Lilith: How the Translation History of a 2,700-Year-Old Word Came to Impact 21st Century Culture (Johnson 2026)

SIL’s Journal of Translation is proud to announce the publication of its first article of 2026:

Lilith: How the Translation History of a 2,700-Year-Old Word Came to Impact 21st Century Culture

Johnson, Martin. 2026. “Lilith: How the Translation History of a 2,700-Year-Old Word Came to Impact 21st Century Culture.” Journal of Translation 22 (1): 1–26. https://doi.org/10.54395/JOT-MJLIL21.

Abstract

This paper reviews the translation history of the Hebrew word לִילִית lilith, found only in Isaiah 34:14, which has displayed powerful iconicity in the twenty-first century. Differences in interpretation are explored, and it is shown that modern iconicity derives from about one thousand years ago, while the original use of the word dates to before 700 BCE. An experimental approach from the psychology of group decision-making is reported, which identifies the original word as an onomatopoeia derived from the call of the Lilith Owl, Athene (noctua) lilith. A review of work on cognitive illusions linked to the behaviour of owls and occurrences of death in pre-modern societies shows how the superstitious connection between owls and death could be the result of an “illusion of causality”. Thus, applied psychology has helped to uncover the original derivation of an ancient Hebrew word and illustrate how this became the basis for the modern elaborate iconicity of Lilith. It is argued that the correct translation of lilith in Isaiah 34:14 should be “Lilith Owl”, while acknowledging that the iconic character of Lilith as portrayed in popular culture derives primarily from Greek mythology.

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