Abstract:
Translating the Bible so that target audiences can easily understand the meaning of the text
has dominated the theory and practice of Bible translation since the 1960s. Source oriented
translations that are typically associated with word-for-word translations received little
theoretical reflection. However, developments in Translation Studies have made it clear
that the latter type of translations do not provide the type of equivalence more conservative
churches really call for. The story of the Bible in Afrikaans relates to how the Bible Society of
South Africa (BSSA) has taken seriously the needs of churches in South Africa for a sourceoriented
translation and teamed up with scholars to develop an academically justifiable model
for a new type of church Bible. The functionalist model of Christiane Nord (1997) was used as
point of departure and complimented by that of Ernst-August Gutt (2000). Pointing out the
accomplishments and challenges of this pioneering project, this article paves the way for a
scholarly discourse on source-oriented translations of the Bible.
