Translation of the Concept ‘Virgin’ into the Tepehuan Language in the Work of Benito Rinaldini (18th century)

Abstract

In this study, we analyse how the Jesuit Benito Rinaldini addressed linguistic and cultural anisomorphism when translating the Catholic concept of ‘virgin’ in his Arte de la lengua tepehuana (1743). We examine grammatical examples, religious texts, and vocabulary in order to identify the presence of this concept in grammatical illustrations and in fragments of the Confessional and the Credo, as well as its use in encoding terms such as doncella and muchacha and other related notions. In addition, we investigate whether the treatment of ‘virgin’ differs from that applied to the Virgin Mary. A comparison with other grammars and vocabularies from the Northwest reveals a common pattern: the semantic extension of native terms denoting ‘youth,’ ‘novelty,’ or ‘integrity’ to express Christian moral values. When confronted with a concept that was nonexistent in Tepehuan culture but central to Christian doctrine, this procedure required the proposal of new uses for native words. As a result, the semantic structures of the indigenous language were adapted to integrate new categories introduced by the missionary within an evangelisation context.