Bible translations
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The Bible has been translated into many languages. The Tanakh was originally written in Hebrew, with the exception of some passages of Daniel, Ezra, and Jeremiah which are in Aramaic. The New Testament is widely agreed to have originally been written in Greek, although some scholars hypothesize that certain books may have been written in Aramaic before being translated for widespread dissemination.
The Bible continues to be the most translated book in the world. It is found it its entirety or in part in 2,355 of the approximately 6,500 languages that exist. The Bible is now available in 665 languages in Africa, followed by 585 in Asia, 414 in Oceania, 404 in Latin America and the Caribbean, 209 in Europe, and 75 in North America. The United Bible Societies are presently assisting in Bible translation projects in some 600 languages. The Bible is available in whole or in part to some 98 percent of the world’s population.
A variety of approaches to translation have been used, including Formal equivalence (similar to literal translation[1] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glossl.htm#literal)), Dynamic equivalence[2] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glossd.htm#dynamiceq), Meaning-Based Translation[3] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glossl.htm#meaning-based), Idiomatic translation[4] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glossi.htm#idiomatic), and Paraphrase[5] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glossn.htm#paraphrase). A great deal of debate occurs over which approach most accurately[6] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glossa.htm#accuracy) communicates the message of the biblical languages source texts into target languages[7] (http://www.geocities.com/bible_translation/glosst.htm#target). Despite these debates, however, many who study the Bible intellectually or devotionally find that selecting more than one translation approach is useful in interpreting and applying what they read. For example, a very literal translation may be useful for individual word or topical study, while a paraphrase may be employed for grasping initial meaning of a passage. Zondervan, one of the many bible publishers [8] (http://directory.google.com/Top/Society/Religion_and_Spirituality/Christianity/Bible/Publishers_and_Versions/)has created this graphic (http://www.zondervanbibles.com/translations.htm) showing where many popular English translations fall on the literal-to-paraphrase spectrum.
This page gives information about Bible translations in various languages, in alphabetical order by language. At the end of some of the sections you will find tables comparing the same verses in various translations.
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Croatian Translations
The first complete translation was Jesuit Kasić's manuscript. The work was done from 1622 to 1637, but remained unpublished until 2000. It was in 1831 that the first published Croatian Bible appeared, translated by a Franciscan Matija Petar Katančić. After a few other versions, the most widely accepted and praised is modern language translation from 1968, the so called "Zagreb Bible", which is partially based on the Jerusalem Bible.
External links
- Hrvatska Biblija on-line: Bible in Croatian-full text (http://www.hbk.hr/biblija/) - translation: "Zagreb"
- Hrvatska Biblija - web download: Bible in Croatian-full text (http://wwwyu.com/) - translation: Dr Ivan Saric 1942.
Dutch Translations
The first translation into Dutch directly from Greek and Hebrew sources was the Statenvertaling. It was ordered by the States-General at the synod of Dort in 1618/19, and first published in 1637. It soon became the generally accepted translation for Reformed churches in the Netherlands and remained so well into the 20th century. It was supplanted to a large extent in 1951 by the NBG (Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap) translation, which still uses relatively old-fashioned language.
Modern language translations are Groot Nieuws Bijbel, Het Boek, the Roman Catholic Willibrordvertaling. In 2004, the NBV (Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling) translation appeared, which was produced by an ecumenical translation team, and is intended as an all-purpose translation for pulpit and home use; however, there has been much criticism on its accuracy.
Around the same time, there has also been much work on very literal, idiolect translations, such as the Naarden translation of 2004, Albert Koster's translation of the Old Testament, a work in progress since 1991, and the Torah translation of the Societas Hebraica Amstelodamensis.
External link
- Statenvertaling (http://www.statenvertaling.net/): full text, including the Apocrypha. 1977 edition.
English Translations
English translations can be broken down into Christian, Critical and Jewish sections.
See also: History of the English Bible
English Christian Translations
Although John Wycliff is often credited with the first translation of the Bible into English, there were, in fact, many translations of large parts of the Bible centuries before Wycliff's work. Toward the end of the Seventh Century, the Venerable Bede began a translation of Scripture into Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon). Aldhelm (640-709 AD) likewise translated the complete Book of Psalms and large portions of other scriptures into Old English. In the 11th Century, Abbot Ælfric translated much of the Old Testament into Old English.
After the Norman Conquest of 1066, the English language underwent rapid change, evolving into the Middle English best known in the works of Chaucer. The earliest Middle English translation was probably that of Richard Rolle, who translated portions of the New Testament.
To John Wyclif belongs the honor of organizing the first complete translation of the Bible into Middle English in the 1380s. The translation was a collaborative effort, and it is not clear which portions are actually Wycliff's work. Wycliff's translation was condemned by church authorities largely because of the commentary which was included with the work -- commentary which was considered heretical. A revision of the somewhat stilted language of the Wycliff Bible was undertaken by John Purvey in 1388. The revised version remained in use for about 100 years.
William Tyndale produced the next unauthorized version of the New Testament in 1526 based on Erasmus' new Latin translation from the Greek. The Old Testament translation was finished by Myles Coverdale in 1535 based on Latin and German sources. Tyndale completed original translations of the Pentateuch and other portions of the Old Testament directly from Greek and Hebrew sources before being burned at the stake in 1536. John Rogers compiled all of Tyndale's work together with Coverdale's translations of the missing books, and his original translation of the book of Manasses (from French) into the first complete English Bible, the Matthew's Bible, published in 1537. These versions were printed outside of England but suppressed by Henry VIII, both before and after the Reformation.
In 1539 Coverdale was allowed to print the Great Bible, the first authorized version. The Geneva Bible was later introduced based on Coverdale's work and was the version Shakespeare quoted. As a response to the Geneva Bible, the Church of England produced the Bishops' Bible, the second authorized version, but which proved less popular than the Geneva Bible.
The Catholic church printed the English language Douay Rheims bible which was based on the Latin Vulgate for its followers in 1609. King James VI and I authorized a standard version to be compiled from Greek and Hebrew source texts which was printed in 1611 to replace the several competing versions. This was the King James Version that became the standard for 250 years.
Modern translations
There are many modern English Christian translations (over 50 complete versions and many more partial translations), including the following (listed alphabetically with common abbreviations and publication dates):
(de) = dynamic equivalence (fe) = formal equivalence
(de/fe) = more dynamic than formal
(fe/de) = more formal than dynamic
- American Standard Version - ASV (1901)(fe)
- Amplified Bible - AMP (1965)(contains alternative words)
- Contemporary English Version - CEV (1995)
- English Standard Version - ESV (2001)(fe)
- God's Word - GWD (1995)
- Good News Bible - GNB or Good News Translation - GNT (1976)(de)
- Holman Christian Standard Bible - HCSB (2004)
- International Standard Version - ISV (2003)
- Jerusalem Bible - JB (1966)
- King James Version (or Authorized Version) - KJV or AV (1611)(fe)
- The Holy Scriptures - HSV (2001)
- The Living Bible - TLB (1971)(paraphrase)
- The Message - MSG (2002)(idiomatic)
- New American Bible - NAB (1970, New Testament revised 1986)
- New American Standard Bible - NASB (1971, updated 1995)(fe)
- New English Bible - (1970)(de)
- New English Translation - NET (1996)(de/fe)
- New International Version - NIV (1978, revised 1984)(de/fe)
- New Jerusalem Bible - NJB (1985)
- New King James Version - NKJV (1982)(fe)
- New Living Translation - NLT (1996)(de)
- New Revised Standard Version - NRSV (1989)(fe/de)
- New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures - NWT (1950, revised 1984) (used by Jehovah's Witnesses)
- Revised English Bible - REB (1989)
- Revised Standard Version - RSV (1952)(fe)
- Revised Version (or English Revised Version) - RV or ERV (1885)
- Today's New International Version - TNIV (2002)(de)
- World English Bible - WEB (1997)
See also Modern English Bible translations.
Much like early English Bibles, which were based on Greek texts or Latin translations, modern English translations of the Bible are based on the best-available original texts of the time. The translators put much scholarly effort into cross-checking the various sources such as the Pentateuch, Septuagint, and Masoretic text. Relatively recent discoveries such as the Dead Sea scrolls provide additional reference information. Versions of modern English translations such as the New International Version contain extensive text notes indicating where differences occur in original sources.
King James Version
Earlier English translations, such as the King James Version, were based on the Masoretic Text and Textus Receptus, while modern versions include many readings taken from recently discovered manuscripts. There is some controversy over which texts should be used as a basis for translation, as some of the alternate sources do not include verses which are found in the Textus Receptus. Some say the alternate sources were poorly representative of the texts used in their time, whereas others claim the Textus Receptus include passages that were added to the alternate texts improperly. These disputed passages are not the basis for disputed issues of doctrine, but tend to be additional stories or snippets of phrases.
English Critical Translations
Although most translations of the Bible have been authorized or made by religious people for religious use, historians and philologists have studied the Bible as an historical and literary text and have presented secular translations.
The best-known is the Anchor Bible; each book is translated by a different scholar, with extensive critical commentary.
English Jewish Translations
The translation of the Jewish Publication Society (JPS) has become the single most popular English translation of the Hebrew Bible. JPS has published two translations of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh). The first was completed in 1917, and was based on the modern scholarship of its day; its literary form was consciously based on that of the King James version. By the 1950s this translation was felt to be outdated, and a new effort developed that involved cooperation between scholars of all the Jewish denominations. Their translation of the Torah was completed in 1962; it is referred to as the "New JPS", or sometimes called the New Jewish Version (NJV).
This translation is used in the official Torah commentary of Reform Judaism, and in the official Torah commentary of Conservative Judaism. This translation recently was used in The Jewish Study Bible (Oxford Univ. Press), which is becoming a defacto standard text for non-Orthodox Jews.
Mesorah Publications is an Orthodox Jewish publisher of Bible translations, rabbinic literature and Jewish prayerbooks. Their Stone Edition of the Chumash (Torah) and Stone Edition of the Tanach (also called the Artscroll Tanakh) have become very popular in the Orthodox Jewish community, and are in use by some non-Orthodox Jews as well. Their translations has been criticised by a few Modern Orthodox scholars and by non-Orthodox scholars for mis-translating the text. The dispute comes about because they consciously attempted not to present a straight translation of the text, but rather to smooth out differences between the plain meaning of the text and later interpretations of the text by medieval bibical commentators such as Rashi.
While the New JPS translation takes into account the views of all the major Jewish medieval commentators, it also uses the results of modern biblical scholarship. It attempts in all cases to present the original meaning of the text. Mesorah Publications accepts the tenets of Orthodox Jewish theology, which holds that the original meaning of the text can only be understood in light of the Talmud and later rabbinic commentaries. To liberal Jews, this is a historical anachronism.
Everett Fox has translated the Torah and the book of Samuel for Schocken Press. Presumably more books will follow. Inspired by the German translation prepared by Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig, it is a highly accurate translation which tries to preserve both the poetic sound of the Bible and as much literality as can be done within English.
While the scholarship is the same for both Christians and Jews, there are distinctive features of Jewish translations. These include a somewhat greater preference for the Masoretic Text, a tendency to prefer transliterated instead of Anglicised names, and translations that reflect differing interpretations of certain passages. For example, Jewish translations translate עלמה ‘almâh in Isaiah 7:14 as young woman, while many Christian translations use virgin.
Comparison of English Bible translations (+ Greek and Hebrew)
| Translation | Genesis 1:1-3 | |
|---|---|---|
| Hebrew language | בראשׁית ברא אלהים את השׁמים ואת הארץ
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| American Standard Version | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. | Amplified Bible | IN THE beginning God (prepared, formed, fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth.[Heb. 11:3.] The earth was without form and an empty waste, and darkness was upon the face of the very great deep. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light; and there was light. |
| Bible In Basic English | At the first God made the heaven and the earth. And the earth was waste and without form; and it was dark on the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God was moving on the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. | Contemporary English Version | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was barren, with no form of life; it was under a roaring ocean covered with darkness. But the Spirit of God was moving over the water. God said, "I command light to shine!" And light started shining. |
| English Standard Version | In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. | |
| Geneva Bible | In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the deep, and the Spirit of God moved upon the waters. Then God said, Let there be light: And there was light. | |
| GOD'S WORD | In the beginning God created heaven and earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep water. The Spirit of God was hovering over the water. Then God said, ?Let there be light!? So there was light. | Good News Translation | In the beginning, when God created the universe, the earth was formless and desolate. The raging ocean that covered everything was engulfed in total darkness, and the Spirit of God was moving over the water. Then God commanded, "Let there be light"-and light appeared. |
| Holman Christian Standard Bible | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness covered the surface of the watery depths, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, ?Let there be light,? and there was light. | |
| Jerusalem Bible | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, and God's spirit hovered over the water. God said, 'Let there be light', and there was light. | |
| Jewish Publication Society, New JPS (1962 original, 1985 revision) | When God began to create heaven and earth - the earth being unformed and void, with darkness over the surface of the deep and a wind from God sweeping over the water - God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. | |
| Jewish Publication Society, Old JPS (1917) | In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Now the earth was unformed and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters. And God said: 'Let there be light.' And there was light. | |
| King James Version | In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. | |
| HSV | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth became void and without form; and darkness came to pass upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. | |
| The Living Bible | When God began creating the heavens and the earth, the earth was at first a shapeless, chaotic mass, with the Spirit of God brooding over the dark vapors. Then God said, "Let there be light." And light appeared. | Mesorah Publications, The Artscroll Chumash (Jewish) | In the beginning of God's creating the heavens and the earth - when the earth was astonishingly empty, with darkness upon the surface of the deep, and the Divine Presence hovered upon the surface of the waters - God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. |
| The Message | First this: God created the Heavens and Earth--all you see, all you don't see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. God's Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss. God spoke: "Light!" And light appeared. | |
| New American Bible | In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. | |
| New American Standard Bible | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. | |
| New American Standard Bible Update | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. | |
| New English Bible | IN THE BEGINNING OF CREATION, when God made heaven and earth, the earth was without form and void, with darkness over the face of the abyss, and a mighty wind that swept over the surface of the waters. God said, 'Let there be light', and there was light; | |
| New English Translation | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was without shape and empty, and darkness was over the surface of the watery deep, but the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the water. God said, "Let there be light." And there was light! | |
| New King James Version | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. | |
| New International Version | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. | |
| New Living Translation | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was empty, a formless mass cloaked in darkness. And the Spirit of God was hovering over its surface. Then God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. | New Revised Standard Version | In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. |
| New World Translation | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth proved to be formless and waste and there was darkness upon the surface of the watery deep; and God's active force was moving to and fro over the surface of the waters. And God proceeded to say: "Let light come to be." Then there came to be light. | |
| Revised Standard Version | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. | |
| Revised Version | In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. | |
| Revised English Bible | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was a vast waste, darkness covered the deep, and the spirit of God hovered over the surface of the water. God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light; | |
| World English Bible | In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God's Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters. God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. |
| Translation | John 3:16 | |
|---|---|---|
| Greek | Template:Polytonic | |
| American Standard Version | For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life. | Amplified Bible | For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life. |
| Contemporary English Version | God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die. | |
| English Standard Version | For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. | |
| Geneva Bible | For God so loved the world, that he hath given his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have euerlasting life. | |
| GOD'S WORD | God loved the world this way: He gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life. | Good News Translation | For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life. |
| Holman Christian Standard Bible | For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but have eternal life. | International Standard Version | For this is how God loved the world: He gave his unique Son so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. | Jerusalem Bible | Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life. |
| King James Version | For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. | |
| HSV | For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. | |
| The Living Bible | For God loved the world so much that He gave his only Son so that anyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. | |
| The Message | This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. | |
| New American Bible | For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. | |
| New American Standard Bible | For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. | |
| New American Standard Bible Update | For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. | |
| New English Bible | God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, that everyone who has faith in him may not die but have eternal life. | |
| New English Translation | For this is the way God loved the world: he gave his one and only Son that everyone who believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. | |
| New International Version | For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. | |
| New King James Version | For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. | |
| New Living Translation | For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. | New Revised Standard Version | For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. |
| New World Translation | For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life. | |
| Revised English Bible | God so loved the world that he gave he gave his only son that everyone who has faith in him may not perish buy have eternal life | |
| Revised Standard Version | For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. | |
| Revised Version | For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life. | |
| Today's New International Version | For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. | |
| William Tyndale | For God so loveth the world, that he hath given his only son, that none that believe in him, should perish: but should have everlasting life. | |
| World English Bible | For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. |
Nb. Missing entries mean someone needs to look the verse up - not that the verse does not occur in those translations!
External link
- Zondervan (http://www.zondervanbibles.com/translations.htm): do a good comparison of a number of translations, with a particularly helpful graphic showing where each fits on the spectrum of word-for-word (literal) or thought-for-thought (paraphrase)
- Comparing Bible Translations (http://faith.propadeutic.com/questions.html): multiple translations of the Bible into English are compared and rated on various grounds; reviewer comes from a conservative evangelical theological background
Esperanto Translations
The initiator of Esperanto, L. L. Zamenhof translated the entire Old Testament into Esperanto. A committee was formed to translate the New Testament and review Zamenhof's translation. A translation of the entire Bible was published in 1926. The New Testament was published in 1910.
| Brita kaj Alilanda Biblia Societo | |
|---|---|
| Genezo 1:1-3 | En la komenco kreis Dio la chielon kaj la teron. Kaj la tero estis senforma kaj dezerta, kaj mallumo estis super la abismo; kaj la spirito de Dio shvebis super la akvo. Kaj Dio diris: Estu lumo; kaj farighis lumo. |
| Johano 3:16 | Char Dio tiel amis la mondon, ke Li donis Sian solenaskitan Filon, por ke chiu, kiu fidas al li, ne pereu, sed havu eternan vivon. |
French Translations
The first printed translation of the Bible into the French language was the work of Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples in 1530 in Antwerp. This was substantially revised and improved in 1535 by Pierre Robert Olivétan. This bible, in turn, became the basis of the first French Roman Catholic bible, published at Louvain in 1550, the work of Nicholas de Leuze and François de Larben. Finally, the Port-Royal version, prepared by Antoine Lemaistre and his brother Louis Isaac Lemaistre, finished in 1695, achieved broad acceptance among both Roman Catholics and Protestants.
Many Francophone Protestants now use the Louis Segond version, which was finished in 1880, and revised substantially between 1975 and 1978.
Among Roman Catholics, the most notable contemporary French translation is La Bible de Jérusalem, available in English as The Jerusalem Bible, which appeared first in French in 1954 and was revised in 1973. Its copious but concise footnotes and apparatus have won respect among both Protestant and Catholic readers. This translation has served as the basis for versions in many other languages besides French.
The chief Jewish version of the Hebrew Scriptures in French is La Bible du rabbinat français, which was finished in 1906 and was revised in 1966.
German Translations
The most important and influential of translations of the Bible into German is the translation of Martin Luther. The influence that Luther's translation had on the development of the German language is often compared to influence the KJV had on English.
Another translation is the Einheitsübersetzung ("unified" or "unity translation"), which was intended to be used by both Roman Catholics and Protestants. The text of the New Testament and the Psalms of the Einheitsübersetzung was agreed on by a committee of Roman Catholic and Protestant scholars, while the remainder of the Old Testament follows a Roman Catholic tradition.
| German Translations | Johannes 3:16 |
|---|---|
| Luther | Also hat Gott die Welt geliebt, daß er seinen eingeborenen Sohn gab, auf daß alle, die an ihn glauben, nicht verloren werden, sondern das ewige Leben haben. |
| Einheitsübersetzung | Denn Gott hat die Welt so sehr geliebt, daß er seinen einzigen Sohn hingab, damit jeder, der an ihn glaubt, nicht zugrunde geht, sondern das ewige Leben hat. |
Gothic Translation
The only translation of the Bible into the extinct Gothic language was made by the bishop Ulfilas and is preserved in one hand-written copy, known as the Codex Argenteus.
Modern Greek Translation
In 1901 Alexandros Pallis translated the gospels in Modern Greek. The publishing of the translation in a newspaper caused riots in Athens, known as Evangelika (Ευαγγελικά).
Hawaiian Translation
A Hawaiian translation was done by New England Christian missionaries and the Reverend Hiram Bingham in the early 1800's. The Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) were translated in 1828. The rest of the New Testament was translated in 1832. The Old Testament was translated in 1839. The translation was revised in 1868. A new translation of the New Testament in Hawaiian Pidgin, titled Da Jesus Book, was published in 2000 by Wycliffe Bible Translators.
External Link
- The Hawaiian Bible Project (http://baibala.olelo.hawaii.edu/cgi-bin/bible)
- Da Jesus Book: Hawaiian Pidgin New Testament (http://www.booklineshawaii.com/BOOK/BSP/978217.html)
- Hawaiian Bible joins modern age (http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2003/Aug/04/ln/ln03a.html)
Reference
Most of the information in this section comes from a phone inquiry by Wikipedian Joshua Holman to Jacquelyn Sapiie, Supervisor of Library Services at the American Bible Society on January 14, 2004.
Italian Translation
The first printed translation of the Bible into Italian was the Malermi Bible in 1471.
Klingon Translation
Parts of the bible has been translated into Klingon language - the artificial language spoken by Klingons in the fictional Star Trek universe.
John 3:16: toH qo' muSHa'pu'qu'mo' JoH'a', wa' puqloDDaj nobpu' ghaH 'ej ghaHbaq Harchugh vay', vaj not Hegh ghaH, 'ach yIn jub ghajbeH ghaH.
Klingon Translation Project (http://www.kli.org/wiki/index.php?Klingon%20Bible%20Translation%20Project)
Latin Translations
There were a number of piecework translations into Latin during the period of the early Church. Collectively, these versions are known as the Vetus Latina. In the Old Testament, they follow the Greek Septuagint closely, it being their usual source, and reproduce its variations from the Hebrew Masoretic Text. They were never rendered independently from the Hebrew or Greek; they vary widely in readability and quality, and contain many solecisms in idiom, some by the translators themselves, others from literally translating Greek language idioms into Latin.
All of these translations were made obsolete by St. Jerome's Vulgate version of the Bible. Jerome knew Hebrew, and revised and unified the Latin Bibles of the time to bring them into conformity with the Hebrew as he understood it. The liturgical Psalms, however, are often taken from the older Latin bibles.
In the Protestant Reformation, Theodore Beza produced a new Latin version of the New Testament. Demand for a Latin Bible among Protestants declined steadily, and Beza's translation never achieved wide circulation.
| Latin Translation | John 3:16 |
|---|---|
| Vulgate | Sic enim dilexit Deus mundum, ut Filium suum unigenitum daret, ut omnis qui credit in eum non pereat, sed habeat vitam æternam. |
| Theodore Beza | Ita enim Deus dilexit mundum, ut Filium suum unigenitum illum dederit, ut quisquis credit in eum, non pereat, sed habeat vitam æternam. |
Manx Translation
The Bible was translated into the Manx language, a dialect of Gaelic, by a committee of clergy from the Isle of Man. The New Testament appeared in 1767, and the complete Bible in 1772.
| British Bible Society text, 1819 | |
|---|---|
| Genesis 1:1-3 | Ayns y toshiaght chroo Jee niau as thalloo. As va'n thalloo gyn cummey, as feayn; as va dorraghys er eaghtyr y diunid: as ren spyrryd Yee gleashagh er eaghtyr ny ushtaghyn. As dooyrt Jee, Lhig da soilshey 've ayn; as va soilshey ayn. |
| Ean 3:16 | Son lheid y ghraih shen hug Jee d'an theihll, dy dug eh e ynyrcan Vac v'er ny gheddyn, nagh jinnagh quoi-erbee chredjagh aynsyn cherraghtyn, agh yn vea ta dy bragh farraghtyn y chosney. |
Polari Translation
The King James Bible has been translated, or adapted, into the gay language Polari by the Manchester branch of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. The opening verses of Genesis read like this:
- 1:1 In the beginning Gloria created the heaven and the earth. 2 And the earth was nanti form, and void; and munge was upon the eke of the deep. And the nanti lucoddy of Gloria trolled upon the eke of the aquas. 3 And Gloria cackled, Let there be sparkle: and there was sparkle. 4 And Gloria vardad the sparkle, that it was bona: and Gloria medzered the sparkle from the munge. 5 And Gloria screeched the sparkle Day, and the munge he screeched nochy. And the bijou nochy and the morning were the una day.
Romanian Translation
The first complete translation to Romanian was done in 1688 (called "Biblia de la Bucuresti") by Radu and Serban Greceanu with the help of Serban Cantacuzino and Constantin Brancoveanu.
Before the Greceanu brothers, have been other partial translation like the Slave-Roman Gospel (1551), Coresi's Gospel (1561), The Brasov Psalm Book (1570), Palia from Orastie (1582), The New Testament of Alba Iulia (1648) and others.
Spanish Translations
The first complete translation from the originals into Spanish was published in 1569 (called "Biblia del Oso") by Casiodoro de Reina.
- Biblia Alfonsina, 1280.
- Biblia del Duque de Alba, 1430.
- Antiguo Testamento del rabino Salomón, 1420.
- Antiguo Testamento de traductor anónimo, 1420.
- Nuevo Testamento de Francisco de Enzinas, 1553.
- Nuevo Testamento de Juan Pérez de Pineda, 1556.
- Reina o "Biblia del Oso" (RV), 1569, reviewed in 1602 by Cipriano de Valera.
- Biblia del padre Scío de San Miguel, 1793.
- Versión Moderna, 1893.
- Biblia de Petisco y Torres Amat, 1825.
- Nuevo Testamento versión hispanoamericana, 1916.
- Biblia Nácar-Colunga, 1944.
- Biblia Bóver-Cantera, 1947.
- Nuevo Testamento de monseńor Straubinger, 1948.
- Nuevo Testamento traducción del Nuevo Mundo, 1963. Translation from English.
- Biblia de Jerusalén, 1966.
- Biblia traducción del Nuevo Mundo, 1967. Translation from English.
- Biblia de Editorial Labor, 1968.
- Biblia edición pastoral para Latinoamérica, 1972.
- La Biblia de editorial Herder, 1975.
- Nueva Biblia Espańola, 1976.
- Biblia Interconfesional, 1978.
- Dios Habla Hoy o Versión Popular (DHH), 1979.
- La Biblia al Día, 1979.
- Biblia el libro del pueblo de Dios, 1980.
- Nuevo Testamento de la Universidad de Navarra, 1983.
- Biblia de las Américas (BLA), 1986.
- Biblia, versión revisada por un equipo de traductores dirigido por Evaristo Martín Nieto. 1989.
- Biblia Casa de la Biblia, 1992.
- Biblia del Peregrino, 1993.
- Nuevo Testamento versión Recobro, 1994.
- Nueva Versión Internacional (NVI), 1999.
- Nuevo Testamento traducción de Pedro Ortiz, 2000.
- Nuevo Testamento la Palabra de Dios para Todos (PDT), 2000.
- Biblia traducción en lenguaje actual (TLA), 2003.
- Biblia la Palabra de Dios para Todos (PDT), 2005.
| Translation | Juan 3:16 |
|---|---|
| La Palabra de Dios para Todos (PDT Version) 2005 | Dios amó tanto al mundo que dio a su Hijo único para que todo el que crea en él no se pierda, sino que tenga vida eterna. |
| Reina-Valera 1960 | Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo, que ha dado a su Hijo unigénito, para que todo aquel que en él cree, no se pierda, mas tenga vida eterna. |
| Nueva Versión Internacional | Porque tanto amó Dios al mundo, que dio a su Hijo unigénito, para que todo el que cree en él no se pierda, sino que tenga vida eterna. |
| Dios Habla Hoy | Pues Dios amó tanto al mundo, que dio a su Hijo único,para que todo aquel que cree en él no muera, sino que tenga vida eterna. |
| La Biblia de las Américas | Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo, que dio a su Hijo unigénito, para que todo aquel que cree en Él, no se pierda, mas tenga vida eterna. |
External Link
- Versión la Palabra de Dios para todos (PDT) (http://www.wbtc.com/articles/downloads/spanish_downloads_main.html)
Slavonic Translation
In 862, a pair of monks named Saints Cyril and Methodius were commissioned by Photius, Patriarch of Constantinople, to take the Gospel to Great Moravia. They translated the Bible and many liturgical service books into Slavonic, which was spoken in various dialects throughout much of Eastern Europe. Their translation was later used to evangelize Bulgaria and Kievan Rus in the tenth century. As there was no written form of Slavonic prior to their translation, they created what became known as the Glagolitic alphabet, loosely based on Greek, and their disciples derived from it the Cyrillic alphabet, which is still used by Russian and other East European languages. The Slavonic used in their translation is now known as Old Church Slavonic and its later version as the Church Slavonic still used in liturgical services in Russian Orthodox and several other Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Rite Catholic churches.
Slovene Translation
Both Old and New Testaments were first translated to Slovene by Protestant writer and theologian Jurij Dalmatin. The translation was printed in Wittenberg, Germany in 1584 and was smuggled back to Slovenia hidden in barrels so that Catholic authorities could not discover it. The Slovenes thus became the 12th nation in the world with a complete Bible in their language, overtaking many much larger European nations. The Bible translation was the major achievement of Slovene Protestant literature.
Slovene Biblical Society (http://www.drustvo-svds.si/)
Swahili Translations
The first translation of parts of the Bible into Swahili was accomplished by 1868, with a complete New Testament translation following in 1879 and a translation of the whole Bible in 1890. Since that time, there have been several translations into different dialects of Swahili as spoken in different regions of East Africa; these include the Union translation published by the Bible Society of Tanzania in 1950 and the Swahili Common Language version.
| Translation | Yohana 3:16 |
|---|---|
| Union Translation | Kwa maana jinsi hii Mungu aliupenda ulimwengu, hata akamtoa Mwanawe pekee, ili kila mtu amwaminiye asipotee, bali awe na uzima wa milele. |
Swedish Translations
Several translations to Swedish have been performed over the years. Until the reformation, a Latin Bible was used, but Gustav Vasa who converted Sweden to protestantism ordered the first translation into the Swedish tongue.
Several translations has been made since then, including:
- Gustav Vasas bibel - the original ordered by Gustav Vasa
- Karl XIIs bibel - ordered by Charles XII of Sweden
- Normalupplagan
- Helge Ĺkessons översättning
- 1917 ĺrs bibelöversättning - used in official churches until 2000
- Nya Världens bibelöversättning - by Jehovah's Witnesses
- David Hedegĺrds översättning - includes only the New Testament
- Bo Giertz översättning - includes only the New Testament
- Svenska folkbibeln
- Bibel 2000 - the latest official translation, including the Apocrypha of the Old Testament
| Translation | Första Mosebok 1:1-1:4 |
|---|---|
| 1917 translation | I begynnelsen skapade Gud himmel och jord. Och jorden var öde och tom, och mörker var över djupet, och Guds Ande svävade över vattnet. Och Gud sade: "Varde ljus"; och det vart ljus. Och Gud sĺg att ljuset var gott; och Gud skilde ljuset frĺn mörkret. |
| Bibel 2000 | I begynnelsen skapade Gud himmel och jord. Jorden var öde och tom, djupet täcktes av mörker och en gudsvind svepte fram över vattnet. Gud sade: ”Ljus, bli till!” Och ljuset blev till. Gud sĺg att ljuset var gott, och han skilde ljuset frĺn mörkret. |
External Link
- Bibel 2000, full text (http://www.bibeln.se/)
Welsh Translations
See Welsh Bible
The first translation of the Bible into Welsh was the New Testament translation of William Salesbury in 1567, closely followed by William Morgan's translation of the whole Bible in 1588. This occupies a similar place in the Welsh language to that of the King James Version in English. A new translation, y Beibl Cymraeg Newydd was published in 1988 and has largely replaced the William Morgan translation, although there is some disagreement as to the accuracy of the translation. Both versions are in very literary Welsh and there is still a need for a translation in a more colloquial register.
A revision of y Beibl Cymraeg Newydd (Revised New Welsh Bible) was released in March 2004.
| Translation | Ioan 3:16 |
|---|---|
| Beibl William Morgan, 1588 | Canys felly y carodd Duw y byd fel y rhoddodd efe ei unig-anedig Fab, fel na choller pwy bynnag a gredo ynddo ef, ond caffael ohono fywyd tragwyddol. |
| Y Beibl Cymraeg Newydd, 1988 | Do, carodd Duw y byd gymaint nes iddo roi ei unig Fab, er mwyn i bob un sy'n credu ynddo ef beidio â mynd i ddistryw ond cael bywyd tragwyddol. |
External Links
- Beibl Cymraeg Newydd (2004) (http://www.beiblcymraeg.org/)
- Welsh language Bible of 1588 (http://digidol.llgc.org.uk/METS/BWM00001/beibl?locale=en) View digital images of the entire Bible online (digital images of the actual book printed in 1588).
- BBC news story on the Revised New Welsh Bible (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/mid/3519801.stm)de:Bibelübersetzung
fr:Traductions de la Bible en français he:תרגומי התנ"ך nl:Bijbelvertaling