virgin

The Hebrew and Greek that is mostly translated as “virgin” in English can be translated as “woman that is untouched” in Batak Toba or “a woman with a whole (i.e. unopened) body” in Uab Meto.

“Similar words for ‘girl,’unmarried young woman,’ suggesting virginity without explicitly stating it, are found in Marathi, Apache, or Kituba. Cultural features naturally influence connotations of possible renderings, for instance, the child marriage customs in some Tboli areas, where the boy and girl are made to sleep together at the initial marriage, but after that do not live together and may not see each other again for years. Hence, the closest attainable equivalent, ‘female adolescent,’ does not imply that a young girl is not living with her husband, and that she never had a child, but leaves uncertain whether she has ever slept with a male person or not. Accordingly, in Luke one has to depend on Luke 1:34 to make clear that Mary and Joseph had not had sexual intercourse. A different problem is encountered in Pampanga, where birhen (an adaptation of Spanish virgen — ‘virgin’), when standing alone, is a name of the ‘Virgin Mary.’ To exclude this meaning the version uses “marriageable birhen,” thus at the same time indicating that Mary was relatively young.” (Source: Reiling / Swellengrebel, see here)

In Navajo (Dinė), the term that is used is “no husband yet” (Source: Wallis, p. 106) and in Gola the expression “trouser girl.” “In the distant past young women who were virgins wore trousers. Those who were not virgins wore dresses. That doesn’t hold true anymore, but the expression is still there in the language.” (Source: Don Slager)

The term in Djimini Senoufo is katogo jo — “village-dance-woman” (women who have been promised but who are still allowed to go to dances with unmarried women). (Source: Übersetzung heute 3/1995)

In Igbo translations, typically a newly-created, multi-word phrase is used that very explicitly states that there has not been any sexual relations and that translates as “a woman (or: maiden) who does not know a man.” This is in spite of the fact that there is a term (agb͕ọghọ) that means “young woman” and has the connotation of her not having had sexual relations (this is for instance used by the Standard Igbo Bible of the Bible Society of Nigeria for Isaiah 7:14). Incidentally, the euphemistic expression “know” (ma in Igbo) for “having sex” has become a well-known euphemism outside of Bible translation. (Source: Uchenna Oyali in Sociolinguistic Studies Vol. 17 No. 1-3 (2023): Special Issue: Gender and sexuality in African discourses )

In Chichewa, it is translated as namwali which is used to refer to a girl who has reached puberty stage and is ready to get married. Apart from the physical aspect, the word also has social implications in the sense that it is used to recognize the fact that the girl has become responsible enough to make informed decisions and take care of herself and others. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

See also virgins (Revelation 14:4) and complete verse (Matthew 1:23).

complete verse (Judges 11:38)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Judges 11:38:

  • Kupsabiny: “Her father accepted for her to go and grieve with her friends for two months because she would die without (having/getting) a child.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “He said — "You can go." And he allowed her to go for two months. Her friends went with her, and they went to the mountains and mourned, for she would never be married.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Jefta allowed her. So for a period/[lit. inside] of two months, she roamed-around in the mountains with her female-friends in-order to mourn, because she will-die not having-been-able-get-a-husband.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “Jephthah replied, ‘All right, you may go.’ So she left for two months. She and her friends stayed in the hills and they cried for her because she would never be married.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Judges 11:38

And he said, “Go”: Perhaps due to the emotion of the moment, Jephthah’s response is a very brief imperative Go. The verb said may be rendered “replied” (New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). If the command Go sounds quite harsh in the target language, we might say “You may go” (New International Version, New Living Translation) or “Go ahead.” Translators should find an appropriate response. Some languages may prefer to use indirect speech here. For example, Good News Translation has “He told her to go.”

And he sent her away for two months: The Hebrew verb rendered sent (shalach) is used frequently in this book, often in negative contexts (see, for example, verse 9.23). However, when Jephthah sent her away, he was not banishing his daughter. New Jerusalem Bible says “and he let her go away for two months.”

And she departed, she and her companions: And, which renders the Hebrew waw conjunction, introduces a result here, so a better connector might be “So” (New Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible). Departed renders the same Hebrew verb as Go. She and her companions is a typical Hebrew construction that highlights this main character and adds poignancy. It mirrors a similar construction in verse 11.37 (“I and my companions”). More simply we can say “So she went away with her friends.”

And bewailed her virginity upon the mountains: See the comments on verse 11.37. The Hebrew verb for bewailed is singular. Probably all the girls cried, but here Jephthah’s daughter is in focus.

Quoted with permission from Zogbo, Lynell and Ogden, Graham S. A Handbook on Judges. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .