Blackfoot Gospel Portions (BLAMAT)

Overview

The Blackfoot Gospel of Matthew (1890) is a translation of the Gospel according to St. Matthew into the Blackfoot (Siksika) language, published by the British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS) in London. [1] The translator was the Rev. John William Tims (1857-1945), an Anglican missionary from Oxford who was educated at the Church Missionary Society (CMS) college at Islington and ordained in 1884. [2] Tims established a mission on the Blackfoot (Siksika) Reserve near Gleichen in southern Alberta in 1883 and lived among the Blackfoot people until 1895, learning their language. [2] He devised two writing systems for Blackfoot: a syllabic script modeled on Cree syllabics (1888) and an adapted Roman script. [3] Prior to the full Gospel of Matthew, Tims published "Selections from the Gospel of Matthew" through the CMS Mission Press in 1887, and in 1889 he produced a "Grammar and Dictionary of the Blackfoot Language." [3] Tims later served as Archdeacon of Calgary from 1898 to 1912. [2]

Language and People

Blackfoot (ISO 639-3: bla) is spoken by approximately 2,920 people in Southern Central Canada. [Glottolog: siks1238]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by BFBS, London. Translation type: New.

References