family / clan / house

The Hebrew terms that are translated as “family” or “clan” or “house” or similar in English are all translated in Kwere as ng’holo or “clan.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

In the English translation by Goldingay (2018) it is translated as “kin-group.”

See also tribe.

complete verse (Numbers 26:38)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Numbers 26:38:

  • Kupsabiny: “These are the houses of the clan of Benjamin: House of Bela, house of Ashbel, house of Ahiram,” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “The descendants of Benjamin according to clan are like this —
    the clan of the Belaites from Bela,
    the clan of the Asbelites from Ashbel,
    the clan of the Ahiramites from Ahiram.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The descendants of Benjamin were the families of Bela, Ashbel, Ahiram,” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “They counted 45,600 men from the tribe of Benjamin. They were in clans descended from Bela, Ashbel, Ahiram, Shephupham, and Hupham, and from Bela’s two sons—Ard and Naaman.” (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 Numbers 26:38 - 26:41

This paragraph is about the census of the tribe of Benjamin. It runs parallel to the previous paragraphs in this chapter dealing with the census of other tribes (see the comments on verses 5-7 and 12-14). The clans of Benjamin descended from his sons Bela, Ashbel, Ahiram, Shephupham and Hupham, and Bela’s sons Ard and Naaman (see Gen 46.21; 1 Chr 7.6-7; 8.1-5). There are some textual variants between the enumeration of Benjamin’s clans here and those found in Genesis, 1 Chronicles, and the Septuagint (see Cole, page 458, for these variants 458). However, these variations do not affect the translation of the present text (see the recommendation given in the comments on verses 15-18).

Of Shephupham, the family of the Shuphamites: New International Version, New Living Translation, King James Version, Revised English Bible, Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie, and Luther change Shephupham to “Shupham” (following the Vulgate, the Peshitta, and the Samaritan Pentateuch), probably to bring the name more in line with the name of the clan, Shuphamites.

Of Ard, the family of the Ardites: New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Bijbel: Vertaling in opdracht van het Nederlandsch Bijbelgenootschap, and Russian Synodal Orthodox Version put of Ard between parentheses or square brackets, since it is not in the Hebrew text. Most translations, however, supply it from the context (so also Hebrew Old Testament Text).

In verse 40 New Living Translation makes it clear that the Ardites and the Naamites were “subclans” under the clan of the Belaites, which is quite helpful. Similarly to verse 36, Good News Translation restructures this verse as follows: “These were the subclans descended from the Belaites: The Ardites, named after their ancestor Ard. The Naamites, named after their ancestor Naaman.”

Quoted with permission from de Regt, Lénart J. and Wendland, Ernst R. A Handbook on Numbers. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .