Y Beibl cyssegr-lan

Title page of the 1588 Welsh Bible

Y Beibl cyssegr-lan sef Yr Hen Destament, a'r Newydd by William Morgan, was the first complete translated version of the Bible to appear in Welsh in 1588.^[1]

Background[]

It took some years for the translation to be completed in printed form between the Act of Parliament of 1563 and its publication in 1588. Morgan was a Cambridge graduate and later became bishop of Llandaff and St Asaph. He based his translation on the Hebrew and Greek original Bibles, consulting also the English Bishops' and Geneva versions. Y Beibl cyssegr-lan included original translations as well as adaptations of Salesbury's New Testament. No other Welsh book has been as influential for it is a work of great linguistic and literary significance. The translator skillfully moulded the classical language of the poets into the literary Welsh known to us today. In short, the book is the foundation stone on which modern Welsh literature has been based. It also allowed a highly monoglot Welsh population to read and hear the scriptures in their own language for the very first time.^[2]

1630 version[]

The 1630 edition of Y Beibl Cyssegr-lan, sef yr Hen Destament a'r Newydd was largely identical to previous printed editions, apart from its size. The 1630 version is known as the first family or everyday Bible in the Welsh language. Bishop Richard Parry of St Asaph was initially considered its main contributor, modifying William Morgan's 1588 translation of the Bible; he himself did not recognize any other contributing partners. However, evidence shows that his brother-in-law, scholar Dr John Davies, reformed and standardized most of Morgan's 1588 translation.^[3]

See also[]

• Bible translations into Welsh

External links[]

• A digital facsimile of a 1588 copy

References[]

This article about translation of the Bible is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by .

• v
• t