Many languages have terms for siblings that define whether one is younger or older in relation to another sibling.
In Fuyug, Tae’, Batak Toba, and Mandarin Chinese, Martha was assumed to be the older of the two sisters because she is mentioned first. (Sources: David Clark [Fuyug] and Reiling / Swellengrebel)
Navajo (Dinė) translates accordingly but for a different reason: “since Martha seemed to take the responsibility of the housework, she was probably the older of the two” (source: Wallis 2000, p. 103f.) whereas in Mandarin Chinese he is the younger brother.
In Fuyug, Lazarus is assumed to be the oldest sibling on the grounds that he died first, whereas in several Thai translations he is described as the youngest of the three. (Source: David Clark)
The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “village” or “town” in English is translated in Noongar as karlamaya or “fire (used for “home“) + houses” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).
In Elhomwe it is typically translated as “place.” “Here in Malawi, villages very small, so changed to ‘places,’ since not sure whether biblical reference just to small villages or also to bigger towns. (Source: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
The name that is transliterated as “Martha” in English is translated in Finnish Sign Language with the sign signifying “hostess” (referring to Luke 10:40). (Source: Tarja Sandholm)
The Greek that is transliterated as “Lazarus” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with a sign depicting that he is bound in clothes, referring to John 11:44. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
The Greek that is transliterated as “Mary (of Bethany)” in English is translated in Spanish Sign Language with a signs for “woman” and “listen,” referring to Luke 10:39. (Source: Steve Parkhurst)
Following are a number of back-translations of John 11:1:
Uma: “A man named Lazarus lived in Betania town with his sisters Maria and Marta. (That Maria was the one who would oil the feet of Yesus with fragrant oil and wipe them with her hair.) One time, Lazarus was sick.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “So-then, there was a man called Lasarus, he was sick. He lived in the village of Betani. His two sisters also lived there, Mariyam and Marta.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “There was a man who was sick. His name was Lazarus from Bethany. He had two sisters, and they also lived in Bethany, Mary and Martha.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “There were siblings who resided in Betania, Maria and Marta and Lazarus. This Maria was the one who later would pour perfume on the Lord Jesus’ feet so she would then wipe-them with her hair. As for Lazarus, he was sick.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “There was a person who was sick, who was named Lazaro. Where he lived was in Betania. The only ones living with him were his two sisters Maria and Marta.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “There was a man who was sick, he was named Lazarus. He was a native of Bethany, that town where Mary with her sister Martha lived.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
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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 usage of an honorific construction where the morpheme rare (られ) is affixed on the verb as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. This is particularly done with verbs that have God as the agent to show a deep sense of reverence. Here, ko-rare-ru (来られる) or “come” is used.
Living Water is produced for the Bible translation movement in association with Lutheran Bible Translators. Lyrics derived from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®).
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