Sumbawa OT & NT Portions — Sumbawa (Basa Semawa) Scripture Portions (Indonesia)
Overview
Sumbawa OT & NT Portions (Samawa OT & NT portions in the vernacular) is an 11-book scripture selection spanning both Old and New Testaments in the Sumbawa language of West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, published by The Seed Company and available via YouVersion/Bible.com (ID 4233). The autonym Basa Semawa means "the Sumbawa language" in Sumbawa (basa = "language," Semawa = the local pronunciation of "Sumbawa"). Sumbawa (ISO 639-3: smw) is an Austronesian language of the western portion of Sumbawa Island, one of the Lesser Sunda Islands situated between Lombok and Flores. The multi-testament scope of the portions (11 books across OT and NT) reflects The Seed Company's broad translation strategy for this regionally significant language.
Language and People
Sumbawa (ISO 639-3: smw; autonym: Basa Semawa) is an Austronesian language: Austronesian → Malayo-Polynesian → Central Malayo-Polynesian (Sumbawa–Bima subgroup). The island of Sumbawa hosts two distinct language families: Sumbawa in the west (the Sumbawa Besar district area) and Bimanese (ISO bhp) in the east. While Bimanese is more closely related to the languages of Flores, Sumbawa is related to Sasak of Lombok and other western Lesser Sunda languages. Sumbawa speakers are predominantly Muslim, and the language has extensive Arabic and Malay loanwords reflecting centuries of Islamic culture and trade.
The Sumbawa community inhabits:
- Western Sumbawa Island, West Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia — centered on Sumbawa Besar (the island's western main town)
- The coastal and inland communities of the Sumbawa Regency (Kabupaten Sumbawa)
Estimated speakers: approximately 300,000–400,000, making Sumbawa one of the larger regional languages of Nusa Tenggara.
Cultural Context
Sumbawa Island's history includes the devastating 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora — the largest volcanic eruption in recorded human history, which killed approximately 71,000 people (with related famine killing many more) and whose ash cloud caused the global "Year Without a Summer" (1816). The Tambora eruption effectively depopulated large parts of Sumbawa and eliminated at least two local languages (Tambora language, ISO xxt, was permanently wiped out). Modern Sumbawa's population subsequently rebuilt from surrounding communities. The island is known for its horses and cattle-herding culture, and for the Hu'u region's surf and fishing communities. The Seed Company's OT+NT portions represent a significant initial investment in Sumbawa-language scripture access.
Publishing and Organizations
Published by The Seed Company (seedcompany.com, Fort Worth, Texas), a Wycliffe Global Alliance member organization founded 1993.