Following are a number of back-translations of John 1:1:
Huehuetla Tepehua: “The Word was living when there was still nothing at all. And that Word lived in the same place God did. And that Word was God himself.”
Yatzachi Zapotec: “When the world began, the person who is the Word was already present. He was with God and the person who is the Word was God.”
Chol: “In the beginning of the world there already was the Word. This Word already was with God. This Word was (and still is) God.” (Source for this and above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Long ago before anything was created, the one who is titled the Word of God already was. This Word of God, he already was with God and he is God.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Before the world and heavens/sky was laid-down/spread-out (i.e. existed), there was already Jesus who is called Word/Speech of God. This one referred to as Word, he was already there in the presence of God. Not just in the presence of God but on the contrary, this Word who is Jesus, he indeed is the one who is this God.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “The Son of God makes it known how God is. When the world was made, already he was living. He was in fellowship with God. He also is God.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Anindilyakwa: “Right at the beginning, long, long ago, Jesus Christ was there, the one who revealed God who was hidden from us. Before God made the heavens and the earth, right at that time the same one was already there with God. And those two, the same one and God, they were the same/shared the same characteristics.” (Source: Julie Waddy in The Bible Translator 2004, p. 452ff.)
The Greek that is translated as “Son of Man” and is mostly used by Jesus to refer to himself is (back-) translated in the following languages as (click or tap for details):
Tzotzil: “I who am equal with men” or “The Older Brother of Everybody” (“expressing the dignity and authority of the Messiah and the universality of his work”)
Tenango Otomi: “The Man Appointed” (i.e. the man to whom authority has been delegated) (source for this and preceding: Beekman, p. 189-190, see also Ralph Hill in Notes on Translation February 1983, p. 35-50)
Aguaruna: “One who was born becoming a person” (source for this and two above: M. Larson / B. Moore in Notes on Translation February 1970, p. 1-125.)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Older Sibling of Mankind” (source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Child of a Person” (source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “One From Heaven Born of Man/human?” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Man who came from heaven” (source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Yatzachi Zapotec: “One who God sent, who was born a human” (a direct translation would have suggested “that the father is unknown due to the indiscretions of the mother” and where “he is the son of people” is used when one wants to disclaim responsibility for or relationship with a child caught in some mischief — source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
Mezquital Otomi: “The son who became a person” (Source: B. Moore / G. Turner in Notes on Translation 1967, p. 1ff.)
Alekano: “The true man who descended from heaven” (source: Ellis Deibler in Notes on Translation June 1986, p. 36ff.)
Central Tarahumara: “One who has been stood up to help” (“This suggests that Christ has been given authority to some appointed task. A very generic word, help, was selected to fill in the lexically obligatory purpose required by the word which means to appoint or commission. Usually this word is used of menial tasks but not exclusively. The choice of this generic term retains the veiled reference to the character of Christ’s work which He intended in using the ‘Son of Man’ title.”)
Chicahuaxtla Triqui: “He who is relative of all people.” (“The Triqui word for relative is a rather generic term and in its extended sense sometimes is diluted to neighbor and friend. But the primary meaning is relative.”)
Tepeuxila Cuicatec: “The Person who Accompanies All People” (“The literal equivalents ‘son of man’ and ‘son of people’ were both rejected because of the false inference of natural birth involving a human father. Furthermore, it was necessary to expand any translation of the Bible by the addition of the pronoun ‘I’ so as to clarify the fact that Jesus is using the third person in referring to Himself. A common expression used by the Cuicatecos when difficulties befall someone, is to say to that one, ‘don’t worry, we are accompanying you.’ By this they mean they share that person’s sorrow. When wedding guests arrive at the home of a son who has just been married, they say to the father, ‘We have come to accompany you.’ By this they mean that they have come to share the father’s joy. These expressions do not refer to ordinary physical accompaniment, which is expressed by a set of different verbs. For example, visits are always announced by some such greeting as, “I have come to visit you,’ ‘I have come to see you,’ or ‘I have come to ask you something.’ The desire to accompany a friend on a journey is expressed by saying, ‘I will go with you.’ Translation helpers used the verb ‘accompany’ in constructing the phrase ‘I, the Person who Accompanies All People.'(…) It reflects the fact that Jesus closely identified Himself with all of us, understands our weaknesses, shares our burdens, rejoices with us in times of gladness, etc.”) (source for this and the three preceding: Beekman in Notes on Translation January 1963, p. 1-10)
Guhu-Samane: “Elder-brother-man” (“Since the term denotes an elder brother in every way such as honor, power, leadership, representation of the younger, etc. it is a meaningful and fitting — though not ostentatious — title.” Source: Ernest Richert in The Bible Translator 1965, p. 198ff. )
Navajo: Diné Silíi’ii — “Man he-became-the-one-who” (“This terra presented a difficulty not only in Navajo but also one peculiar to all the Athapaskan languages. It lies in the fact that all these languages, so far as we know, have a word phonetically similar to the Navajo diné which has three meanings: ‘man, people in general,’ ‘a man,’ ‘The People’ which is the name the Navajos use for themselves. (The name Navajo was first used by the Spanish explorers.) Although it seemed natural to say diné biye’ ‘a-man his-son,’ this could also mean ‘The-People their-son’ or ‘a-Navajo his-son,’ in contrast to the son of a white man or of another Indian tribe. Since the concept of the humanity of Christ is so important, we felt that diné biye’ with its three possible meanings should not be used. The term finally decided on was Diné Silíi’ii ‘Man he-became-the-one-who.’ This could be interpreted to mean ‘the one who became a Navajo,’ but since it still would impart the idea of Christ’s becoming man, it was deemed adequate, and it has proven acceptable to the Navajos.”) (Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )
Toraja-Sa’dan: “Child descended in the world” (“using a poetic verb, often found in songs that [deal with] the contacts between heaven and earth”) (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
Obolo: Gwun̄ Ebilene: “Child of Human” (source: Enene Enene).
Mairasi: Jaanoug Tat: “Person Child” (source: Enggavoter 2004)
Costa Rican Sign Language: “It was impossible to translate the expression ‘Son of Man.’ The son-man sign simply means ‘male child.’ The Costa Rican Sign Language (LESCO) team opted for an interpretation of the term and translated it ‘Jesus.'” (Source: Elsa Tamez (in The Bible Translator 2008, p. 59ff.)
Lokạạ: wẹẹn wạ ọnẹn or “son of a person.” “This translation is symbolic in that it uses indigenous Lokạạ words. However, since the publication of the New Testament in 2006, this phrase has gained popularity within contemporary Lokạạ society as an expression to describe an important person whose career is going well. In the New Testament, the phrase ‘son of man’ is used to describe Jesus as prototypically human, but the Lokạạ phrase is now being used to describe an exceptional person in Lokạạ society.” (Source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )
In many West African languages, using a third person reference as a first person indicator is common practice with a large range of semantic effects. Languages that use the exact expression “son of man” as a self-reference or reference to another person include Lukpa, Baatonum, Mossi (“son of Adam”), Yoruba (“son of person”), Guiberoua Béte, or Samo. (Source: Lynell Zogbo in: Omanson 2000, p. 167-188.)
In Swahili the expression Mwana wa Mtu or mwana wa mtu or “son/daughter of human person,” which is used by several Bible translations, also has “the idiomatic meaning of ‘a human being’” (source: Jean-Claude Loba-Mkole in An Intercultural Criticism of New Testament Translations 2013, see here). The same is true for the Lingala expression Mwana na Moto — “son/daughter of human person.” (Ibid.)
In Balinese “we are again bordering on theological questions when we inquire as to which vocabulary shall be used to translate the texts where Jesus speaks of himself as ‘the Son of man.’ One of the fixed rules governing the use of these special vocabularies is that one may never use the deferential terms in speaking of oneself. This would be the extreme of arrogance. Now if one considers the expression ‘Son of man’ primarily as a description of ‘I,’ then one must continually indicate the possessions or actions of the Son of man by Low Balinese words. In doing this the mystery of the expression is largely lost. In any case the vocabulary used in most of the contexts would betray that Jesus means the title for himself.
“However, a distinction can actually be made in Balinese between the person and the exalted position he occupies. For example, the chairman of a judicial body may employ deferential terms when referring to this body and its chairman, without this being taken as an expression of arrogance. Considered from this standpoint, one may translate in such a way that Jesus is understood as using such deferential words and phrases in speaking of himself. The danger is, however, that the unity between his person and the figure of “the Son of man” is blurred by such usage.
“On request, the New Testament committee of the Netherlands Bible Society advised that ‘the sublimity of this mysterious term be considered the most important point and thus High Balinese be used.'”
In Malay, Barclay Newman reports on the translation of “Today’s Malay Version” (Alkitab Berita Baik) of 1987:
“One of the first things that we did in working through the earlier part of the New Testament was to decide on how we would translate some of the more difficult technical terms. It was immediately obvious that something must be done with the translation of ‘the Son of Man,’ since the literal rendering anak manusia (literally ‘child of a man’) held absolutely no meaning for Malay readers. We felt that the title should emphasize the divine origin and authority of the one who used this title, and at the same time, since it was a title, we decided that it should not be too long a phrase. Finally, a phrase meaning ‘the One whom God has ordained’ was chosen (yang dilantik Allah). It is interesting to note that the newly-begun Common Indonesian (Alkitab Kabar Baik, published in 1985) has followed a similar route by translating ‘the One whom God has chosen’ (yang depilih Allah).”
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:1:
Uma: “This is a list/order of those whom Yesus Kristus was descended from. Yesus was the descendant of King Daud, the descendant of Abraham.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “These are the names of the ancestors of Isa Almasi. This Isa Almasi was a descendant of Da’ud and Da’ud was a descendant of Ibrahim.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “This is the telling of the genealogy of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is a descendant of long ago King David, David was a descendant of Abraham.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “This is the list of the ancestors of Jesu Cristo the descendant of David and descendant also of Abraham.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “These are the ancestors of Jesu-Cristo who came from the descendants of David, whose forefather was none other than Abraham.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Here is the list of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, the one who is the descendant of David. And this David is the descendant of Abraham.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:2:
Uma: “From Abraham to Daud, the names of the grandparents of Yesus are these: Abraham was the progenitor of Ishak, Ishak was the progenitor of Yakub, Yakub was the progenitor of Yehuda and his siblings,” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Abraham was the father of Isaac; Isaac, he was the father of Jacob. Now Jacob, his offspring were Juda and his brothers.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Abraham was the father of Isaac who was the father of Jacob who was in-turn the father of Juda and his siblings.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob, he being the father of Juda and his brothers.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Abraham was the father of Isaac. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Judah and others who were his brothers.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:3:
Uma: “Yehuda was the progenitor of Peres and Zerah (the names of their mother: Tamar), Peres was the progenitor of Hezron, Hezron was the progenitor of Ram,” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “As for Juda, his wife was Tamar and their children were Perez and Zerah. Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron, the father of Ram.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Juda was the father of Perez and Zera, and Tamar was their mother. Perez was the father of Hezron who was the father of Ram.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Juda married Tamar. They gave birth to Fares and Zara. Fares was the father of Esrom, and Esrom was the father of Aram.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah. The mother of these two men was named Tamar. Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:4:
Uma: “Ram was the progenitor of Aminadab, Aminadab was the progenitor of Nahason, Nahason was the progenitor of Salmon,” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Ram was the father of Aminadab; Aminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon;” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Ram in-turn was the father of Amminadab who was the father of Nason who was the father of Salmon.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Aram was the father of Aminadab. Aminadab was the father of Naason, who was the father of Salmon.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Ram was the father of Amminadab. Amminadab was the father of Nahshon. Nahshon was the father of Salmon.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:5:
Uma: “Salmon was the progenitor of Boas (the name of his mother: Rahab), Boas was the progenitor of Obed (the name of his mother: Rut), Obed was the progenitor of Isai,” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “As for Salmon his wife was Rahab, their child was Boaz. Boaz was the father of Obed. Ruth was Obed’s mother. Obed was the father of Jesse.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Salmon, that was the father of Boaz, and Rahab was his mother. Boaz in-turn was the father of Obed, and Ruth was his mother. Obed, he was the father of Jesse,” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Salmon married Rahab. They gave birth to Booz. Booz married Ruth. They gave birth to Obed. Well Obed was the father of Jesse,” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Salmon was the father of Boaz. The mother of this Boaz was named Rahab. Boaz was the father of Obed. The mother of this Obed was named Ruth. Obed was the father of Jesse.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 1:6:
Uma: “and Isai was the progenitor of King Daud. From King Daud until the time-of-being-taken-hostage of the Yahudi people going to the village of Babel, the names of the ancestors of Yesus, are these: Daud was the progenitor of Salomo (his mother: Uria’s widow),” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Jesse was the father of King David.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “and Jesse was the father of King David. David was the father of Solomon, and his mother was previously the wife of Urias.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Jesse being the father of King David. David’s son was Solomon, by the wife of Urias whom he was the next (to marry).” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Jesse was the father of the kin David. David was the father of Solomon. The mother of this Solomon was the widow who had been the wife of Uriah, then married to David.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
