neighbor

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The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “neighbor” in English is rendered into Babatana as “different man,” i.e. someone who is not one of your relatives. (Source: David Clark)

In North Alaskan Inupiatun, it is rendered as “a person outside of your building,” in Tzeltal as “your back and side” (implying position of the dwellings), in Indonesian and in Tae’ as “your fellow-man,” in Toraja-Sa’dan it is “your fellow earth-dweller,” in Shona (translation of 1966) as “another person like you,” in Kekchí “younger-brother-older-brother” (a compound which means all one’s neighbors in a community) (sources: Bratcher / Nida and Reiling / Swellengrebel), in Mairasi “your people” (source: Enggavoter 2004), in Mezquital Otomi as “fellow being,” in Tzeltal as “companion,” in Isthmus Zapotec as “another,” in Teutila Cuicatec as “all people” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.), and in most modern German translations as Mitmensch or “fellow human being” (lit. “with + human being”).

In Matt 19:19, Matt 22:39, Mark 12:31, Mark 12:33, Luke 10:27, Luke 10:29 it is translated into Ixcatlán Mazatec with a term that refers to a person who is socially/physically near. Ixcatlán Mazatec also has a another term for “neighbor” that means “fellow humans-outsiders” which was not chosen for these passages. (Source: Robert Bascom)

In Noongar it is translated as moorta-boordak or “people nearby” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang).

neighbor - relative

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “neighbor” or “relative” in English is translated in the Contemporary Chichewa translation (2002/2016) and the Buku Lopatulika translation (1922/2018) with just one word: nansi. This word can also be translated as neighbors whom you share a blood relation with because in Chewa context a community is mostly comprised of people of blood relations. (Source: Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Proverbs 25:9

Verses 9-10 form a single unit.

“Argue your case with your neighbor himself”: “Argue your case” in this context means to discuss differences of opinion, and “with your neighbor himself” means “privately.” Since it is not a court case but rather a personal difference to be settled, a legal term such as “plead” is not appropriate in English. “Case” translates the related noun form of the verb “to argue.” “Neighbor” renders the same word as used in verse 8 and may refer to a friend or colleague or someone who literally lives nearby. In some languages a nonlegal case may be called “your difference,” “your dispute,” or “your words.”

“And do not disclose another’s secret”: “Disclose” renders a word meaning “uncover” and refers to making something public, exposing it to the public, or telling others about it. A “secret” refers to information that one of the parties to the dispute has learned about the other. Revised English Bible translates “Argue your own case with your neighbor, and do not reveal another’s secrets.” In some languages we may also say, for example, “Exchange words with your friend, but do not tell others what you have learned about him.” A translation in a Pacific language says: “If you and your neighbor have a row about something, it is best for just you-two to sort it out, and afterwards you must not talk about this private business.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

complete verse (Proverbs 25:9)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Proverbs 25:9:

  • Kupsabiny: “If you are at loggerheads with your neighbor about a word/matter see to it that you finish those words early and when you (plur.) have finished, do not continue (sing.) to do gossiping.” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
  • Newari: “If you have a dispute with the neighbors,
    do not betray other people’s secrets.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “If you (plur.) have a disputes with a person-you-know/acquaintance, you (plur.) just argue (about it), but you (plur.) do- not -tell the secret of each one of you (plur.).” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Talk-over with you (plur.) alone the cause-of- you and your (sing.) neighbor not -understanding-one-another, but do not (sing.) relate the secrets (lit. cause-to-hide) of others,” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • English: “If you and someone else think differently about some matter,
    settle it between yourselves, and do not tell others any secret that he has told you.” (Source: Translation for Translators)