Mwani New Testament (WMWWYI)

Overview

The Mwani New Testament, titled "Habari Ngema," was dedicated in 2013 and provides Scripture in the heart language of the Mwani people of northern Mozambique. [1] The Mwani (also known as Kimwani, meaning "language of the beach") are a Bantu ethnic group of approximately 120,000 to 200,000 people living along the coastline and islands of Cabo Delgado Province, including the Quirimbas Islands. [2] [3] The language shares approximately 60% lexical similarity with Swahili but is not mutually intelligible with it, and it is unusual among sub-Saharan African languages in having largely lost the feature of lexical tone. [3] The translation was produced in collaboration between Wycliffe Bible Translators and the Digital Bible Society. [1] The Kiwibo dialect from the Island of Ibo is considered the prestige dialect of Mwani. [3]

Language and People

Mwani (ISO 639-3: wmw) is spoken by approximately 146,000 people in Mozambique. [Glottolog: mwan1247]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by WBT, [Orlando, FL].

References