1st Edition

The Bible at Cultural Crossroads From Translation to Communication

By Harriet Hill Copyright 2006
294 Pages
by Routledge

294 Pages
by Routledge

294 Pages
by Routledge

Bible translators have focused their efforts on preparing a text that is clear, natural and accurate, with the expectation that audiences will understand the message if it is in their language. Field research among the Adioukrou of Côte d'Ivoire shows that audiences also need to have access to the contextual information the author expected his audience to bring to the text. When such information... Read more

Introduction

 

Chapter 1: Relevant Communication

 

Chapter 2: Context and Comprehension

 

Chapter 3: Context Building

 

Chapter 4: The Design and Effects of Relevant Products

 

Chapter 5: Ways of Supplying Context: Out-of-Text and In-Text Solutions

 

Chapter 6: Cultural Research

 

Chapter 7: First-Century Jewish Perceptions of the Unseen World

 

Chapter 8: The Effect of the Key Term Choices on Adioukrou Theology

 

Chapter 9: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in John 13:1-30

 

Chapter 10: The Communication Context: Working with the Church Community

 

Chapter 11: Conclusions and Implications

 


Appendix A: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in Matthew 4:1-10

 

Appendix B: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in Mark 5:1-20


Appendix C: Identifying and Adjusting Contextual Mismatches in Luke 11:14-26

 

Appendix D: Catherine Vos' Bible Story: In the Upper Room


Appendix E: Example Work Chart: John 13:1-30

Biography

Harriet Hill

'This book on one level is a detailed discussion of the practices, challenges, and pitfalls of Bible translation. On another level the book is a critique of the process of the transmission of Scripture where the focus is on cultures and societies as recipients rather than on the cultures and societies of transmission. In fact, the book is the convergence between transmission and reception, between ideas and their embodiment in practice. Often one gains an insight into the mind of the author herself, but even there the author is immersed in a world of other people's making. From this complex interaction we obtain a challenging understanding of what the "word of God" means as an intercultural process.'

Lamin Sanneh, Yale University

 

'... an impressive piece of work, which interprets relevance theory for practical bible translation and presents a solid piece of field research that gives readers a good insight into the work of bible translators and cultural anthropologists.'

Juliane House, Hamburg University

 

'An innovative empirical study on the influence of socio-cultural factors on the communicative impact of translated texts in a challenging cross-cultural setting. A significant contribution to translation studies.'

Ernst-August Gutt, author of Translation and Relevance