shepherd

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated as “shepherd” in English is translated in Kouya as Bhlabhlɛɛ ‘yliyɔzʋnyɔ — ” tender of sheep.”

Philip Saunders (p. 231) explains:

“Then one day they tackled the thorny problem of ‘shepherd’. It was problematic because Kouyas don’t have herdsmen who stay with the sheep all the time. Sheep wander freely round the village and its outskirts, and often a young lad will be detailed to drive sheep to another feeding spot. So the usual Kouya expression meant a ‘driver of sheep’, which would miss the idea of a ‘nurturing’ shepherd. ‘A sheep nurturer’ was possible to say, but it was unnatural in most contexts. The group came up with Bhlabhlɛɛ ‘yliyɔzʋnyɔ which meant ‘a tender of sheep’, that is one who keeps an eye on the sheep to make sure they are all right. All, including the translators, agreed that this was a most satisfactory solution.”

In Chuj, the translation is “carer” since there was no single word for “shepherd” (source: Ronald Ross), in Muna, it is dhagano dhumba: “sheep guard” since there was no immediate lexical equivalent (source: René van den Berg), in Mairasi it is translated with “people who took care of domesticated animals” (source: Enggavoter 2004), in Noongar as kookendjeriyang-yakina or “sheep worker” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang), and Kwakum as “those-who-monitor-the-livestock” (source: Stacey Hare in this post ).

See also I am the good shepherd.

complete verse (Genesis 29:9)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 29:9:

  • Newari: “Just as Jacob was talking with them, Rachel came, arriving there, tending her fathers sheep. It turned out that she was the one who tended her father’s sheep.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “Jacob was- still -talking to them when Raquel arrived bringing the sheep of her father, because she (was) the one-who-watches them.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep. She was the one who took care of her father’s sheep.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Genesis 29:9

While the conversation in verses 4-8 has been going on, Rachel has been approaching the well with her father’s flock.

While he was still speaking with them: he refers to Jacob, and them refers to the local herders.

Rachel came with her father’s sheep: the point of view is from the well, where Rachel has now arrived. This sentence may need to be restructured to say, for example, “Rachel arrived at the well with her father’s sheep.” Translators may notice that Good News Translation does not repeat in verse 9 that the sheep belong to Laban, because that fact has been stated in verse 6 as “his flock,” and it will occur again in verse 10.

For she kept them is literally “because she was a shepherdess,” that is, a girl who takes care of the family sheep. In some languages this expression may need to be stated, for example, as “Rachel, who cared for her father’s sheep, came to the well.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Genesis. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1997. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .