PRETORIA, South Africa — A unique translation project to make the Bible more accessible to deaf Afrikaans speakers recently yielded its second publication – the Books of Daniel to Malachi were launched in early September to wide acclaim by the deaf community.
Published by the Bible Society of South Africa (BSSA), the printed Scripture Portion was translated directly from Hebrew and Greek source texts and follows the publication in 1998 of the Books of Genesis and Mark.
Translation work on the Afrikaans Bible for the Deaf (ABD) was begun in 1997 at the request of the churches and, when completed in about 2005, will be the second of its kind in the world – The Holy Bible: English Version for the Deaf was published some years ago in the USA.
For people who are born deaf, it is often difficult to acquire a large vocabulary because of the way they have to learn language. The translators of the ABD have used simple language, and have included footnotes to explain words describing abstract concepts, which deaf readers may not fully understand.
According to Gerrit Kritzinger, BSSA General Secretary, the ABD project has broken new ground in translation work for the Bible Society, and will open God’s Word more fully for deaf believers. The project is being funded through the BSSA’s Bibliathon 2000 program – a year-long fundraising initiative which aims to raise R15 million (more than US$ 2 million) to provide Scriptures for people with special needs. (WR 355/14 - 11.00)