The Revised New Welsh Bible
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Visit www.bibleresources.org.uk to order online or call IVP on 08707 747676. A little history In 1588, Bishop William Morgan translated the Bible into Welsh for the first time. This was to have a profound effect on centuries of Welsh religious and public life, and was the only complete version of the Bible used in churches, schools and homes well into the 20th century. In 1988, Bible Society published y Beibl Cymraeg Newydd, a new translation that rapidly became the standard version used by the nation. Whilst keeping the reverence and dignity of the Bishop Morgan edition, it enabled readers to appreciate the Bible through the medium of modern Welsh. This desire to make the Scriptures understandable to new generations of Welsh speakers is at the core of the Revised New Welsh Bible. At a time of growing confidence within Welsh life, this new Bible will empower a new generation to engage with God's message for their own lives. More information • The level of Welsh used
in the Revised New Welsh Bible. The level of Welsh used in the Revised New Welsh Bible The level of Welsh used in the Revised New Welsh Bible is more like the New International Version rather than the Good News Bible. Why did you do this? In the preface to the New Welsh Bible of 1988, the translators stated that it was “a version that resembles the substantial body of good literature, prose and poetry, that has been written in Welsh this century.” The preface also claimed that that the Welsh language had changed less than English during the last three or four centuries. The translators recognised the need for a free, colloquial version of the Bible, but did not consider the production of such to be within their remit. In preparing the Revised New Welsh Bible, the translators had to take a decision on the level of Welsh used. The literary consultants repeated once again that changes in standard Welsh literature during the last two decades did not warrant a major change of style in the new edition. Professor Gwilym H Jones, chairman of the translators panel. Inclusive language use You have used inclusive language in the Revised New Welsh Bible. Have you done this because you think the Bible is sexist? There are two issues here. On the one hand it has to be recognised that biblical texts in referring “to men” or in using the masculine pronoun “he” intended them to be understood as generic terms including both sexes and did not use them as gender exclusive terms. On the other hand, it has to be borne in mind that the Bible originated in cultures that are separated from us by centuries and indeed millennia. The translators, therefore, viewed their task as one of tackling a difficult and sensitive issue in a reasonable and balanced manner; on the one hand the generic use of masculine terms in biblical texts had to be acknowledged and accommodated, and on the other hand had to be taken not to drag ancient texts indiscriminately out of their historical and cultural context. Many verses could be revised without much difficulty to allow for the generic use of masculine nouns and pronouns. For example gwr/dyn (man) in Psalm 1 can be read as “y sawl” (the one) or “pwy bynnag” (whoever); the translators chose the first option and therefore revised Gwyn ei fyd y gwr (Happy is the man) to Gwyn ei fyd y sawl. More difficult decisions had to be taken in some cases. The ancient creation tradition in Genesis is one notable example, for that tradition clearly preserves the view that the male species was God's prime act of creation and that woman was created later. This is a clear indication of the view held in a patriarchal society. The crux of the matter, and the issue facing the translators was this: is the ancient tradition to be preserved as a true reflection of the thinking prevalent in the ancient world, or is to be modified in order to eliminate sexist language from biblical texts? The REB reads: ”Let us make human beings in our image” (Gen 1.26) “God created human beings in his image” (Gen 1.28) “The LORD God formed a human being” (Gen 2.7) The translators of the New Revised Welsh Bible gave serious consideration to possible translations, and at some stages during the discussion favoured one or other of these possibilities: “bodau dynol” (human beings), “pobl” (people), “dynolryw” (humankind), “dynoliaeth” (humanity). Not one of them proved totally acceptable to the translators or to our literary advisers. In view of the comment above about the generic use of the Welsh word “dyn” (man) it was finally decided to retain it in Gen 1.26, 28, 2.7. Professor Gwilym H Jones, chairman of the translators panel. How was the Revised New Welsh Bible produced? A team of expert translators, linguists and theologians was at the heart of the production of the new Bible. Their job was to ensure that the translation produced was readable and accurate. In tandem with this team of translators, there was also a group of proofreaders, checking the accuracy of translation and identifying errors. We are grateful to our friends at the Welsh Books Council for the help with the proofing process and also for designing the cover of the forthcoming Bible. However, editorial expertise was only a part of the process. One the most painstaking and crucial elements in Bible production is the typesetting process, and this was also the case with the Revised New Welsh Bible. Unlike many other publications, publishing a Bible is a hugely complex task. Ensuring consistency in pagination, chapter headings, book titles, footnotes, column widths, not to mention the thousands of pages involved, demands very careful typesetting skills. Finally, once the editorial and typesetting work was complete, the computer files were sent to the printers in time for publication in March 2004. What about the Apocrypha? The translation of the Apocrypha was done after the rest of the Bible. Sales of the previous BCN with Apocrypha were
very disappointing. Bible Society will therefore only publish a version of the BCN with Apocrypha if there is seen to be
sufficient demand and this will require a significant church commitment. There have been few requests for the Apocrypha and
so far, no church commitment to use it. Who were the translators of the New Welsh Bible (2004)? Director and Chairman of the Old Testament Panel: Members of the Old Testament
Panel: Eryl Wynn Davies Educated at the Universities of Wales Bangor and Cambridge, where he gained his PhD. He is a Reader in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Bangor University. Among his many publications are a handbook on the General Epistles and commentaries on the Epistle to the Hebrews and Hosea and Micah. Gareth Lloyd Jones Educated at the Universities of Wales Bangor, Cambridge and Yale. He is a PhD of the University of London and holds an Hon.DD from Austin,Texas. He is a Priest of the Church in Wales and Chancellor of Bangor Cathedral. Until his retirement he was Professor and Head of the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Bangor University. Among his publications are a handbook on Wisdon Literature and a commentary on Jeremiah. Gareth H.Watts Educated at the University of Wales Bangor, where he graduated in Theology and took a Master's degree. Minister with the Congregationalists, and until his retirement taught at the College of the Welsh Independents in Aberystwyth. He is the author of a commentary on Amos and Joel. Chairman of the New Testament
Panel: Members of the New Testament Panel: Owen E.Evans Graduate of the Universities of London and Leeds, and is an Hon.DD of the University of Wales. A Minister of the Methodist Church, and until his retirement was Senior Lecturer in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Bangor University. He was formerly Director of the New Welsh Bible and editor of the Concordance. Among his other publications is a handbook on the Pauline Epistles. D.Hugh Matthews Graduated in Arts and Theology at the University of Wales, Bangor and took a Master's degree of the University of London. A Baptist Minister, who until his retirement was Principal of the South Wales Baptist College, Cardiff. He is the author of commentaries on the Book of Revelation and the Epistle to the Hebrews. R.Telfryn Pritchard Educated in the Department of Classics, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, where he took a Master's degree and a PhD. Until his retirement he was a Reader in the same department. His main publications are on Roman history and Latin of the Middle Ages, including a handbook on ancient Romans. Catrin Haf Williams Graduated in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, University of Wales, Bangor followed by a PhD of the University of Cambridge. Senior Lecturer in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Bangor University. Among her publications is a commentary of the Book of Revelation. John Tudno Williams Educated at the University of Oxford and the Theological College, Aberystwyth, where he took his PhD. Minister of the Presbyterian Church of Wales, and until his retirment was Principal of the Theological College, Aberystwyth. He has published commentaries on Job, 1 Corinthians and Galatians and Philippians. Literary Consultant: Who are the Welsh Books Council? The Welsh Books Council is a national body, funded by the Welsh Assembly Government, which provides a focus for the publishing industry in Wales. It provides a number of specialist services (in the fields of editing, design, marketing and distribution) with a view to improving standards of book production and publication in both Welsh and English.
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