Meriam Mir Bible (ULKWBT)

Overview

Portions of the Holy Bible in the Meriam Mir language, translated by Wycliffe Bible Translators between 1986 and 1989. [1] An earlier edition of the Gospels had been issued in 1902 by the British and Foreign Bible Society. Meriam Mir is the language of the Meriam people of the eastern Torres Strait Islands, spoken on Mer (Murray Island), Erub (Darnley Island), and Ugar (Stephens Island) in Queensland, Australia. [2] It is the only Papuan language on Australian territory, belonging to the Eastern Trans-Fly language family with connections to languages in the Fly River area of Papua New Guinea. [2][3] This translation is described as a draft and includes portions of several biblical books. [1] The language is classified as critically endangered, with transmission declining rapidly among younger generations and speakers shifting toward Torres Strait Creole and English. [3] As of the 2016 Australian Census, approximately 217 speakers were recorded. [2] The draft nature of this translation reflects the challenges of producing Scripture in a small, endangered language community where ongoing translation work has not continued. [4]

Language and People

Meriam Mir (ISO 639-3: ulk) is spoken by approximately 220 people in Northern Australia. [Glottolog: meri1244]

References