Barta New Testament (WTIMYC)
Overview
The Barta New Testament was produced by the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY), the largest Lutheran church in Africa and a longstanding force in Bible translation and literacy across Ethiopia's diverse language communities. Bible portions in Berta were completed in 2006, and the audio New Testament is accessible through Faith Comes By Hearing. Global Recordings Network also provides audio resources in the language. The EECMY has worked in partnership with Lutheran Bible Translators (LBT) and SIL Ethiopia to expand Scripture access across southwestern and western Ethiopia; their translation training programs at Mekane Yesus Seminary have equipped local translators for work in many of Ethiopia's 85-plus languages. No complete Bible has been reported for Berta.
Language and People
Berta (ISO 639-3: wti), also known as Barta, Bertha, or Burta, is a Nilo-Saharan language with approximately 645,000 speakers: around 362,000 in the Benishangul-Gumuz Region of Ethiopia (principally along the Sudanese border) and approximately 281,000 in Blue Nile State, Sudan. The language has seven dialects: Shuru, Bake, Undu, Mayu, Fadashi, Dabuso, and Beleje Gonfoye. The Berta people inhabit the hills and valleys along the Ethiopia-Sudan border and maintain a distinct cultural and linguistic identity within the linguistically diverse Benishangul-Gumuz Region.
Publishing and Organizations
Published by the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY), headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The EECMY's Language Development, Bible Translation, and Literacy program has been instrumental in producing Scripture across dozens of Ethiopian minority languages.
References
- NT (Audio) - Audio Bible, Faith Comes By Hearing