We'll be using the English and Japanese versions of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures because it's written in easy-to-read modern language.
行きましょう!
Click the link below to see the lesson!
In English, we say "Genesis." In Japanese, it's "創世記 (そうせいき)."
But we can break it down even further! Let's look at the kanji.
With this knowledge, we can guess that the name of this book carries the meaning "account of the origin of the world." And that's exactly what the book of Genesis is!
Great job today! You can now read Genesis 1:1 in two different languages. Isn't that exciting? Why not practice by reading it to your friends and family?
またね！
Click the link below to see the lesson!
First, let's learn to say and read the name of the very first book of the Bible.
In English, we say "Genesis." In Japanese, it's "創世記 (そうせいき)."
But we can break it down even further! Let's look at the kanji.
創 (そう) start, originate
世 (せい) generation, world
記 (き) account, narrative
With this knowledge, we can guess that the name of this book carries the meaning "account of the origin of the world." And that's exactly what the book of Genesis is!
Now let's read Genesis 1:1!
First we'll read it in English.
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."(Source)
Now let's look at it in Japanese.
″初めに，神は天と地を創造した。″
(Source)
Vocabulary
初め (はじめ) - (noun) Start, beginning
に - (particle) This sentence particle means "at."
神 (かみ) - (noun) God
は - (particle) Marks the topic.
天 (てん) - (noun) Heaven. If you've been following our Kanji Cruncher lessons, you learned this in the Grade 1 set!
と - (particle) And.
地 (ち) - (noun) Earth.
を - (particle) Marks the direct object which receives the action of the verb.
創造した (そうぞうした) - (past-tense verb) Created.
It's time to put it all together!
″初め に (at/in the beginning), 神 は (God, who is marked as the topic by the particle "は") 天 と 地 (heaven and earth) を (binds the nouns "heaven and earth" to the following verb) 創造した (created)。″
″初めに，神は天と地を創造した。″
Translated word-for-word, this scripture says, "Beginning at, God heaven and earth created." You can easily see that the meaning is identical to the English translation!
Translated word-for-word, this scripture says, "Beginning at, God heaven and earth created." You can easily see that the meaning is identical to the English translation!
And as a fun bonus, here's a Quizlet flashcard deck with all of these new terms to help you review and cement what you've learned.
Great job today! You can now read Genesis 1:1 in two different languages. Isn't that exciting? Why not practice by reading it to your friends and family?
またね！
-Kitty
Please keep going with Genesis. This is interesting. I've also learned Spanish on Duo, and I love comparing the Spanish version of the Bible readings at church to the English - They're not always the same. -Mommarigo
ReplyDeleteI’m so glad you enjoyed it! I can definitely do more of Genesis! That’s so interesting that you like to compare. I do that too, with Japanese and English. What Bible translations do you like?
DeleteMy favorite ever (yeah, I'm a Bible geek) is the Douay-Rheims, but I don't own a copy of that. New American is the one I'm most familiar with. -Mommarigo
ReplyDeleteThat's awesome! I could say the same about myself. My favorite is the New World Translation because it's so clear to read, and it uses God's name. I also like to cross-reference with others like the American Standard, Byington, and King James.
DeleteAlso, I'm working on a post for Genesis 1:2 today. :)