What do we know about the method used to translate the book of mormon. Were the plates sometimes not in the room while joseph was translating them. Unable to provide them with church materials in their language, the church has felt inspired to flood middle earth with the book of mormon. Audio recordings are also available in many languages, as indicated in the list below. The book of mormon has been translated in its entirety into 97 languages. As of 2015, the book of mormon has been translated into 110 different languages. Are translations of the book of mormon into other languages made. We invite all men everywhere to read the book of mormon, to ponder in their hearts the message it contains, and then to ask god, the eternal father, in the name of christ if the book is true. Receiving translations of the book of mormon, the churchs signature scripture, for the first time will be speakers of burmese, georgian, navajo. Joseph smith and his scribes wrote of two instruments used in translating the book of mormon.
The book of mormon is available in print in various sizes, bindings, and colors. Here are a few languages the book of mormon is translated into that you may not have known about. This claim, as well as all claims to historical authenticity of the book of mormon, are rejected by nonlatter day saint historians and scientists. Joseph smiths translation of the book of mormon into english was arguably one of the most miraculous occurrences of this dispensation. Why would the book of mormon also purportedly a translation of an ancient record, like the bible not be translated into the modern language of the translator i.
But over the past few decades, translation has accelerated. But thanks to scholars who assembled the joseph smith papers, my own experience typing the book of mormon and the pearl of great price, and recently by reading saints, the story of the church of jesus christ of latterday saints, 18151846, i understand the word translate more clearly and i hope i. The very surprising language of the book of mormon. Sam gamgee, an employee from the church translation department, explained that this new translation sparks from an uptick in investigators from middle earth. How does god help translate the book of mormon into other. 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. Translating the book of mormon into other languages commenced relatively soon after the first publication in 1830. Thus, the book of mormon was translated by the spirit of revelation using the seer stones. These facts are now officially confirmed in the churchs december 20 book of mormon translation essay. One of the greatest single achievements of the south african saints was the translation of the book of mormon into afrikaans.
Lds literature favorites ebook selection translated in many foreign languages from lds leaders and authors. There are at least185 quotations and 2,500 unique vocabulary words from the new testame. Mormon scriptures to be translated into 34 additional languages. Unless otherwise indicated, the translation was financed and the resulting text published by the church of jesus christ of latterday saints lds church. The book of mormon was originally published in english in 1830 after having been translated by the power of god from the original language, which is described in the book of mormon. When joseph smith translated the book of mormon in the spring of 1829, he dictated the text line by line. The book of mormon is published in 107 languages, and many of them are available in multiple formats online history. Although the same factors that led to the re translation of the book of mormon into other modern languages are somewhat applicable to english, i dont know whether or not a translation from english into english will ever be. With recent publication in the kosraean language, the book of mormon has now been translated into 110 languages. The book of mormon text is unaltered and only arranged so that the reader does not need to go back and forth between two copies of the book of mormon in different languages.
The full doctrine and covenants is available in 62 languages. Litster, administrator for established languages, church distribution and translation services since the publication of the first five thousand copies in palmyra, new york, in the spring of 1830, the book of mormon has been published in twentyseven languages. Language availability of latterday saint scriptures. Welchs excellent article entitled the miraculous translation of the book of mormon, from opening the heavens, accounts of divine manifestations 18201844, p. Portions of the book have been translated into another 20 languages. 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.
English spanish is a bilingual book for latterday saints in which the two languages are placed next to each other on the same page. He listed a halfdozen languages he tried, all of which did not accommodate the strange sentence structure found in the book of mormon. Those historical interests are manifest in the recent description of the translation of the book of mormon found on the churchs official website. Although it is now out of print in the deseret alphabet, welsh, hawaiian, turkish, czech, and armenian, it is still available in english, danish. The translation of the book of mormon from english into ukrainian is one such small. The full book is currently being translated in 1 languages, and published online. What translating harry potter reveals about the book of mormon. The translators of the book of mormon deseret news. Includes languages spanish, portuguese, japanese, german, french, hungarian, chinese, korean and russian. Linguistically based assertions are frequently cited and discussed in the context of the subject of. The book of mormon text contains logical impossibilities. Those who pursue this course and ask in faith will gain a testimony of its truth and divinity by the power of.
The study so far is yielding a deeper appreciation of the original manuscript. The pioneering research of royal skousen, a professor of english language and linguistics at brigham young university, for example, extending now over nearly three decades, provides arresting evidence that significant portions of the vocabulary of the book of mormon derive from the 1500s and the 1600s, and not, as one might expect, from the 1800s. Im currently using it to learn portuguese, and ive discovered even people who arent mormon are using the book as a valuable tool. But translations of the book of mormon into other languages have also been miraculous, in their own small way. Today, all or part of the book of mormon has been translated into 112 languages. 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. Even if you arent a mormon, you may find the book of mormon a valuable tool for learning to read in a new language. Afrikaans, the latest edition in the exhibit, was released in 1972. Translation of the book of mormon language study edition russianenglish. The book of mormon s old testament portion bmot quotes heavily from the new testament of the bible. Translating the book of mormon religious studies center.
As of 1990, the entire book of mormon was available in 36 languages. He said, i finally tried egyptian, and to my complete surprise, i found that the book of mormon translated flawlessly. Book of mormon charts charting the book of mormon is a collection of more than 175 visual aids that promote deeper understanding and appreciation of the book of mormon. Book of mormon language the encyclopedia of mormonism. The book of mormon is now published in more than 80 languages, with selections available in another 25 languages. The full book is currently being translated in 1 languages. 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. The translation of the book of mormon into ukrainian is one such small miracle in church history.
Litster, administrator for established languages, church distribution and translation services since the publication of the first five thousand copies in. Joseph smith translated an ancient text by the gift and power of god to produce the book of mormon. Book of mormon translator converted the mormon urban. 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. The book of mormon and linguistic evolution deseret news. The original book of mormon transcript the book of. An examination of the original manuscript reveals that joseph smith, as he translated, apparently.
His early work on the translation, with emma smith and martin harris serving as the main scribes, was lost in 1828. Book of mormonlanguagereformed egyptian fairmormon. The full book of mormon is available in 90 languages, plus american sign language, english braille, spanish braille, and language study editions not included in the full list of languages below. For other major languages such as japanese, the book of mormon has been re translated to compensate for language drift. Book of mormon translations the encyclopedia of mormonism. As of april 2011, the book of mormon has been published in its entirety in 82 languages, with selections of the book available in an additional 25 languages. Translations of the book of mormon into other languages have sometimes been miraculous, in their own small way. The church of jesus christ of latterday saints, which has translated the full book of mormon into 90 languages selections are offered in 21 others since the work was first printed in 1830, also. Mason allred and mark ashurstmcgee discuss the various historical accounts of the book of mormon translation process, including accounts of joseph smith using a.
The full book is currently being translated in 1 languages, and published online incrementally. The nature of the original language of the book of mormon. Book of mormon written in modernday english grace for grace. The purpose of these physical instruments was to facilitate that revelatory process and assist joseph smith as he struggled to receive the inspired thoughts, feelings, meanings, and words as he translated the book of mormon by revelation. From that humble beginning, today the church prints over 3 million copies a year on large web presses. What is the original language of the book of mormon. Why use a form of english that had disappeared except for the king james bible from daily use.
In march 1830, 5,000 copies of the book of mormon were printed in the e. That the language of the book of mormon should resemble that of the kjv seems only natural. The book of mormon an account written by the hand of mormon upon plates taken from the plates of nephi wherefore, it is an abridgment of the record of the people of nephi, and also of the. How many languages has the book of mormon been translated into. Designed for multiple use as study guides, handouts, and masters for creating projectable images, the charts convey a wealth of information that will enrich personal study and. Language availability of latterday saint scriptures scripture tools. These tables show all the versions of the book of mormon that have been translated.
At a meeting in johannesburg on may 14, 1972, when the afrikaans boek van mormon was introduced to the south african saints, it was a happy and, at the same time, an emotionpacked experience for those in attendance. Who translated the book of mormon into spanish answers. The first nonenglish translation of the book of mormon was the danish edition in 1851. The nature of the original language of the book of mormon parts 3 and 4, volume iii, book of mormon critical text project author royal skousen the nature of the original language nol continues the analysis of the book of mormon text that was begun in grammatical variation gv, parts 1 and 2 of volume 3 of the critical text, published in 2016. Selections from the book of mormon are available in 21 other languages. How many languages has the book of mormon been translated. Deseret english and hebrew selections were previously published, but these are out of print. Book of mormon translation englishnavajo dictionary. By its own terms, the book of mormon is a translation of an ancient book. The translation of the book of mormon into afrikaans. The language used by the indigenous people in the andes and altiplano regions of south america. Example sentences with book of mormon, translation memory add example en a testimony of the book of mormon comes by the power of the holy ghostthe gifts of the spirit are dispensed to the faithfulspiritual gifts always accompany faithmoronis words speak from the dustcome unto christ, be perfected in him, and sanctify your souls. Although it is now out of print in the deseret alphabet, welsh, hawaiian, turkish, czech, and armenian, it is still available in english, danish, german, french, italian, spanish, swedish, maori, dutch, samoan, tahitian. 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.
This book details the story of the translation of the book of mormon into the thai language. The miraculous translation of the book of mormon into. For most of my life i have been confused about how joseph smith translated the book of mormon. John gee, two notes on egyptian script, journal of book of mormon studies, vol. Youre right, the golden plates were returned to the angel moroni at the conclusion of the original translation into english.
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