A Bible for the Datooga People
For many years the churches of the Mbulu district in Tanzania have actively spread the gospel amongst the inhabitants of the area. This region is characterised by the fact that ethnic groups of various origin live intermingled, such as the Datooga, the Iraqw, the Iramba and others. The active members of the church originate from all these ethnic groups, including Datooga. However, due to the nomadic origin of the Datooga and the relative small size of its population, a written Datooga language has never been developed. Moreover, most Datooga only speak their own language and hardly any speak Swahili, which makes it impossible for them to learn, share, or strengthen their belief through the Holy Bible.
Following the initiative of local church members, a project was started in 1985 with the following objective:
To make the gospel available to the Datooga by the creation of a written Datooga language and the subsequent translation of the whole bible.
Project history
The project of translating the Bible into the Datooga language was initiated back in 1985 by Dr. Isaack Malleyeck and Pastor Joseph Maho, together with a group of interested Datooga members of the Lutheran Church of Mbulu. Their initiative was supported by both the Mbulu and central Diocese of this church.
Phase 1: The written language
In 1987 the SIL (Summer Institute of Linguistics - Wycliffe) showed their interest in the project and two of their missionaries were made available for a two year period to assist in the creation of the Datooga Phonology - a written Datooga language - and the work commenced in January 1990.
On the 14th of January 1990 the project was officially started with a big service in the Haydom Lutheran church. It was a tremendous experience to see several thousand people gathered for this event, including many Datooga people. The whole service was translated directly to the Datooga language and it was amazing to see how the Datooga people enjoyed hearing the gospel in their own language. The singing afterwards, where the Datooga women joined in with a Christian song written in their own language and with their own folk tune, was an experience one will never forget.
The phonological work and preparation for the actual translation was administered by an executive committee, consisting of 4 members of the involved churches and 5 local Datooga. The office for the project is stationed within the ELCT Mbulu Diocese in the village of Basotu, about 25 km from Haydom. The project was temporarily halted in 1993, due to the repatriation of the involved linguistic experts. In 1995 a new team arrived in Basotu, which, after having learned the Datooga language, finalised its phonology. The results were presented in June 1997 and the official publication of "Datooga Phonology" was published.
Phase 2: The translation of the New Testament
The translation of the new testament started in April 1998 and is currently being performed by three full-time translators. They have the support of a reviewing committee, which consists of members who speak different dialects of Datooga. The translators alternate on making field visits to teach the alphabet to the Datooga, whereas the other two are working in the office on the actual translation.
Phase 3: The translation of the Old Testament
The project is advancing very well and it has recently (as of 2006-12-06) entered its 3rd phase, finished New Testament and starting translation of the Old Testament.