Nyakyusa Ngonde New Testament (NYYBST)

Overview

The Nyakyusa Ngonde New Testament (Ulwitikano Ulupya) was first published in 1966 by the Bible Society of Tanzania. The translation was a product of the Moravian mission's long presence in the Rungwe district of southern Tanzania, where the first Moravian mission station was established in 1891. [1] The original Nyakyusa writing system was modeled on German orthography, as it was developed by the German missionaries who pioneered literacy work among the Nyakyusa people. [2] A complete Bible (Biblia Umwikemo) was subsequently published in 1996, but this revision retained the German-influenced spelling system, which differs significantly from the Swahili-based orthography familiar to younger generations, limiting its readability. [2] In response, the Nyakyusa community joined the Mbeya-Iringa Cluster Project in November 2004, and church leaders prioritized developing a new alphabet and literacy program, eventually commissioning a fresh Bible translation. [2] A new Nyakyusa New Testament was dedicated in May 2019. [2]

Language and People

Nyakyusa-Ngonde (ISO 639-3: nyy) is spoken by approximately 1,359,000 people in Malawi. [Glottolog: nyak1260]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Bible Society of Tanzania.

References