Gwandara New Testament — Kwandara New Testament (Nigeria)
Overview
The Gwandara New Testament is the complete New Testament (27 books) in the Gwandara language of north-central Nigeria, published by The Word for the World International (TWFTW) and available via YouVersion/Bible.com (ID 4458). Known by speakers as Kwandara, Gwandara is a Chadic language closely related to Hausa — in fact, Gwandara is sometimes described as the closest linguistic relative of Hausa within the West Chadic language family. The Gwandara people have historically lived in proximity to Hausa, Gbari, and Koro communities in the north-central Nigerian plateau zone, resulting in heavy Hausa lexical influence. This NT provides scripture in the Gwandara heart language rather than the dominant Hausa or English.
Language and People
Gwandara (ISO 639-3: gwn; autonym: Kwandara) is an Afroasiatic language: Afroasiatic → Chadic → West Chadic → Hausa-Gwandara group. Gwandara is the sister language of Hausa (hau) within the West Chadic branch; despite being mutually unintelligible with Hausa, the two languages share a substantial proportion of cognates. Gwandara has been heavily influenced by Hausa through centuries of contact, and many Gwandara speakers also speak Hausa fluently. The community's autonym Kwandara ("our language") is the standard self-designation.
The Gwandara community inhabits:
- Nasarawa State, north-central Nigeria (historically in Karu and surrounding areas, now partially within the FCT satellite zone)
- Keffi Local Government Area and Karu/Gitata area of Nasarawa State
- Parts of Niger State and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) periphery
Estimated speakers: approximately 30,000–80,000 (various sources; Ethnologue and Joshua Project figures vary).
Cultural Context
The Gwandara are predominantly Muslim, reflecting deep historical integration into the Hausa-dominated Islamic culture of northern Nigeria. Gwandara communities in the Karu area have experienced significant urbanization due to their proximity to Abuja (FCT), which has accelerated language shift toward Hausa, English, and Pidgin. Despite this assimilation pressure, the Gwandara language retains a distinct identity and community, and the TWFTW NT provides a resource for the small Christian minority as well as Muslim community members interested in reading scripture in their specific heritage language.
Publishing and Organizations
Published by The Word for the World International (TWFTW) (thewordfortheworldlde.org), a Germany-headquartered Bible translation organization active across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.