Ukrainian New Testament (UKRKNT)

Overview

This is the 1871 Ukrainian New Testament translated by Panteleimon Kulish and the physicist Ivan Puluj, first published in Vienna. [1][2] The Gospels were published individually in Vienna in 1871, and the complete New Testament appeared in Lviv in 1880. [1] This translation was a pioneering work in the Ukrainian language and formed the foundation for the first complete Ukrainian Bible, published by the British and Foreign Bible Society in Vienna in 1903, with the additional participation of the novelist Ivan Nechui-Levytskyi for parts of the Old Testament after Kulish's death in 1897. [1] The 1903 Bible remains available as the Kulish-Puluj edition (UKRK).

Translation History

Kulish and Puluj began their collaboration in Vienna in 1869. [1] The translation was based on the Greek edition of the London Bible Society of 1866, and the translators compared their work against Church Slavonic, Russian, Polish, Serbian, German, Latin, English, and French translations to ensure accuracy. [1] The four Gospels were the first portions published in 1871, followed by the full New Testament in 1880. [2] This translation is historically significant as part of the first effort to produce a complete Bible in the Ukrainian literary language.

Translators and Contributors

Panteleimon Kulish (1819-1897) was a prominent Ukrainian writer, poet, and scholar who was central to the Ukrainian national revival. [3] Ivan Puluj (1845-1918), from Galicia, was a physicist and biblical scholar who knew Greek and had independently translated religious texts before joining Kulish. [1] Their lifelong collaboration on the Bible translation began after they met in Vienna in 1869. [1]

References