Books on Translation Theory and Practice
Books are listed that consider more general issues of the theory and practice of Bible translation than those listed under other categories. Books are published by UBS and/or edited or authored by Bible Society personnel/close associates.
Title links are to ordering information in the UBS catalog found on this website. For relatively recent works, the "outline" link indicates the content and outline of the book. An "ordering info" link is provided for those books that are not published by UBS.
Translation Approaches
- Bible Translation: Frames of Reference, ed. by Timothy Wilt (St. Jerome, 2003)
Ordering info
Outline 
- Translating the Literature of Scripture: A Literary-Rhetorical Approach to Bible Translation, by Ernst Wendland (SIL, 2004)Outline
- The Bible in the Twenty-First Century, ed. by Howard Clark Kee (American Bible Society, 1993). Varying perspectives on how manuscript and archaeological discoveries, methodologies for study of the Bible, and relatively recent media would influence perspectives on and translation of the Bible, on the verge of moving into the twenty-first century.
- Functional Equivalence in Bible Translating: From One Language to Another, by Jan de Waard and Eugene Nida (Nelson, 1986). A sociosemiotic perspective on translation.
- Signs, Sense, Translation, by Eugene Nida (Bible Society of South Africa, 1984). Communication theory and the importance of semantics for translating.
- The Theory and Practice of Translation, by Eugene Nida and Charles Taber (Brill, 1969). Of historical interest, as a reflection of an influential perspective on Bible translation from the 1950's-80's, and with many insights of contemporary pertinence.
- Traduire sans Trahir, by Jean-Claude Margot (L'age d'homme, 1979). An in-depth presentation strongly influenced by Nida.Ordering info
Translation in Non-Print Media
- Audio-based Translation: Communicating Biblical Scriptures to Non-Literate People, by Julian Sundersingh (UBS and SAIACS Press, 2001)Outline
- Fidelity and Translation: Communicating the Bible in New Media, ed. by P. Soukup and R. Hodgson. (American Bible Society, 1999)
- From One Medium to Another: Basic Issues for Communicating the Scriptures in New Media, ed. by P. Soukup and R. Hodgson (American Bible Society, 1997)
Analysis & Translation of Biblical Texts & Language
- Souls Under the Altar: Relevance Theory and the Discourse Structure of Revelation, by Stephen Pattemore (UBS, 2005)Outline
- Analyzing the Psalms, 2nd edition, by Ernst Wendland (SIL, 2002)Ordering infoOutline
- Hebrew Poetry in the Bible: A Guide for Understanding and for Translating, by Lynell Zogbo & Ernst Wendland (UBS, 2000). Also available in Spanish: PoesÃa del Antiguo Testamento (UBS, 2001), translated and adapted by Alfredo Tepox.Outline
- Idiomatic Expressions of the Hebrew Bible, by Jean-Marc Babut (BIBAL Press, 1999). This study explores the interpretation of idiomatic expressions in Biblical Hebrew, demonstrating an approach to their analysis with a study of seven expressions: "To Speak on the Heart," "His Ears Will Ring," "Stiffen the Neck," "If I Have Found Favor," "May I Find Favor in Your Eyes," "To Fill Behind the Lord," and shub shebut.
Ordering info - Discourse Perspectives on Hebrew Poetry in the Scriptures, ed. by Ernst Wendland (UBS, 1994). Procedures for analysing the discourse organization of a poetic text are defined and these are applied to specific texts.
- The Apocrypha in Ecumenical Perspective, ed. by Siegfried Meurer, editor; translated by Paul Ellingworth (UBS, 1991). The place of the late writings of the Old Testament among the biblical writings, and their significance in the eastern and western church traditions.
- Meaningful Translation: Its Implications for the Reader, ed. by Johannes P Louw (UBS, 1991). The exegetical implications of attempting to prepare meaningful translations are discussed.
- Graphic Design and Bible Reading, by Ernst Wendland and Johannes Louw (Bible Society of South Africa, 1993). Exploratory studies in the typographical representation of the text of Scripture in Translation. Various formats of selected Bible passages are compared and evaluated in terms of how their graphic layout enhances/impairs readability and understanding.
- Lexicography and Translation: With special reference to Bible Translation, ed. by Johannes Louw (Bible Society of South Africa, 1985). Articles by J P Louw, E Wendland, E A Nida, W C Van Wyk, J Lubbe and W S Vorster.
- Style and Discourse: With special reference to the text of the Greek New Testament, by Eugene Nida and others (Bible Society of South Africa, 1983). A description of the elements of Greek style and discourse and their significance to the translation of The Greek New Testament.
- The Practice of Translating: Drills for Training Translators, by Jacob Loewen (UBS, 1981). A set of drills for training translators to recognize and solve typical problems encountered in Bible translating using a dynamic equivalent approach.
Translation and Culture
- Anthropological Approaches to the Interpretation of the Bible, by Krijn van der Jagt (UBS, 2003). An introduction to anthropological approaches and issues and their application to biblical interpretation.
- The Cultural Factor in Bible Translation: A Study of Communicating the Word of God in a Central African Cultural Context, by Ernst Wendland (UBS, 1987). The immediate focus is the range of difficulties encountered in two East African languages, Chichewa and Chitonga, but the theoretical framework makes the study instructive for anyone grappling with crosscultural translation problems.
- Sociolinguistics and Communication, ed. by Johannes Louw (UBS, 1986). A study of the complex array of cultural factors and interpersonal relationships that transform and define the meaning of a text.
- Language, Society, and Bible Translation: With special reference to the style and structure of segments of direct speech in the Scriptures, by Ernst Wendland (UBS, 1985). The book explores several aspects of sociolinguistic analysis which are of special relevance to the translation of Scripture, with emphasis on portions of direct discourse.
- Issues in Bible Translation, ed. by Philip Stine (UBS, 1988). Fifteen papers given at the UBS Triennial Translation Workshop held in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, USA in May 1987 on the topics of discourse structure, sociolinguistics, and sociological approaches to exegesis.
Translation in Africa
- Bible Translation & African Languages, ed. by Gosnell Yorke and Peter Renju (Acton, 2004)Outline
- Biblical Texts & African Audiences, ed. by Ernst Wendland & Jean-Claude Loba Mkole (Acton, 2004)Outline
- God Speaks in Our Own Languages, by Aloo Mojola (Bible Societies of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, 1999). "...offers an overview of [Bible translation] from its beginnings in 1844 to the present [in] Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda" (from the cover).
- 150 Years of Bible Translation in Kenya, by Aloo Mojola (Bible Societies of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, 1994). Booklet providing a historical overview of translation in Kenya.
- Bridging the Gap: African Traditional Religion and Bible Translation, ed. by Philip Stine and Ernst Wendland (UBS, 1990). Studies in translating religious vocabulary in several African cultures.