Hermann Gundert was an extraordinary linguist, missionary, and educationalist. His translation principles were very impressive: faithfulness to the original, maintaining the aesthetic qualities of the original in translation as well as utilizing literary qualities of Malayalam, domesticating translation rather than foreignizing, maintaining formal equivalence, and word-for-word translation.
Introduction
Though it was traditionally believed that the gospel of
Christ reached Kerala in CE 51 by apostle Thomas, Christians in Kerala had to
wait until 1811 to receive a portion of scripture in their own language
Malayalam, a Dravidian language. This does not mean that Kerala Christians had
no Bible until 1811. Having a rich early-form Christian heritage, specifically
in Eastern tradition, the Old Syriac Bible was used among Kerala
Christians but without any wide circulation.[1]
In the nineteenth century, there were four major efforts in Kerala by Western
missionaries and natives to translate the Bible into Malayalam: Dr. Claudius
Buchanan and Syrian Christian church (known as Ramban Bible, published
in 1807), Benjamin Bailey of CMS (1825), Dr. Hermann Gundert of Basel Mission,
and T. Spring of Chaplain of the East India Company at Thalassery (George 1972, 62-63). Except for Spring’s
translation, the other three efforts successfully reached publishing
scripture in Malayalam. This paper is interested in Herman Gundert’s Bible
because its history displays various socio-literary dynamism in play in
translation and its acceptability. I will initially discuss the background that
led to translation and the stakeholders of the translation before I briefly
discuss the principles of translation that Gundert employed, as well as the
revision and acceptability of Gundert’s translation. I will argue that
differences in dialects, issues in acceptability of previous Malayalam
translations, and differences in the paradigm of translation led Gundert
and the Basal mission to translate the Bible into Malayalam; and their
translation became influential despite opposition from other Western
missionaries on the ground of translation paradigm and became the key version
behind, especially the New Testament, the widely accepted Malayalam Bible Sathyavedapusthakam
because of its literary as well as translation quality.
Background of Translation
Hermann Gundert was born in Germany in 1814. He studied
theology and Sanskrit at Tubingen University before he completed his doctorate
in 1835. He joined the Basal Mission at Thalassery, Kerala, in 1838 (Pavel 2024,
76).
He was a gifted linguist, missionary, and educationalist who contributed
enormously to the development of Christianity, the Malayalam language, and
education in Kerala.
Gundert decided to engage in Bible translation even though
the Syrian church and Benjamin Bailey published Malayalam Bible translations
because both versions were not acceptable to the Northern part of Kerala. The Syrian
version was heavily influenced by the religious dialect of the Syrian
Christian community, a religious language heavily influenced by Syriac, and
this religious dialect was not common among all Malayalam-speaking people (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xxxxiiii). This was not acceptable to Northern Malayalee
Christians. Similarly, Bailey’s translation was rejected by Northern Kerala as
the Southern dialect, English, and Hebraism heavily influenced it. Gundert
himself was very critical of Bailey’s translation, noticing that Bailey’s
translation blindly followed English versions and that the literary beauty
of the poetic books and prophetic books was lost in the translation (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xxiv).
Therefore, Gundert wanted to translate the Bible into Malayalam, which would be
acceptable to the Northern Malayalees and faithful to the original source
texts; his dissatisfaction and weakness with the other translations led him to
his translation project.
The Basal mission was keen on supporting Gundert and
providing a Malayalam version to the Northern Malayalee Christians. The
mission actively supported and published Gundert’s translation and even
established printing presses in Mangalore to publish Bibles. Further, Gundert
was an expert in Hebrew and Greek (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xxii).
He translated the Bible directly from Hebrew and Greek to Malayalam. He was
also a scholar of the Malayalam language and extensively surveyed and
researched it. He published the first Malayalam dictionary and grammar. He
also wrote several prose books and a textbook for schools. He was capable of
handling both the source language (Greek and Hebrew) and target language
(Malayalam, spoken in Northern Kerala).
Gundert took 40 years to translate books of the Bible. He
began publishing Bible tracts in 1842, consisting of a portion of
scripture. He adopted Indian cultural elements into these early translations
and publications, which was opposed by the other European missionaries. The
Basal mission was also not in favor of such a methodology. Consequently,
he abandoned this methodology (Zacharia 1993,
34).
The New Testament books from Romans to Revelation were published in Thalassery,
Kerala, in 1852-1854. Thereafter, he completed the remaining part of the New
Testament, and the entire New Testament published it in 1856. This version was
revised by Gundert and published in 1868 in Mangalore (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xv).
He began translating the Old Testament poetic books and published them in 1857
in Thalassery with the title of Pavithra Lekhakal. He completed the Old
Testament prophetic books in 1884 and published them in 1886 in Mangalore with
the title Pravaachaka Lekhakal (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xv).
He completed the translation of the entire Bible in 1880 (Malayil, n.d.). Unlike Bailey’s translation,
in which Bailey was assisted by eight Syrian priests and others in the
translation process, Gundert was engaged in translation mostly alone. It
is not known to us whether anyone else assisted him or he tested his
translation. However, the process of his translation should be noted: He began
with tracts and got feedback on them. Eventually, he published portion
after portion of the Bible. Therefore, he might have had opportunities to test
and get feedback on his translation.
In sum, Basal Mission supported Gundert’s Bible translation
for Malayalam-speaking people in North Kerala. Gundert, who was an expert in
both source and target languages, produced his translation by addressing
weaknesses of other Malayalam translations, keeping principles of faithfulness
to the source text, and taking advantage of linguistic forms in both target and
source languages. It was also the result of his forty years of hard work
and perseverance.
Translation Paradigm
Gundert was a gifted linguist, and he appreciated the aesthetic
qualities of Biblical literature in the original languages as well as the
Malayalam language. In a paper about Bible translation, presented in 1876 at a
missionary conference in Bremen, which was published in Indian Evangelica
Review in the same year, Gundert emphasized the importance of the
knowledge of Biblical languages as well as the vernacular tongue in producing a
translation (Zacharia and Gundert 1992, xxxi–xxxv). He was qualified by his own
standards as he was a scholar in both Biblical languages as well as Malayalam
language. Unlike the Ramban Bible, based on the Syriac Bible and
Bailey’s translation, which was more influenced by the English Bible, Gundert
used the Greek and Hebrew source texts to translate the Bible into
Malayalam. He was very keen on maintaining fidelity to the original in his
translation. Furthermore, he was interested in maintaining the literary quality
of translation. He rendered Hebrew poetry into Malayalam, maintaining the poetic
quality of the original. He was very particular in maintaining the poetic
qualities of the original in the Malayalam translation (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xxviii). His Bible also employed Malayalam poetic and
prose qualities in the translation. His translation employed more Dravidian
words instead of using heavily Sanskritized dialects (Zacharia 1993,
34-35)
and Anglo-Malayalam. Moreover, Scaria Zacharia observes that Gundert maintained
the formal equivalence principle in his translation (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xxx).
In a letter from Basal Missionaries regarding Gundert’s translation, it can be
inferred that the Basal mission supported the word-for-word translation
principle, which is followed in Gundert’s Bible (Gundert and Zacharia 1992,
xxxxvi–xxxxviii).
In short, his translation paradigm was inclined to the principle of formal
equivalence and domestication.
Even though Gundert’s translation’s aesthetic and literary
quality were appreciated, it was without any defect. There are issues in
stylistic/idiomatic expressions in this Bible, and Zacharia notices that these errors happened
because Gundert was not a native speaker
(Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xxv).
Despite these criticisms, the literary and translation quality of Gundert’s
Bible and his translation paradigm are widely appreciated.
Acceptability and Revisions
Gundert’s translation was widely accepted in Northern
Kerala. His translation eventually got acceptance in other parts of Kerala and
had revisions. Gundert himself revised his New Testament and published it in
1868 in Mangalore (Zacharia and
Gundert 1992, xv).
Though Malayalam got three translations of the New Testament, there was a felt need to use available versions and talents to make a common version that would be acceptable to all Christians. The Madras Auxiliary of the Bible Society appointed a committee to create a common version in 1871. The committee consisted of representatives from the Church Missionary Society, the London Mission, the Basel Mission, and the Syrian church, and Gundert’s translation was taken as the base version for this common version (George 1972, 66). However, there were differences in opinion on using Gundert’s Bible for this purpose among CMS missionaries and Basal missionaries in the committee (Zacharia and Gundert 1992, xxxxvi). The CMS missionaries opposed using Gundert’s Bible as a base version for the common version for the following reasons: Firstly, the language in Gundert’s Bible was not suitable for the uneducated and the majority of Christians in Kerala. Secondly, the version was literal and slavishly stylistic. Finally, it included several new terms and difficult words (Zacharia and Gundert 1992, xxxxvi). However, the Basal mission strongly defended their support for using Gundert’s Bible as a base version with the following arguments: Firstly, the Basal mission opposed lowering the language standard as education was fast spreading in Kerala. Secondly, they were not ready to accept Bailey’s translation because it had more Anglo-Malayalam than Dravido-Malayalam. They were in favor of more Dravidian elements in the translation (domestication) instead of foreign elements (foreignizing). Thirdly, they wanted Gundert’s translation because its renderings matched better with the original Hebrew and Greek than Bailey’s translation, as they conceived Bailey’s translation used more paraphrasing instead of having word-for-word translation. Finally, they supported new words in translation as they wanted to Christianize Malayalam more and more, to train people in pure vernacular language rather than any foreign tongue, and to avoid using Sanskrit to explain Christian concepts. However, after a decade of efforts, no significant progress was made. Finally, in 1889, a revised New Testament based on Gundert’s transition was published. The Greek Bible was the source text for this revision, but the committee used insights from extensive analysis of Bailey’s translation, German Bibles, Tamil Bible, and Syrian Bible. Further, the committee revised Bailey’s Old Testament translation in light of Gundert’s style of translation exhibited in the New Testament and insights from English versions. Together, this revised Old Testament and Gundert’s revised New Testament, published in 1889, became part of the complete Bible known as Union Version by the Bible Society of India. Today, after numerous revisions, this Union Version, which carries the legacy of Gundert and Bailey, remains widely used among Kerala Christians except for Catholics (Zacharia 1993, 35). Though Gundert translated the Bible into Malayalam for Northern Malayalees, his translation, especially the New Testament, was revised several times and eventually accepted across Kerala and became part of a widely used Malayalam Bible called Sathyavedapusthakam (സത്യവേദപുസ്തകം).
My Reflection
Gundert was an extraordinary linguist, missionary, and
educationalist. His translation principles were very impressive: faithfulness
to the original, maintaining the aesthetic qualities of the original in
translation as well as utilizing literary qualities of Malayalam, domesticating
translation rather than foreignizing, maintaining formal equivalence, and
word-for-word translation. His sharp discernment of the need for a translation
for the Northern Malayalees despite the existence of two translations of the New
Testament in the Southern part of Kerala was appreciable, and his excellent
translation was eventually accepted even in the South. Even today, his New
Testament translation serves as the base translation for the widely used
Malayalam Bible called Sathyavedapusthakam. Though it took forty years
to complete the Bible, Gundert was persistent and tenacious. He is truly an
inspiration for Bible translators, and his work brings insights into several
translation dilemmas, such as different dialects in the same people group,
differences in translation principles, and the process of translation with
limited means in challenging situations.
Conclusion
Gundert’s contribution to Christianity in Kerala, the Malayalam
language, and education is greatly appreciated by the Keralites. The
translation of the Bible into Malayalam was one of his greatest contributions. Though
he translated the Bible for the Northern Malayalees, his translation was widely
accepted across Karala and became the base translation for the widely
used Sathyavedapusthakam. His Bible translation was a great and influential
contribution to Christians in Kerala, and it was also one of the significant contributions
to the language of Malayalam. His poetic and prose style is appreciated, along
with his deep grasp of the Malayalam language. His sense of translation principles
and his stern desire to maintain fidelity to Hebrew and Greek source texts
contributed tremendously to his translation and quality of the Malayalam
Bible.
Bibliography
Chavan, Akshay.
2018. “Syriac Bible: Malabar To Cambridge.” PeepulTree. December 24, 2018. https://www.peepultree.world/livehistoryindia/story/living-culture/syriac-bible-malabar-to-cambridge.
George, K. M. 1972. Western Influence on Malayalam Language and
Literature. New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi.
Gundert, Hermann, and Scaria Zacharia. 1992. Hermann Gundert Bible.
Edited by Albrecht Frenz and Scaria Zacharia. Hermann Gundert series / hrsg.
von Albrecht Frenz 6. Kōṭṭayaṃ: D.C Books. https://doi.org/10.20345/digitue.13528.
Malayil, Philip. n.d. “Gundert, Hermann | Dictionary of Christian
Biography in Asia.” Accessed October 21, 2024.
https://dcbasia.org/biography/gundert-hermann.
Pavel, Catalina Ioana. 2024. “Hermann Gundert: Missions, Malabar, and
the Making of Modern Malayalam.” In Nodes of Translation: Intellectual
History between Modern India and Germany, edited by Martin Christof-Füchsle
and Razak Khan, 75–96. De Gruyter Oldenbourg.
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110787184-004.
Zacharia, Scaria. 1993. “Dr. Gundert and the Malayalam Language: The
Context of Understanding.” In Dr. Hermann Gundert and Malayalam Language:
Biography and Critical Studies, edited by Albrecht Frenz, 1. publ, 15–44.
Hermann Gundert Series / Hrsg. von Albrecht Frenz, 3,2. Changanassery, Kerala,
India: Centre for Kerala Studies, St. Berchmans’ College, Mahatma Gandhi
University.
Zacharia, Scaria, and Hermann Gundert. 1992. “Aamukha patanam.” In Hermann
Gundert Bible, edited by Albrecht Frenz and Scaria Zacharia. Hermann
Gundert series / hrsg. von Albrecht Frenz 6. Kōṭṭayaṃ: D.C Books. https://doi.org/10.20345/digitue.13528.
Further Readings:
[1] A twelfth-century
Syriac Bible gifted to Western missionary Claudius Buchanan by Mar Dionysius,
the Metropolitan of the church of Syrian Christians in Kerala, kept in
Cambridge University library in England (Chavan 2018).