Muapula Mission - Mozambique

Bible Translation and Missions
The New Testament
The Old Testament
A Makhua Xirima Children’s Bible!
The Translators and the Translation
The Language

Bible Translation and Missions
History teaches us that any solid church planting effort and pioneer missionary endeavour goes hand in hand with the translation of the Bible into the local vernacular. Bible Translation and missions amongst the unreached is inseparably linked. The work among the Makhua Xirima in rural Niassa Province is such a pioneer outreach. Although there is an existing translation in a “related” Makhua Xirima dialect, it is written using a very poor, almost totally illegible orthography which virtually ensures no access to the Bible for almost all Makhua Xirima people. This existing translation also frequently displays shocking syncretistic elements – it is perhaps a good thing that almost no Makhua Xirima speaker can read it! For all practical purposes we consider the Makhua Xirima people to be without the Word of God. Very few of them understands Portuguese well. One of the most basic tools in our missionary effort amongst the Xirima people is the Word of God and therefore it needs to be translated.


a Portion of John 3:16 in Makhua Xirima

The New Testament
Dr Gerard Olivier worked on the Makhua Xirima New Testament from 998 until 2006. He and his family lived in Muapula for 8 years. After arriving he first learnt Portuguese, and then painstakingly started to analyze the Xirima language before translating the New Testament into this language with the help of two language helpers. During this time he completed his PhD – focusing on combining Biblical Greek and Applied Linguistics – a technique that he subsequently applied to the whole process of the translation. In the process, he together with the Van der Merwes systemized the orthography and he started to write a basic grammar and dictionary for Xirima. He had a few locals helpers that translated with him – especially Domingos, who has a wonderful and natural gift for this. He finished the Xirima New Testament in 2006. The inauguration of the Makhua Xirima New Testament in April 2007 was a very special event. The small Makhua church that was planted in 1996 by Rev Frits van der Merwe, was ecstatic about the precious gift of God’s Word in their language.

The Makhua Xirima New Testament

The Old Testament
Dr. Oliver lived and worked in South Africa from 2006-2008 as a pastor of a congregation in Port Elizabeth while still visiting Mozambique a few times. In 2008 he and his wife, Vanessa, clearly felt the Lord calling them to head up the project to translate the Makhua Xirima Old Testament. The project is indeed more than just the Old Testament. It is the BIBLE in Makhua that needs to be translated and printed. This means the integrations of the existing New Testament with the Old Testament as it develops. He Started this work, to complete the entire Makhua Xirima Bible, at the beginning of 2009. The ultimate goal is to help the Makhuas write their own history by giving them… His story. The Bible in Makhua Xirima will enable them to know God’s heart. His burden is to do unto them that which we would have others do to us; showing practical love through putting into their hands that which will remain with this people group until the day Jesus comes again – the Bible in their language!

A Makhua Xirima Children’s Bible!



The almost zero knowledge of the Bible on the part of the Makhua Xirima people underlines the need for a Bible Translation on the one hand, but on the other hand it also poses a practical challenge – how does one establish some Bible knowledge amongst them while they are still waiting for the whole Bible. The opportunity arose to us and existing English Children’s Bible and only replace the text – using the lovely colour illustrations etc just like they are. The translation of a Children’s Bible has several advantages: It is simple to read and can be employed at the school as well; it’s illustrations makes the Bible stories more vivid; it can serve as a very handy bridge between the existing New Testament and the impending Old Testament and it also serves to convey some basic and vital Bible Knowledge. Pastor Frits, his son Willem and some Makhuas translated the text in 2006/7 and Dr Olivier undertook the final phases of it . With the aid and tremendous experience of rev. Giep Louw, we were able to “piggy-back” onto an Africa wide order of these Children’s Bibles – only having to pay for the printing without having to do the illustrations etc. This Bible has more than 70 great stories from Old and New Testament. We called it Inyaha Sitokoko sa mBibiliyani – the Great Stories of the Bible” – since the market for it amongst the Makhua Xirima is much wider than just children. In February 2009 we received these wonderfully illustrated Bibles from the print in Singapore and some of them have been delivered to Muapula already!

The Translators and the Translation
With the translation of the Old Testament, the approach will be different. Dr Olivier will (for a number of reasons) still be based in South Africa, going to Muapula regularly to guide, equip and translate with the translation team, existing of member of the little church planted in Muapula. This is in line with a strong modern tendency amongst some major Bible Translation organizations who emphasizes the need for empowering and training mother tongue speakers to translate the Bible. This is a very long and slow process. The best way to do it is in practice – using the translation of the Makhua Xirima Old Testament. In this regard, Dr. Olivier will play a number of roles for the first few years Lord willing, namely that of co-translator, trainer and translator consultant – checking the translation as it develops as well.
Pastor Van der Merwe together with the elder chose a number of potential candidates for the translation team. When Dr Olivier visited Muapula in March 2009, he worked with them in order to see who will eventually form the translation team. This time around, the approach will be to do a thorough first draft. With the translation of the New Testament, the emphasis was just to get something in writing as soon as possible and take it through several drafts. This time there will be a threefold process during the first draft. With guidance from Dr Olivier, three local believers will translate the first texts. They will then call two other local believers as a sort of first control group to listen to their translation. Dr Olivier will then check that text on his own and with the three Mother Tongue Translators, employing the control group when necessary as well. From there this text will be given to pastor Van der Merwe to proof read it (spelling, punctuation, orthographical consistency etc). Once that is done, that will be called the first draft. He will start to use this first draft in his work in order to check it “in the field” as well. From there on it will be a matter of smaller changes and checks before preparing it for print.

The Language
Here is some linguistic background about the Makhuas:
According to Newitt (1995: 62 – 63) the distinctive Makhua dialects originated from one Makhua language that was spoken about a thousand years ago. “The Makua language is now spoken in dialects sufficiently distinct to suggest that a thousand years may have passed since the break-up of the original Makua speaking group”. There are no clear answers as to the etymology of the word “Makhua” . Hypotheses vary from “savages” (thus a non Makhua term ascribed to them from the outside) to “person who yell” (okhuwa/okhuwela means to yell or shout for joy) to “those who come from Goa” (thus “MaKoa”). According to Prata (1960: 3) the most plausible solution is found in the word “nikhuwa” which probably comes from nikuwa and which means “an extensive desolate marshland” or even “jungle”.

The history of the Makhua Xirima and its language family can be described as follows (2000 Ethnologue):

MAKHUWA-SHIRIMA (WEST MAKUA, XIRIMA, ESHIRIMA, CHIRIMA, SHIRIMA, MAKHUWA-NIASSA) [VMK] 900,000 (1996). Centre may be Mada, south of the Lugenda River in Niassa Province. Niger-Congo, Atlantic-Congo, Volta-Congo, Benue-Congo, Bantoid, Southern, Narrow Bantu, Central, P, Makua (P.30). Probably not intelligible with the Metto dialect of Makhuwa. Survey needed.

For a long time there was a lot of uncertainty about how many Makhua languages there really are. The bigger groups were always mentioned, but just how many languages are there in the Makhua family? This is made even more complex by the fact that there are no uniform understanding of where the absolute line lies between a language and a dialect. According to a cognate count method there are over 90 % similarity between Spanish and Portuguese. Makhua Xirima and its closest relative in the Makhua family (Meto) according to the same method show only a similarity of in the 70 %. Yet there are people who would describe Xirima and Meto as Makhua dialects and Portuguese and Spanish as distinct languages!

The most scientific and thorough division that is available was done in 2001 by Oliver Kröger (from SIL or Sociedade Internacional de Linguística). He/they distinguish between 8 bigger and 4 smaller groups that can be summarized as follow:

Major Dialects
1. Central Makua, often referred to as E-Makhuwana….It is the dialects spoken in Nampula province, also reference dialect for linguistic description or literature production.
2. Makua-Meto. Spoken in Cabo Delgado Province.
3. Makua-Xirima. Spoken in Niassa Province.
4. Makua-Emoniga. Spoken in Pebane district of Zambezia Province. Since the Moniga people live in a geographic pocket, “surrounded” by Lomwe-speakers, their speech is often considered as dialect of Lomwe.
5. Makua-Emarevone. Spoken in Moma District of Nampula Province. Of all coastal dialects, this is the most distinct from the central variant.
6. Makua-Esaka. Both on the border between Nampula and Cabo Delgado Province. Maybe intelligible with Makua-Meto.
7. Makua of Tanzania. Very Probable includes the Makua of Rovuma.
8. Makua Enahara, spoken on Mozambique Island an in the neighboring districts on the continent.

Smaller dialects
9. Makua-Enlai, spoken north and north-west of Angoche city.
10. Makua-Empamela, spoken north-west and west of Angoche city.
11. Makua-Emwaja, spoken in parts of Memba district in northern Nampula Province.
12. Makua of Mogincual, spoken in the district of the same name.

Lomwe is considered by Kröger as “another language, but closely related to Makua”.