Blackfoot Gospel Portions (BLAMAT)

Overview

The Blackfoot Gospel of Matthew (1890) is a translation of the Gospel according to St. Matthew into the Blackfoot (Siksika) language, an Algonquian language of the northern Plains, published by the British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS) in London. [1] The translator was the Rev. John William Tims (1857-1945), an Anglican missionary from Oxford who was educated at the Church Missionary Society (CMS) college at Islington and ordained in 1884. [2] Tims established a mission on the Blackfoot (Siksika) Reserve near Gleichen in southern Alberta in 1883 and lived among the Blackfoot people until 1895, learning their language. [2] He devised two writing systems for Blackfoot: a syllabic script modeled on Cree syllabics (1888) and an adapted Roman script. [3] Prior to the full Gospel of Matthew, Tims published "Selections from the Gospel of Matthew" through the CMS Mission Press in 1887, and in 1889 he produced a "Grammar and Dictionary of the Blackfoot Language." [3] Tims later served as Archdeacon of Calgary from 1898 to 1912. [2]

Language and People

Blackfoot (ISO 639-3: bla) is spoken by approximately 2,920 people in Southern Central Canada. [Glottolog: siks1238]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by BFBS, London. Translation type: New.

References