations of Hebrews 12:19:

  • Uma: “They heard a big sound that was like the sound of a trumpet, and a big voice spoke to them. When they heard that voice, they were terrified, they said: ‘We(excl.) request that that voice there not speak to us any more, for we are afraid [poor us!].'” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “They heard (something) like the sound of a tabuli’ (a big shell blown to give signals) and they also heard the voice of God. When the people heard that voice they really begged that it wouldn’t speak again because they were very afraid.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “They could hear the trumpet and the loud voice of God, and when the people heard that voice they begged that He might stop talking because it was very frightening.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “They also heard the trumpet and the frightening voice of God. When they heard that aforementioned voice of God, they begged that it not continue,” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “There was the sound of a horn/siren and a voice which spoke. After the people heard that voice, they were asking that they would no more be spoken to by that.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “They heard the trumpets sound. They heard God speak and call to them. These people feared when they heard him call to them. Therefore they asked that no longer would they hear what word God would speak.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

trumpet

The musical instrument that is most often translated as “trumpet” in English is translated in the following ways:

In the UBS Helps for Translators‘ Human-made Things in the Bible (original title: The Works of Their Hands: Man-made Things in the Bible) it says the following:

Description: The trumpet was a wind instrument, frequently used in signaling, especially in connection with war. It was made of metal (the trumpets mentioned in Numbers 10:2 et al. were made of silver). It was a straight, narrow tube, about 40-45 centimeters (16-18 inches) in length. One end had a mouthpiece, while the other end was widened into a bell shape.

Usage: The sound on the trumpet was made by blowing into the mouthpiece in such a way as to vibrate the lips. The vibrations were magnified as they passed along the widening body of the tube.

The purpose of the trumpet in Israel was primarily to signal. Numbers 10 lists a variety of occasions in which the trumpets were to be used, including signaling the people to break camp, calling all of the people together for a meeting, calling only the leaders together, sounding an alarm at the beginning of a battle, and blowing them for liturgical purposes during certain festivals. It is significant that it was the task of the priests to sound the trumpets.

Translation: Generally speaking, translators may distinguish between the Hebrew words chatsotsrah and shofar by rendering chatsotsrah as “trumpet” or “bugle” and shofar with a more generic word for “horn” or with “ram’s horn.” Note the following comment in Translation commentary on Psalm 98:4 – 98:6: “In some languages it will not be possible to make a distinction between the two Hebrew terms translated trumpets and horn. In such cases the local term for a horn will be used. The Greek Old Testament used only one term.”

The exact meaning of the Aramaic word qeren in Daniel 3:5 and following is debated. It probably refers to a brass wind instrument and is best rendered “horn.”

The present-day equivalent for the Greek word salpigx is “bugle.” A bugle is generally smaller than a trumpet and is often associated with the sounding of military signals.

Man blowing a trumpet (source: Horace Knowles (c) British and Foreign Bible Society 1954, 1967, 1972)

Quoted with permission.

See also trumpet / bugle.

Japanese benefactives (-naide)

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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 Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a benefactive construction as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. Here, -naide (ないで) or “do not (for their sake)” is used in combination with kudasaru (くださる), a respectful form of the benefactive kureru (くれる). A benefactive reflects the good will of the giver or the gratitude of a recipient of the favor. To convey this connotation, English translation needs to employ a phrase such as “for me (my sake)” or “for you (your sake).”

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Translation commentary on Hebrews 12:19

The writer is not concerned with the function of the trumpet or “ram’s horn” (Exo 19.13 New English Bible), which is not entirely clear even in Exodus. In this verse it is a sign of God’s activity, like the storm and the voice. There is no difference of meaning between the words translated blast and sound. A single blast is mentioned in Exodus 19.13, 16. Similarly, voice, literally “spoken words,” as in 1.3, and word, as in 2.2, are probably used for the sake of variety rather than to emphasize the singular another word as in Exodus 20.19.

The blast of a trumpet may be “the loud noise made by a trumpet.” There may be a problem in translating the sound of a voice, since “voice” is generally related to someone speaking. But it would be wrong to translate the sound of a voice as “the sound of someone speaking,” since this would raise the question “Who is that someone?” Because the declaration referred to is uttered by God, it may be necessary to translate the sound of a voice as “the sound of God speaking.” This means that the temporal clause When the people heard the voice must be rendered as “When the people heard God speaking” or “… heard God’s voice.”

If one introduces a term such as begged, it may be necessary to indicate to whom the petition was addressed. But this may create complications, and therefore it may be better to translate they begged not to hear another word as “they strongly said they did not want to hear another word.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Letter of the Hebrews. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .