A Letter From Our Translator on Tattoo Translation Verificationsm:

To Aramaic Enthusiasts and Those Seeking Translations,

I have been translating Aramaic professionally for about five years now, and it always gives me sorrow when I'm out on the internet and find people who have put their trust in a translation and eagerly obtain a tattoo or use it in a public project without double-checking their source first.

On my research blog I've documented dozens of cases where these individuals have permanently scarred their bodies in this manner. I will only highlight a few here:

  • Two individuals with the same verse from the Song Of Songs ("I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine."), spelled out backwards and in the wrong gender.
     
  • A woman who has a beautiful lilly tattoo down the entire side of her back with Aramaic text she was told meant "My God My God, why have you forsaken me?." The text is gibberish.
     
  • International pop-star Ricky Martin who has a beautiful spiral tattoo of the Lord's Prayer in Syriac, but it was typeset out of order.
     

Aramaic is a rare language, and because of that, reliable information is rare. In truth, the very phrase "Aramaic language" is misleading, as Aramaic itself is not one tongue, but a family of closely related languages, many of which are not mutually intelligible.

Different dialects are sometimes written using different scripts and alphabets, and in many cases a scholars who study and master one family of dialects are not proficient in (or are even ignorant of) many others.

As you can imagine, all of this makes it very difficult to pin down what is "correct" and what isn't. There is a lot of context to sift through when making such a judgment. This is what makes any form of double-checking imperative when seeking an Aramaic translation.

With all of this in mind, I would like to offer a free service to anyone who has obtained a translation from another source. (It is my personal legacy of sorts.) Email in to:

AramaicDesigns@gmail.com

With the following information:

1) Where you received the translation.
2) What you were told it means.
3) Images of the text you received.

I will look over it for you and verify its accuracy, explain what it means, and leave you with as much information as I can, pro bono.

There is one caveat that I do believe needs to be stated up front. If your translation needs editing, I can provide such servies; however, due to the number of requests I receive in a day, I cannot provide it pro bono. In that case, you will have to place an order with Aramaic Designs. When you do, however, you'll be in good hands.

Sincerely,

Steve Caruso, MLIS

Translator, Aramaic Designs
http://www.AramaicDesigns.com

Author, The Aramaic Blog
http://aramaicdesigns.blogspot.com

Aramaic Language Instructor, DARIUS
http://darius.rogueleaf.com

 

If you are looking to get your own Aramaic translation:

Click the image above.

NOTE: If we are not online or do not respond, please send email to AramaicDesigns@gmail.com instead for a prompt reply.