coin / money (Japanese honorifics)

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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 to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017.

The Greek that is translated as “money” or “coin” or similar in English is translated in the Shinkaiyaku Bible as o-kane (お金), combining “money” (kane) with the respectful prefix o-. (Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

Mark 12:41 - 44 in Mexican Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 12:41-44 into Mexican Sign Language with back-translations into Spanish and English underneath:


© La Biblia en LSM / La Palabra de Dios

Retrotraducciones en español (haga clic o pulse aquí)

Jesús se sentó a ver la caja en la cual las personas daban dinero para el templo. Varias personas ricas iban y daban dinero.

Una viuda pobre fue y dio dos centavos y se fue. Jesús la vio y dijo a sus discípulos: “Yo les digo la verdad, esta viuda pobre ha dado más dinero que las otras personas.

Porque todas las personas dan dinero y les sobra suficiente dinero, pero ella es una mujer pobre, ha dado dinero y ahora se agotó el dinero, no tiene dinero para comer.”


Jesus sat down to watch the box in which all the people gave money for the temple. Several rich people came and gave money.

A poor widow went and gave two cents and left. Jesus saw her and said to his disciples: “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more money than the other people.

“Because all the people give money and have enough money left over, but she is a poor woman, she has given money and now has no money left, she has no money for food.”

Source: La Biblia en LSM / La Palabra de Dios

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Mark 12:41-44 in Russian Sign Language

Following is the translation of Mark 12:41-44 into Russian Sign Language with a back-translation underneath:


Source: Russian Bible Society / Российское Библейское Общество

In the temple there is a collection box. Jesus sat down at a distance from the box and began to watch as people threw their offerings into the box. People came. There were many rich people. They brought large heavy purses with money, took a full handful of money from there and threw it into the box. The rich people walked one after another. But there was one woman, a poor widow. And she had only two small coins. She took these two small coins and threw them into the box. Jesus saw this and said to the disciples:

— I tell you for sure, this poor widow just put in more than everyone else! Why? Because the other people had more money, they put only a small part of it in the box. But this poor woman had only these two coins, and she threw both into the box.

Original Russian back-translation (click or tap here):

В храме есть ящик для сбора пожертвований. Поодаль от ящика сел Иисус и стал смотреть, как люди бросают свои пожертвования в ящик. Люди приходили. Было много богатых людей. Они приносили большие тяжелые кошельки с деньгами, брали оттуда полную пригоршню денег и бросали в ящик. Шли богачи друг за другом. Но была одна женщина, бедная вдова. И у нее были только две маленькие монетки. Она взяла эти две маленькие монетки, да и бросила их в ящик. Иисус это увидел и сказал ученикам:

— Точно вам говорю, вот эта бедная вдова сейчас положил больше, чем все остальные! Почему? Потому что у остальных людей были еще деньги, они клали в ящик лишь небольшую их часть. А у этой бедной женщины были только эти две монетки, и обе она бросила в ящик.

Back-translation by Luka Manevich

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Mark 13:1-13 in Russian Sign Language >>

complete verse (Mark 12:41)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 12:41:

  • Uma: “Yesus sat close to the box for putting offering money in, and he watched the people who were putting in their offering money in it. Many rich people put in no small amount of money.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “So-then Isa was sitting facing the container-for money in the temple. He was watching the people dropping money into the container. Many rich people dropped much money.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “There was a time then when Jesus was sitting inside the church, the House of God, near the place where the money offerings were put. He was watching the people putting their offering in the container. There were many rich people there putting in a large amount of money.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Then Jesus went and sat facing the place-for-inserting money in the Temple. Then he watched the many-people inserting (as through a slot) their money. Many rich-people inserted much.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Well Jesus sat down there beside where money was dropped which was being given there in the Templo. He was observing the people who were dropping (money). Many were the wealthy who were dropping large amounts.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Walmajarri: “When Jesus was sitting in God’s house, men and women were going through. They were putting money in for God. As they were going they were putting it into a vessel for money. Jesus was sitting looking at them.” (Source: Callow 1972, p. 75)

Honorary "rare" construct denoting God (“looking”)

Click or tap here to see the rest of this insight.

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, miteo-rare-ru (見ておられる) or “looking” is used.

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

Translation commentary on Mark 12:41

Exegesis:

Some words in this verse have already been dealt with: for kathizō ‘sit’ cf. 9.35; katenanti ‘opposite,’ ‘in front of’ cf. 11.2; chalkos ‘copper,’ ‘money’ cf. 6.8; plousios ‘rich’ cf. 10.25.

gazophulakeion (12.43) ‘treasury’: presumably one of the thirteen contribution boxes, or receptacles, in the form of trumpets, with broad bases and narrow openings at the top, which were placed under the colonnade in the Court of the Women. It may be that the particular area, in which the thirteen boxes were placed, was known popularly as the ‘treasury.’

etheōrei pōs ‘he was watching how’: for similar constructions cf. 5.16 diēgēsanto … pōs ‘they explained … how’; 11.18; 14.1 ezētoun pōs ‘they were seeking how’; 14.11 ezētei pōs ‘he was seeking how.’

eballon polla ‘they were putting in much (money)’: Burton calls attention to the imperfect here, describing the repeated acts, and the aorist ebalon ‘they put’ in v. 44, a summary statement of the incident.

Translation:

The treasury is often translatable as ‘the place where the money was received (or ‘kept’),’ or ‘the place where the people put in the money.’

Watched the multitude putting … must in some languages be broken up into two clauses, e.g. ‘watched while the crowd of people put their money…,’ or ‘watched the many people; they were putting money….’

Rich people may often be rendered as ‘those who possess much money’ and in this context, therefore, one may translate as ‘those who had much money put in a lot of money.’

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .