Oksapmin New Testament (OPMTBL)

Overview

The Oksapmin New Testament, titled "Got orhe meng brak ban," was published in 1992 by Wycliffe Bible Translators. Oksapmin is a Trans-New Guinea language spoken by approximately 8,000 people in the Tekin Valley of Oksapmin Rural LLG, Telefomin District, Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea, with additional speakers in Tabubil and other urban centers [1][2]. The classification of Oksapmin has been debated among linguists: Stephen Wurm (1975) and Malcolm Ross (2005) placed it as an independent branch of Trans-New Guinea, while Loughnane (2009) concluded it is related to the neighboring Ok languages, though those languages share innovations not found in Oksapmin [1]. The Oksapmin are well known for their distinctive 27-body-part counting system, in which speakers enumerate body parts from the thumb on one hand up to the nose and down to the little finger on the other hand [3]. Bible portions in Oksapmin were first produced in 1977, and the community transitioned to widespread Christian conversion beginning in the late 1980s to mid-1990s [2].

Language and People

Oksapmin (ISO 639-3: opm) is spoken by approximately 8,000 people in Papua New Guinea, Map 5. [Glottolog: oksa1245]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. Translation type: New.

References