This study focuses on the translation of the proper names in the historical books, especially in the Antiochene text of the Septuagint. The translators resorted to different devices: transliteration of the Hebrew name, adaptation to the Greek case endings, substitution by the Greek equivalent, and translation when the name has a transparent meaning. Some examples of the diverse categories are examined in the light of the Hebrew text and the majority text of the Septuagint. In addition some remarks are included on the translation of popular etymologies and puns of the original as well as on the ghost-names produced in the process of translation or in the history of transmission of the biblical text. The author claims that the ghost-names, irrespective of their origin, were incorporated into the target language and were not perceived by the reader as ghost-names. Moreover, some of them gave rise to new meanings, exegesis and commentaries. In a few cases they preserve alternative variants that may go back to a Hebrew text different from the Masoretic one.

Ponencia presentada en el "Symposium on Lexicography of the Septuagint", celebrado en la Universidad de Leiden, los días 15-16 de diciembre de 2000

Peer reviewed