New Testament in Sama Panguataran (SLMKIV)

Overview

The New Testament in Pangutaran Sama, titled Kitab Injil, was published in 1994 by Wycliffe Bible Translators [1]. Pangutaran Sama (also known as Siyama) is a Sama-Bajaw language spoken by approximately 34,000 people primarily on Pangutaran Island, located about 40 miles northwest of Jolo in the Sulu Archipelago, as well as in parts of southern Palawan and Cagayan de Tawi-Tawi [2][3]. The linguistic groundwork for this translation was laid by SIL linguists Charles and Janice Walton, who had been working with Wycliffe in the Philippines since 1963; Charles Walton studied the Pangutaran variety of Sama for his Master of Arts thesis in Linguistics at Temple University, and together the Waltons compiled the English-Pangutaran Sama Dictionary published by SIL in 1992 [4][5]. Earlier Scripture portions, including Genesis 1-33 in Pangutaran Sama, had been published by the New York International Bible Society in 1980 [3]. The Pangutaran Sama people follow a mixed subsistence economy of root-crop cultivation, copra production, and fishing, and maintain a traditional social structure rooted in pre-Hispanic Philippine society [2].

Language and People

Pangutaran Sama (ISO 639-3: slm) is spoken by approximately 35,200 people in Southern Philippines. [Glottolog: pang1291]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Wycliffe Bible Translators USA.

References