RELIGION BULLETIN-COSTA RICA: Translating the Bible into Indigenous Tongue

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Ana Morals

SAN JOSE, Oct 18 1998 (IPS) - For the Bribris, an indigenous group in Costa Rica, the colour red means happiness, whereas in the Bible it symbolizes sin.

This is just one of the many challenges of interpretation that have been cropping up as the Biblical Society of Costa Rica translates the New Testament into the Bribri language.

“The ideas and concepts that we interpret do not always have the same meaning for them, so what we translate is the meaning of a phrase, and not word for word,” says Mayra Ugalde, communications director at the Biblical Society.

Of Costa Rica’s eight indigenous groups, only the Bribris and the Cabecar have managed to maintain their language.The others speak only the official language, Spanish.

The 4,000 to 5,000 Bribris live in a reserve in the Talamanca Mountain Range along Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. Mostly farmers, hunters and fishers, they live a very simple life, although drug trafficking seems to have taken control of a large part of the reserve.

The group has also preserved its religion, according to which Sibu (God) created the world at a sacred mountain called Surayevi. The Bribris were introduced to the study of the Bible some years ago, and since then many have become Catholics.

Parts of the Bible have already been translated into Bribri, including John, Romans, Mark and Apostles. There are also some children’s books with biblical passages. “So far, we have finished six of the 27 books of the New Testament,” says Ugalde.

The translation is being done by members of the Biblical Society and three indigenous elders, who do not think they will live to see e finished text.

The most difficult aspect, says Ugalde, is interpretaion, as one translation error can change the meaning of aphrase entirely. For example, one of th most important concepts is Holy Spirit, but for the Bribris, a spirit is a ghost and the term Holy Spirit does not exist in their language.

“We have to use a combination of words to explain that meaning,” says Ugalde. “That word is translated as ‘Sibu Wimbulo’, which means a spirit with its own personality and characteristics.”

The books that have already been published have been used by the group to teach reading and writing. Each has been evaluated in the Bribri community by children, youth and adults, so as to determine whether the message is conveyed correctly.

According to Ugalde, the intention of the Biblical Society is just to spread the word of God. “Through this, we are making a cultural contribution to the Indians,” she says.

But the indigenous people of Costa Rica see their main struggle as one that is related not to culture but to land rights. Several weeks ago, parliament shelved a bill defending indigenous autonomy and development and calling for the formation of a legislative committee to study indigenous issues.

“Ever since the first meeting on the issue of our nationality, held in 1990, we knew that the right to land would be the next struggle – to preserve and develop the legacy that we have received over thousands of years,” says Pablo Sibar of the Ngobegue Cultural Association, an Amerindian organisation.