O UR B IBLE HISTORY...

ISSUE 1

VOLUME 1

May 2013

W HAT

IS

J AMAICAN.. 3

W A? P ATWA S ERVICE?.. 3

B IG NAMES B ACK JNT4

T HE N EW SLETT ER OF TH E B IB LE S OCIE T Y OF THE W EST IN D IES : MEETING THE NEEDS OF OUR CHURCHES.

Bible focus
timely provision of resources to meet all our ly Spirits enabling we launched the Jamaican New Testament on December 9, 2012 in Kingston, Jamaica. That it was completed for that date was also signifiSir Patrick Allen, Governor General reading his copy of the JNT presented by BSWI Board Members L-R: Mr. Barrington Whyte, Rev. Courtney Stewart, Bishop Stanly Clarke

For the first time, Jamaicans everywhere have the opportunity to read and hear Gods word in their own mother tongue - Rev. Courtney Stewart, General Secretary, BSWI

Amazing Grace!
This year marks the 20 anniversary
th

since the Bible Soci- needs. So with the Hoety of the West Indies took its initial
By: Rev. Courtney Stewart

steps towards translating the

Scriptures into Jamaican. The beauty of hindsight is that it gives one the opportunity to appreciate and trace our footprints in relation to specific events and engagements. While our translation journey has been one of steps (and, some missteps), it has provided us with opportunities to learn what it means to wait upon the Lord and to revel and rejoice in His

cant as it was always our goal to have the JNT ready in 2012, to coincide with Jamaicas 50 anniversary of independth

Now, for the first time, Jamaicans everywhere have the opportunity to read and hear Gods word in their own mother tongue. What a gift from God! A dis mi a se!

ence. As the date approached it did not seem as if we were going to make it; but, by and because of Gods amazing grace, we did it. Praise the Lord!

The translation is an expression of our unique culture and dialect. And when you actually take the time to read the word of God in your own dialect it makes it even more personal. I relish the thought of God sending his wan dege-dege Bwai Pikni in the world to die for me even more now - S. Ecnerwal, Jamaican living overseas
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It all began in...

Bible translation has been taking place in the Caribbean from as early as the 1700s. It was not until the 1960s however that people in Jamaica began to consider translating the Bible into the Jamaican language. Dr. Faith Linton and her twin sister, Joyce Gladwell, were the first people to give very serious consideration to the idea of a Bible in the Jamaican language. While Dr. Linton was studying in the UK in the 1950s, she became aware of how valuable and important it was for people to use their languages in their schools. During that time, Joyce visited an event that was being hosted by Wycliffe Bible Translators in the UK. At the event, she learnt that the Bible was
Dr. Faith Linton (left) being honoured at the JNT Kingston launch by Miss Leticia Beltran (centre) & Mrs Pam Polit (Right)

being translated into many unofficial languages such as Jamaican Creole. She also learnt of the good things that hap-

experience Gods word in the language they know best. The turning point came in 1985. In that year, a young, female, Christian social worker told the then BSWI General Secretary, Rev. William Edwards, that she was able to effectively communicate with the people in the communities in which she worked on matters of hygiene, family life, relationship, etc., when she used their language Jamaican. In 1993, Mr. Richard Roper, the then chairman of the BSWI, gave the goahead to begin a Jamaican Bible translation programme. The programme was officially launched on the weekend of January 15-16, 1993, at the Immaculate Conception Convent in Kingston.

pen when people have the Bible in their own language. She gladly shared this information with her sister, Faith. After her studies, Dr. Linton returned to Jamaica and worked hard at telling people that Jamaicans have the right

How Did We Do It?

BIBLE Societies are enthusiastic about do not enter into it lightly whether guages that have only a handful of poor, illiterate speakers in the back of beyond. WE do not expect to create perfect translations, but we do everything in our powers to ensure our translations

lators and a translation coordinator. guistics and or theology. Each transla-

logical Seminary and at the United where they were checked to ensure faithfulness to the original Greek New Testament. Third, the JLU and the Exegetes sent their feedback to the translators who made the necessary corrections to the text. Fourth, the cor-

Bible translation. At the same time, we Each has done advanced studies in lin- Theological College of the West Indies we are translating into the worlds ma- tor was assigned specific books to jor languages such as English or in lan- translate. Having translated their

books, they met to discuss each others work and to make corrections. Second, the revised translations were

rected texts were sent to our translation consultant, a United Bible Society translation expert who oversees translations. He submitted his feedback to the translators, who then made additional changes to the text based on the feedback. Fifth, the newly revised text was sent to the publishers who gave us a beautifully bound JNT! Page 2

are as perfect as possible. The diagram sent to the Jamaican Language Unit at you are looking at shows how we went the University of the West Indies, Moabout translating the Jamiekan Nyuu Testiment. First, we had a translation na, to be checked and tested for issues relating to language use, spelling , etc.

team that was made up of three trans- The translations were also sent to our expert exegetes at the Jamaica Theo-

PATWA A NO BAD ENGLISH!

words in the creoles are borrowed from them. In our case, people from Africa were brought to Jamaica to work on sugar plantations that were owned and operated by English speakers from Britain. Patwa, then, is commonly referred to by Linguists as an Englishlexified Creole. Lexicon means word. think? Certainly not! For one, English isnt a bad version or a failed attempt of the languages from which it has borrowed its words. So, dont let the similarity of words in the two languages lead you to believe Patwa is bad English or a failed attempt at English. If you look deeper, you will notice that Patwa and English are really two different language systems in all the things linguists usually look at when they study languages. Let us look briefly at two of these areas. The first relates to how sounds are organised in Patwa. The second relates to how sentences are structured.

P ATWA S OUNDS
Patwa has its own sound system! Heres an example. The o type sound at the beginning of the English word orange doesnt exist in Patwa. So, when that sound tries to come into Patwa, Patwa changes it to an a. So we end up with arange!

The following is adapted from a talk by Dr. Michele Kennedy, Linguist

AS A LINGUIST, I bring to you a linguistic fact. What most Jamaicans call Patwa is a language in its own right! This may not yet be widely accepted by non-linguistics, but it is (That languages borrow words from other languages a linguistic fact. isnt a strange thing. After Patwa belongs to a group of all, English does it a lot!) languages that linguists refer to as creoles. Creoles came Now, what else can we say about due to contact with the about this English-lexified languages of Europe. We usu- creole people call Patwa? Is ally identify Creoles in terms it a failed attempt to speak of these European language English as some people because a great deal of the would want to have us

P ATWA S ENTENCES
In English, it is incorrect to have two negatives in a sentence. So, I dont want nothing isnt acceptable. In Patwa, on the other hand, this is perfectly acceptable. No Patwa speaker would say Mi no wahn notn is bad Patwa. Spanish does the same thing like Patwa: no quiero nada (not want nothing). Two very different systems!

Church Youth
church tongue continues to be used

I Just listened to Ephesians 6 in the JNT, and I was almost brought to tears. The assurance I got from hearing it in my own language. Thanks JNT! - Derri-Ann Palmer, a Baptist Youth Leader

It!

English passages. The BSWI has been encouraged by the growing number of churches and people who have incorporated the JNT into their worship. Recently, three of the Jamaicas major denominations had readings from the JNT at their national conventions Jamaica Baptist Union, the Methodist Church and the United Church in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. These conventions exposed thousands of Jamaicans to the word of God in Jamaican. Having heard the Scriptures, Pastor Daley, a young Baptist minister exclaimed, It warmed my heart!

for the entire service, with a peppering of English here and there!
Tina White

Well, that was Patwa Sunday at Jubilee Deliverance Church of God in

CAPTION THIS: You go to

Church one Sunday morning and Kingston several Sundays ago! The youth fellowship of the church worship begins with the song leader saying something like, decided to have church with a difference. It was appreciated by eve-

Mawnin everybadi! Mek wi tan

op pahn wi fut ahn worship Gad! ryone, Tina White, the main organisThe church is then led to sing- er said, People enjoyed it. Everyone ing Wi com ya fi praise him! Wi com ya fi praise di Laad... a translation of the Grace Thrillers We come here fi praise him . This unknown felt good to be themselves...no one took it as a joke. No one frowned or thought it was mockery. Persons said they understood the JNT. We didnt even need to read the equivalent

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Bakitiv fi di JNT
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1. Thanks to the BSWI for providing the JNT in our heart language. - Rev. Dr. M. Lewis, President, UTCWI 2. The BSWI...is to be warmly congratulated on the publication of the JNT - Dr. Gosnell Yorke, Adjunct Professor of Religion, NCU 3. Di Bible translated into the Jamaican language is good for the Bible; but it is better for the Language - Prof. Hubert Devonish, UWI 4. ...for those of us who love the Bible, for those of us who read the Bible, for those of us who share the Bible and those of us who love the Jamaican language, this is excellent - Her Excellency, The Honorouble Aloun Ndombet-Assamba, Jamaican High Commissioner to London 5. The Scriptures in my heart language has provided me with amazing inspiration to write new songs. - Miss Jo-Ann Richards, Ethnomusicologist, CREW 40:4 6. At last! A translation of the New Testament in our own language. The Venerable English in modern dress cannot cross it - Dr. Delano Palmer, Former Academic Dean, JTS

B UT

UMMMMM ...

Q: There is no standard way of writing Jamaica, so how do you expect people to read and write it? A: The BSWI recognises this challenge. It is for this reason that the translation is also in an audio format for those who wish to listen to it. For those who wish to read the JNT, a simple guide to the spelling system we use is provided on page xijust before Matyu. For further assistance, persons can feel free to contact us. Our information is provided below. Q: Where Can I get a copy of the JNT? A: Heres a list of some JNT suppliers: Location BSWI Bookstore Format (s) Book, CD Location Amazon Format (s) Book, Kindle Location www.biblesociety.org.uk www,biblesociety.ca

Kingston Bookshop Book, CD

Sangsters Bookstore Book, CD

You can also access it for free on Apple and Android devices (mobile phones or tablets) via an app called bible.is and YouVersion. (YouVersion is also compatible with Blackberry devices.) For those who dont have these devices, its available on bibles.org (text only), youversion.com, (text only) and bible.is (text and audio). Q: What about the Old Testament? Will BSWI begin an Old Testament Project some day? A: Sure! Send us your contact information. Well love to keep you posted.

CONTACT US
24 Hagley Park Plaza, P.O. Box 146, Kingston 10, Jamaica / t. (876) 926-2772 / e-mail. biblehouse@biblesocietywi.org www.biblesocietywi.org
@patwabible

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