Revised West Version (TONBAX)

Overview

The Revised West Version is a revision of the Tongan Bible associated with the editorial work of Rev. Thomas West, a Wesleyan Methodist missionary. Agents of the Wesleyan Missionary Society settled in Tonga in 1826 and gradually translated fragmentary Scripture portions into Tongan [1]. A complete New Testament was finished in 1847, and an edition of 4,000 copies was printed at the mission press in Vavau; the British and Foreign Bible Society subsequently printed 10,000 copies in 1852 [1]. In 1860 a further edition of 10,000 copies was produced under the editorial care of Rev. Thomas West, who also oversaw the commencement of Old Testament translation that same year; the complete Bible was finished in 1862-1863 by West and other Wesleyan missionaries [1][2]. By March 1889, some 35,276 copies of the Tongan Scriptures had been circulated in whole or in part [1]. The present "Revised West Version" updates that 19th-century text and is in the public domain.

References

[1] McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia, "Tongan Version," https://www.biblicalcyclopedia.com/T/tongan-version.html [2] Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga, "Brief History," https://www.fwc.to/index.php/who-we-are/brief-history

Language and People

Tonga (Tonga Islands) (ISO 639-3: ton) is spoken by approximately 189,740 people in Tonga. [Glottolog: tong1325]

References