grain

The Greek and Hebrew that is translated in English as “grain” (or: “corn”) is translated in Kui as “(unthreshed) rice.” Helen Evans (in The Bible Translator 1954, p. 40ff. ) explains: “Padddy [unthreshed rice] is the main crop of the country and rice the staple diet of the people, besides which [grain] is unknown and there is no word for it, and it seemed to us that paddy and rice in the mind of the Kui people stood for all that corn meant to the Jews.” “Paddy” is also the translation in Pa’o Karen (source: Gordon Luce in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 153f. ).

Other translations include: “wheat” (Teutila Cuicatec), “corn” (Lalana Chinantec), “things to eat” (Morelos Nahuatl), “grass corn” (wheat) (Chichimeca-Jonaz) (source: Viola Waterhouse in Notes on Translation August 1966, p. 86ff.), or ntimumma lujia / “seeds for food” (Lokạạ — “since Lokạạ does not have specific terms for maize and rice that can be described as grains”) (source: J.A. Naudé, C.L. Miller Naudé, J.O. Obono in Acta Theologica 43/2, 2023, p. 129ff. )

complete verse (Genesis 41:5)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Genesis 41:5:

  • Kankanaey: “When he again slept, he dreamed again, and he reportedly saw seven heads-of-grain on a single stalk/base whose fruit was well-formed (used of plumb, heavy grains).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Newari: “He went to sleep again and had another dream. In the dream he saw one stalk of a plant bearing seven seven good full heads of grain.” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
  • Hiligaynon: “The king fell-asleep again and he dreamed again. In his dream he saw seven good/full/healthy heads-of-grain which come-out-from a single stem.” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
  • English: “The king went to sleep again, and he had another dream. This time he saw seven heads of grain that were full of kernels of grain and ripe, and all growing on one stalk.” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Genesis 41:5

In the second dream seven sickly objects again eat seven healthy objects.

And: as this is a sequence of events, it may be best to say something equivalent to “Then,” “After that,” or “Later.”

Dreamed a second time: that is, “had a second dream,” “had another dream,” “dreamed again,” or “dreamed a second time.” Following the same pattern as in verse 1, some translations say “… dreamed again, and his second dream was like this:….”

Behold, seven ears of grain … stalk: unlike the first dream, in which there is a setting (the king is looking down on the river from the bank), the second dream has no setting. Translators may find it is necessary to provide a setting by saying, for example, “This time he dreamed he was looking at a stalk of grain.”

Seven ears of grain: King James Version and British edition Good News Translation “ears of corn” may give the impression to some that the reference is to maize. However, what the king sees in his dream is a stalk of grain, perhaps wheat, with heads full of grains growing out of the stalk. Ears or “heads of grain” refers to the clusters of ripe grain at the head of the stalk. In some languages the tender clusters of grains are called “eyes of grain,” and when they are ripe are called “heads of grain.” In rice-growing areas the heads of grain may be applied to the stalk of rice.

Plump and good: plump, which means “well rounded” or “filled out,” translates the Hebrew word for “fat” used in Gen 41.2. Good News Translation says “full and ripe.” Translators should use expressions that are used to describe well-developed and ripe grains (or ears) growing on a stalk of grain, or rice.

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 .