Titles and Subtitles in Translations of the Bible into Polish

Abstract

This article refers to problems which have not been addressed so far and which concern the origin, frame and structure of titles and sub-titles in Polish editions of the Bible. It also explains and orders terminological issues.

 Titles had had appeared for the first time in nineteenth-century Polish translations of the Bible whereas their regular occurrence started in 1945. 

 There are two purposes of the Bible titles: practical and interpretative ones thanks to which  readers can easily find easy and interpret a given fragment of the Bible. Professing traditions makes titles to be repetitive forms built on the same basis to a great extent. That is why Bible titles are characterized by the lack of individuality, rare use of metaphors and the use of firm word-connections (often in the form of idiomatic combinations). Apart from that, titles are used:

1.strictly with reference to Bible tales,
2. to summarize the content of stories,
3. in quotation forms.

 Nominal forms – in the form of sentence equivalents – dominate in grammatical structures of the titles. Verbal forms - in the form of single or complex sentences – are used  rarely.

 The Bible titles are present in common consciousness of each human being. The symbolics of the Bible nomenclature is very often exploited in art, a fact which proves the popularity of the Bible titles.