dìqū (dì·qū land · area; district; region [→ [territory]] 地区 地區) ← Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”
Appendix A2 of the English New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (Study Edition), entitled “Features of This Revision”, discusses vocabulary changes that have been made in the current revision, words that have been translated differently than before. As noted in various entries in the excellent resource Referenced Theo. Expressions (RTE), Appendix A2 of the current Mandarin version of the New World Translation Bible (nwtsty) correspondingly discusses words that have been translated differently in the current revision of the Mandarin NWT Bible, compared to how they had been translated before.
Since we base what we say in Jehovah’s service on his Word the Bible, the vocabulary used in it—and the way those vocabulary words are translated—should be reflected in how we speak in our ministry, at our meetings, etc. So, it is beneficial for us Mandarin field language learners to be familiar with the latest thinking from the organization on how Bible terms should be translated into Mandarin.
The Land of…
Past versions of the Mandarin NWT Bible added “Dì (Land (of) 地)” after the names of lands, as in “Āijí (Egypt 埃及) Dì (Land (of) 地)” (“the Land of Egypt”). However, that isn’t the usual way to render the names of lands in Mandarin Chinese, resulting in readers finding such renderings unnatural.
So, the current Mandarin version of the NWT Bible (nwtsty) now renders the names of lands differently. For example, “Āijí (Egypt 埃及) Dì (Land (of) 地)” is now rendered as “Āijí (Egypt 埃及) Dìqū (Dì·qū Land · Region (of) 地区 地區)”, as can be seen at Genesis 13:10:
The Territory of…
Incidentally, “dìqū (dì·qū land · area; district; region [→ [territory]] 地区 地區)” has also long been the expression used in Mandarin groups and congregations to refer to the “territory” that a group or congregation carries out the preaching work in. As with the English expression “territory”, one could speak of a congregation’s “dìqū (dì·qū land · region → [territory] 地区 地區)” as a whole, or of a particular “dìqū (dì·qū land · region → [territory] 地区 地區)” within that whole that, say, a car group of publishers is working.