The Bible in 10 more languages! New Testament in 27!
There are estimated to be 6,600 spoken languages in the world and most people would assume that the Bible is available in the vast majority. The fact that fewer than 500 have a Bible shows how little of the real story of Bible translation the statistics alone tell.

Twenty year project
Chuvashia is a republic in the Russian Federation, 400 miles from Moscow, and encircled to the east and the north by the Volga River. An estimated two million people speak the Chuvash language and the Chuvash translation project began 20 years ago, in 1991. The near-20 year journey of the project has produced published samples to whet the appetite along the way: in 1998 the Book of Prophets was published, a Chuvash Children's Bible came out in the same year, and the Pentateuch in 2001.

All have been very warmly received by Chuvash-speakers and very widely publicised by the republic's government and media alike. The disappointment duly felt by the translation team when they learned that no funds were available to publish the Wisdom books and Psalms had a happy outcome.

Eva Lisina, a Chuvash writer and teacher, who has a long been the driving force behind the Bible translation project, started praying that God would somehow provide the funds for those two publications. When she paid her next visit to Moscow, where she has a little flat, she found a pile of unopened post waiting for her. Among the items was a royalty cheque from a German radio station for the broadcast of one of her plays. It was for the exact amount needed to fund the awaited Chuvash publications! Without hesitation, she gave the money to be used for that purpose.

Christianity is widespread in Chuvashia and Chuvash-speaking Christians have warmly embraced the now complete Chuvash Bible. It not only gives identity, status and dignity to the Chuvash as a distinct language group, but thanks in part to the translation, Chuvash is now raising its profile as the lingua franca in Chuvash churches where, a few years ago, only Russian was heard. The new Bible will be used extensively in churches, schools and homes and its impact will be particularly strong in rural areas, where Chuvash is most widely spoken and where church attendance is strongest.

Dr Simon Crisp, Director of UBS Translation Services, served as Translation Consultant to the Chuvash project for nearly 10 years, seeing it through the long process of checking and preparation for printing.

"The new translation will allow the Scriptures to speak with fresh clarity to the Chuvash people," says Dr Crisp, "and will also ensure that the Bible continues to play a central role in Chuvash Church life."