son vs. grandson

“Son of x, son of y” must be rendered as “son of x and grandson of y” in Tibetan or else it will sound like two different people.

Note: The same translation solution is chosen in many contemporary English Bibles that emphasize easy readability, such as the Contemporary English Version, Common English Bible, Good News Translation, God’s Word, or New Living Translation.

See also father / grandfather.

Jerusalem

The name that is transliterated as “Jerusalem” in English is signed in French Sign Language with a sign that depicts worshiping at the Western Wall in Jerusalem:


“Jerusalem” in French Sign Language (source: La Bible en langue des signes française )

While a similar sign is also used in British Sign Language, another, more neutral sign that combines the sign “J” and the signs for “place” is used as well. (Source: Anna Smith)


“Jerusalem” in British Sign Language (source: Christian BSL, used with permission)

Learn more on Bible Odyssey: Jerusalem .

complete verse (Nehemiah 11:4)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Nehemiah 11:4:

  • Kupsabiny: “Many people including some priests, Levites, people who worked in the House of God and the grandchildren of the servants of Solomon lived in their own homes in the villages of Judah and Benjamin. But some of those people lived in Jerusalem. The names of the leaders who originated from the clan of Judah and settled in Jerusalem are: Athaiah son of Uzziah, who was the son of Zechariah, son of Amariah, the son of Shephatiah, the son of Mahalalel, who belonged to the family of Perez,” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The rest of the Israelinhon, as-well-as the priests, Levites, servants of the temple, and the descendants of the servants of Solomon, continued to live in their own land in various towns of Juda. The rest of the people-groups of Juda and Benjamin lived in Jerusalem.
    These are the leaders/[lit. heads] of the provinces of Juda and Benjamin who lived in Jerusalem.
    From the tribe of Juda:
    Ataya the child of Uzia. (Uzia was the child of Zacarias; Zacarias was the child of Amarias; Amaria was the child of Shefatia; and Shefatia was the child of Mahalalel that came from a descendant of Perez.)” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “But some people from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin decided to live in Jerusalem. One of them from the tribe of Judah was Athaiah. He was the son of Uzziah, who was the son of Zechariah, who was the son of Amariah, who was the son of Shephatiah, who was the son of Mahalalel, who was a descendant of Judah’s son Perez.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

large numbers in Angguruk Yali

Many languages use a “body part tally system” where body parts function as numerals (see body part tally systems with a description). One such language is Angguruk Yali which uses a system that ends at the number 27. To circumvent this limitation, the Angguruk Yali translators adopted a strategy where a large number is first indicated with an approximation via the traditional system, followed by the exact number according to Arabic numerals. For example, where in 2 Samuel 6:1 it says “thirty thousand” in the English translation, the Angguruk Yali says teng-teng angge 30.000 or “so many rounds [following the body part tally system] 30,000,” likewise, in Acts 27:37 where the number “two hundred seventy-six” is used, the Angguruk Yali translation says teng-teng angge 276 or “so many rounds 276,” or in John 6:10 teng-teng angge 5.000 for “five thousand.”

This strategy is used in all the verses referenced here.

Source: Lourens de Vries in The Bible Translator 1998, p. 409ff.

See also numbers in Ngalum and numbers in Kombai.

Translation commentary on Nehemiah 11:4

Verses 4-9 give a list of the leaders from the sons of Judah and the sons of Benjamin. These refer to those people who belonged to the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Good News Translation includes part of the beginning of this verse with the preceding verse. It also avoids repetition of the reference to the tribe of Benjamin here. Instead, Good News Translation offers this information as subheadings: “Members of the tribe of Judah” at the beginning of this verse, and “Members of the tribe of Benjamin” at the beginning of verse 7.

Two leaders from the tribe of Judah are named in verses 4-5 and their ancestry is given: Athaiah and “Maaseiah.” Athaiah was descended from Perez, the son of Judah by the widow of his son Er (Gen 38). In these verses Revised Standard Version reflects the Hebrew expression of ancestry in the form of son of … son of …. Good News Translation interprets and renders these verses in contemporary terms of descent (see also Bible en français courant). Of the sons of Perez is a more general description than son of. New International Version therefore says “a descendant of Perez,” and New English Bible and New Living Translation say “of the family of Perez.” For sons of, see the comment at Ezra 2.3-20.

Quoted with permission from Noss, Philip A. and Thomas, Kenneth J. A Handbook on Nehemiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2005. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .