CBC Arts Online reports that the complete Bible has been translated into an Australian aboriginal language for the first time.
Kriol is the most widely used indigenous language in Australia, but it still took aboriginal Christians and several religious groups 27 years to complete a full Bible translation. The creators celebrated a launch in the northern territory, where an estimated 30,000 Kriol speakers live, on May 5.
The layers of differences in meaning caused a lot of problems, project co-ordinators and linguists told the CBC, despite the language’s similarity to English. Kriol developed when European settlers mingled with Australian aboriginal people in the 19th century, creating what was originally viewed as a fractured form of English.
The Anglican Church will distribute the “Holi Baibul” across northern Australia.
