Garo 2004 Edition (GRTBBS)

Overview

The Garo 2004 Edition is a New Testament published by the Bible Society of Bangladesh in the Garo language using Bengali (Bangla) script. [1] Bible translation work in Garo has a long history dating to the early twentieth century, when American Baptist missionaries first rendered Scripture portions into the language. The earliest known Garo Scripture was a translation of Genesis by Rev. M. C. Mason with native assistants, published around 1903, followed by a New Testament in 1909, both issued through the Bible Translation Society (an auxiliary of the Baptist Missionary Society). [2] The 2004 edition represents a continuation of this tradition for Garo communities in Bangladesh, using the Abeng dialect and Bengali script rather than the Roman script used in India. [1]

Translation History

American Baptist missionaries began work among the Garo people in the mid-nineteenth century, establishing a mission at Tura in the Garo Hills. [3] The missionaries developed a Latin-based writing system for the Garo language, which previously had no written form. [4] Rev. Marcus Clark Mason (1844-1934) was instrumental in the first Garo Scripture translations, producing Genesis (c. 1903) and contributing to the New Testament (c. 1909). [2] The Bible Society of India subsequently published a complete Bible in Garo using Roman script (the A'chik language Bible). The 2004 edition published by the Bible Society of Bangladesh adapted the New Testament into Bengali script for the Garo population in Bangladesh. [1]

Language and People

Garo (ISO 639-3: grt) is a Tibeto-Burman language spoken by approximately 1,270,000 people in the Garo Hills of Meghalaya (India), adjacent districts of Assam, and in Bangladesh. [2] The Garo people are one of the major tribal communities of northeast India and Bangladesh. Christianity became the predominant religion among the Garo following Baptist missionary activity beginning in the nineteenth century. [4] [Glottolog: garo1247]

Publishing and Organizations

Published by Bible Society of Bangladesh. Translation type: First.

References