Open Luganda Contemporary Bible (LUGBIB)

Overview

The Open Luganda Contemporary Bible (Endagaano Enkadde n'Endagaano Empya) is a modern Luganda translation of the full Bible produced by Biblica and its predecessor organizations. The contemporary Luganda New Testament was first translated in 1984 by Rev. Yafesi K. Mwanje and Mr. E.K.K. Sempebwa, published by Living Bibles International. [1] This contemporary version was widely accepted as an easy-to-read translation by Luganda speakers from all walks of life. [1] The first revised Contemporary Luganda Bible, encompassing both Old and New Testaments with a concordance and names index, was published by Biblica Africa in 2014. [1] The 2014 revision team consisted of Mr. E.K.K. Sempebwa, Rev. Can. Yafesi K. Mwanje, Rtd. Bishop Dunstan Bukenya, Mr. Solomon Mpalanyi, Ven. Can. Nelson Kaweesa, Rev. Isaac Mukisa, and Dr. Amos Mwesigwa Kasule. [1]

Translation History

Bible translation into Luganda has deep historical roots. Alexander Mackay pioneered a Romanized orthography for Luganda and finalized the Gospel of Matthew in 1885. [1] George Lawrence Pilkington, an Irish Protestant missionary who arrived in Buganda in 1891, translated Acts through Revelation and Old Testament books, with the complete New Testament available by 1893 and the full Old Testament published in 1896. [1] Henry Wright Duta Kitakule, a native Luganda speaker, assisted the translation effort. [1] The British and Foreign Bible Society published a revised edition in 1899, followed by an edition with revised orthography in 1968. [1] A Joint Ecumenical Luganda Bible was published in 2001 by the Bible Society of Uganda, though it faced resistance due to changes in book nomenclature and the inclusion of the Apocrypha. [1]

References