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Core Glossary

Core Glossary: Gospel of John — Kurdish (Kurmanji)

This glossary consolidates every load-bearing theological term identified in 07_semantic_analysis.md, spanning John 1-21. Terms already recorded in the baseline Romans translation_memory.json are marked [BASELINE — reuse exactly] and are not renegotiated here. New terms proposed for John are marked [NEW] and must be added to translation_memory.json (with version increment) before Phase 2 translation begins, per the AI Translation Requirements’ Translation Memory Load and Enforcement Instructions.

Risk tiers follow the baseline doctrine_risk_registry.json definitions exactly (Critical/High/Medium/Low).

Section A — Terms Reused Exactly from the Baseline (Romans Language Package)

EnglishOriginalKurdishRiskDoctrine (John context)
Godθεός (theos)XwedêCriticalDeity of Christ; God’s Love for the World
JesusἸησοῦς (Iēsous)ÎsaCriticalAll Christological doctrines
Christ/MessiahΧριστός (Christos)MesîhCriticalMessianic Promise
Lordκύριος (kyrios)XudanCriticalLordship/Deity of Christ (20:28)
Son of Godυἱὸς θεοῦ (huios theou)Kurê XwedêCriticalDeity/Sonship of Christ
Holy Spiritπνεῦμα ἅγιον (pneuma hagion)Ruhê PîrozCriticalHoly Spirit as Counselor
Fatherπατήρ (patēr)BavCriticalUnity of Father and Son
Resurrectionἀνάστασις (anastasis)RabûnCriticalSubstitutionary Death and Resurrection
Salvationσωτηρία (sōtēria)RizgarîCriticalEternal Life; God’s Love for the World
Graceχάρις (charis)KeremHighGrace and Truth (1:14,17)
Holyἅγιος (hagios)PîrozHighHoly One of God (6:69)
Sanctificationἁγιασμός-related (ἁγιάζω, hagiazō)TeqdîsHighHigh Priestly Prayer (17:17)
Glory/Glorifyδόξα/δοξάζω (doxa/doxazō)RûmetHighDeity of Christ; the “Hour”
Law (Mosaic)νόμος (nomos)Şerîeta MûsaCriticalGrace/Truth contrast (1:17)
Sinἁμαρτία (hamartia)GunehHighConviction of the world (16:8)
Kingdom of Godβασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ (basileia tou theou)Padîşahiya XwedêCritical”My kingdom is not of this world” (18:36); 3:3,5
Peaceεἰρήνη (eirēnē)AştîMedium”My peace I give to you” (14:27)
Apostle-root (“sent”)ἀποστέλλω (apostellō)(root of) ŞandîHigh*Father sending the Son (3:17 et al.)
Righteousnessδικαιοσύνη (dikaiosynē)AdaletCriticalConviction of the world (16:8)
IsraelἸσραήλ (Israēl)ÎsraîlMedium”Teacher of Israel” (3:10); “King of Israel” (1:49)
DavidΔαυίδ (Dauid)DawidLowBackground to Messianic titles
MosesΜωϋσῆς (Mōusēs)Mûsa1:17; 3:14; 5:45-46
Gentilesἔθνη (ethnē) — cf. “ne-cihû”Ne-cihûMedium”Greeks” seeking Jesus (12:20-21)
Abba/Father intimacy(cf. πατήρ)Bav / AbaCritical/HighFather-Son relational language

* The apostle root is reused structurally (Şandî shares its root with the “sent” verb şandin used for the Father sending the Son); the doctrine itself (“Christ as the uniquely Sent One”) is new to John and rated High independently — see Section B.

Section B — New Terms Required for John (Proposed for Translation Memory)

English termOriginal (Greek)TransliterationLiteral meaningKurdish renderingRiskDoctrineKey notes
Word (Logos)λόγοςlogosword, reason, accountPeyvCriticalDeity and Pre-existence of ChristNative Kurdish avoids the Arabic-loan Kelam and its direct link to Qur’anic Kalimatullah (a created “Word” title for Isa in Sura 3:45/4:171); still, readers will likely recognize the echo regardless of word choice. Eternal pre-existence and full deity of the Logos (1:1-3) must be taught explicitly against this default.
Beginningἀρχήarchēbeginning, originDestpêkMedium-HighPre-existence of ChristDeliberate echo of Genesis 1:1 LXX; distinct from the book-title form Destpêbûn (Genesis).
”Was” vs. “became”ἦν / ἐγένετοēn / egenetoexisted (continuous) / became (punctiliar)hebû / HighPre-existence / IncarnationGrammatical tense distinction carrying the eternal-existence-vs-historical-event contrast in 1:1 vs 1:14; easily flattened.
LifeζωήzōēlifeJiyanHighEternal Life through FaithBase term underlying “eternal life”; also used of Christ himself (“in him was life,” 1:4; “I am… the life,” 11:25; 14:6).
Eternal lifeζωὴ αἰώνιοςzōē aiōniosage-abiding lifeJiyana HerheyîCriticalEternal Life through Faith in ChristTHE curriculum-named doctrine’s core phrase (3:15-16; 17:3; 20:31); must be consistent across the entire Gospel; risk of a purely future/works-earned-paradise misreading against regional Islamic eschatology.
LightφῶςphōslightRonahîHighJudgment and Belief/UnbeliefSufi illumination-mysticism and Yazidi light-theology (sun/Melek Taus symbolism) both risk assimilation into generic mystical enlightenment; must anchor to Christ’s specific historical coming (1:4-9; 3:19-21; 8:12; 9:5).
Darknessσκοτία / σκότοςskotia / skotosdarknessTarî(yê)Medium-HighJudgment and Belief/UnbeliefPaired with light; moral/revelatory category, not mere absence of physical light.
Worldκόσμοςkosmosworld, ordered universeCîhanCriticalGod’s Love for the WorldDual sense: object of God’s love (3:16; created humanity) vs. fallen world-system opposed to God (15:18-19); must disambiguate per context.
Believe (verb)πιστεύωpisteuōto believe, trustBawer kirinHigh (Critical at 20:31)Eternal Life through Faith; core Gospel thesis~98 occurrences; John’s single most important verb. Recommended distinct from baseline noun Îman (creedal-assent risk); native verb keeps emphasis on ongoing personal trust in Christ specifically. Must be fully consistent across all 21 chapters, especially 3:15-18 and 20:31.
Born again / from aboveγεννηθῇ ἄνωθενgennēthē anōthenbegotten from above / begotten againJi Jor Ve Zayîn (also heard as “ji nû ve”)CriticalNew Birth and Regeneration by the Spiritἄνωθεν’s deliberate double meaning (from above / again) drives the entire Nicodemus dialogue (3:3-7) and is untranslatable as a single pun in Kurdish; requires translator’s note.
Fleshσάρξsarxflesh, human natureBedenHighNew Birth; Incarnation (contrast with 1:14)Neutral-to-negative re: spiritual capacity in 3:6, positive in 1:14 (Incarnation, ties to baseline Tecessud); must avoid Gnostic-adjacent body-is-evil misreading.
Water (regeneration)ὕδωρhydōrwaterAvHighNew Birth and RegenerationAmbiguous referent (birth / baptism / Ezekiel 36:25-27 new-covenant cleansing); ambiguity should be preserved, teaching should anchor to Ezekiel background.
Wind/Spirit wordplayπνεῦμα / πνεῖpneuma / pneiwind, spirit / blowsBa (wind) / Ruh (Spirit)HighNew Birth and RegenerationThe Greek pun (one word for both) is untranslatable in Kurmanji (distinct roots); mandatory translator’s note at 3:8.
Human spirit (regenerated)πνεῦμα (lowercase sense)pneumaspiritGiyanMedium-HighNew Birth and RegenerationDistinct from Ruh(ê Pîroz) (divine Spirit); disambiguates 3:6’s wordplay.
Truthἀλήθειαalētheiatruth, realityRastîMedium-HighThe “I Am” Statements (14:6); Holy Spirit as CounselorDistinct usage from baseline’s rejected Rastî (too thin for forensic righteousness) — here it is the correct, native term for aletheia. Risk: Sufi al-Haqq (“The Real/Truth,” a divine name and mystical goal) may cause “I am the truth” to be absorbed into a Sufi unitive-truth-seeking framework rather than taught as the exclusive person of Christ.
Grace and truthχάρις καὶ ἀλήθειαcharis kai alētheiagrace and truthKerem û RastîHighDeity/Incarnation (1:14,17)Contrasted with the Law given through Moses; must be taught as fulfillment, not devaluation, per baseline’s own Şerîeta Mûsa caution.
Witness / testify / testimonyμαρτυρέω / μαρτυρίαmartyreō / martyriato testify / testimonyŞahidî (kirin)HighInspiration/structuring theme throughout JohnShares root with Kurdish şehîd (martyr, a maximally sacred nationalist-liberation term); must be anchored to forensic/evidentiary testimony, not martyrdom-heroism.
Love (agape)ἀγάπη / ἀγαπάωagapē / agapaōself-giving loveEvîn (noun) / hez kirin (verb)Medium-HighGod’s Love for the World (3:16); Father-Son love (3:35; 17); New Commandment (13:34)Kurdish classical Sufi poetry’s mystical lover/beloved evîn tradition is a resource but must be distinguished from John’s self-giving initiatory love (God→world; Father→Son), not human longing for the divine beloved.
So loved (manner)οὕτως ἠγάπησενhoutōs ēgapēsenloved in this mannerwiha/bi vî awayî … hez kirHighGod’s Love for the Worldοὕτως indicates manner (the cross-shaped, self-giving character of the love), not primarily degree/quantity; common cross-linguistic mistranslation risk.
Judgment / condemnκρίσις / κρίμα / κρίνωkrisis / krima / krinōjudgment / to judge, condemnDarazîn (noun) / darazandin, mehkûm kirin (verb)HighJudgment and Belief/UnbeliefOverlaps with Islamic eschatological Roja Qiyametê (Day of Judgment) framework; John’s present, already-in-effect judgment for unbelief (3:18) is a distinctive emphasis needing explicit teaching. Recommend native-speaker confirmation of best-established Kitêba Pîroz precedent.
Wrath of Godὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦorgē tou theouwrath, anger of GodXezeba XwedêMedium-HighJudgment and Belief/Unbelief (3:36)Righteous, judicial wrath tied to persistent unbelief, not capricious anger; John’s only explicit “wrath” reference.
Signσημεῖονsēmeionsign, markNîşanMediumDeity of Christ (revealed through signs)Must be distinguished from Islamic mu’jiza (miracle strictly as prophethood-proof); John’s signs disclose glory/identity.
Lamb of Godἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦamnos tou theoulamb of GodBerxê XwedêHighChrist’s Substitutionary DeathKurdish pastoral-culture asset (native word berx); risk of assimilation into repeatable Eid al-Adha/Qurban sacrificial framework rather than a unique, final, sin-bearing sacrifice.
”I Am” (absolute)ἐγώ εἰμιegō eimiI amEz hemeCriticalDeity/Pre-existence of Christ; The Seven “I Am” StatementsEchoes LXX Exodus 3:14 and Isaiah’s divine self-declarations; clearest at 8:58 (“before Abraham was, I am”) — must retain present tense, not soften to a temporal-priority claim.
I Am: Bread of Lifeἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ἄρτος τῆς ζωῆςho artos tēs zōēsthe bread of lifeNanê JiyanêHighSeven “I Am” StatementsBread (nan) is the paramount Kurdish/Middle Eastern staple and covenant-hospitality symbol (asset); risk of flattening to mere physical provision or narrow Eucharistic ritualism.
I Am: Light of the Worldἐγώ εἰμι τὸ φῶς τοῦ κόσμουto phōs tou kosmouthe light of the worldRonahiya CîhanêHighSeven “I Am” StatementsSee Light entry above.
I Am: the Doorἐγώ εἰμι ἡ θύραhē thyrathe doorDerîMediumSeven “I Am” StatementsMust retain exclusive-access sense (10:1,9), not a generic entryway.
I Am: Good Shepherdἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλόςho poimēn ho kalosthe good shepherdŞivanê BaşMediumSeven “I Am” StatementsKurdish pastoral-nomadic heritage asset; sacrificial “lays down his life” element (10:11) must not be flattened into generic tribal/agha protective-leadership imagery.
I Am: Resurrection and the Lifeἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἀνάστασις καὶ ἡ ζωήhē anastasis kai hē zōēthe resurrection and the lifeRabûn û JiyanCriticalSeven “I Am” Statements; Substitutionary Death and ResurrectionFully inherits baseline Rabûn Critical risk-notes (Sunni crucifixion-denial; Yazidi kiras guhertin reincarnation conflation), now applied to Christ’s self-identification with resurrection life.
I Am: Way, Truth, Lifeἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ ἡ ζωήhē hodos kai hē alētheia kai hē zōēthe way, the truth, and the lifeRê, Rastî û JiyanCriticalSeven “I Am” Statements”No one comes to the Father except through me” (14:6b) — exclusivity claim must not be softened; structural (not content) parallel to Islamic exclusive-path claims may aid comprehension of the category of exclusive truth-claims.
I Am: True Vineἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἄμπελος ἡ ἀληθινήhē ampelos hē alēthinēthe true vineMêwa RastînMedium-HighSeven “I Am” StatementsKurdish/Zagros viticulture heritage asset; organic living-union sense of “abiding” must be preserved.
Abide/remainμένωmenōto remain, stay, abideManMedium(ties to True Vine, ch.15)Risk of a merely locational/passive reading rather than living, dependent, fruit-bearing union with Christ.
Son of Manυἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπουhuios tou anthrōpouson of manKurê MirovHighDeity/Pre-existence; JudgmentDaniel 7:13-14’s exalted, authoritative, worship-receiving figure — not merely “a human being” (regional default reading, paralleling Qur’anic ibn Adam).
Lifted upὑψόωhypsoōto lift up, exaltBilind kirinCriticalChrist’s Substitutionary Death and ResurrectionDeliberate double meaning: crucifixion AND glorification/exaltation (3:14; 8:28; 12:32-34); the cross itself as the moment of glory.
Only begotten / one-of-a-kindμονογενήςmonogenēsone-of-a-kind, uniqueYekta (qualifying Kurê Xwedê)CriticalDeity/Pre-existence of Christ; God’s Love for the World (3:16)Direct textual collision with Qur’an 112:3’s denial that God “begets”; must clarify monogenēs asserts uniqueness of relationship/nature, not biological procreation, while preserving genuine, eternal, real Sonship.
Send/sent (of the Father sending the Son)ἀποστέλλω / πέμπωapostellō / pempōto sendŞandinHighChrist as the uniquely Sent OneShares root with baseline Şandî (apostle); genuine linguistic asset (Father→Son→apostles sending chain) but Christ’s sending is categorically unique (pre-existent, from the Father’s own glory), not one more instance of ordinary apostolic sending.
Perishἀπόλλυμι (ἀπόληται)apollymito perish, be destroyed/lostHelak bûnMedium-HighEternal Life through Faith (3:16)Final/ultimate ruin, not mere temporal misfortune.
Saved (verb)σῴζω (σωθῇ)sōzōto save, deliverRizgar kirin (reuse Rizgarî root)CriticalGod’s Love for the World (3:17)Fully inherits baseline Rizgarî Critical risk-notes (nationalist-liberation vocabulary collision).
Condemned alreadyἤδη κέκριταιēdē kekritaihas already been judgedjixwe hatiye mehkûm kirinHighJudgment and Belief/Unbelief (3:18)Present, already-in-effect judgment for unbelief, distinctive against Islamic future-only Day-of-Judgment framework.
Worshipπροσκυνέωproskyneōto bow down, worshipPerizînHighDeity of Christ (9:38); worship “in spirit and truth” (4:20-24)Must be distinguished from Islamic sujud as purely external/postural; internal, Spirit-enabled, Christ-centered worship (4:24), and note Jesus accepting worship (9:38) as a deity claim.
SabbathΣάββατονSabbatonSabbath, seventh dayŞemî / Roja ŞemiyêMedium(ch.5,9 controversies)Ties to baseline’s Critical Şerîeta Mûsa entry; fulfillment framing required.
Equal with Godἴσος τῷ θεῷ (ison tō theō)ison tō theōequal to Godwek XwedêCriticalDeity of Christ (5:18)Clearest early statement of the deity claim’s cost in the narrative; must not be softened.
Holy One of Godὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦho hagios tou theouthe Holy One of GodPîrozê XwedêMedium-HighMessianic Promise (6:69)Must not be diluted to “a holy man” (Sufi pîr hereditary-holy-figure caution, per baseline saints entry).
Feast of Tabernaclesἡ ἑορτὴ τῆς σκηνοπηγίαςhē heortē tēs skēnopēgiasFeast of BoothsCejna KoxLow-Medium(ch.7 background)Requires brief OT festival background.
Living waterὕδωρ ζῶνhydōr zōnliving/flowing waterAva ZindîMedium(ch.4,7 — Spirit imagery)Literal/metaphorical double meaning (parallel to Nicodemus’s misunderstanding pattern) should be preserved.
Freedomἐλευθερία / ἐλευθερόωeleutheria / eleutheroōfreedom, to set freeAzadîCritical(John 8:32-36)Direct companion term to baseline’s Rizgarî in Kurdish nationalist-liberation vocabulary; must be anchored explicitly to freedom from personal bondage to sin, never left unqualified.
Slave (of sin)δοῦλος (τῆς ἁμαρτίας)doulos (tēs hamartias)slave, bondservantKole (yê guneh)High(John 8:34)Sets up the “azadî” contrast; reuses baseline Guneh.
Equal/One with the Fatherἐγὼ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμενegō kai ho patēr hen esmenI and the Father are oneEz û Bav em yek inCriticalUnity of the Father and the Son (10:30)Neuter “one” = unity of essence/will, not personal identity (guards against modalism) nor mere moral agreement (guards against underreading); double risk of tawhid-denial and Sufi/Yazidi over-assimilation.
Convict/exposeἐλέγχω (ἐλεγχθῇ)elenchōto expose, convict, reproveSûcdar kirinMedium-HighHoly Spirit as Counselor (16:8); Judgment (3:20)Recommend identical rendering at 3:20 and 16:8 to preserve the conceptual link between the light’s exposure and the Spirit’s convicting ministry.
New commandmentἐντολὴ καινήentolē kainēnew commandmentFermana NûMedium-High(13:34, love one another)Must transcend Kurdish aşîret (tribal) in-group loyalty patterns, per baseline’s identity-in-Christ caution.
Counselor / Advocate / Paracleteπαράκλητοςparaklētosone called alongside to help/defendParêzvanCriticalThe Holy Spirit as CounselorIntersects directly with the Islamic apologetic claim (Sura 61:6, “Ahmad”) linking paraklētos/periklytos wordplay to Muhammad; must explicitly identify the Paraclete as the divine Holy Spirit already active in the Gospel, given within the disciples’ own lifetime.
Spirit of truthτὸ πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείαςto pneuma tēs alētheiasthe Spirit of truthRuhê RastiyêCriticalHoly Spirit as CounselorInherits both the Paraclete risk and baseline Holy Spirit Critical risk.
Know (relational)γινώσκωginōskōto know (a person, relationally)NasînHighEternal Life defined (17:3)Relational, personal knowing — distinct from zanîn (propositional knowledge); must not collapse into mere creedal-propositional assent (echoing baseline’s Îman caution).
Overcome (the world)νικάωnikaōto conquer, win victorySerkeftinCritical(16:33)Heavily loaded in Kurdish political-nationalist/Peshmerga military-liberation vocabulary; Christ’s spiritual victory (achieved via the cross) must be distinguished explicitly from national-liberation-struggle victory framing.
It is finishedτετέλεσταιtetelestaihas been completed/accomplished, paid in fullTemam bû / QediyaHighChrist’s Substitutionary DeathTriumphant declaration of completed, sufficient atonement, not resignation to death.
My Lord and my Godὁ κύριός μου καὶ ὁ θεός μουho kyrios mou kai ho theos moumy Lord and my GodXudanê min û Xwedayê minCriticalDeity of Christ (20:28)Combines both baseline Critical terms (Xudan + Xwedê); clearest single deity confession in the Gospel; never soften.
Gospel purpose statement…πιστεύ[σ]ητε … ζωὴν ἔχητε ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ(20:31)…that you may believe… and have life in his name(integrated rendering using Mesîh, Kurê Xwedê, bawer kirin, jiyan)CriticalWhole-book thesis statementMust be rendered identically every time quoted across all future Phase 2 documents (parallel to baseline’s Romans 1:16-17 mandate).
Feed/tend my sheepβόσκε τὰ ἀρνία μου / ποίμαινε τὰ πρόβατά μουboske / poimainefeed / shepherdberxên min bide xwarin / pêz miyên min bişivantî bikeMediumGood Shepherd theme completed (21:15-17)Positive pastoral-culture asset; commissions Peter as under-shepherd.
Jews (corporate term)ἸουδαῖοιIoudaioiJews, JudeansCihû(yan)Medium-HighUnity of Jews and Gentiles (cross-curriculum)Variable Johannine usage (ethnic/religious people-group vs. narrower hostile-authorities subset) requires per-occurrence disambiguation; baseline notes favorable Kurdish popular sentiment toward Jewish people as an asset to protect from careless corporate-blame renderings.
PhariseesΦαρισαῖοιPharisaioiseparated onesFêrisîMedium(Nicodemus, 3:1; throughout)Requires brief explanatory gloss on first use; avoid flattening to a generic “hypocrite” byword.
Templeναός / ἱερόνnaos / hierontemple, sanctuaryPerestgehMedium(2:19-21, body-as-temple wordplay)Wordplay with Christ’s body must be preserved/explained; ties to Resurrection doctrine.
Hour (Jesus’s appointed hour)ἡ ὥραhē hōrathe hourSaet/demMedium-HighStructuring theme toward the cross (2:4; 12:23; 17:1)Recurring technical phrase, not a casual time reference; consistency recommended.

Section C — Summary Risk Counts (John-Specific New Terms, Section B)

Risk TierCountReview Routing (per baseline conventions)
Critical17Human theologian review, every occurrence
High16Human theologian review
Medium-High11Human theologian / native speaker (borderline; default to theologian)
Medium9Native speaker review
Low-Medium3Native speaker review
Low1Automated review

Combined with Section A’s reused baseline terms (all already tiered in doctrine_risk_registry.json), this glossary supplies the full term inventory required to extend translation_memory.json and bible_term_registry.json for the John curriculum in Phase 1 Steps 2 onward.


See 07_semantic_analysis.md for full verse-by-verse (John 3:1-21) and chapter-by-chapter (John 1-21) analysis supporting every entry above.


Critical Risk Terms

Salvation

Approved rendering: Rizgarî
Transliteration: rizgarî
Doctrine: Salvation
Original: σῴζω (σωθῇ)
Category: Salvation

CRITICAL: rizgarî is the defining vocabulary of Kurdish political nationalism across all four host states; every occurrence must anchor to Christ’s specific, personal, spiritual deliverance. Inherited from Romans package. In John, the verb form sōzō (3:17) is rendered by the new term ‘saved_verb’ (Rizgar kirin), inheriting this same risk in verbal form.


Resurrection

Approved rendering: Rabûn
Transliteration: rabûn
Doctrine: Resurrection of Christ
Original: ἀνάστασις
Category: Eschatology

CRITICAL: shares the Quran’s crucifixion-denial (4:157); Yazidi ‘kiras guhertin’ (reincarnation) is a distinct indigenous conflation risk. Inherited from Romans package. John intensifies this risk with an explicit double-resurrection eschatology (5:29) and Christ’s own self-identification ‘I am the resurrection and the life’ (11:25); see new terms i_am_resurrection_life and resurrection_of_life_judgment.


Lord

Approved rendering: Xudan
Transliteration: Xudan
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ
Original: κύριος
Category: Christology

CRITICAL: applying supreme, exclusive Lordship to Jesus is the deity claim itself and must never be softened. Inherited from Romans package. Climactic John usage at 20:28, ‘My Lord and my God,’ combined with baseline Xwedê in a single confession (see new term my_lord_and_my_god).


Son Of God

Approved rendering: Kurê Xwedê
Transliteration: Kurê Xwedê
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Original: υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Christology

CRITICAL: same Quranic denial (112:3, 19:35) applies; Sufi wahdat al-wujud and Yazidi manifestation belief create an inverted over-assimilation risk. Inherited from Romans package. In John always paired with the monogenēs qualifier where present in the text (see new term only_begotten, ‘Kurê wî yê Yekta’).


Incarnation

Approved rendering: Tecessud
Transliteration: tecessud
Doctrine: Incarnation
Original: ὁ λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο
Category: Christology

CRITICAL: shares the tawhid objection; Yazidi successive-manifestation theology risks assimilating the Incarnation as one more recurring instance. Inherited from Romans package. John 1:14 (‘the Word became flesh’) is the primary incarnation text in this book; see new terms word_logos and was_vs_became.


Kingdom Of God

Approved rendering: Padîşahiya Xwedê
Transliteration: padîşahiya Xwedê
Doctrine: Kingdom Mission
Original: βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Kingdom

CRITICAL: risks being heard as validating or blending with Kurdish statehood aspiration. Inherited from Romans package. John 18:36, ‘my kingdom is not of this world,’ is the single most important verse in either curriculum for defusing this collision risk; foreground it in all teaching alongside 3:3,5’s new-birth entry requirement.


Law

Approved rendering: Şerîeta Mûsa
Transliteration: Şerîeta Mûsa
Doctrine: Fulfillment of Prophecy
Rejected alternatives: Namûs
Original: νόμος
Category: Covenant

CRITICAL: bare ‘Şerîet’ risks conflation with Islamic law generally; Namûs has narrowed to mean family/female honor and must never be used. Inherited from Romans package. John 1:17 explicitly contrasts the Law given through Moses with grace and truth through Christ; frame as fulfillment, not devaluation.


Messiah

Approved rendering: Mesîh
Transliteration: Mesîh
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Original: Χριστός / Μεσσίας
Category: Christology

CRITICAL: carries the same pre-loaded Quranic content as al-Masih; Alevi/Yarsani expectations add a further comparison layer. Inherited from Romans package. John’s distinctive contribution is a repeated recognition-and-confession pattern (1:41; 4:25-26; 11:27; 20:31) building toward full deity recognition.


Jesus

Approved rendering: Îsa
Transliteration: Îsa
Doctrine: Lordship of Christ

CRITICAL: settled, uncontroversial Kurdish Christian usage; risk lies entirely in content (the Quranic prophet-only narrative) not the name itself. Inherited from Romans package. Used throughout all 21 chapters of John.


God

Approved rendering: Xwedê
Transliteration: Xwedê
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: Allah

CRITICAL: native Northwestern Iranian-root word; risk remains in content, distinguishing strict tawhid theology from the Trinitarian referent. Inherited from Romans package. John’s Gospel is the NT’s most sustained deity-of-Christ argument; Xwedê appears in the climactic confession ‘Xudanê min û Xwedayê min’ (20:28).


Holy Spirit

Approved rendering: Ruhê Pîroz
Transliteration: Ruhê Pîroz
Doctrine: Sanctification
Original: πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: Pneumatology

CRITICAL: shares the Quranic identification with the angel Jibril; the created-being-vs-divine-Person distinction must be explicit every occurrence. Inherited from Romans package. John’s Paraclete passages (14:16-17,26; 15:26; 16:7-15) are the fullest NT teaching on the Spirit’s person and work; see new terms paraclete and spirit_of_truth.


Father

Approved rendering: Bav
Transliteration: Bav
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family
Original: πατήρ
Category: God

CRITICAL: shares the region’s tawhid-anthropomorphism objection to Father-language for God. Inherited from Romans package. Central to John’s Unity of the Father and the Son doctrine (10:30; 14:9-11; 17); see new term unity_father_son.


Adoption

Approved rendering: Kurxwendin
Transliteration: kurxwendin
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family

CRITICAL: the Quranic restriction on adoption (33:4-5) and Kurdish tribal (aşîret) lineage structures both reinforce this default. Inherited from Romans package. John 1:12, ‘he gave the right to become children of God,’ is the Gospel’s key adoption text.


Word Logos

Approved rendering: Peyv
Transliteration: Peyv
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Rejected alternatives: Kelam
Original: λόγος
Category: Christology

Native Kurdish avoiding the Arabic-loan Kelam’s direct link to the Qur’anic Kalimatullah title for Isa (Sura 3:45, 4:171), a created miraculous-utterance category. Even so, readers with Qur’anic literacy will likely recognize the echo regardless of word choice; John 1:1-3’s eternal pre-existence, full deity, and creative agency must be taught explicitly against that lower default.


I Am Absolute

Approved rendering: Ez heme
Transliteration: Ez heme
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι
Category: Christology

Reserved exclusively for the absolute, unpredicated self-declarations (4:26; 6:20; 8:24,28,58; 13:19; 18:5-6,8) echoing LXX Exodus 3:14 and Isaiah’s divine self-declarations. Must retain present tense at 8:58 (‘before Abraham was, I am’), never softened to a mere temporal-priority claim (‘I existed before Abraham’).


I Am Resurrection Life

Approved rendering: Rabûn û Jiyan
Transliteration: Rabûn û Jiyan
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἀνάστασις καὶ ἡ ζωή
Category: Christology

Fifth ‘I Am’ statement (11:25). Fully inherits baseline Rabûn Critical risk notes (Sunni crucifixion-denial; Yazidi kiras guhertin reincarnation conflation), now applied to Christ’s own self-identification with resurrection life, not only his future rising.


I Am Way Truth Life

Approved rendering: Rê, Rastî û Jiyan
Transliteration: Rê, Rastî û Jiyan
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ ἡ ζωή
Category: Christology

Sixth ‘I Am’ statement (14:6). ‘No one comes to the Father except through me’ (14:6b) is an exclusivity claim that must not be softened into ‘a way’ among many; the structural parallel to Islam’s own exclusive-path theology may aid comprehension of the category even as the content (a person, not a law) differs sharply and must be taught as such.


Only Begotten

Approved rendering: Kurê wî yê Yekta
Transliteration: Kurê wî yê Yekta
Doctrine: Sonship of Christ
Rejected alternatives: a single-word coinage implying biological begetting
Original: μονογενής
Category: Christology

Direct textual collision with Qur’an 112:3 (‘He begets not, nor is He begotten’). Must clarify that monogenēs (1:14,18; 3:16,18) asserts uniqueness of relationship and nature, not biological procreation, while still affirming genuine, eternal, real Sonship.


Equal With God

Approved rendering: xwe wek Xwedê dihesibîne
Transliteration: xwe wek Xwedê dihesibîne
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: a softened phrase implying mere closeness to or favor with God
Original: ἴσον ἑαυτὸν ποιῶν τῷ θεῷ
Category: Christology

‘Making himself equal with God’ (5:18) — the clearest early narrative statement of Jesus’s deity claim, and the stated reason the authorities sought to kill him. Must never be softened to a lesser claim; structurally identical to the mainstream tawhid-based shirk objection found regionally.


My Lord And My God

Approved rendering: Xudanê min û Xwedayê min
Transliteration: Xudanê min û Xwedayê min
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Rejected alternatives: any rendering implying less than full deity, e.g. ‘my lord and a god’
Original: ὁ κύριός μου καὶ ὁ θεός μου
Category: Christology

Thomas’s confession to the risen Christ (20:28) — the single clearest, most direct declaration of Christ’s full deity in the Gospel, combining both baseline Critical terms Xudan and Xwedê. Must never be rendered with any softening qualifier.


Unity Father Son

Approved rendering: Ez û Bav em yek in
Transliteration: Ez û Bav em yek in
Doctrine: Unity of the Father and the Son
Original: ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν
Category: Christology

‘I and the Father are one’ (10:30; cf. 14:9-11; 17:11,21-23). The Greek neuter ‘one’ indicates unity of essence and will, not identity of person (guards against modalism) nor mere moral agreement (guards against underreading). Must be guarded against BOTH the mainstream tawhid-based denial that such unity with a human figure is possible AND the Sufi wahdat al-wujud/Yazidi divine-manifestation frameworks’ tendency toward too-ready assimilation into a generalized mystical merging pattern.


Paraclete

Approved rendering: Parêzvan
Transliteration: Parêzvan
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Rejected alternatives: a transliterated Greek loan (‘Paraklêtos’)
Original: παράκλητος
Category: Pneumatology

‘One called alongside to help/defend’ — Counselor, Advocate, Helper (14:16,26; 15:26; 16:7), identified as the Holy Spirit. Intersects directly with the Islamic apologetic claim (based on Sura 61:6’s prediction of ‘Ahmad,’ historically linked by some apologists to a paraklētos/periklytos wordplay) applied to Muhammad. Must explicitly identify the Paraclete as the divine Holy Spirit already active throughout the Gospel narrative, given within the disciples’ own lifetime (14:16), not a future human prophet.


Spirit Of Truth

Approved rendering: Ruhê Rastiyê
Transliteration: Ruhê Rastiyê
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Original: τὸ πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείας
Category: Pneumatology

A title for the Holy Spirit (14:17; 15:26; 16:13), the Paraclete who guides believers into all truth. Inherits both the Paraclete risk and the baseline Holy Spirit Critical risk; render with full consistency wherever it recurs.


New Birth

Approved rendering: Ji Jor ve Zayîn
Transliteration: Ji Jor ve Zayîn
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Rejected alternatives: ji nû ve zayîn (loses the ‘from above’ sense entirely)
Original: γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν
Category: New Birth

‘Born again/from above’ (3:3,7). Greek anōthen’s deliberate above/again double meaning drives the entire Nicodemus dialogue and is untranslatable as a single pun in Kurmanji; requires a mandatory translator’s note, since Nicodemus’s own misunderstanding (v.4) depends on this ambiguity.


Eternal Life

Approved rendering: Jiyana Herheyî
Transliteration: Jiyana Herheyî
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ζωὴ αἰώνιος
Category: Eternal Life

Not merely unending duration but the life-quality of the age to come, presently possessed by faith (3:15-16,36; 5:24; 6:47; 17:3; 20:31). Regional Islamic eschatology locates eternal life solely as a future paradise-reward for accumulated good deeds; John’s present-tense possession by faith alone must be taught as a decisive, deliberate contrast, with total consistency across the whole Gospel, especially the whole-book thesis at 20:31.


Saved Verb

Approved rendering: Rizgar kirin
Transliteration: Rizgar kirin
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World

‘That the world might be saved through him’ (3:17). Fully inherits the baseline Rizgarî Critical risk notes; must be anchored to personal, spiritual deliverance from sin, explicitly distinct from the Kurdish nationalist-liberation resonance the same root vocabulary carries. Especially exposed at 3:17 since it occurs in the same breath as ‘world’ (Cîhan), compounding two politically resonant terms in one verse.


Freedom

Approved rendering: Azadî
Transliteration: Azadî
Doctrine: Freedom from Slavery to Sin
Original: ἐλευθερία / ἐλευθερόω
Category: Salvation

‘The truth will set you free… you will be free indeed’ (8:32,36). Direct companion term to the baseline’s Rizgarî in Kurdish nationalist-liberation political vocabulary (‘Azadiya Kurdistanê’). Every occurrence must be explicitly anchored to freedom from personal, spiritual bondage to sin (8:34), never left unqualified.


World

Approved rendering: Cîhan
Transliteration: Cîhan
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World
Original: κόσμος
Category: God’s Love

Dual sense: object of God’s love (3:16; created humanity) vs. fallen world-system opposed to God (15:18-19). Must convey the radical, unrestricted scope of 3:16 (not merely Israel, not merely the righteous) without collapsing into either universalism (all automatically saved) or a merely national/ethnic reading; disambiguate the dual sense per context throughout the Gospel.


Overcome World

Approved rendering: Serkeftin
Transliteration: Serkeftin
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: ἐγὼ νενίκηκα τὸν κόσμον
Category: Judgment

‘I have overcome the world’ (16:33) — Christ’s spiritual victory over the world-system’s opposition, achieved through the cross, not military or political means. Serkeftin (victory/overcoming) is heavily loaded in Kurdish political-nationalist and Peshmerga military-liberation vocabulary, functioning in public discourse much like rizgarî and azadî; Christ’s spiritual victory must be explicitly and repeatedly distinguished from national-liberation-struggle victory framing.


Resurrection Of Life Judgment

Approved rendering: Rabûna Jiyanê / Rabûna Darazînê
Transliteration: Rabûna Jiyanê / Rabûna Darazînê
Doctrine: Resurrection Hope (Life and Judgment)
Original: ἀνάστασις ζωῆς / ἀνάστασις κρίσεως
Category: Eschatology

‘The resurrection of life’ and ‘the resurrection of judgment’ (5:29) — a future double-resurrection of both righteous and unrighteous. Extends the baseline’s Rabûn entry into an eschatological double-resurrection framework with no exact parallel in the Yazidi kiras guhertin (reincarnation) framework the baseline flags; must be taught as one-time bodily events, not a cyclical process.


Lifted Up

Approved rendering: Bilind kirin
Transliteration: Bilind kirin
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Original: ὑψόω (ὑψωθῆναι)
Category: Eschatology

Deliberately double meaning — physically lifted up on the cross, and simultaneously exalted/glorified (3:14; 8:28; 12:32-34). The cross itself, not merely the empty tomb, is the moment of Christ’s glorification; the shared Qur’anic crucifixion-denial (4:157) and regional honor/shame instincts (a shameful death cannot be exaltation) make this counter-intuitive paradox especially important to teach explicitly.


Eat Flesh Drink Blood

Approved rendering: goştê min bixwin… xwîna min vexwin
Transliteration: goştê min bixwin… xwîna min vexwin
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection

‘Eat my flesh… drink my blood’ (6:53-56). The plainly literal wording is severely offensive/confusing in a Muslim-majority setting given blood-consumption taboos and cannibalism-adjacent imagery; John 6:63 (‘the words I have spoken to you are spirit and life’) supplies the interpretive key and must be taught alongside, framing this as spiritual union with Christ received by faith, not literal consumption or a specific liturgical claim about later Christian practice.


High Risk Terms

Grace

Approved rendering: Kerem
Transliteration: kerem
Doctrine: Grace
Original: χάρις
Category: Salvation

Sufi ‘keramet’ cognate risks implying elite, hierarchical favor for advanced spiritual figures rather than grace freely given to all who believe. Inherited from Romans package. In John, appears supremely at 1:14,16-17 (‘full of grace and truth,’ ‘grace upon grace’); pair with the new term grace_and_truth.


Faith

Approved rendering: Îman
Transliteration: iman
Doctrine: Faith

Shares the region’s Sunni six-pillars creedal structure; must be anchored as personal trust in Christ, not creedal assent. Inherited from Romans package. In John, reserve for noun/doctrinal contexts; the Gospel’s dominant verb form (pisteuō, ~98 occurrences) is rendered instead by the new term ‘believe’ (Bawer kirin) to avoid this creedal-assent risk.


Righteousness

Approved rendering: Adalet
Transliteration: adalet
Doctrine: Salvation
Rejected alternatives: Rastî
Original: δικαιοσύνη
Category: Salvation

Rastî is too thin for the forensic sense; Adalet carries the necessary legal-moral weight. Inherited from Romans package. In John, one of three things the Spirit convicts the world concerning (16:8); must not collapse into dutiful conduct or moral achievement.


Saints

Approved rendering: Pîrozan
Transliteration: pîrozan
Doctrine: Sainthood

Kurdish Sufi culture’s hereditary, shrine-venerated ‘pîr’ tradition risks reading this as an elite class rather than all ordinary believers. Inherited from Romans package. The same caution applies to the new ‘Holy One of God’ title (6:69), which must not be diluted into this hereditary-elite class.


Sanctification

Approved rendering: Teqdîs
Transliteration: teqdîs
Doctrine: Sanctification
Rejected alternatives: Pakkirin
Original: ἁγιάζω
Category: Sanctification

Pakkirin risks reading as ritual cleanliness; teqdîs keeps the specific sense of the Spirit’s ongoing moral transformation. Inherited from Romans package. Appears in John 17:17, ‘sanctify them in the truth,’ within the High Priestly Prayer.


Sin

Approved rendering: Guneh
Transliteration: guneh
Doctrine: Universal Human Accountability
Original: ἁμαρτία
Category: Sin

Shares the region’s Islamic fitrah (innate purity) doctrine. Inherited from Romans package. Central to John 8:34 (‘slave of sin’) and 16:8 (the Spirit’s conviction concerning sin).


Prophet

Approved rendering: Pêxember
Transliteration: pêxember
Doctrine: Inspiration of Scripture

Same finality-of-prophethood risk as nabi; must be paired with fuller Christological titles. Inherited from Romans package. John 4:19, the Samaritan woman’s recognition of Jesus as ‘a prophet,’ is a partial, incomplete confession the narrative moves beyond toward Messiah/Son of God.


Abba

Approved rendering: Aba
Transliteration: Aba
Doctrine: Adoption into God’s Family

Aramaic intimacy-term standing in sharp contrast to regional transcendence-only piety. Inherited from Romans package. John itself does not use ‘Abba,’ but the term is retained here for cross-document consistency with Romans 8:15 and the Father-Son intimacy register active throughout John’s Farewell Discourse (chs.14-17).


Seed Of David

Approved rendering: Dûndana Dawid
Transliteration: dûndana Dawid
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant

Conveys physical lineage and OT covenant fulfillment. Inherited from Romans package. John 7:42, ‘the Christ comes from the offspring of David.‘


Intercession

Approved rendering: Navbeynkarî
Transliteration: navbeynkarî
Doctrine: Prayer and Intercession

A transparent native compound; shares general shafa’at-adjacent theological complexity. Inherited from Romans package. John 17, the High Priestly Prayer, is Christ’s own extended intercession for his disciples and future believers.


Mission

Approved rendering: Peywira Mizgîniyê
Transliteration: peywira Mizgîniyê
Doctrine: Mission to the Nations

Kurdish spans four state jurisdictions with meaningfully different religious-freedom environments. Inherited from Romans package. John 20:21, ‘As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you,’ extends the sending pattern into the church’s own mission; see new term sent_one for Christ’s own unique sending.


Beginning

Approved rendering: Destpêk
Transliteration: Destpêk
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Rejected alternatives: Destpêbûn (reserved exclusively as the book title for Genesis)

Deliberate echo of Genesis 1:1 LXX (John 1:1). The intertextual echo must be made explicit in teaching material since it is not recoverable from word choice alone; must never be confused with or substituted for the book-title form Destpêbûn (Genesis).


Was Vs Became

Approved rendering: hebû / bû
Transliteration: hebû / bû
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Original: ἦν / ἐγένετο
Category: Christology

Fixed lexical pair rendering the imperfect ēn (continuous existence, used three times of the Logos in 1:1) vs. the aorist egeneto (a punctiliar, datable event, used in 1:14 for the incarnation). Must not be flattened into a single simple-past form, since the contrast carries the entire eternal-existence-vs-historical-event argument. Use exclusively for this contrast.


I Am Bread Of Life

Approved rendering: Nanê Jiyanê
Transliteration: Nanê Jiyanê
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ἄρτος τῆς ζωῆς
Category: Christology

First of the Seven ‘I Am’ statements (6:35,48,51). Bread (nan) is the paramount Kurdish/Middle Eastern staple and covenant-hospitality symbol, a strong cultural asset; risk of flattening into mere physical provision (a manna-parallel only) or narrow Eucharistic ritualism rather than exclusive, ongoing dependence on Christ.


I Am Light Of World

Approved rendering: Ronahiya Cîhanê
Transliteration: Ronahiya Cîhanê
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι τὸ φῶς τοῦ κόσμου
Category: Christology

Second ‘I Am’ statement (8:12; cf. 9:5). Kurdish classical Sufi illumination (ishraq) mysticism and Yazidi light-centered theology (sun veneration, Melek Taus symbolism) both risk assimilating this into generalized mystical enlightenment rather than Christ’s specific historical coming.


I Am True Vine

Approved rendering: Mêwa Rastîn
Transliteration: Mêwa Rastîn
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἄμπελος ἡ ἀληθινή
Category: Christology

Seventh ‘I Am’ statement (15:1,5). Kurdish/Zagros regional viticulture heritage offers a natural cultural resonance; the organic, living-union sense of ‘abiding’ must be preserved, not reduced to a static membership metaphor.


Son Of Man

Approved rendering: Kurê Mirov
Transliteration: Kurê Mirov
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Original: υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου
Category: Christology

Drawn from Daniel 7:13-14’s exalted, authoritative, worship-receiving figure, not a generic label for ‘a human being.’ Regional readers default to a merely-human reading, paralleling the Qur’anic ‘ibn Adam’; the Daniel background must be taught explicitly (1:51; 3:13-14; 5:27; 6:27,53,62; 9:35; 12:23,34; 13:31).


Hour

Approved rendering: Saet/Dem
Transliteration: Saet/Dem
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Original: ἡ ὥρα
Category: Christology

Jesus’s recurring, appointed ‘hour’ of glorification through death (2:4; 7:30; 8:20; 12:23,27; 13:1; 17:1). A technical, structuring phrase pointing toward the cross, not a casual time reference; consistency across all 21 chapters required.


Humanity Of Christ

Approved rendering: Îsa girî
Transliteration: Îsa girî
Doctrine: Humanity of Christ
Original: ἐδάκρυσεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς
Category: Christology

Jesus’s genuine human experience — hunger, weariness, weeping, real death (1:14; 4:6-7; 11:35; 19:28,34). Given the Gospel’s heavy deity emphasis (itself contested regionally on tawhid grounds), real human experience must be taught with equal explicitness so believers do not drift, aided by Sufi mystical-absorption or Yazidi manifestation frameworks, toward a docetic reading in which Christ’s humanity is illusory.


Conviction

Approved rendering: Sûcdar kirin
Transliteration: Sûcdar kirin
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Original: ἐλέγχω (ἐλεγχθῇ)
Category: Pneumatology

To expose, convict, reprove — used of the light’s exposing work (3:20) and the Spirit’s convicting ministry concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment (16:8). Render identically at both 3:20 and 16:8 to preserve the conceptual link; distinct from mere accusation or condemnation.


Wind Spirit Wordplay

Approved rendering: Ba (wind) / Ruh (Spirit)
Transliteration: Ba / Ruh
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: πνεῦμα / πνεῖ
Category: Pneumatology

The single Greek word pneuma used for both ‘wind’ and ‘Spirit’ in 3:8, the entire rhetorical basis of Jesus’s analogy to Nicodemus. Kurdish ba and ruh are entirely distinct roots; the wordplay is untranslatable in Kurmanji. A mandatory translator’s/teacher’s note is required at every occurrence of this analogy.


Receive Holy Spirit Breathing

Approved rendering: Ruhê Pîroz bistînin
Transliteration: Ruhê Pîroz bistînin
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Original: λάβετε πνεῦμα ἅγιον
Category: Pneumatology

‘Receive the Holy Spirit’ (20:22), spoken as Jesus breathes on the disciples, deliberately echoing Genesis 2:7 (God breathing life into Adam), signaling new-creation theology. The Genesis echo should be taught explicitly, not left implicit.


Water Regeneration

Approved rendering: Av
Transliteration: Av
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: ὕδωρ
Category: New Birth

‘Born of water and the Spirit’ (3:5) — a debated referent: physical birth, John’s baptism, or (most contextually likely for ‘the teacher of Israel’) Ezekiel 36:25-27’s promised new-covenant cleansing water. The ambiguity is theologically load-bearing and should not be resolved by the translation itself; a teaching note anchoring it to the Ezekiel background, not to later ritual baptism (anachronistic for Nicodemus), is required.


Flesh

Approved rendering: Beden
Transliteration: Beden
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: σάρξ
Category: New Birth

‘That which is born of the flesh is flesh’ (3:6) — natural human generation, unable by itself to produce spiritual life. Must be held in tension with 1:14’s positive incarnational use of ‘flesh’ (Tecessud); here sarx is neutral-to-negative regarding spiritual capacity, not a claim the body/material world is evil, avoiding a Gnostic-adjacent dualistic misreading.


Life

Approved rendering: Jiyan
Transliteration: Jiyan
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ζωή
Category: Eternal Life

The base term underlying ‘eternal life,’ also used of Christ himself (‘in him was life,’ 1:4; ‘I am… the life,’ 11:25; 14:6). Must be rendered consistently across all occurrences to preserve the link with its ‘eternal life’ compound form.


Believe

Approved rendering: Bawer kirin
Transliteration: Bawer kirin
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Rejected alternatives: Îman (as the primary verb; retained only as the doctrinal noun)
Original: πιστεύω
Category: Faith

To believe, trust, entrust oneself to a specific person — John’s single most important verb (~98 occurrences; culminating in 20:31). Recommended distinct from the baseline noun Îman (six-pillars creedal-assent risk); the native verb keeps emphasis on ongoing personal trust in Christ specifically. Must be fully consistent across all 21 chapters, especially 3:15-18 and 20:31, on the same cross-document consistency tier as the baseline’s Romans 1:16-17/8:28/10:9-10 mandates.


Slave Of Sin

Approved rendering: Kole yê Guneh
Transliteration: Kole yê Guneh
Doctrine: Freedom from Slavery to Sin
Original: δοῦλος τῆς ἁμαρτίας
Category: Salvation

‘Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin’ (8:34); sets up the azadî (freedom) contrast, reusing baseline Guneh (sin).


Know Relational

Approved rendering: Nasîn
Transliteration: Nasîn
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Rejected alternatives: zanîn (propositional knowledge — rejected for this specific relational sense)
Original: γινώσκω
Category: Faith

To know a person relationally — John’s own definition of eternal life as knowing God and Christ (17:3). Distinct from zanîn (propositional knowledge); must not collapse into mere intellectual information about God or creedal-propositional assent, echoing the baseline’s own caution on Îman.


Grace And Truth

Approved rendering: Kerem û Rastî
Transliteration: Kerem û Rastî
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Original: χάρις καὶ ἀλήθεια
Category: Covenant

‘Full of grace and truth… grace upon grace’ (1:14,16-17), contrasted with ‘the law was given through Moses’ (1:17). Must be taught as fulfillment, not supersessionist devaluation, echoing the baseline’s own caution on the law entry.


Truth

Approved rendering: Rastî
Transliteration: Rastî
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor
Original: ἀλήθεια
Category: Covenant

Truth, reality — central to worship ‘in spirit and truth’ (4:24), Christ’s self-identification (14:6), and the Spirit’s title (14:17). Distinct usage from the baseline’s rejected Rastî for forensic righteousness — here it is the correct native term for alētheia. Sufi al-Haqq (‘The Real/Truth,’ a divine name and the goal of mystical union) risks ‘I am the truth’ being absorbed into a Sufi unitive-truth-seeking framework rather than taught as the exclusive claim of a specific historical person.


Love Agape

Approved rendering: Evîn (noun) / hez kirin (verb)
Transliteration: Evîn / hez kirin
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World
Original: ἀγάπη / ἀγαπάω
Category: God’s Love

Self-giving love, used of God’s love for the world (3:16), the Father’s love for the Son (3:35; 17), and the new commandment (13:34). Kurdish classical Sufi poetry’s mystical lover/beloved ‘evîn’ tradition offers a devotional resource but must be distinguished from John’s self-giving, initiatory love (God toward the world; Father toward the Son), not human longing for the divine beloved.


So Loved Manner

Approved rendering: wiha/bi vî awayî … hez kir
Transliteration: wiha/bi vî awayî … hez kir
Doctrine: God’s Love for the World
Rejected alternatives: a degree-intensifier construction (‘loved SO MUCH’)
Original: οὕτως ἠγάπησεν
Category: God’s Love

‘God so loved the world’ (3:16) — houtōs indicates manner/character of the love (the giving of the Son), not primarily degree/quantity. A common cross-linguistic mistranslation risk; ordinary Kurdish idiom defaults to a degree reading, which must be resisted so the giving of the Son is read as the demonstration and definition of the love, not merely proof of its intensity.


Judgment

Approved rendering: Darazîn (noun) / darazandin, mehkûm kirin (verb)
Transliteration: Darazîn / darazandin / mehkûm kirin
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: κρίσις / κρίμα / κρίνω
Category: Judgment

Judgment, condemnation — both a present reality tied to response to Christ (3:18-19) and a future event (5:29; 12:48). Overlaps with the Islamic eschatological Roja Qiyametê (Day of Judgment) framework; John’s distinctive present, already-in-effect judgment for unbelief (3:18) needs explicit teaching against that future-only default. Recommend native-speaker confirmation of the most established Kitêba Pîroz precedent before Phase 2 lock-in.


Condemned Already

Approved rendering: jixwe hatiye mehkûm kirin
Transliteration: jixwe hatiye mehkûm kirin
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: ἤδη κέκριται
Category: Judgment

‘Is condemned already’ (3:18) — a present-tense, already-in-effect reality of judgment resting on unbelief. Sits against the regional Islamic eschatological framework, which locates reckoning primarily/exclusively at a future Day of Judgment; the distinctive Johannine ‘already’ emphasis must be taught explicitly.


Light

Approved rendering: Ronahî
Transliteration: Ronahî
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: φῶς
Category: Judgment

Revelatory, moral light tied to response to Christ’s coming (1:4-9; 3:19-21; 8:12; 9:5). Kurdish classical Sufi illumination-mysticism and Yazidi light-centered theology (sun veneration, Melek Taus symbolism) both risk assimilating this into generalized mystical illumination; must be anchored specifically to Christ’s own historical coming and the moral response of belief/unbelief to him.


Wrath Of God

Approved rendering: Xezeba Xwedê
Transliteration: Xezeba Xwedê
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: ὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Judgment

God’s settled, righteous judicial opposition to persistent unbelief (3:36), closing the core passage’s belief/unbelief argument. Must be taught as righteous, judicial wrath tied directly to persistent unbelief, not capricious anger; John’s only explicit ‘wrath’ reference.


Witness Testimony

Approved rendering: Şahidî (kirin)
Transliteration: Şahidî (kirin)
Doctrine: Witness and Testimony to Christ
Original: μαρτυρέω / μαρτυρία
Category: Church

Forensic, eyewitness testimony — a structuring device throughout John (John the Baptist’s witness, the works’ witness, Scripture’s witness, the Father’s and Spirit’s witness: 1:7-8,19-34; 3:11,26-33; 5:31-39; 8:13-18; 15:26-27). Shares its root with Kurdish şehîd (martyr), a maximally sacred term honoring those who died in the Kurdish national liberation struggle; every occurrence should be anchored explicitly to the legal/evidentiary sense, not martyrdom or heroic self-sacrifice.


Jews Corporate

Approved rendering: Cihû(yan)
Transliteration: Cihû(yan)
Doctrine: Witness and Testimony to Christ
Original: Ἰουδαῖοι
Category: Church

Ioudaioi usage in John varies between the ethnic/religious people-group generally (e.g., 3:1) and a narrower technical designation for hostile Jerusalem authorities (frequent later in John). Requires per-occurrence disambiguation by context notes; the baseline notes unusually favorable Kurdish popular sentiment toward Jewish people/Israel, an asset careless corporate-blame rendering could undermine.


Worship

Approved rendering: Perizîn
Transliteration: Perizîn
Doctrine: Worship of Christ
Original: προσκυνέω
Category: Worship

To bow down, prostrate, worship — used of true worship ‘in spirit and truth’ (4:20-24) and of the healed blind man’s worship of Jesus (9:38). Must be distinguished from Islamic sujud (ritual prostration) as a purely external/postural act; John’s ‘spirit and truth’ worship is internal, and Jesus’s acceptance of worship (9:38) without correction is itself a deity claim that must not be softened to a gesture of gratitude or respect.


It Is Finished

Approved rendering: Temam bû / Qediya
Transliteration: Temam bû / Qediya
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Original: τετέλεσται
Category: Eschatology

‘It is finished’ (19:30) — the completed, sufficient, once-for-all atoning work of the cross (also attested in Greek commercial papyri as ‘paid in full’). Must be rendered as a triumphant declaration of completed, sufficient atonement, not mere resignation to death or defeat.


Lamb Of God

Approved rendering: Berxê Xwedê
Transliteration: Berxê Xwedê
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Original: ἀμνὸς τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Eschatology

‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world’ (1:29,36) — Christ’s substitutionary, sin-bearing sacrifice. Kurdish pastoral/nomadic sheepherding heritage makes this imagery vivid and familiar (a genuine asset), but the regional Eid al-Adha (Qurban) sacrificial tradition risks the phrase being absorbed as one more instance of repeatable ritual animal sacrifice rather than Christ’s unique, final, once-for-all sacrifice.


Holy One Of God

Approved rendering: Pîrozê Xwedê
Transliteration: Pîrozê Xwedê
Doctrine: Messianic Promise
Original: ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ
Category: Christology

Peter’s confession, ‘the Holy One of God’ (6:69) — a strong messianic title. Must not be diluted to ‘a holy man,’ echoing the baseline’s caution about the Sufi pîr hereditary-holy-figure framework attached to the saints/sainthood entries.


Sent One

Approved rendering: Şandin
Transliteration: Şandin
Doctrine: Christ as the Uniquely Sent One
Original: ἀποστέλλω / πέμπω
Category: Christology

Christ as the uniquely Sent One from the Father (3:17,34; 5:36-38; 17:3,8,18,21,23,25), later sending the apostles in turn (20:21). Shares its root with the baseline’s Şandî (apostle) — a genuine linguistic asset illustrating the Father-Son-apostle sending chain — but Christ’s own sending must be taught as categorically unique (pre-existent, from the Father’s own glory), not one more instance of ordinary apostolic sending.


King Of The Jews

Approved rendering: Padîşahê Cihûyan
Transliteration: Padîşahê Cihûyan
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection

The titulus placed on the cross (19:19-22) — an ironic royal title placed by Rome in mockery, which the Gospel narrative in fact affirms as true; connects to the jews_corporate sensitivity notes.


Bones Not Broken

Approved rendering: hestîkî wî nayê şikandin
Transliteration: hestîkî wî nayê şikandin
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection

‘Not a bone of him shall be broken’ (19:36), fulfilling Passover-lamb typology (Exodus 12:46). Ties directly to the Lamb of God typology established in ch.1, completing the substitutionary-sacrifice typology; requires the OT Passover background be supplied.


Medium Risk Terms

Gospel

Approved rendering: Mizgînî
Transliteration: Mizgînî
Doctrine: Gospel

A native Kurdish word for ‘good news,’ not an Arabic loanword like Injil. Some readers will also know Încîl via shared Islamic vocabulary, carrying the tahrif (corruption) assumption; qualify as the specific NT record when that association is likely. Inherited from Romans package. In John, ties to the whole-book purpose statement (20:31) and the proclamation pattern of witness running throughout the Gospel.


Apostle

Approved rendering: Şandî
Transliteration: şandî
Doctrine: Apostleship
Rejected alternatives: Resûl

A native Kurdish word (‘the one sent’) avoiding direct collision with Muhammad’s Rasul Allah title. Inherited from Romans package. In John, this root underlies the new term ‘sent_one’ describing the Father’s uniquely sending the Son (3:17,34; 17:18; 20:21); apostle itself denotes only the later, derivative human sending (20:21).


Holy

Approved rendering: Pîroz
Transliteration: pîroz
Doctrine: Sanctification

Standard native Kurdish word for holy/sacred. Inherited from Romans package. Underlies the new compound ‘Pîrozê Xwedê’ (Holy One of God, 6:69).


Peace

Approved rendering: Aştî
Transliteration: aştî
Doctrine: Peace with God
Original: εἰρήνη
Category: Salvation

Resonant with Kurdish political peace-process vocabulary; the connection to justification/Christ must be made explicit. Inherited from Romans package. John 14:27 explicitly contrasts Christ’s peace with worldly peace-giving, sharpening this caution.


Gentiles

Approved rendering: Ne-cihû
Transliteration: ne-cihû
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Rejected alternatives: Umet
Original: ἔθνη / Ἕλληνες
Category: Church

Umet carries a loaded pan-Islamic community sense; the descriptive ‘ne-cihû’ avoids that. Inherited from Romans package. John’s specific instance is the Greeks seeking Jesus (12:20-21).


Glory

Approved rendering: Rûmet
Transliteration: rûmet
Doctrine: Deity of Christ
Original: δόξα / δοξάζω
Category: God

Kurdish classical Sufi poetry lends devotional weight but must be anchored to Christ’s specific, historical glory. Inherited from Romans package. Central to John’s ‘hour’ theology (2:11; 12:23; 17:1,5), where the cross itself, not only the resurrection, is the moment of glorification.


David

Approved rendering: Dawid
Transliteration: Dawid
Doctrine: Davidic Covenant
Original: Δαυίδ
Category: Covenant

Shared, positively-regarded Quranic prophet-king figure. Inherited from Romans package. Background to ‘King of Israel’ (1:49) and ‘offspring of David’ (7:42) titles in John; see new terms king_of_israel and seed_of_david.


Israel

Approved rendering: Îsraîl
Transliteration: Îsraîl
Doctrine: Unity of Jews and Gentiles
Original: Ἰσραήλ
Category: Covenant

Kurdish popular sentiment, especially in Iraqi Kurdistan, is often more favorable toward Israel than the regional norm. Inherited from Romans package. John 3:10, ‘the teacher of Israel,’ and 1:49, ‘King of Israel.‘


I Am The Door

Approved rendering: Derî
Transliteration: Derî
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ θύρα
Category: Christology

Third ‘I Am’ statement (10:7,9). Must retain the exclusive-access sense (‘whoever does not enter by the door… is a thief,’ 10:1), not a generic open entryway.


I Am Good Shepherd

Approved rendering: Şivanê Baş
Transliteration: Şivanê Baş
Doctrine: The Seven ‘I Am’ Statements
Original: ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλός
Category: Christology

Fourth ‘I Am’ statement (10:11,14). Kurdish nomadic/pastoral heritage makes this a strong cultural asset, but the sacrificial ‘lays down his life’ element (10:11,15,17-18) must be retained, not flattened into ordinary tribal-agha protective-leadership imagery.


Human Spirit

Approved rendering: Giyan
Transliteration: Giyan
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: πνεῦμα (lowercase sense)
Category: Pneumatology

‘That which is born of the Spirit is spirit’ (3:6) — the renewed human spirit produced by the divine Spirit’s regenerating work. Kept distinct from Ruhê Pîroz (the divine Spirit) to make visible in Kurdish a distinction the single Greek word obscures.


Perish

Approved rendering: Helak bûn
Transliteration: Helak bûn
Doctrine: Eternal Life through Faith in Christ
Original: ἀπόλλυμι (ἀπόληται)
Category: Eternal Life

‘Should not perish’ (3:16) — final, ultimate ruin, the opposite outcome to eternal life. Must convey final/ultimate ruin, not mere temporal misfortune or loss.


Darkness

Approved rendering: Tarî(yê)
Transliteration: Tarî(yê)
Doctrine: Judgment and Belief/Unbelief
Original: σκότος / σκοτία
Category: Judgment

The moral/revelatory opposite of light — preference for evil over the light’s exposure (1:5; 3:19-20). Paired with ‘light’ as a moral/revelatory category, not mere absence of physical light.


New Commandment

Approved rendering: Fermana Nû
Transliteration: Fermana Nû
Doctrine: New Commandment of Love
Original: ἐντολὴ καινή
Category: Church

‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another’ (13:34-35; 15:12,17). This love, recognizable to ‘all people’ (13:35), transcends any single in-group; deserves explicit teaching against the strong loyalty patterns of Kurdish aşîret (tribal-confederation) social structure.


Pharisees

Approved rendering: Fêrisî
Transliteration: Fêrisî
Doctrine: Witness and Testimony to Christ
Original: Φαρισαῖοι
Category: Church

A Jewish lay renewal movement stressing strict Torah observance and oral tradition, of which Nicodemus was a member (3:1) and who appear throughout as a group in tension with Jesus. Requires a brief explanatory gloss on first use; must not become a byword for ‘hypocrite’ nor imply blanket corporate condemnation.


Sign

Approved rendering: Nîşan
Transliteration: Nîşan
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)
Original: σημεῖον
Category: Christology

A miraculous act functioning as evidence pointing beyond itself to Christ’s identity and glory (2:11; 4:54; 20:30-31). Must be distinguished from the Islamic mu’jiza apologetic pattern (miracle strictly as proof-of-prophethood-status); John’s signs disclose glory and identity, not merely credential a messenger.


Sabbath

Approved rendering: Şemî / Roja Şemiyê
Transliteration: Şemî / Roja Şemiyê
Doctrine: Fulfillment of the Law and Sabbath
Original: Σάββατον
Category: Covenant

The seventh-day rest commanded in the Mosaic Law; occasion for controversy over Jesus’s healings (5:9-18; 7:19-24; 9:1-16). Ties to the baseline’s Critical Şerîeta Mûsa entry; requires careful framing of fulfillment and authoritative reinterpretation by the Sabbath’s own Lord, not abrogation.


Abide Remain

Approved rendering: Man
Transliteration: Man
Doctrine: Abiding/Union with Christ (True Vine)
Original: μένω
Category: Church

To remain, stay, abide in living union with Christ (15:4-10, repeated ~10 times). Risk of a merely locational/passive reading (‘staying put’) rather than the intended living, dependent, fruit-bearing union with Christ.


Temple

Approved rendering: Perestgeh
Transliteration: Perestgeh
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection
Original: ναός / ἱερόν
Category: Eschatology

The Jerusalem temple; in 2:19-21, deliberately reapplied by Jesus to his own body. The body-as-temple wordplay must be preserved/explained; ties to the Resurrection doctrine since 2:22 explicitly links this saying to the resurrection.


Living Water

Approved rendering: Ava Zindî
Transliteration: Ava Zindî
Doctrine: The New Birth and Regeneration by the Spirit
Original: ὕδωρ ζῶν
Category: New Birth

Literal flowing/spring water and, metaphorically, the Spirit/eternal life Christ gives (4:10-14; 7:38-39). The intentional double-meaning/misunderstanding pattern (structurally parallel to Nicodemus’s literalism in ch.3) should be preserved and taught, not resolved away.


Feast Of Tabernacles

Approved rendering: Cejna Kox
Transliteration: Cejna Kox
Doctrine: The Holy Spirit as Counselor

Feast of Booths/Sukkot background to the ‘living water’ saying (7:37-39); requires brief OT festival-background explanation for readers unfamiliar with the feast.


Rabbi

Approved rendering: Rabî
Transliteration: Rabî
Doctrine: Deity and Pre-existence of Christ (the Word)

A respectful but limited category — Nicodemus assesses Jesus as an exceptional human teacher, not yet the divine Son (3:2). Must not let this remain the passage’s final Christological verdict; gloss on first use as ‘mamoste’ (teacher).


Rabbouni

Approved rendering: Rabûnî
Transliteration: Rabûnî
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection

Mary Magdalene’s address to the risen Jesus (20:16), an intensified form of Rabbi; gloss as ‘my dear teacher.‘


Hosanna

Approved rendering: Hosana
Transliteration: Hosana
Doctrine: Messianic Promise

‘Hosanna’ (12:13), Hebrew ‘please save (now).’ A liturgical acclamation; retain transliterated per established cross-tradition convention, with a brief etymological note connecting it to salvation vocabulary for teaching purposes.


King Of Israel

Approved rendering: Padîşahê Îsraîl
Transliteration: Padîşahê Îsraîl
Doctrine: Messianic Promise

Nathanael’s confession (1:49); a royal title reusing baseline Îsraîl, requiring the covenant-king typology pointing to Messiah be made explicit rather than assumed.


Blood And Water

Approved rendering: xwîn û av
Transliteration: xwîn û av
Doctrine: Christ’s Substitutionary Death and Resurrection

Blood and water flowing from Jesus’s side (19:34) — physical detail with theological resonance (true, real death; possible typological echoes); best handled with a teaching note rather than a translation adjustment.


Feed Tend Sheep

Approved rendering: berxên min bide xwarin / pêz miyên min bişivantî bike
Transliteration: berxên min bide xwarin / pêz miyên min bişivantî bike
Doctrine: Good Shepherd and Sacrificial Love

‘Feed my lambs’ / ‘Tend my sheep’ (21:15-17), completing the Good Shepherd theme (ch.10) by commissioning Peter as an under-shepherd. A positive pastoral-culture asset given Kurdish herding heritage.


Low Risk Terms

Thanksgiving

Approved rendering: Spasî
Transliteration: spasî
Doctrine: Thanksgiving

Standard term with broad positive overlap; low risk. Inherited from Romans package. John 6:11,23, Jesus ‘having given thanks’ before the feeding miracle.


Moses

Approved rendering: Mûsa
Transliteration: Mûsa
Doctrine: Fulfillment of the Law and Sabbath
Original: Μωϋσῆς
Category: Covenant

The lawgiver and mediator of the Sinai covenant, cited as pointing forward to Christ (1:17; 5:45-46) and providing the ‘lifted up’ serpent typology (3:14). Proper name; use the established Kitêba Pîroz form, consistent with the AI Translation Requirements’ transliteration standards.

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