Papuan Malay Bible Portions (PMYWBT)

Overview

Papuan Malay (Melayu Papua) is a Malay-based creole language that emerged as a lingua franca among the diverse linguistic communities of Indonesian Papua, a region home to over 274 indigenous languages [1]. The Papuan Malay Bible Portions were published in 2020 by Wycliffe Bible Translators and represent Scripture translated into the heart language of coastal and urban Papua, where Papuan Malay has become the primary daily language for a growing number of speakers [2]. Translation work began around 2012, with a team of mother-tongue translators, checkers, and consultants collaborating to produce checked and approved Scripture portions, which are printed and distributed incrementally rather than waiting for the complete New Testament [3]. Translation advisers Guinevere and Philip Swan, who have worked with Wycliffe and SIL Australia since 2010, have contributed to the project, with Guinevere specifically involved in the Papuan Malay language work [3]. The language developed historically through contact between indigenous Papuan peoples and Malay traders, with German missionaries Carl Wilhelm Ottow and Johann Gottlob Geissler introducing Malay to the Doreri people on Mansinam Island near Manokwari in 1856-1857, using it for evangelism [1].

Language and People

Papuan Malay (ISO 639-3: pmy) is spoken by approximately 500,000 people. [Glottolog: papu1250]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Wycliffe Bible Translators USA.

References