page_title: Bible translations into Malay
section_title: Third era of Bible translation
hierarchical_section_title: Bible translations into Malay / Modern Malay (From the 20th century) / Third era of Bible translation
caption_attribution_description: Bahasa Melayu: Alkitab Shellabear 1912; Cetakan Semula Tahun 1949; Muka pertama terjemahan Injil Matius.
context_page_description: Bible translations into Malay include translations of the whole or parts of the Bible into any of the levels and varieties of the Malay language. Publication of early or partial translations began as early as the seventeenth century although there is evidence that the Jesuit missionary, Francis Xavier, translated religious texts that included Bible verses into Malay as early as the sixteenth century.
  The Protestant Reformation saw the rise in interest in vernacular translations of the Bible in Europe. By the sixteenth century, Protestant European nations like the Dutch Republic and England had begun to encroach into the traditional realms of influence of the Catholic Portuguese in the Malay archipelago. With the Dutch domination of the East Indies, where Malay was the lingua franca of trade, the translation of the Bible into Malay was one of the first extant translations of the Bible in a language that wasn't from Europe or the Middle East.
context_section_description: As a result of these developments it became increasingly difficult to develop a common Malay language Bible for both these regions. Different social and political developments post-independence also contributed to this difficulty. Although a common translation was still in use up until the 1970s, translation work had begun to diverge into two independent, if related enterprises, as early as the turn of the 20th century.
  In 1890, the Anglican Bishop of Labuan, Sarawak and Singapore, George Hose, had written to the BFBS saying that even Keasberry's translation needed to be revised to make it more accessible
  "for Eurasians, Chinese, Klings (sic), etc. A simple but grammatical style, such as people of the upper classes use colloquially was wanted.
  A revision committee was set up consisting of Bishop Hose, W. H. Gomes of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel and a Methodist missionary, William Shellabear. Progress was slow and by 1897, only the Gospel of Matthew was fully translated and published. In 1899, Shellabear was appointed chief reviser by the BFBS and assigned to work full time to complete a new Malay translation of the New Testament.
  Shellabear's work was aided by Bishop Hose as well as Muhammad Ibrahim Munsyi, the son of Munshi Abdullah who also served as a scribe in the court of the Sultan of Johore. In 1904, the translation of the New Testament was completed and by 1909 the translation of the Old Testament was also complete. Both were published in a single volume in Jawi in 1912.
  The translation work was mired by occasionally acrimonious disputes between the various parties that had an interest in the publication of the Bible; the BFBS, NBG, the Methodist Publishing House (formerly the Mission Press established by Shellabear), the Anglican Church and the British administration. The primary dispute between the Bible Societies and the Methodists was over pay, compensation and finances borne by Shellabear. 
  Another dispute that threatened to delay the publication of the new translation was on the Romanised spelling orthography to be used. The British administration had introduced a standardised Romanised spelling for the Malay language in 1902 and the BFBS with the support of Bishop Hose wanted to use it. This was not favoured by the missionaries and Shellabear himself who preferred to use the spelling standard established by the Mission Press and had been used to educate children in the mission schools as well as the bulk of printed Malay literature, both Christian and secular, at that time. A compromise was finally reached where it was agreed that both versions would be printed by the BFBS and the Methodist Publishing House respectively and sold at the same price.
  A more long running dispute was on the need to have the Old Testament translated. In 1905, the BFBS decided to prepare a revision of Klinkert's Old Testament. This was initially agreed to by the NBG but was opposed by the latter's agent in Batavia, L. J. van Wijk, initially over how it would affect the sale of unsold stock of the Leydekker and Klinkert Bibles. The argument eventually revolved on the suitability of the Dutch East Indies translated versions for use in the Malay Peninsula, both from a linguistic and Romanised spelling perspective. Only the Leydekker translation was available in Jawi in which the spelling for Malay was more consistent in both regions and the linguistic unsuitability of that version for use in the Malay Peninsula had long been accepted by the BFBS. Shellabear eventually proceeded with his translation which was completed in 1909 and published in 1912 over the protests of the NBG. Only the Jawi script edition of the Old Testament was ever published and by 1913 a Baba Malay translation had been completed with the help of a local Christian, Chew Ching Yong, and published.
  In 1924, the BFBS and the NBG began discussions on the need for a new editions of the Bible as well as more unified work in publication. An agreement was reached in 1929 between the BFBS, the National Bible Society of Scotland, and the NBG to establish a
caption: Gospel of Matthew. 1912 Shellabear Malay Translation of the New Testament (1949 Reprint)
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