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**List: Latvian Ministry Bible ( Bihbele )
LETTISH, OR LIVONIAN.--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition) Samuel Bagster [Info only: Gothic Character n.d. John 1:1-14 unknown.] |
Latvian Bible History (3)
**List: Latvian Ministry
Bible ( Bihbele )
Latvian...
LETTISH, OR LIVONIAN. "II.--CHARACTERISTICS OF THE DIALECT. The Lettish and Lithuanian are both cognate dialects of the Old Prussian language, now extinct;
but Lettish has admitted many Finnish and German elements, and has lost the simplicity of its ancient
grammatical structure. Its orthography is regulated according to the German model; and a system
so ill calculated to express the peculiarities of its articulations causes this dialect to appear intricate and
abstruse to foreigners.III.--VERSION OF THE SCRIPTURES IN THIS DIALECT. .... The Livonians are indebted for their
version of the Bible to Ernest Glück, dean of the Lutheran Church in Livonia. He was a native of
Saxony, and on his settlement in Livonia he was grieved to find that the people were still destitute
of the Scriptures in their vernacular tongue. He therefore applied himself assiduously to the task of
producing a translation of the entire Scriptures from the sacred originals; and with this object in view
he repaired to Hamburg, there to qualify himself for the undertaking, by studying Hebrew under
Edzardi, the celebrated Hebraist. On his return to Livonia in the year 1680, Glück commenced his
version, to which he devoted the chief part of his time during a period of eight years. The New
Testament was published in 1685, and the entire Bible in 1689, at Riga. The work was edited, and
probably revised, by John Fischer, a German professor of divinity, and general superintendent of
Livonia; it was dedicated to Charles XI., who had commanded its publication, and by whom every
expense attending it was paid. It is stated, in a preface by the translator or editor, that all efforts to
establish schools among the Livonians had proved impracticable, owing to the opposition of the people,
until endeavours were made to give them the Scriptures in their native tongue; then, the writer tells
us, the grace of God was so manifested among them, that they not only became willing to be taught,
but made astonishing progress in the knowledge of the truth.
Only 1500 copies of this edition were printed; the paper was obtained from France, and a singular
incident occurred during the voyage. The vessel in which this paper was deposited was taken by
a pirate; but on being informed that the paper was intended for an impression of the Bible, the pirate
instantly released the vessel with its cargo, and suffered it to proceed on its voyage. This edition was
so soon exhausted, that early in the following century it was found necessary to undertake another.
The care of this edition devolved on James Benjamin Fischer, son and successor of John Fischer, the
editor of the first edition. The text was diligently revised by five divines, and, on the completion of
their labours, an edition of 9000 copies of the entire Bible was printed at Königsberg, in 1739. The
New Testament had previously appeared separately at Riga, in 1730.
In 1814, another impression of the New Testament, according to the received edition of Fischer,
without alterations or additions, was commenced at Mittau, in Courland, where the Courland section
of the St. Petersburg Bible Society was established. This edition, which consisted of 15,000 copies,
left the press in 1815. In 1824, it appeared from the Report of the Russian Bible Society, that there
had been printed by the Society 30,000 New Testaments, and nearly 4000 Bibles, in this dialect.
Numerous copies of the Lettish Testament have also, within a recent period, been distributed in the
province by the agency of the American Bible Society. An edition of 20,500 New Testaments in
Lettish has subsequently (1854) been printed at the expense of the British and Foreign Bible Society."--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition) Samuel Bagster [Info only]LETTISH, OR LIVONIAN.--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition) Samuel Bagster [Info only: Gothic Character n.d. John 1:1-14 unknown.]
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