harem

The Hebrew that is translated as “harem” in English is translated in North Alaskan Inupiatun as relating to a group of women rather than a place.

concubine

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “concubine” in English is translated in Kutu as “slave made to be his woman” or “female slave he married.”

Similarly, in Kwere it is translated as “slaves who were like wives.” The translation team explained: “We discussed how concubines are different from prostitutes (there is a word for that) in that they have a similar status to wives (they live with the man often and are provided for physically) and so we decided not to use the word for prostitute which is a loose woman or someone engaging in sexual immorality. But since concubines were an accepted part of the society and culture, this would give wrong meaning.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

eunuch

The Hebrew and Greek that is translated as “eunuch” in English is translated in Low German as “man (or: person) who does not have male strength” (Minsch, de ehr Mannskraft nicht hebt) (translation by Johannes Jessen, publ. 1933, republ. 2006).

In Bislama it is “a person who has been castrated.” (Source: Bill Camden in The Bible Translator 1995, p. 240ff.)

king

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Some languages do not have a concept of kingship and therefore no immediate equivalent for the Greek, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin that is translated as “king” in English. Here are some (back-) translations:

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  • Piro: “a great one”
  • Highland Totonac: “the big boss”
  • Huichol: “the one who commanded” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
  • Ekari: “the one who holds the country” (source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • Una: weik sienyi: “big headman” (source: Kroneman 2004, p. 407)
  • Pass Valley Yali: “Big Man” (source: Daud Soesilo)
  • Ninia Yali: “big brother with the uplifted name” (source: Daud Soesilio in Noss 2007, p. 175)
  • Nyamwezi: mutemi: generic word for ruler, by specifying the city or nation it becomes clear what kind of ruler (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Ghomála’: Fo (“The word Fo refers to the paramount ruler in the kingdoms of West Cameroon. He holds administrative, political, and religious power over his own people, who are divided into two categories: princes (descendants of royalty) and servants (everyone else).” (Source: Michel Kenmogne in Theologizing in Context: An Example from the Study of a Ghomala’ Christian Hymn))

Faye Edgerton retells how the term in Navajo was determined:

“[This term was] easily expressed in the language of Biblical culture, which had kings and noblemen with their brilliant trappings and their position of honor and praise. But leadership among the Navajos is not accompanied by any such titles or distinctions of dress. Those most respected, especially in earlier days, were their headmen, who were the leaders in raids, and the shaman, who was able to serve the people by appealing for them to the gods, or by exorcising evil spirits. Neither of these made any outward show. Neither held his position by political intrigue or heredity. If the headman failed consistently in raids, he was superceded by a better warrior. If the shaman failed many times in his healing ceremonies, it was considered that he was making mistakes in the chants, or had lost favor with the gods, and another was sought. The term Navajos use for headman is derived from a verb meaning ‘to move the head from side to side as in making an oration.’ The headman must be a good orator, able to move the people to go to war, or to follow him in any important decision. This word is naat’áanii which now means ‘one who rules or bosses.’ It is employed now for a foreman or boss of any kind of labor, as well as for the chairman of the tribal council. So in order to show that the king is not just a common boss but the highest ruler, the word ‘aláahgo, which expresses the superlative degree, was put before naat’áanii, and so ‘aláahgo naat’áanii ‘anyone-more-than-being around-he-moves-his-head-the-one-who’ means ‘the highest ruler.’ Naat’áanii was used for governor as the context usually shows that the person was a ruler of a country or associated with kings.”

(Source: Faye Edgerton in The Bible Translator 1962, p. 25ff. )

Translation commentary on Esther 2:14   

She came back to the second harem is literally “she came back to the house of the women, second.” The word “second” is not connected grammatically to the rest of the verse. Probably the meaning is that she was taken to a second harem, since Shaashgaz is in charge now, whereas Hegai was in charge of the first harem (see 2.3). Nearly all translations take “second” as an adjective modifying “the house of the women.” Rather than understanding this to be a “second harem” completely separate from the first harem, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente and Biblia Dios Habla Hoy say “another department [section] of the harem.” It is possible, though, to understand “second” as an adverb meaning “a second time,” that is, she was taken back to the same harem again (a second time), as in verse 3.

The king’s eunuch: see comments on 2.3

Concubines: the women who belonged to the royal harem (compare Dan 5.2, 3, 23, where a different Hebrew term is used for “concubines”). They were considered to be wives of the king, but they were of a lower rank than the one chosen to be queen. In Old Testament times having concubines was not considered to be an adulterous relationship. The translator should therefore avoid using a word with connotations of illicitness. La Bible du Semeur renders this word as “wives of the second rank.” In some cultures they may be referred to as “the king’s other wives.”

Delighted in her: the verb translated delighted has a broad range of meanings, depending on the context. It basically means “to care for [something or someone]” or “to have a joyous desire [for something or someone].” In some contexts it expresses the idea of friendship between two persons. Even in the sexual realm of love between a man and a woman, it sometimes means only “delight in,” without strong sexual connotations. Here, however, “delight” seems to express the sense of sexual desire.

Summoned by name: the meaning here is that, unless a woman was specifically identified by name, she did not go a second time to the king. The importance of the name as a means of designating a woman wanted by the king should be clear in the translation.

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Noss, Philip A. A Handbook on Esther (The Hebrew Text). (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .