kiss

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The Hebrew and the Greek that is usually directly translated as “kiss” in English is translated more indirectly in other languages because kissing is deemed as inappropriate, is not a custom at all, or is not customary in the particular context (see the English translation of J.B. Phillips [publ. 1960] in Rom. 16:16: “Give each other a hearty handshake”). Here are some examples:

  • Pökoot: “greet warmly” (“kissing in public, certainly between men, is absolutely unacceptable in Pökoot.”) (Source: Gerrit van Steenbergen)
  • Southern Birifor: puor or “greet” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
  • Chamula Tzotzil, Ixcatlán Mazatec, Tojolabal: “greet each other warmly” or “hug with feeling” (source: Robert Bascom)
  • Afar: gaba tittal ucuya — “give hands to each other” (Afar kiss each other’s hands in greeting) (source: Loren Bliese)
  • Roviana: “welcome one another joyfully”
  • Cheke Holo: “love each other in the way-joined-together that is holy” (esp. in Rom. 16:16) or “greet with love” (esp. 1Thess. 5:26 and 1Pet. 5.14)
  • Pitjantjatjara: “when you meet/join up with others of Jesus’ relatives hug and kiss them [footnote], for you are each a relative of the other through Jesus.” Footnote: “This was their custom in that place to hug and kiss one another in happiness. Maybe when we see another relative of Jesus we shake hands and rejoice.” (esp. Rom. 16:16) (source for this and two above: Carl Gross)
  • Kamba: “greet with the greeting of love” (source: Andy Warren-Rothlin)
  • Balanta-Kentohe and Mandinka: “touch cheek” or “cheek-touching” (“sumbu” in Malinka)
  • Mende: “embrace” (“greet one another with the kiss of love”: “greet one another and embrace one another to show that you love one another”) (source for this and two above: Rob Koops)
  • Gen: “embrace affectionately” (source: John Ellington)
  • Kachin: “holy and pure customary greetings” (source: Gam Seng Shae)
  • Kahua: “smell” (source: David Clark) (also in Ekari and Kekchí, source: Reiling / Swellengrebel)
  • San Blas Kuna: “smell the face” (source: Claudio and Marvel Iglesias in The Bible Translator 1951, p. 85ff.)
  • Chichewa: “suck” (“habit and term a novelty amongst the young and more or less westernized people, the traditional term for greeting a friend after a long absence being, ‘clap in the hands and laugh happily'”)
  • Medumba: “suck the cheek” (“a novelty, the traditional term being ‘to embrace.'”)
  • Shona (version of 1966) / Vidunda: “hug”
  • Balinese: “caress” (source for this and three above: Reiling / Swellengrebel; Vidunda: project-specific translation notes in Paratext)
  • Tsafiki: earlier version: “greet in a friendly way,” later revision: “kiss on the face” (Bruce Moore [in: Notes on Translation 1/1992), p. 1ff.] explains: “Formerly, kissing had presented a problem. Because of the Tsáchilas’ [speakers of Tsafiki] limited exposure to Hispanic culture they understood the kiss only in the eros context. Accordingly, the original translation had rendered ‘kiss’ in a greeting sense as ‘greet in a friendly way’. The actual word ‘kiss’ was not used. Today ‘kiss’ is still an awkward term, but the team’s judgment was that it could be used as long as long as it was qualified. So ‘kiss’ (in greeting) is now ‘kiss on the face’ (that is, not on the lips).)
  • Kwere / Kutu: “show true friendship” (source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific translation notes in Paratext)

See also Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth and kissed (his feet).

rabbi

The Hebrew word that is transliterated in Greek and typically in English as “rabbi” is translated in Indonesian and Malay as guru — “teacher” — or bapak guru — “father teacher” in recent translations. (The only exception that is the Alkitab Versi Borneo of 2015 that transliterates as rabi.)

Source: Daud Soesilo in The Bible Translator 1996, p. 335ff,)

complete verse (Mark 14:45)

Following are a number of back-translations of Mark 14:45:

  • Uma: “So, when they arrived there, Yudas went to meet Yesus, he said: ‘Teacher!’ and he kissed him according to the Yahudi custom.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “So-then when they arrived there, Judas came immediately close to Isa and he said, ‘Sir.’ And he kissed Isa.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “And when Judas arrived, he immediately went up to Jesus and said, ‘Teacher!’ And he kissed him.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “That being so, he immediately went to Jesus saying, ‘Sir teacher, how are you (sing.)?’ Then he kissed (him).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “When Judas arrived, he went directly to Jesus. ‘Master!’ he said, and then kissed him like his holding dear was big.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)

Translation commentary on Mark 14:45

Text:

After rabbi ‘Master’ Textus Receptus and Soden add another rabbi, which is omitted by all other editions of the Greek text.

Exegesis:

proselthōn (cf. 1.31) ‘approaching,’ ‘drawing near.’

rabbi (cf. 9.5) ‘Rabbi,’ ‘Teacher.’

katephilēsen (only here in Mark) ‘he kissed’: this would seem to be the normal way in which a Rabbi was greeted. Lagrange cites a passage which speaks of one Rabbi greeting another affectionately by kissing him on the forehead. As distinguished from the simple phileō of the preceding verse, kataphileō is taken to mean ‘kiss warmly,’ ‘kiss affectionately’ (cf. The Modern Speech New Testament, Goodspeed). The meaning ‘kiss much’ (American Standard Version margin) is styled “very doubtful” by Moulton & Milligan, on the basis of the papyri evidence. It has been suggested that the “sense of intense emotion” present in the verb is to be identified, in this passage, as that of repentance, on the part of Judas.

Translation:

The pronouns he … he … him are not always clear in reference. Therefore, one may have to make certain substitutes, e.g. ‘Judas … he … Jesus.’

Master, as a translation of rabbi, means much more than merely ‘teacher.’ The irony of this event is brought out more forcibly and accurately if some term meaning ‘master,’ ‘honored leader,’ or ‘respected teacher’ is employed.

For kiss see verse 44.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .