Guarayu New Testament (GYRSBB)

Overview

The Guarayu New Testament (Tupa Ne'engagwer) is a Scripture translation in the Guarayu language, a Tupi-Guarani language of eastern Bolivia, published by the Bible Society of Bolivia. [1] The Guarayu people have a long history of contact with Christian missions: in 1840, Franciscan missionaries assumed responsibility for settling the Guarayu and founded five mission villages -- Yotau, Ascencion, Urubicha, Yaguaru, and San Pablo -- where most Guarayu still live today. [2] The missions were secularized in 1939, though Franciscan priests and nuns of the Apostolic Vicariate of Nuflo de Chavez continue to work in the villages. [2] The Guarayu developed a distinctive sacred music tradition during the mission period, including the "Misa Guarayu," the only complete Mass in a native South American language surviving from early mission times to the present. [3] Modern Bible translation into Guarayu has involved organizations including the Bible Society of Bolivia and Wycliffe Bible Translators. [1]

Language and People

Guarayu (ISO 639-3: gyr) is a Tupi-Guarani language spoken by approximately 5,930 people in the Guarayos Province of the Santa Cruz Department in eastern Bolivia. [2] The Guarayu are descendants of Guarani-speaking groups brought to the region during the Spanish colonial period; the explorer Nuflo de Chavez led an expedition of Spaniards and Guarani Indians across the Chaco in the sixteenth century, founding Santa Cruz de la Sierra. [3] [Glottolog: guar1292]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Bible Society of Bolivia. Additional editions distributed by Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. [1]

References