wine

The Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that are translated as “wine” in English is translated into Pass Valley Yali as “grape juice pressed long ago (= fermented)” or “strong water” (source: Daud Soesilo). In Guhu-Samane it is also translated as “strong water” (source: Ernest L. Richert in The Bible Translator 1965, p. 198ff. ), in Noongar as “liquor” (verbatim: “strong water”) (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang), in Hausa as ruwan inabi or “water of grapes” (with no indication whether it’s alcoholic or not — source: Mark A. Gaddis), or in Papantla Totonac and Coyutla Totonac as “a drink like Pulque” (for “Pulque,” see here ) (source: Jacob Loewen in The Bible Translator 1971, p. 169ff. ).

In Swahili, Bible translations try to avoid local words for alcoholic drinks, because “drinking of any alcohol at all was one of the sins most denounced by early missionaries. Hence translators are uncomfortable by the occurrences of wine in the Bible. Some of the established churches which use wine prefer to see church wine as holy, and would not refer to it by the local names used for alcoholic drinks. Instead church wine is often referred to by terms borrowed from other languages, divai (from German, der Wein) or vini/mvinyo (from ltalian/Latin vino/vinum). Several translations done by Protestants have adapted the Swahili divai for ‘wine,’ while those done by Catholics use vini or mvinyo.” (Source: Rachel Konyoro in The Bible Translator 1985, p. 221ff. )

The Swahili divai was in turn borrowed by Sabaot and was turned into tifaayiik and is used as such in the Bible. Kupsabiny, on the other hand, borrowed mvinyo from Swahili and turned it into Finyonik. (Source: Iver Larsen)

In Nyamwezi, two terms are used. Malwa ga muzabibu is a kind of alcohol that people specifically use to get drunk (such as in Genesis 9:21) and ki’neneko is used for a wine made from grapes (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext).

In some Hindi translations (such as the Common Language version, publ. 2015 ), one term (dākharasa दाखरस — grape juice) is used when that particular drink is in the focus (such as in John 2) and another term (madirā मदिरा — “alcohol” or “liquor”) when drunkenness is in the focus (such as in Eph. 5:18).

In Mandarin Chinese, the generic term jiǔ (酒) or “alcohol(ic drink)” is typically used. Exceptions are Leviticus 10:9, Numbers 6:3, Deuteronomy 29:6, Judges 13:4 et al., 1 Samuel 1:15, and Luke 1:15 where a differentiation between weak and strong alcohol is needed. The Mandarin Chinese Union Version (2010) translates that as qīngjiǔ lièjiǔ (清酒烈酒) and dànjiǔ lièjiǔ (淡酒烈酒), both in the form of a Chinese proverb and meaning “light alcohol and strong drink.” (Source: Zetzsche)

Click or tap here to see a short video clip about wine in biblical times (source: Bible Lands 2012)

See also proceeds from the vine / anything that comes from the grapevine and wine (Gen 27:28).

happiness / joy

The Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek that is typically translated in English as “joy” or “happiness” is translated in the Hausa Common Language Ajami Bible idiomatically as farin ciki or “white stomach.” In some cases, such as in Genesis 29:11, it is also added for emphatic purposes.

Other languages that use the same expression include Southern Birifor (pʋpɛl), Dera (popolok awo), Reshe (ɾipo ɾipuhã). (Source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)

See also Seat of the Mind / Seat of Emotions, rejoiced greatly / celebrated, the Mossi translation of “righteous”, and joy.

vineyard

The Hebrew, Latin, and Greek that is translated as “vineyard” in English is translated in Noongar as boodjer-djildjiyang, lit. “land for fruit.” (Source: Portions of the Holy Bible in the Nyunga language of Australia, 2018).

joy

Click here to view graphically

The Greek, Latin and Hebrew that is translated with “joy” or “gladness” in English is translated with various associations of “sweetness” or taste: Bambara has “the spirit is made sweet,” Kpelle translates as “sweet heart,” and Tzeltal as “the good taste of one’s heart,” Uduk uses the phrase “good to the stomach,” Baoulé “a song in the stomach,” Mískito “the liver is wide open” (“happily letting the pleasures flooding in upon it”) (source: Nida 1952), Mairasi says “good liver” (source: Enggavoter 2004), Noongar has koort-kwabba-djil or “heart very good” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang), and Chicahuaxtla Triqui “refreshed heart” (source: Waterhouse / Parrott in Notes on Translation October 1967, p. 1ff.).

See also Seat of the Mind for traditional views of “ways of knowing, thinking, and feeling,” happiness / joy, and exceeding joy.

Translation commentary on Isaiah 16:10

And joy and gladness are taken away from the fruitful field: This is a further result of the enemy attack. Normally at the time of harvest there is happiness and celebration, but due to the destruction of the fields, there is no harvest and therefore no festivity. The nouns joy and gladness are synonymous. Translators may choose two nouns that fit together naturally in this context, such as “joy and happiness.” Contemporary English Version says “joyful and happy times,” and Bible en français courant has “The noisy joy.” The happiness was taken away. The Hebrew verb here is literally “has been gathered.” In this context it means “have been removed.” This passive verb assumes an agent. In languages where an active verb with a subject is required here, translators can indicate that it was the enemy who denied the Moabites their harvest celebration. Good News Translation provides another solution with an active verb by rendering these lines as “No one is happy now in the fertile fields.” The fruitful field is the fertile farmland (see the comments on 10.18).

And in the vineyards no songs are sung, no shouts are raised: These lines are parallel to the previous two lines. Some translators may need to change the passive verbs here to active. Good News Translation does this by saying “No one shouts or sings in the vineyards.” The Hebrew word rendered shouts can refer to shouts of warning, battle cries, or shouting in anger or despair, but here it is joyful shouting.

No treader treads out wine in the presses: At the end of the grape harvest the farmer trampled the grapes in a wine press (see the illustration and comments at 5.2). As he trod the grapes, grape juice flowed out. The juice was stored and in time became wine. So it would be more accurate to say “treads out grape juice” instead of treads out wine. Good News Translation provides a good model for this line, saying “No one tramples grapes to make wine.”

The vintage shout is hushed is literally “shout I have ceased.” The Hebrew term for shout is different from the one in the fourth line. From the context it is clear that this shout refers to shouts of joy during the vintage, that is, grape harvest. Like Revised Standard Version, many versions use the passive verb is hushed, which leaves the agent uncertain. This conforms to the other verbs in the verse. However, New English Bible and Revised English Bible follow the Hebrew by saying “I have silenced” (similarly New International Version). Hebrew Old Testament Text Project supports this reading with God speaking here. However, the next line speaks of “my soul,” which clearly refers to the prophet. Normally, readers would understand both first person pronouns as referring to the prophet. We recommend following the majority opinion here. It is better to use a passive verb rather than to say God stopped the shouting. Throughout this oracle the prophet never says God destroyed Moab, except in 15.9. If translators need an active verb, they may render this line as “the shouts of joy during the grape harvest have stopped [or, come to an end].”

We suggest the following examples to translate this verse:

• Joy and happiness have disappeared from the fertile farmlands;
in the vineyards nobody sings songs anymore, nobody calls out in joy.
Nobody treads the grapes in the presses for wine,
the shouting has been silenced.

• Harvest joy and celebration have disappeared from the fertile fields;
nobody sings harvest songs in the vineyards or calls out with shouts of joy.
Nobody treads out the wine grapes in the presses,
all shouts have ended.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .