own city

The Greek that is translated as “(his) own city” in English is translated in Batak Toba as “his clan-origin” or literally “the trunk of his nangka-tree” (the strong, but slow growing nangka, or Jack-fruit, tree is being used metaphorically of the compound of a well-to-do family which remained in the same village for generations).

Nativity (image)

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complete verse (Luke 2:3)

Following are a number of back-translations of Luke 2:3:

  • Noongar: “All the people went to their own town, their ancestors’ town. There, they wrote their names on the paper.” (Source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
  • Uma: “All people went requesting their names to be written, each to the town of their parents.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “For that reason all people went back to the place of their ancestors to register.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And in the census it was necessary that each person be registered in the village of his ancestors.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “So each one (lit. one and one) went to the town of his ancestors to go register there.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “Therefore all the people went to whichever town was the town of their parents/ancestors, to be censused there.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Central Tunebo: (verses 3-5) “Everyone went to his own city to be counted. Joseph also went to be counted. Joseph was from the land of Galilee. He was from the city of Nazareth. Joseph’s grandfather is David. He is David’s relative. As a result he went to David’s city to be counted. He went to Bethlehem to be counted. In the city of Bethlehem. He went with Mary. Joseph would soon marry Mary. Mary was pregnant. They went together, with Mary.” (“The typical narrative text in Tunebo introduces 3 or 4 information bits in the first sentence. This includes the predicate and subject and, where appropriate, the object. A locative element is quite often introduced, too. From there, new information bearing on the stage or opening event is introduced, usually at the rate of one new bit per sentence, keeping the main verb constant.” Source: Edna Headland in Notes on Translation, 58/1975, pp. 2ff.)

Translation commentary on Luke 2:3

Exegesis:

kai eporeuonto pantes apographesthai ‘and all went to have themselves registered’; kai connects the clause with v. 1 and this connexion makes of v. 2 a parenthesis (cf. Moffatt, Twentieth Century New Testament).

pantes ‘all people concerned,’ viewed in their totality; as compared with pantes the subsequent hekastos (in the singular), being a distributive pronoun, refers to the individual members of that totality.

apographesthai ‘in order to be registered,’ final infinitive, cf. on v. 1.

hekastos eis tēn heautou polin ‘each to his own town’; there is no need to translate ‘the town of his birth,’ because one could have a claim to landed property in a place other than one’s birthplace.

Translation:

Because of the parenthetical character of v. 2 it may be preferable to specify the transition and/or the subject, e.g. ‘therefore,’ ‘because of that decree/command,’ and/or, ‘all people (there),’ ‘all the inhabitants.’

Went, or, ‘set out’ (Zürcher Bibel), “made their way” (New English Bible), ‘rose to journey’ (Sranan Tongo), indicating the general upheaval, the next clause indicating the individual directions. Since the journey is to the people’s places of origin idiom may require ‘to go home’ (Balinese), ‘to go back’ (Bahasa Indonesia).

His own city, or, ‘his settlement of origin’ (Malay), ‘the settlement of his ancestors’ (Tae’; properly the term refers to the settlement of female ancestors, the traditional Toradja marriage being matrilocal), ‘his ancestral-house,’ lit. ‘his seat’ (Toraja-Sa’dan), ‘his clan-origin,’ lit. ‘the trunk of his nangka-tree’ (Batak Toba, the strong, but slow growing nangka, or Jack-fruit, tree being used metaphorically of the compound of a well-to-do family which remained in the same village for generations).

Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.

Translation commentary on Luke 24:22 – 24:23

Exegesis:

alla kai lit. ‘but (in spite of this,) also,’ here expressing strong contrast with what precedes, ‘yet despite this.’

gunaikes tines ex hēmōn exestēsan hēmas ‘some women of our group have astounded us.’ ex hēmōn ‘of our group’ implies a wider reference for hēmōn than the speaker and his friend, i.e. the followers of Jesus in general. As for the punctuation cf. GOOD NEWS BIBLE. A major punctuation after hēmas is preferable.

existēmi lit. ‘to drive out of one’s senses,’ hence ‘to confuse,’ ‘to astound.’

genomenai orthrinai epi to mnēmeion ‘when they went early/at dawn to the tomb.’ ginomai epi with accusative implies the idea of motion. orthrinai is an adjective going with the subject of the clause but serves to indicate the time of the event denoted by genomenai … epi to mnēmeion and hence to be rendered as an adverb, ‘early,’ ‘at dawn’ (cf. orthros in v. 1).

(V. 23) kai mē heurousai to sōma auton ‘and when they did not find his body,’ continuing the preceding participial clause and carrying the main semantic weight: the fact that they did not find the body made them go back. For to sōma cf. on 17.37.

ēlthon legousai kai optasian aggelōn heōrakenai ‘they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels.’ ēlthon means ‘they came to us, or, to our group.’ kai may mean ‘actually,’ or ‘also,’ i.e. besides the fact that they did not find the body. The latter is preferable. For optasia cf. on 1.22. aggelōn is genitive of content.

hoi legousin auton zēn ‘who said that he lives, or, is alive.’

Translation:

Moreover, preferably, “yet there is this” (The Four Gospels – a New Translation), ‘nevertheless,’ ‘true enough’ (Bible de Jérusalem).

Some women of our company is rendered variously, e.g. ‘some women among (or, out of) us’ (e.g. in Trukese, Marathi), ‘some women our companions/associates’ (Sundanese, Toraja-Sa’dan), ‘two or three of our women’ (Tzeltal), but one may have to be more explicit, e.g. ‘some women who are (Jesus’) followers like us.’

Amazed us, or, ‘confused/alarmed/startled us,’ or, a causative form or phrase built on one of the more forceful expressions for ‘amazement’ or ‘wonder’ (mentioned in the note on 1.21).

They were at … (v. 23) and did not find…; and they came …, or, ‘they went to … but did not (emphatic) find…, therefore/thereupon they came….’

That they had … seen a vision of angels, or, ‘that they had seen a vision, or, a (supernatural) appearance, namely angels,’ ‘that they saw (supernatural) things, that is to say, angels’ (Sranan Tongo), ‘that they saw something which appeared to them: some angels (lit. people of heaven)’ (Trukese); or with further shifts, ‘that they had seen angels showing-themselves’ (Sundanese), ‘we clearly saw angels,’ implying that something normally invisible is revealed (Ekari). For see a vision cf. on 1.22.

Who said …, often as a new sentence, cf. ‘and these (angels) said’ (Sranan Tongo, Marathi, Ekari).

Quoted with permission from Reiling, J. and Swellengrebel, J.L. A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1971. For this and other handbooks for translators see here . Make sure to also consult the Handbook on the Gospel of Mark for parallel or similar verses.