The only thing i know about the mormon religion is that you have authentic, ancient scripture in the book of mormon, that your church was begun by a living and true prophet of god, and that all of the world should embrace the book of mormon as scripture. As of 2015, the book of mormon has been translated into 110 different languages spoken by over 76 percent of the worlds population, truly. This video was reuploaded to fix the title and mistakes in the credits. Translation of the book of mormon religionwiki fandom. Selections from the book of mormon in simplified characters were released in 1983 and the full book in 2001 and was the 62nd language. Includes audio recordings in english, japanese, korean, portuguese, and spanish. Easily some of the most beloved and popular books in recent memory, the harry potter series by j. Today, all or part of the book of mormon has been translated into 109 languages. Book of mormon written in modernday english grace for grace.
How many languages has the book of mormon been translated into and how many copies have been distributed in the years since it was first. Truly, this important witness of jesus christ is beginning to cover the earth. Today, all or part of the book of mormon has been translated into 112 languages. Seer stones and the translation of the book of mormon. Many additional german editions of the book of mormon were printed over the next century. What this means is that the original translation of the book of mormon was unlike typical translations today which rely on the translators knowledge of languages. But what does any of this have to do with the book of mormon. Classifications and estimates vary, but there are approximately 3,500 languages spoken in todays world. Chinese translation of the book of mormon deseret news.
It is the meaning that is most important in the book of mormon, not the words. Afrikaans, the latest edition in the exhibit, was released in 1972. Much can be known about the coming forth of the english text of the book of mormon through a careful study of statements made by joseph smith, his scribes, and others closely associated with the translation of. The first german edition and the second printing of the french translation were published side by side, because those were the two main languages spoken in hamburg.
The language used by the indigenous people in the andes and altiplano regions of south america. A second translation, published in 1957, was made by tatsui sato, whose family was the first to be baptized in the country following the 1924 closure of the japanese mission. The book of mormon has been translated in its entirety into 97 languages. Lds materials include scriptures, books, magazines, pamphlets, family. Languages with lds materials international resources for latter. Mormon scriptures to be translated into 34 additional languages. What translating harry potter reveals about the book of mormon. Book of mormon translation by joseph smith book of. Joseph smith was not fluent in reformed egyptian, the original language of the book of mormon. To every nation, kindred, tongue, and people religious studies. Brigham believed that the translation of the book of mormon was a miracle, but not that it was an infallible translation that could never be changed. The 22 languages in which the book of mormon is now in print make it available to some 40 percent of the worlds population.
The translators of the book of mormon deseret news. That the language of the book of mormon should resemble that of the kjv seems only natural, since in the time of the prophet joseph smith, the kjv was the most widely read book in america and formed the standard of religious language for most englishspeaking people see cwhn 8. The record was translated from reformed egyptian into english through the gift and power of god. Were the plates sometimes not in the room while joseph was translating them. How many languages has the book of mormon been translated into. Approximately 114 of those languages are each spoken by more than 1 million people. You will feel your faith in jesus christ increase and his love for you as you read and discover his teachings throughout the text. Separate copies of each language translation were also printed.
According to most adherents of the latter day saint movement, the book of mormon is a 19thcentury translation of a record of ancient inhabitants of the american continent, which was written in a script which the book refers to as reformed egyptian. Receiving translations of the book of mormon, the churchs signature scripture, for the first time will be speakers of burmese, georgian, navajo. Includes search capability and simple navigation, including swiping gestures to navigate between chapters. That the language of the book of mormon should resemble that of the kjv seems only natural. It may be surprising, therefore, to learn that the small plates of nephi 1 nephi through words of mormon almost certainly came last in the translation process, after the completion of the large plates of nephi mosiah through moroni and the title. The display will also feature the stories behind book of. Receiving translations of the book of mormon, the churchs signature scripture, for the first time will be speakers of burmese, georgian, navajo, the micronesian language of pohnpeian, and african tribal dialects including efik, sesotho and tshiluba. Its a sacred book of scripture translated into over a hundred languages all over the world. Book of mormon translations book of mormon central. Translating the book of mormon religious studies center. At least portions of the book of mormon have been translated into 111 languages, from danish 1851, welsh 1852 and hawaiian 1855,3 to pohnpeian, sesotho, and tshiluba, announced in 2017.
How does the unusual translation sequence of the book of. Mason allred and mark ashurstmcgee discuss the various historical accounts of the book of mormon translation process, including accounts of joseph smith using a. Translation into additional languages continues to move forward as missionaries take the gospel to still more areas of the world. Here are a few languages the book of mormon is translated into that you may not have known about. There are three language study editions of the book of mormon. This claim, as well as all claims to historical authenticity of the book of mormon, are rejected by nonlatter day saint historians and scientists.
Matthews and benjmins translation method is particularly interesting for book of mormon translation theories, since some of the biggest issues in discussions of book of mormon translation are. Translation of the book of mormon into foreign languages. Two people look at the many translations of the bible and book of mormon in the north visitors center on temple square during the sunday morning session of the 175th semiannual general conference of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints in salt lake city sunday, october 2, 2005. Englishspeaking readers of the series, however, may take for granted the intense and sometimes frustrating task of translating the series into other languages. In 2005, the entire book of mormon was translated into 74 languages. Unless otherwise indicated, the translation was financed and the resulting text published by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church. Book of mormon language the encyclopedia of mormonism. Translating church materials into additional languages. One of the ways this has been brought to pass is through the translation of the book of mormon into numerous foreign languages. The miraculous translation of the book of mormon into. Albanian online, gospel library mobile app, pdf, mobile feature phone. While the translation of the book of mormon may come directly from god, this does not preclude the role that joseph would play in adapting the language of the book of mormon to a cultural and linguistic framework that would both establish that the text was authentic and inspired while also communicating the book s message clearly. How many languages has the book of mormon been translated.
Catalan, russian, icelandic, niuean, quechuabolivia, cuna, romanian, polish, and hebrew. Since joseph smith published the first english edition of the book of mormon in 1830. Selections from the book of mormon are available in 21 other languages. The book of mormon is a sacred volume of scripture, a second testament and witness of jesus christ, the redeemer of the world. About 3 million people speak aymara in peru, bolivia, argentina, and chile. What do we know about the method used to translate the book of mormon. Peterson wrote an excellent article in which he cites witnesses to the book of mormon translation process, giving modern readers insight into what eyewitnesses saw regarding how joseph smith translated the book of mormon. We want it to be an opportunity to share with others and let people know all the languages the book of mormon is in, luke said. Features translations for most major world languages. Dynamically equivalent translation and the book of mormon. To guard against these risks, the first presidency and council of the twelve give close personal supervision to the translation of scriptures from english into other languages and have not authorized efforts to express the doctrinal content of the book of mormon in familiar or modern english.
Many readers of the book of mormon naturally assume that joseph smith translated its books in the order that we find them today, that is, beginning with title page, and. That is the reason so many saints have come to love the book in their native languages. Even if you arent a mormon, you may find the book of mormon a valuable tool for learning to read in a new language. How does god help translate the book of mormon into other.
Sam gamgee, an employee from the church translation department, explained that this new translation sparks from an uptick in investigators from middle earth. Rowling has charmed and captivated millions of fans around the world. It wasnt until the third edition of the japanese book of mormon, published in 1995, that a full colloquial style translation was made available. By its own terms, the book of mormon is a translation of an ancient book. After joseph smith translated the book of mormon into the english language in. The book of mormon is published in 107 languages, and many of them are available in multiple formats online.
Language availability of latterday saint scriptures. Since 1830, some 18 million copies have been printed throughout the world by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints. These tables show all the versions of the book of mormon that have been translated. Translating the book of mormon is an enormous task requiring literally years of patient, prayerful effort. For this step in the translation of the book of mormon into english, we would need to choose between accepting a more modern version of english as the target language and accepting a nonnative speaker of an earlier version of english as the editor. The year 1981 saw the publication of this scripture into still more languages. Translations of the book of mormon in alphabetical order afrikaans online, gospel library mobile app, pdf. Translations of the book of mormon into other languages have sometimes been miraculous, in their own small way. Translation of the book of mormon language study edition russianenglish. In march 1830, 5,000 copies of the book of mormon were printed in the e. By 1900, translations of the book of mormon were published in ten languages.
The first nonenglish translation of the book of mormon was the danish edition in 1851. After the prophet joseph smiths original translation of the book of mormon from the gold plates into english in 1829 and the return of those plates to the angel moroni, no translations from english into other languages appeared until the 1850s. Another testament of jesus christ and is a companion to the bible. The exact process by which that power was manifest through joseph smith is only fully known to the lord and the prophet. Much can be known about the coming forth of the english text of the book of mormon through a careful study of statements. Translating the book of mormon is an enormous task requiring literally years of patient. Im currently using it to learn portuguese, and ive discovered even people who arent mormon are using the book as a valuable tool. The book of mormon is another testament of jesus christ. Portions of the book have been translated into another 20 languages. Language availability of latterday saint scriptures scripture tools. The book of mormon contains a prophecy that the lord god shall commence his work among all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, to bring about the restoration of his people upon the earth 2 nephi 30. In 2007, a new updated triple combination with the book of mormon, doctrine and covenants and pearl of great price, along with additional study aids, like footnotes throughout, maps, a topical guide and pictures.
Includes translations for most major world languages. The full book is currently being translated in 1 languages, and published online incrementally. Deseret english and hebrew selections were previously published, but these are out of print. The book of mormon and linguistic evolution deseret news. Unable to provide them with church materials in their language, the church has felt inspired to flood middle earth with the book of mormon. The language of the book of mormon exhibits features typical of a translation from an ancient near eastern text as well as the stamp of nineteenthcentury english and the style of the king james version kjv of the bible. It is claimed that each sentence and word in the 1830 book of mormon had supposedly come directly from god. The book of mormon is now published in more than 80 languages, with selections available in another 25 languages. Most readers of the book of mormon naturally assume that joseph smith translated its books beginning in 1 nephi 1.
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