Quality Bible Translations in Minority Languages. Can it be done? An update.

The original version of this paper, published in 2015, aimed to establish that it is not only possible, but even likely, that a translation of the Bible carried out in a minority language by a small team, can have the same level of quality as a translation carried out by a large, well-funded team in a national language. In order to validate this seemingly outrageous claim, the paper first looked at a broad definition of a good quality translation, and then investigated how the various criteria that contribute to good quality operate in the different contexts in which a Bible translation project takes place. The criterion of acceptability (Iver Larsen) or perceived authenticity (David Andersen) is especially crucial in this discussion as it brings in the opinions of the target audiences. In this update I will look at how good quality translation is achieved in one of the minority Polynesian languages in Papua New Guinea. The final conclusion lists the conditions which must be met in a minority Bible translation project to achieve a translation of good quality.