Jeff and his wife Peg were the translation advisors for the Takwane Bible translation project. They have one grown daughter. The Takwane Scriptures were distributed in 2015. Jeff moved to Dallas, TX, and became a SIL Language Technology consultant for SIL International. Currently he is in Seed Company’s consultant-in-training program.
Eternal and Non-eternal Ages and Other Time Words; An Analysis of Time Words in Major Chichewa Bible Translations
Abstract
Translating durative-time terms such as “eternal”, “forever”, “with out end”, and “age” are difficult in many Bantu languages. Various solutions have been used to translate these terms. Some using phrases such as “all days” or “days without end” which do not adequately capture some of the important characteristics of these terms. This paper will show a rigorous comparison of the New Testament in three major Chichewa/Nyanja translations to give concrete solutions to rendering this complex of durative-time words. The translations analyzed are:
Buku Lopatulika, Revised Edition 2018, Bible Society of Malawi.
Mawu a Mulungu mu Chichewa Chalero, Biblica date?
Buku Loyera, Bible Society of Malawi, 1999.
This paper will show in detail how to use the features of Paratext 9 and Logos to document how the time words were translated in all the verses where they occur, and how a translator can discover the differences in their meanings while translating.
About the Author
Seed Company