Iyaka Bible Portion (YAFIBP)

Overview

The Iyaka Bible Portion is a partial Bible in the Yaka language, dated to 1933, containing substantial Old Testament and New Testament portions (23 books). This is one of the earliest Scripture translations in the Yaka language, produced during the period of active Protestant missionary work in the Kwango region of what was then the Belgian Congo. [1] The American Baptist Foreign Mission Society (ABFMS), which had been present in the Congo since 1895, focused significant efforts in the Kwango province where the Yaka people are concentrated. [2] Bible portions in Yaka appeared between 1933 and 1973, with a complete New Testament not finished until 2022. [3]

Language and People

Yaka (Democratic Republic of Congo) (ISO 639-3: yaf), also known as Iyaka or Kiyaka, is a Bantu language spoken by approximately 900,000 to 2.2 million people across the Democratic Republic of the Congo and northern Angola. [3] [4] The Yaka people are concentrated in the Kwango Province of the DRC, between the Kwango and Wamba rivers, with a significant population also in Angola. [4] The language has two dialects, Yaka proper and Ngoongo, and is written in the Latin alphabet. [4] [Glottolog: yaka1269]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Bible Society of Angola.

References