The New Testament in Bhojpuri (BHOAPI)

Overview

Bhojpuri is spoken by approximately 50 million people across Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Nepal's Terai regions, making it one of the most widely spoken languages in South Asia. Despite the size of the community, only around 3% identify as Christian, underlining the significance of scripture translation for reaching Bhojpuri speakers in their heart language. The community maintains a literacy rate of approximately 30%, and agriculture is the primary occupation, though Bhojpuri culture has strong representation in politics, music, and entertainment.

The India Bible Translators (IBT India) translated the New Testament into Bhojpuri, and this 2007 publication — referred to as the BSI (Bible Society of India) version — represents that work. It is available for reading and audio playback on YouVersion and through dedicated platforms such as bhojpurishubhsandesh.com. IBT India continued Old Testament translation work after the NT release, with the Books of Psalms and Proverbs released at LOGOS Camp in 2019, and a full New Testament dedication ceremony held in 2024.

Language and People

Bhojpuri (ISO 639-3: bho) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by approximately 50 million people primarily in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh (India) and Nepal's Terai region. It is written in the Devanagari script.

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Bible Society of India, 2007.

References